1 Corinthians 12-14 - "spiritual gifts" or "spiritual manifestations".

1 Corinthians 12-14 is a passage that is often misunderstood, due to a number of confusing elements in the passage. We�ll look at various problem elements in the next few weeks but this week it�s the terms "spiritual gifts" in 12:1, 14:1 and 14:12, and "spritually gifted" in 14:37. The Greek word behind these terms is translated simply as "spiritual" every other time it is used in scripture except for Romans 1:11. But in this case, the word for "gift" is present in the Greek. It is also clear that 1 Corinthians 12-14 is not a comprehensive discussion of spiritual gifts. Not only are the two lists of gifts different but both differ from other lists of gifts in scripture, and 12:5-7 shows clearly that the discussion is not just about gifts. Therefore, the translation "spiritual manifestations" is more appropriate. The problem in the Corinthian church was that the members were showing off their God-given spiritual manifestations, and were only using them to edify themselves rather than the whole church. Therefore, if we retranslate 12:1 as: "Now about spiritual manifestations�"; 14:1 as: "�eagerly desire spiritual manifestations�"; 14:12 as: "Since you are eager for spiritual manifestations�" and 14:37 as: "If anyone thinks he is a prophet or spiritual�" the picture becomes slightly clearer.