Wed.’s Devo - The Gifts

Read: Job 8:1-11:20; 1 Corinthians 15:1-28; Psalm 38:1-22; Proverbs 21:28-29
I have to remind myself that Job and his friends were some of the wisest men of the day who had great insight from God even though they missed it on Job. Bildad understood God’s grace. He said that when you sin, God gives you the penalty of your sin unless you plead with God who will restore you. He, like Eliphaz believed that there was no way all this could be happening to Job unless he had done some secret sin that God was judging him for.
Job complains about his friends saying that a man in despair would have the devotion of his friends even if he was to forsake God, but his friends are as undependable as intermittent streams of water in the desert. They offer no lasting hope. Job accusses them of seeing something they can’t understand and being afraid of it.
Job feels like he is under God’s gun of trials. He is begging for a reprieve from God’s heavy hand. He also begs for his friends to pardon his offenses and forgive his sins: he know that God has. Our Psalm today would have been a great encouragement to Job.
Paul is writing to the church in Corinth where the church is out of order in every way. The women need to be quiet because they are not using their gifts to edify, and the men are speaking out of order also. Since they don’t understand the gifts, they are abusing them. Paul admits that he speaks in tongues much but when he is in the church it must be done orderly. Tongues is a prayer language between you and God, but there are times that God will prompt a person to speak a tongue out in a service. When it is done correctly, there will be a person who can interpret what the tongue said. This person will follow with the interpretation. It is amazing to watch and a wonder that will make a sceptic believe.
When Paul told the women to be quiet, he was talking to the women in Corinth. Many times, Paul explains that there is no difference between man and woman in the eyes of God and he even anointed women for deaconship and other offices. He had women prophetesses and speakers. The devil has taken this one scripture and twisted it to be something it was never intended to be.
Lord, may we be friends that pardon sin and bring encouragement to others. Help us to move in your gifts as you intended them to be used.