Those Controversial Gifts

C. Peter Wagner defines a ‘spiritual gift’ as “a special attribute given by the Holy Spirit to every member of the body of Christ, according to God’s grace, for use within the context of the body.” As I read this definition I had a little uneasiness with the first aspect – the ‘special attribute’ part. I think the word ‘attribute’ has caused me some concern because it begs the question, “Who is it attributed to?” In other words, are spiritual gifts just an extension of our personality traits or are they separate stand alone tools that the Holy Spirit provides for each believer to use as they are needed? As I have been working on this series of teaching sessions for our college ministry, I have read a number of things that I have agreed with, many that I have not agreed with and a few that I am still making my mind up over.

I think that one of the things that I have read up on and have come down on the side of disagreeing with are the ‘Spiritual Gift’ tests or quizzes. I am sure you may have seen these and you may even believe in them. For me, I have found them somewhat lacking. Let me explain. As I have read through a number of these tests, answered the questions and even read the responses that I have achieved I have been impressed with their ability to identify my personality and my talents. They can even spot my weaknesses and deficiencies. The one thing that I struggle with though, is that there seems to be little difference between these types of tests and the personality tests I use in work with my students. The identification appears to be more about me and my personality than about the gifts that the Spirit has for me to use. When I look at those tests I wonder what some of my work colleagues would come out with as a result, even though they are Jewish, or have no faith at all. One thing I do know, unless you know the Holy Spirit you won’t know the gift He has for you, regardless of what the test says.

The bible does not tell us to take a test to find out our gifting, in fact it does not even say that you HAVE just one gift – to keep. Sometimes I think we believe that if we HAVE the gift of prophecy say, then it is like a little bottle of magic potion that we pull out of our pocket when we need it and pour a few drops on people. That is not how spiritual gifts operate, or how we should operate in our spiritual gifts.

I like this definition of spiritual gifts from AllaboutGod.com a little better, “Gifts of the Spirit are special abilities provided by the Holy Spirit to Christians for the purpose of building up the body of Christ.” The gift is provided by the Holy Spirit and it is an ‘ability’, requiring some form of ACTION, not just an attribute that can remain dormant. I have a number of great attributes, but if I do not put them into action then what use are they?

1 Corinthians 12:8-10 is the main passage used when discussing spiritual gifs. This list includes wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, miracles, prophecy, discerning of spirits, speaking in tongues, and interpretation of tongues. Other lists of gifts can be found in Ephesians 4:7-13 and Romans 12:3-8. Regardless of the location of the gifts the basic premise of the gifts of the Spirit are simply tools that the Holy Spirit gives out to enable believers to build up and edify the church. The gifts of the Spirit are given out freely, but only given out when they will be used to build up the church. You don’t walk around with your gift in your pocket next to your I-phone.

So, having said all that, the question remains, “How do I know which one I have?” The answer very simply is that you don’t HAVE any, but you have ACCESS to them all. The gifts are distributed by the Spirit as He sees fit (1 Cor 12:7-11). The reason for the gifts is to serve and build up the body. If there are sick people in the body then which gift do you think they require? Yup, healing. But if you “have” the gift of prophecy then how will the sick get healed? The gifts are tools, and every workman who carries a toolbox will tell you that if you have the right tool for the right job then it will be done easily. Each tool has a separate function, but under the operation of the craftsman they can accomplish a variety of tasks.

Can you imagine calling a plumber to fix your sink and 25 people show up carrying one tool each. They stand in line waiting to be called upon to loosen a bolt, then another to grip a fitting. Hopefully your plumber brings a toolbox with lots of tools and is able to use them all. So too with the gifts of the Spirit. (After all, when a sick person is healed who gets the gift of healing – the person who is praying or the one who is healed?) They are all available to each believer and are given out by the Spirit as they are needed. God has graciously allowed me to operate in the gift of healing when there were sick people to be prayed for. In the same meeting I have brought prophetic words to some, discerned different types of spirits with others and seen miracles occur. Do these gifts come up when I do a spiritual gift’s test? Do I carry these gifts around with me every day? Not at all. But I have access to them all at any time of any day. These are the tools of the Christian ‘trade’. The gifts are tools that allow us to be the difference that we can be in the world. The power of the Spirit is what enables the blind to see, the lame to walk and the deaf to hear. It is time that we took action and started to ask the Spirit to equip us to serve.

So you want to know what your Spiritual gifts are? Simple, do you see a need in the church? Then, do whatever you can to meet it. Is there a position in a ministry that is vacant and needs someone to step up? Ask God if He would have you fill it. If you seek God's will and obey His leading, He will always equip you with whatever gifts of the Spirit you need. If you are not serving the body, then why do you need a spiritual gift? As you serve, you will begin to meet things that require the Spirit’s gifting, that’s when you will begin to use your toolbox.