The Whirlwind Tour
Introduction
Frank Layden, Utah Jazz president, said this about a former player: “I told him, “‘Son, what is it with you? Is it ignorance or apathy?’ He said, ‘Coach, I don’t know and I don’t care.’”
In 1Cor. 12:1, the apostle Paul, speaking on behalf of God says, “Now about spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be ignorant.”
The Lord doesn’t want us to be ignorant about spiritual gifts. I think it’s safe to say He doesn’t want us to be apathetic about them, either. That’s why we began discussing specific gifts in the last article and will continue to look at them in this study and the next.
In this article, we’re going to pick up where we left off last time, in Romans 12:8.
Before we do, let’s remember what we’ve already learned. Every Christian has one or more spiritual gifts, which were most likely given at the time of our conversion. The purpose of the gifts are for the common good, to be used to minister to each other and to build up the Kingdom of God.
Together, all Christians make up the body of Christ here on Earth. And just like the human body, each of us have been uniquely equipped to do different things. Just as a spleen does something different than a big toe, I’ve been equipped by God to do one thing and you’ve been equipped by God to do something else.
Each of us is important and if one of us doesn’t use his or her gifts, not only do we miss out on potential blessings, but the rest of us, the rest of the body as it were, suffer and have to try and make up for the person who is not ministering as God intends.
In terms of specific gifts, we found out that prophecy is the supernatural ability to proclaim God’s Word. In essence, it’s preaching. Since predictions of future events is no longer necessary because we already have all the revelation we need in the Bible, the gift of prophecy here in the 21st century is public speaking minus the predictive stuff.
We also talked about the gift of serves, which is a broad word to mean serving in virtually any capacity. Those who have this enablement are extremely valuable to the body of Christ. Without those who are supernaturally equipped to help, it would be difficult to get anything done.
A third gift that we discussed last time was that of teaching, which carries the idea of passing on what we’ve learned to someone else. It’s a systematic process that equips or trains.
One last word before we discuss the remaining gifts, and that’s this: If you’ve ever wondered if God has a plan for your life, He does. If you’ve ever wondered what God’s will is for you–specifically and personally–then it’s critical that you understand the importance of spiritual gifts.
What is God’s will for your life? To use your spiritual gifts.
Do you feel like you’re just stumbling through your walk with God? Do you wonder what, specifically, exactly, you’re supposed to do in the church? It could be that you aren’t using your spiritual gifts.
In fact, I’ll take it a step further and say that unless you’re using your spiritual gifts in some kind of ministry or service to God, you’re not living up to your potential. More than that, you will never be totally satisfied, you will never be everything that God wants you to be-and needs you to be-unless you’re using your spiritual gifts.
You want to feel useful and fulfilled and enjoy the maximum blessings of God? Then use your spiritual gifts-do what God has supernaturally and uniquely equipped you to do!
The Spiritual Gift Of Encouraging
Ok, let’s get started. Our goal’s to finish discussing the rest of the spiritual gifts here in Romans 12 and those found in 1 Corinthians 12.
Let’s read verses 6-8 of Romans 12, and then we’ll pick where we left off last time in verse eight.
Rom. 12:6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith.
Rom. 12:7 If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach;
Rom. 12:8 if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.
We’ve already talked about the gifts found in verses six and seven, so let’s start by looking at the gift of encouraging. “If it is encouraging, let him encourage.”
The word “encouraging” literally means to call someone to your side. It carries the idea of helping or comforting. Building someone up. Everytime I preach at Kirkwood Road he makes a point of tracking me down and telling me what a good job I’ve done. Even if it’s not my best effort, he always finds something positive to say. I love it when I see him coming, a big smile on his face and his hand held out to greet me. That man has the gift of encouragement.
But the word also carries the idea of advising and warning. In fact, what I just did was an example of encouraging. I encouraged you to use your spiritual gifts so you would be fulfilled and blessed by God.
Because of this interesting range of meanings, the gift can be used by a wide variety of people in a wide variety of ways. There’s no question that the best counselors have this gift. Some of the best preachers also have this gift because they’re so good at motivating people to respond to the Word of God.
If you have this gift, verse eight says, in essence, “Get it on!” “Let him encourage.”
The Spiritual Gift Of Giving
The next gift is giving. Essentially, the word and its context means to sacrificially give to someone else who is in need. Most commentators tie it to the giving of material goods, especially money. While all of us as believers are told to contribute financially towards the building of the Kingdom of God, some of us are supernaturally led to give until it hurts.
Remember the account of the woman in Mark 12?
Mark 12:42 But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny.
Mark 12:43 Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others.
Mark 12:44 They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything -all she had to live on.”
