Title: The Spiritual Principle of Charisma
The spiritual principle of charisma
Corinth Church
Greece, like Korea and Italy, belongs to a peninsula. But the topography is like the body of an ant, the center is constricted. At the southwestern end of the isthmus connecting the northern mainland with the southern Peloponnese lies the city of Corinth. Corinthian, one of the Greek architectural styles, seems to have been named after this city. If you want to go down from the north to the south of Greece, you must go through Corinth, and if you want to go west from the eastern sea, you must also go through Corinth. It is said that Nero gave up while promoting the construction of a canal through this isthmus, and it was completed in 1893 after moving to modern times. Corinth, a major transportation hub, was already a prosperous city in ancient times.
According to Acts 18, Paul came to Corinth via Athens at the end of his second missionary journey. There Paul met Aquila and Priscilla. This couple had a relatively large business in Rome and were the first to come here after being driven out of Rome by the decree of Emperor Claudius, which expelled all Jews from Rome. It was because their occupation was the same leatherworking as Paul, and Paul became friends with them easily. Paul preached the gospel of Jesus to Jews and Greeks, including this couple. According to the book of Acts, Paul's evangelism effect was opposite. The Jews were bitterly opposed, but the Gentiles, or Corinthians, were relatively friendly. Fortunately, Crispus, the leader of the synagogue, and several Corinthians accepted the gospel. This was the beginning of the Corinthian church.
After three or four years, Paul heard the news about the church in Corinth from Ephesus. The news reached him through several channels. One is the news from the Chloe family (1 Corinthians 1:11). The second is the news from Stephana, Pordunado, and Achaeus. (1 Corinthians 16:17) The third is the news from the Corinthian church directly to Paul. (1 Corinthians 7:1) We do not all know what it is specifically. However, we can clearly see from the book of Corinthians that some serious problems are taking place in that church. Broadly speaking, the problem is twofold.
One is the immorality influenced by the citizens of Corinth. Chapters 5-8 discuss this in detail. For example, promiscuous sexual ethics, trials between friends, marriage, free and slave issues, food placed before idols, etc.
The other is the division of the Corinthian church. I don't know if Paul is taking this more seriously. In 1 Corinthians 1, Paul specifically pointed out that the church in Corinth was partisan. Chapter 1:12 says: “In other words, each of you is talking about, saying, I am a Pauline, I am an Apollo, I am a Peter, and I am a Christian. Does this mean that Christ is forked? Was it Paul who was crucified for you? Are you saying that you were baptized in the name of Paul?”
source of charisma
Paul's approach to this division problem is thoroughly theological. At its core, it is ecclesiology. Look at verse 12 of today's text. “As the body is one, but it has many members, and the body has many members, but all of them make up one body, so is the body of Christ.” The church is the body of Christ. This is still an important and essential theological statement for us today.
Think about it. Paul did not say that it is now the body of Jesus, but rather the body of Christ. The body of Jesus and the body of Christ are clearly different. The body of Jesus refers to this body made of the same protein as ours, but the body of Christ refers to the spiritual body that became reality after the resurrection. To be more specific, it means that Christ is the head of the church, and all members of the church are members. This is not a visual explanation, but a theological statement. So we need to understand these words spiritually. To be spiritual means to understand the deep world, not just the superficial.
Think a little more specifically. Jesus Christ is not really our head. They say we are interconnected members, but they are not actually experienced. Most of the religious life is tied to one's own religious desires. While we may be vertically connected to Jesus Christ, horizontally, the relationship between believers seems to have become meaningless. As a single example, although the religious passion of the Korean church for God is second to none, it is difficult to avoid failing scores in terms of the unity of the church. From Paul's teaching that the church is his body with Christ as its head, we must learn what the essence of the church is, that is, the spiritual relationship of the believers who make up it.
There is a reason Paul says so. According to Paul, the source of all charisma is the Holy Spirit. The word that charisma is given by the Holy Spirit appears repeatedly in verses 12:1-11. As pointed out above, the ability to heal diseases is also the charisma that the Holy Spirit gives, and preaching the word is also the charisma that the Holy Spirit gives us. Although Paul did not specifically mention it, the activity of the choir is also a gift, or charisma, given by the Holy Spirit, and church cleaning is also a charisma given by the Holy Spirit. The source of charisma is the Holy Spirit.
You might think you already know this. It has a deeper meaning than you know. It's very comprehensive, and I'm a little hesitant to say what and to what extent, because I don't even know everything.
Let's say you are asked this question. “Have you received the Holy Spirit?” Are you hesitant to answer? You don't even know what the Holy Spirit is, but you probably have a lot of thoughts about how to know whether you have received it or not. Some brave people will unconditionally answer, “Amen.” You might think that I'm not interested in that. A person who is not interested is not an honest person, but a fool. The Holy Spirit is the power of life and the essence of life. The fact that we are alive now means that we are connected to the Holy Spirit in some way. It's just that we don't notice it. Don't think too hard about whether I have received the Holy Spirit. You are already in the Holy Spirit. However, if you ask the question again in connection with the topic of today's sermon, you should think more seriously about whether you are receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit. Don't think too hard about it. If you are in the ecclesial community, you are already in the realm of that gift.
organic community
Let me give you an example. Beethoven wrote both “For Elysee” and Symphony No. 9 “Choral Symphony”. If someone says that “For Elysee” is a prop and therefore low quality and a choral symphony high quality, or says that the conductor of a choral symphony is superior to the person who plays “For Elysee”, he Someone who has no idea what this is.
Individuals are very weak in this respect, so the spirituality of charisma should not be left only to the individual, but the whole community should constantly secure it. The direction is very clear. Whatever you do, whatever position you take, you should move toward saving the community, not the individual. Community is the body of Christ. How can the church community be moved not by people but by the Holy Spirit, the spirit of life? The specific issue should be decided after in-depth reflection on the circumstances of each church, but if we follow Paul’s teaching today, we should consider the “parts considered to be weak” more important (verse 22), and consider “the inconsequential parts” more importantly (verse 22). It should be valued more (v. 24).
This spiritual principle of charisma should be extended not only to the church, but also to the whole world. Shouldn't a world come where poor countries are rather valued? Shouldn't we be aiming for such a world? However, these things are not possible just because someone is forcing them to do so. Only when we deeply understand and trust the fact that all living things are organically related in the Holy Spirit, the source of charisma, can the possibilities open up little by little. I sincerely hope that our church and the Korean church today will become a symbol for this kind of work.