We often say that someone is gifted. There are gifted athletes who can accomplish physical feats that are beyond the rest of us; there are gifted singers with range and tone that are amazing; there are gifted artists who create beautiful paintings and sculptures. In all activities, there are a few people who excel naturally while most others struggle.

While all of these gifts come from God and can be used to serve Him, they are not what is meant by gifts of His Spirit. Notice in the quote below that “to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good“. When Christians say “gifts of the Spirit”, that means empowerment to contribute toward the spiritual growth of the church. As the Apostle Peter says “As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God…so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 4:10-11).

Every Believer Has Gifts

God expects all of His children to contribute to the life of His church. No one is too young or too old, too physically impaired, too uneducated, or too inexperienced. When they accept Jesus as Savior and are born again, He gives every one of them a gift to share. Whether dramatic and noticeable or quiet and subtle, each is meant to be used for “for the common good“. There is wonderful joy in discovering and then using one’s gifts…and watching the Spirit multiply the results.

There are two main passages that contain lists of gifts that the Spirit may choose to give to believers. These lists are not necessarily meant to be all-inclusive. There is plenty of room for other gifts that are not listed. But let’s take a look at these for examples. I’ll group similar ones together for the discussion below.

There are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons. But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. For to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, and to another the word of knowledge according to the same Spirit; to another faith by the same Spirit, and to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, and to another the effecting of miracles, and to another prophecy, and to another the distinguishing of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, and to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually just as He wills.

1 Corinthians 12:6-11 (emphasis added)

Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching; or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.

Romans 12:6-8 (emphasis added)

Dramatic Gifts: Miracles, Healing, Speaking/Interpreting Tongues

These kinds of gifts get the most press. Because of that, they also are the easiest to be misrepresented or misused. In the Bible, miracles were specific signs of God’s presence. Jesus did plenty of miracles, including many miraculous healings, to demonstrate that He had really come from God and was the promised Messiah. But He refused to do miracles on demand simply to provide an entertaining show. The first speaking in tongues was not unintelligible gibberish; it was speaking in the specific languages of the hearers so that all could understand the Gospel message (Acts 2:1-11). Miracles and healings continued in the early church as God affirmed the teaching of the apostles (Acts 5:12-16).

There are differences of opinion as to the extent that the Spirit still gives these kinds of gifts to individuals. Some believe that they ended with the original Apostles (once the church was well established), while others believe that they continue still today. Of course, God can — and does — still perform miracles, but He doesn’t require any human agent in order to do so. The test that such things are signs of a spiritual gift is if they glorify Him, and enhance the church’s mission to share the Gospel. If they only enrich the performer, or if they lead anywhere other than to Jesus, then they do not come from God’s Spirit.

Guidance Gifts: Prophecy, Wisdom, Faith, Distinguishing of Spirits

There are many competing ideas and philosophies that try to intermingle with the Gospel. Some of the Spirit’s gifts enable believers to cut through the clutter and identify God’s authentic message. For instance, “prophecy” does not always mean telling the future. It also includes passing along any message from God that others need to hear. “Distinguishing of Spirits” is sometimes referred to as “discernment”. It is an ability to perceive subtle clues that identify the bit of falsehood hidden among half-truths, to avoid being deceived. The wisdom to understand God’s heart and apply His Word to a question, and the faith to cling to that in the face of opposition are powerful tools when addressing difficult issues. Given a question or a situation that needs to be resolved, believers with these gifts help the church see the correct answer more clearly.

Administrative Gifts: Leadership, Knowledge, Teaching, Exhortation

In order for the church to continue growing, lessons learned by one generation of Christians must be passed along to future generations. Some believers are given the capacity to retain and correlate information, and then to communicate it in ways that engage their listeners. Some are able to lead others when most would stand aside and avoid making difficult decisions. Some present God’s word in ways that encourage others to stretch beyond their comfort zones and step up to face new challenges.

Quiet Gifts: Service, Giving, Mercy

There are gifts that are subtle and unassuming. They are vital to the health of the church, even though they rarely get much attention. There are believers who can sit patiently at a hospital bedside or with a grieving family. There are others who cheerfully give money or time whenever they see a need; it seems that the more they give, the more they have to give. There are those who project a calm and peace that eases a troubled situation. There are many who selflessly dig in to whatever task needs to be done. Those with these gifts often don’t think they are doing anything special. In reality, they are expressing God’s Spirit in ways that have far more impact than they realize.

The Gift Above All Others

I noticed something while looking up all of the passages that refer to gifts. In 1 Corinthians 12:27-31, the Apostle Paul makes the point that not everyone has the same gifts; each has their own unique contribution to make to the complete body of Christ. But he ends by saying “And I show you a still more excellent way.“

What way would that be? Well, the next verses are the well-known “love chapter”, 1 Corinthians 13. It begins by saying that any of the gifts, even the most dramatic ones like prophecy or speaking in tongues, are useless without love (1 Corinthians 13:1-3).

That is the greatest gift of all…and it’s given to everyone. All other gifts are simply tools to help us express God’s love to the world. Our task is to make the best use of them that we can.