Not all those with the gift of giving are poor, however. Many-perhaps even the majority-have been blessed by God with a lot in terms of material possessions. I know several people like this at my church. One couple in particular, who are careful to remain anonymous, have given thousands of dollars in lump sums for children and youth programs. Praise God for people like these!
The phrase “let him give generously” is easy to understand: “If you have this gift, then, please, give generously. There are people and churches who need the financial help!” The term that’s translated “give generously” or “with liberality” doesn’t quite capture the whole meaning, though.
The Greek term also carries the idea of giving with pure motives. In other words, don’t do it to get your name in bold letters in the bulletin or to be praised by others in the church. Be generous and give sacrificially because there’s a need and because you have the resources to meet that need. Do it because it’s what God has led you to do.
Needless to say, the church of Jesus Christ can use your financial help. So if you have this gift, please use it!
The Spiritual Gift Of Leadership
The next gift found in verse eight is leadership or governs. The Greek word for leadership has the basic meaning of standing before others. In the New Testament, it’s most often used when referring to male headship in the family. It’s very closely related to the gift that’s translated “administration” in 1 Corinthians 12:28.
While this is obviously a gift that many church leaders might have, like all gifts, it can be used in wide variety of ways and situations. The gift of leadership can be used to head up a specific ministry. It can be used in leading a Bible study. It can be used to help a group of people with good ideas to get organized and in a position to implement those ideas. Leadership isn’t just for pastors and elders.
By the way, the word “diligently” means more than just being earnest or zealous. It carries the idea of speed or haste. In other words, when a need arrives, meet it. When a problem becomes evident, solve it. Most commentators overlook the idea of speed or haste. Paul tells those who have this gift to not only use it, but to use it “diligently.”
There always seems to be a shortage of good leaders, whether in the church or in the secular world, so if you have this gift, boy can we use it!
The Spiritual Gift Of Mercy
The final gift found here in verse eight is “mercy.” It’s pretty obvious what this gift means. It means to sympathize with someone. The person with this gift is usually a good listener and an encourager. This is someone who recognizes people who are hurting or troubled and has a knack-a supernatural knack-for helping those people.
While counselors and those who visit nursing homes and prisons can use this gift, remember that showing mercy can be used in all kinds of ways. What about in a small group setting where someone’s getting a divorce? Or how about comforting someone who’s just lost a loved one? It doesn’t have to happen inside the four walls of your church. None of the gifts have to. The sky’s the limit in ways that this gift can be used.
As you can imagine, this is a gift that’s desperately needed in the church. The one attribute of Christ’s that He’s probably best known for was His love for His fellow man, and how that love translated into real life, practical help in the form of mercy. Christ was the ultimate mercy-giver.
If you have the gift of mercy, please use it, and as the end of verse eight says, don’t use it grudgingly or because you have to, but do it “cheerfully.” Listening to people’s problems can be discouraging and time-consuming, but, oh, how people need mercy from each other. If you have this gift, look around for someone who’s in need and try and meet that need.
Meeting that need, by the way, sometimes means doing one thing and one thing only: and that’s listening. Sometimes we confuse showing mercy or helping somebody by giving them our advice on how to live or feel. “Here’s what you need to do, after all, I’m the expert and you’re depressed and confused.” That’s nonsense. Quite often, I’ve found that the best way to show people mercy and to help them is to just listen.
The Spiritual Gift Of Wisdom
Now let’s examine two passages in 1 Corinthians 12. This is the other place in Scripture where specific gifts are listed.
So far we’ve talked about seven gifts: prophecy, serving, teaching, encouraging, giving, leading and showing mercy. Before we’re through, we’ll have studied a total of 15 spiritual gifts. Let’s start by reading verses 8-11.
1Cor. 12:8 To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit,
1Cor. 12:9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit,
1Cor. 12:10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues.
1Cor. 12:11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.
The beginning of verse eight gives us an eighth gift, that of “wisdom.” In the New Testament, the Greek word used here for “wisdom” refers to the ability to apply Biblical truths to real-life situations. It’s taking Biblical knowledge-which we’ll talk about in a minute-and using it in everyday life. It’s problem-solving and very practical. Preachers and teachers with the gift of wisdom are some of the best around, because they’re skilled in making the Bible practical, even here in the 21st century.
The term “message” implies that the gift could have included special revelation from God initially. While people during Paul’s time may have needed special revelation in the form of “wisdom,” we don’t anymore because we already have everything that God has chosen to reveal to us: the Christian Bible.
The person with this gift has insights on Biblical truths and is a valuable resource for applying those truths to peoples’ lives.
