What’s That About Spiritual Gifts?

Here we are near the middle of December, and many of us are spending a lot of time thinking about one subject: gifts! Yes, I know this is a Christian blog and the one subject we should be focused on is the birth of Jesus, but let’s face it, at this point in the Christmas season, gifts are on our minds. What Christmas gift should we get for this person? What should we get for that person? Do we have everyone on our list taken care of? Will they like what we’re giving them? And, of course, what gifts are they getting me?

I want to talk about gifts, too, but a different kind of gift. We’re in a study of discipleship and spiritual growth, and last week we looked at the importance of putting others first, of serving others. As believers, one sure sign of discipleship is that we live to serve. But how, specifically, are we to serve?

Well, that depends an awful lot on how we’re shaped. What are your passions, abilities, and experiences, what is your personality type, and what is your spiritual gift or gifts? All of those things will help determine where and how we can best serve others because God designed us perfectly for the service he to which he calls us. 

So, what, exactly, are spiritual gifts? If spiritual gifts play a major role in how we are to live our lives by serving others, what are they? Spiritual gifts are mentioned in four New Testament passages: Romans 12:3-8; 1 Corinthians 12:1-12, 28-31; Ephesians 4:7-16; and 1 Peter 4:10-11. I encourage you to read these passages right now. 

Paul is the author of three of these passages, and each time that he presented a list of gifts he added something that he didn’t mention previously. That’s why I don’t think that the Bible gives us a complete list of every possible spiritual gift. It could also be that there are gifts not even mentioned by name in the Bible. 

Here’s the definition of spiritual gift that I have used throughout my years in the ministry (and this isn’t original with me, but I honestly have no idea where I first heard this): A spiritual gift is a special capacity, given by the Holy Spirit to every believer at the moment of conversion, to be used to minister to others and therefore build up the body of Christ.

I prefer the term “capacity” to “ability,” because many times a spiritual gift has to be developed before it becomes effective. For example, a person who becomes a believer at age 12 and who receives the gift of teaching doesn’t necessarily instantly become a great teacher at 12! We are given our gift by God, but then we need to learn about our gift, practice our gift, and develop our gift so that it moves from being a capacity to being an ability. 

These gifts are given by the Holy Spirit. Only believers have them (Romans 12:6), and every believer has at least one spiritual gift (1 Corinthians 12:7). If you’re a believer, in addition to your talents, abilities, passions, and experiences, you have at least one spiritual gift that was given to you the moment you accepted Christ. 

The Bible makes it really clear that Christians are to use our gifts to serve others both inside and outside the church. Paul gives us the illustration of a human body, which is made up of many parts performing various functions but all with the same purpose. Because you have at least one gift, the church cannot function to its full potential if you are not developing and using your gift. There is something missing if you are not serving. 

God has created you for a purpose, and you will discover that your purpose is closely tied to your spiritual gift. Though the church is made up of people from different backgrounds who have different priorities and different personalities, each person has a unique place to fit in the body, and when every believer uses his or her gift to the glory of God, the different pieces fit together to make a beautiful picture. 

Do you know where you are gifted? Are you serving in a way that utilizes your giftedness? If you’re not sure about your gift, there are multiple spiritual gifts “tests” on the market, so trying more than one of those is a great exercise. But don’t wait until you “discover” your gift to start serving. Go ahead and step out there in ministry, trying different areas of service to help you understand where you best fit. Study the passages above so you know what the Bible says about spiritual gifts. Pray for God’s guidance in understanding your gift. Experiment in different areas of service, ask for feedback, and get the right training. But by all means, focus your life on using all that God has given you to serve others. When you do, you’ll be following the example of your Savior.

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