The concept of the Gifts of the Holy Spirit, as outlined in the New Testament, is a profound testament to the intricate and transcendent relationship between humanity and the divine. These gifts are not merely symbolic tokens; they are transformative powers that enable individuals to transcend their ordinary limitations and align themselves with a higher purpose. To truly grasp the magnitude of these gifts, one must delve into their biblical foundations and understand their psychological and spiritual implications. In 1 Corinthians 12:7-11, the Apostle Paul provides a detailed enumeration of these gifts: “To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish betwee...
Then Jesus told his disciples, “If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man, if he gains the whole world and forfeits his life? Or what shall a man give in return for his life?" |
Matthew 16:24-28 I'm finding a lot of good stuff in the most unexpected of places nowadays. In Tiktok of all places but I am also happy that at least God's presence is also felt in places where it is foolishness that gets a lot of views and is popular. There's a group of Christian Tiktokers which mentioned about this but in slightly different way. They said that notice how opposite God's and the devil's directions are. The devil's way is very attractive to everyone and is easy and is practical but in the end it eventually leads to death and suffering. Imagine a young guy or girl wanting to enjoy their youth, goes to parties everyday, travels everywhere, tries drugs and then eventually wreck their lives in the end. On the opposite end, God's way is that you are called to sacrifice, to delay gratification and in the end is the sweetness of success and victory. To die everyday so that in the end you'll fully live. Imagine an athlete who wants to be on top of his/her game. The nights that they say no to discos, the food that they crave but refuse to eat, etc and they eventually end up the top players in their sport. Please realise that we are spiritual beings having a temporary human experience. Our home is not the world we now live in but the kingdom of Jesus Christ. We are like whales and dolphins who live in the sea don't belong to it. Just like them, we make effort to go to the surface to breath because we don't really belong in the sea where there is no air but on the surface. |