The Spiritual Gift Of Knowledge
The Spirit of God also gives the gift of “knowledge.” This gift is pretty obvious. It’s head knowledge. It’s knowledge about the Bible. It’s the ability to grasp and understand Biblical truths. Many scholars and theologians undoubtedly have this gift.
It’s different from “wisdom” in that wisdom means to apply knowledge. Just like “wisdom,” though, “knowledge” may have been imparted via special revelation during Paul’s time since the New Testament wasn’t written. And just like “wisdom,” I believe that the gift today doesn’t include any extra-biblical revelation from God apart from the Bible.
Revelation 22:18 pretty much says it all. Anyone who adds to or subtracts from the Bible is in big trouble.
Rev. 22:18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book.
Rev. 22:19 And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.
I suspect that many persons with the gift of knowledge also have the gift of “wisdom.” Having said that, we’ve all known people who can recite all the books of the Bible in the correct order and could even tell you what Goliath said and what he wore when he fought David. But when it comes to living out a godly life and applying that knowledge in real life, they’re clueless.
It seems to me that most teachers and preachers are lost and ineffective if they don’t have this gift. In terms of how the gift of “knowledge” differs from “wisdom,” sometimes it’s hard to tell the difference. It’s much like trying to tell the difference between “teaching” and the gift of prophecy, or between “mercy” and encouragement.
Trying to define them too much can get us into trouble, so if you think you have one or both of these gifts, it’s probably not a good use of your time to try and figure out definitively what percentage of what you have is “knowledge” and what percentage is “wisdom.” There’s a distinction, but it’s not always a clear one.
By the way, that’s a good rule to follow when talking about all spiritual gifts: let’s not try and over-define them. Some people do that and end up evaluating and re-evaluating themselves over and over again in order to find out precisely what they have. It seems to me that over-evaluating and over-defining and trying to be too precise wastes valuable time when we could be actually doing ministry.
Yes, we should certainly try and discover what our gifts are so that we know how God wants to use us, but one of the best ways to do that is to just get busy. And then, months or years later ask ourselves two questions: “What efforts has God blessed?” and “What have I enjoyed doing?” Those are the best indicators of all on how we’re gifted.
The Spiritual Gift Of Faith
The next gift, at the beginning of verse nine, is “faith.” This isn’t saving faith, because all Christians have saving faith-otherwise they wouldn’t be Christians!
Remember the story from Matthew 17? A man comes up to Jesus and pleads for Him to heal his son. The man says that Jesus’ disciples tried to heal the boy, but didn’t have any success.
Matt. 17:18 Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed from that moment.
Matt. 17:19 Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”
Matt. 17:20 He replied, “Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you. ”
The spiritual gift of “faith” is the supernatural ability to trust God to do the impossible. And how does it manifest itself most of the time? Listen to what Jesus says about driving out the demon in this boy. This is a parallel passage to Matthew 17.
Mark 9:28 After Jesus had gone indoors, his disciples asked him privately, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”
Mark 9:29 He replied, “This kind can come out only by prayer. ”
Most commentators that I read believe that the gift of “faith” is most evident in prayer. I know a man who can pray like no one else can. In fact, whenever I need prayer the first person I turn to, outside of my wife, is my friend Tim. Let me tell you, if you need prayer, you want Tim praying for you. If I had to guess, I’d say that he has the gift of “faith.” He’s a powerful prayer warrior, somebody who trusts in God’s power and promises and is very bold in what he asks for. Best of all, I’ve seen some great answers to prayer when he’s going to God on my behalf.
John MacArthur says this about the gift of “faith”:
“Hudson Taylor believed God would win many Chinese converts through him, and without any money or support, refusing to ask for a penny of help, he began what became the great and fruitful China Inland Mission. George Mueller, solely through trusting God in prayer, continually saw Him provide for his orphanage in miraculous ways. Countless missionaries have claimed tribes or nations for the Lord, and evangelists have claimed lives for the Lord, and seen Him faithfully respond to their faith. Their prayers are answered and their faith itself is strengthened and multiplied.”
The Spiritual Gift Of Healing
Now we get to the gift of “healing.” The gift is pretty obvious: it’s the supernatural ability to heal someone. The apostles certainly had this gift, didn’t they? In fact, Peter’s ability to heal was so well-known that Acts 5:15 says that “people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter’s shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by.”
The Spiritual Gift Of Miracles
Verse 10 records yet another gift: miracles. This is another one that doesn’t take much explanation. John MacArthur describes this one as “a supernatural intrusion into the natural world and its natural laws, explainable only by divine intervention.”
Jesus’ miracles were many and well-documented: walking on water, turning water into wine and making food for the hungry crowds. We’ll talk more about the gift of miracles and “healing” next time.
