Of the Use and Purpose of Spiritual Gifts. 1 Cor. 12, 1–31.
AllAll spiritual gifts from God: V. 3. Wherefore I give you to understand that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed, and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord but by the Holy Ghost.
The Corinthians did not yet understand just how the Spirit of God did His work in their hearts, how He exerted His power. So Paul proceeds to instruct them.
Therefore, in order that they may form a correct judgment of the Spirit's operations and gifts, he informs them that no one speaking in the Spirit of God says: Jesus is accursed; and no one can say, Jesus is Lord, but in the Holy Spirit.
The spirits of falsehood and of truth were battling together at Corinth, and the battle-cry of either party is here recorded. That which was accursed or anathema, in the sense as used by the Jews, was vowed to God for destruction as under His curse. To say that anyone or anything was anathema was to pronounce the oath of execration upon the person or thing in question. The fanatic Jews made this their cry in their incessant warfare against the Christian religion, and the catchy expression was apt to be taken up by Gentile mobs when any demonstration against the Christians was set in motion.
It was certain, then, from the outset that no one using this form of blasphemy could be considered as speaking by the Spirit of God; no matter what his claim in that respect, the fact remained that such a blasphemer was and must remain outside of the pale of Christendom until he changed entirely.
The remark of Luther at this point is also well worth considering: "For what he here calls 'cursing Jesus' is not only this, that a man publicly blasphemes and curses the name or person of Christ, as the godless Jews or heathen did, . . . but [this is done also] when anyone among the Christians praises the Holy Ghost, and yet does not preach Christ correctly as the Foundation of our salvation, but neglects this and rejects it in favor of something else, with the pretext that it is derived from the Holy Ghost and is much better and more necessary than the common doctrine of the Gospel" (Luther, 12, 1821).
On the other hand, the sincere confession, Jesus is Lord, is a product of true faith, and therefore cannot be made out of any man's reason and strength. Compare 1 John 4, 2 ff. It is an acknowledgment of Christ with the full consciousness of His work of redemption, as wrought by the power of the Holy Ghost. But since this public confession is the chief work of the Christian pastors, it follows that these words of the apostle apply to them with unusual force.
"To call Jesus the Lord is to confess oneself His servant and to seek His honor alone, as one sent by Him or having His Word and command. For he speaks here principally of the office which preaches of Christ and brings His command. Where this ministry is in use and directs men to Christ (as to the Lord), that surely is the preaching of the Holy Ghost. . . . Thus also this cannot be done without the Holy Ghost, that every Christian in his work or station with all seriousness call Christ his Lord, that is, conclude with certainty that he is serving Him therein" (Luther, 12, 823).