Spiritual Gifts Introduction
What Are Spiritual Gifts?
A Spiritual Gift is a special divine empowerment bestowed on each believer by the Holy Spirit to accomplish a given ministry God's way according to His grace and discernment to be used within the context of the Body of Christ.[1]
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The Apostle Paul fully endorsed the importance of spiritual gifts. Notice his comments:
1 Cor 12 (v. 1) Now concerning spiritual gifts brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant....
We should not be ignorant of our God-given spiritual gifts.
Fulfillment is discovering our own uniqueness in Christ and using our gifts and talents to edify others and to glorify the Lord.[2]
Another quote states it this way:
There is a need for a variety of gifts in the Lord's work. Read carefully the fourth chapter of Ephesians. The entire chapter is a description of the Lord's manner of working. Every gift is to be acknowledged as essential to the success of the work.[3]
Spiritual gifts can be defined as special abilities and talents given by the Holy Spirit to enable each christian to play an important part in God's plan for loving and saving humanity.[4]
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You can find great joy in discovering your gifts, and then to use them for the Lord. Let us see how the Apostle Paul explains the mechanics of how spiritual gifts work.
In first Corinthians, the Apostle Paul uses three different words to describe a spiritual gift:
The first word, “Gift” in (v. 4) comes from the same root meaning as our words “grace & joy.”
It is intended to be something that will be a source of joy for us. This is our motivation of WHY we do what we do.
The second word, “Ministries” in (v. 5) comes from the same root meaning as our word “deacon,” and indicates a Position, Office, or Ministry opportunity.
The third word used in this passage of (v. 6) is “Effects” or activities [NKJV], which can be described as a manifestation, or result of the Holy Spirit’s working through us.
From this passage we define a spiritual gift as Drives, Opportunities, and Results, given by the Holy Spirit to believers; for the purpose of equipping believers for ministry, for the building up of the church body to glorify God.
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This is why God chooses the gift instead of you!!
When doing what lines up with our spiritual gifting, pulling on His power, we are energized to serve.
When serving outside of our gifting, it is so much easier to grumble and complain, or get frustrated and discouraged.
When serving in accordance with His divine empowerment, we will tend to serve with enthusiasm, cheerfulness, and diligence.
The heavenly intelligences unite with men in sympathy and labor for the saving of that which was lost. And all the power of heaven is brought to combine with human ability in drawing souls to Christ.[6]
The spiritual gifts can be found in the following passages of Scripture:
Prophecy
Ministry
Teacher
Exhortation
Giver
Leadership
Mercy
Voluntary-
Poverty
Martyrdom
Wisdom
Knowledge
Faith
Healings
Miracles
Prophecy
Discerning
Tongues
Interpretation
Celibacy
Apostles
Prophets
Teachers
Miracles
Healings
Helps
Administration
Tongues
Intercessory Prayer
Apostles
Prophets
Evangelists
Pastors
Teachers
Hospitality
Speaking
Ministry
Intercessory
Prayer
Before honor is humility. To fill a high place before men, Heaven chooses the worker who, like John the Baptist, takes a lowly place before God. The most childlike disciple is the most efficient in labor for God. The heavenly intelligences can co-operate with him who is seeking, not to exalt self, but to save souls.[7]
References:
1. http://mintools.com/spiritual-gifts-definition.htm.
2. Neil Anderson. (2013). Victory over the darkness, p.143
3. E.G. White, Letter 8, (1899).
4. Kim Johnson. (2007). Spiritual Body Building Lessons, p.49
5. E.G. White, Evangelism, p.98
6. E.G. White, The Desire of Ages, p.442, par.3
7. E.G. White, The Desire of Ages, p.436, par.3
Image #1: Millard Erickson, (2015). Spiritual gifts list. Retrieved from https://theologyandchurch.com/2015/10/15/millard-erickson-on-spiritual-gifts/
Image #2: Mobavatar.com, (n.d.). Use your gifts for God's service. Retrieved from https://ambirkelo.wordpress.com/2017/01/23/use-your-gifts/
Image #3: Motivational Words of Wisdom, (2013). Serve others with pure intentions. Retrieved from http://www.motivationalwordsofwisdom.com/2013/07/service-quotes.html
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