The Spiritual Gift Of Discernment
Looking back at verse 10, we’ll skip over “prophecy,” since we already saw that one back in Romans 12. That leaves us with “distinguishing between spirits.”
I call this one discernment. In a nutshell, this is the God-given ability to distinguish between good and evil, between the things of God and the things of Satan. This is an important gift, because John 8:44 calls the Devil the “father of lies.” And 1 John 4:1 tells us not to “believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.”
Discernment, or “distinguishing between spirits” was critical to the early church, especially since it didn’t have the New Testament as we do today. But the gift is still important, because our world is full of false teachers and prophets.
You want to hear false teaching? Just turn on Channel 24 on your TV in St. Louis and you’ll hear some bizarre and very unbiblical things from some of those preachers. Not all of them, of course, but in order to tell who’s telling the truth, who’s truly representing God, we need to know Scripture. Is what is being said really Scriptural? Is it really true? Is it really from God?
Our primary defense against being deceived is knowing Scripture, but the person who has the spiritual gift of discernment is extra sensitive and very adept at telling good from evil and right from wrong. The church needs people like this to protect it from lying spirits.
A great Biblical example of discernment is found in Acts 16:16-18.
Acts 16:16 Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling.
Acts 16:17 This girl followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.”
Acts 16:18 She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so troubled that he turned around and said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” At that moment the spirit left her.
Why does Paul rebuke her? Why does Paul confront someone who goes around shouting “These men are servants of the Most High god, who are telling you the way to be saved?” Paul rebukes her because he apparently has the gift of discernment. Even though she appears to be a godly woman who says all the right things, she’s actually controlled by an evil spirit. It’s a good guess that she’s trying to deceive people into thinking she’s a godly woman but is actually doing it for ungodly and impure motives.
Paul recognizes the situation and confronts it. That’s what a person with discernment does.
The Spiritual Gift Of Tongues And The Interpretation Of Tongues
Verse 10 identifies two more gifts: “speaking in different kinds of tongues” and the “interpretation of tongues.” We’re going to talk more about these gifts next time, along with miracles and “healing,” so we won’t spend much time on them today.
The gift of “tongues” is the God-given ability to speak in another language, a language that the speaker has never learned. The gift of interpretation is pretty obvious: it’s interpreting what has just been said in a language that’s foreign to the hearers, as well as the interpreters.
Now let’s skip down to verse 28:
1Cor. 12:28 And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues.
We’ve already talked about how apostles and prophets are gifted people, not spiritual gifts in terms of supernatural enablements. Teachers are another example of gifted people. But then we get to “workers of miracles” and “those having gifts of healing,” These are spiritual gifts, but we’ve already talked about them so nothing more needs to be said.
The meaning of the word that’s translated “helping others” or “helps” is nearly identical to the gift of serving that we discussed last time. It means to assist or to serve. While we can’t be dogmatic about it, I believe that serving and helping, or serves and helps refer to the same gift. If there is a difference, it’s almost indiscernible.
To refresh your memory, the gift of helps or serves can be used in any ministry and in a million different ways. Without people who are willing to pitch in to get things done and to help others, the church can’t survive.
I believe that “administration,” mentioned towards the end of verse 28 is also a duplication of a gift that we’ve already discussed: the gift of leadership or governs. Like the words “serves” and “helps,” the difference between leadership and “administration” is actually quite small. The Greek word was used to refer to someone guiding or piloting a ship.
Because they’re so close in meaning, I believe that they’re one in the same gift. Again, we can’t be dogmatic about it, but it seems like a reasonable thing to do, considering it’s almost impossible to draw a difference between the two Greek terms.
The gift of “tongues” mentioned at the end of verse 28, is the same one that we’ve already read about.
Conclusion
So there you have it, a whirlwind tour of spiritual gifts. Fifteen gifts found in the two definitive New Testament passages on the topic. For those of you keeping score, here they are in the order that we studied them:
Prophecy
Serving
Teaching
Encouraging
Giving
Leadership
Mercy
Wisdom
Knowledge
Faith
Healing
Miracles
Discernment
Tongues
Interpretation of tongues
Everyone of us has at least one of these gifts, gifts that God expects us to use. What gifts do you have? Do you want to be fulfilled and to live up to your potential and do what God has uniquely equipped you to do?
Then find out what your gifts are and use them in some kind of ministry! God has a plan for your life, and I’m convinced that using your spiritual gifts fulfills your destiny as a human being and as a child of God.
Want to be fulfilled? Want to be blessed? Then find out what your spiritual gifts are and start using them! A good place to start (if you haven’t done so already) is the KRCConline Spiritual Gifts Inventory.