1 Coríntios 12

1 Coríntios 12

Constable has an interesting comment - While the bestowal of gifts is the sovereign prerogative of the Spirit (1 Cor 12:8-11, 18), human desire plays a part in His bestowal (cf. James 4:2). This seems to indicate that the Spirit does not give all His gifts to us at the moment of our salvation. I see nothing in Scripture that prohibits our viewing the abilities God gives us at birth as part of His spiritual gifts. Likewise a believer can receive a gift or an opportunity for service or the Spirit's blessing on his ministry years after his conversion. Everything we have or ever will have is a gift from God.[Barclay] (1 Corinthians 12 Commentary) W E Vine - The brethren in Corinth did covet the greater gifts, but their estimate concerning them was all awry. We cannot all have the best gifts. We can seek God’s grace and help to desire them and by prayer and humble obedience to His will and the leading of the Spirit, and by placing ourselves at His disposal, being content with what He gives or withholds, we shall find that He will use us for His glory. (Collected Writings). Gilbrant asks regarding the greater gifts "How is this determined, and does it mean one gift is worth more than others? The criterion of worth is use; purpose determines value. Those most serviceable to others are the most valuable and thus the greater or best gifts." (Complete Biblical Library) Earnestly desire (eagerly seek) (2206) zeloo from zelos = zeal in turn from zeo = boil; source of our English word "zeal") properly, to bubble over from getting so hot (boiling) and figuratively to burn with zeal (or intensity), to be fervent, to "boil" with envy, to be jealous. It can be used commendably to refer to a striving for something or showing zeal. Zeloo is an onomatopoeic word imitating the sound of boiling water! The idea is to be deeply committed to something, with the implication of accompanying desire – 'to be earnest, to set one's heart on, to be completely intent upon'. Thiselton adds that zeloo "applies the notion of burning or boiling metaphorically to burning or boiling emotions, stance, or will for earnest striving, for passionate zeal, or for burning envy. Whether it is constructive zeal or destructive envy depends on the context' Zeloo takes the notion of burning or boiling and applies it metaphorically to burning or boiling emotions, stance, or will for earnest striving, for passionate zeal, or for burning envy. Zeloo - Acts 7:9; Acts 17:5; 1 Co. 12:31; 1 Co. 13:4; 1 Co. 14:1; 1 Co. 14:39; 2 Co. 11:2; Gal. 4:17; Gal. 4:18; Jas. 4:2 And I show you a still more excellent (beyond all comparison) way - While every believer can not possess the greater gifts, they can possess and practice something far greater than these greater gifts and that is agape love. Paul says that as good as the greater gifts are, there is an even better way, in fact a way that if "beyond all comparison." (MIT) The Greek word huperbole gives us our English hyperbole which speaks of extravagant exaggeration! In Paul's case this is "extravagant fully inspired exaggeration," so that it is not an exaggeration but a reality. Love surpasses all the gifts combined. This is the way of love and it is available to all believers and it puts all the gifts in proper perspective, for this excellent quality is selfless and sacrificial and seeks the best for the other person. It follows that even the greater gifts without love will be dysfunctional and divisive and destructive to the local Body of Christ. The word way (hodos) is also translated road. The Corinthian church was on a road, but it was a road of division (et al sins) and the potential end of that road was destruction of the church. And so Paul gives the church the "divine detour" they must travel in order to avoid disaster! That road is not a gift but is the sphere in which the gifts, greater or lesser, must be practiced, the "road" of selfless, giving, unconditional agape love. G G Findlay in Expositor's Greek Testament notes "Carefully and luminously Paul has set forth the manifoldness of the Holy Spirit’s gifts that contribute to common life of the Church. All are necessary, all honourable in their proper use; all are of God’s ordination. Some of the charisms are, however, more desirable than others. But if these “greater gifts” be sought in selfish emulation (as the ζηλοῦτε of ver. 31a, taken by itself, might suggest), their true purpose and blessing will be missed; gifts of grace (χαρίσματα) are not for men actuated by the ζῆλος of party spirit and ambition (cf. 4 f., 3:3; 2 Cor. 12:20, Gal. 5:20). While encouraging the Cor. to seek larger spiritual powers, the Ap. must “besides point out” the “way” to this end (31b), the way to escape the perils besetting their progress (4 ff.) and to win the goal of the Christian life (8–13). Love is the path to power in the Church; all loveless abilities, endowments, sacrifices are, frpm the Christian point of view, simply good for nothing (1–3) Robertson and Plummer - The Corinthians coveted the greater gifts, but they had formed a wrong estimate as to which were the greater. The Hymn of Love, which follows, is to guide them to a better decision: not those which make most show, but those which do most good, are the better. As members of one and the same body they must exhibit self-sacrificing love, and they must use their gifts for the benefit of the whole body. This is the lesson of 1 Cor 14:1-40. We cannot all of us have all the best gifts; but (δέ) by prayer and habitual preparation we can strive to obtain them: and a continual desire is in itself a preparation. (1 Corinthians 12 Commentary) Pulpit Commentary - I bid you desire the best gifts, and further show you a truly royal road (viam maxime vialem), a road par excellence, which leads to their attainment. The way of love would lead to them, and it was itself the best of them. "All the way to heaven lies through heaven, and the path to heaven is heaven." Pulpit Commentary, The - The Pulpit Commentary – 1 Corinthians. Show (1166)(deiknuo) means to show and has the sense of to draw attention to, to point out, to make known, to exhibit something (by visual, auditory, gestural, or linguistic means) so that it can be apprehended by the senses. The other nuance of deiknuo is to show so as to prove something is true by evidence and it is this latter sense which applies to Paul's current use as he will give "evidence" to support that love is the more excellent way! Excellent (5236) huperbole from huperballo = a throwing beyond the usual mark from huper = above + ballo = cast) refers to a degree which exceeds extraordinarily a point on an implied or overt scale of extent. It means extraordinary, far more, much greater, to a far greater degree, surpassing, beyond measure, utterly. All NT uses - Rom. 7:13; 1 Co. 12:31; 2 Co. 1:8; 2 Co. 4:7; 2 Co. 4:17; 2 Co. 12:7; Gal. 1:13 Only in 4 Macc 3:18.