What Are the Spiritual Gifts of the Bible
A Christian Perspective from Biblical references of Spiritual Gifts
SPIRITUAL GROWTH
7/3/202412 min read
The New Testament contains several lists of spiritual gifts. While each list is unique, there is overlap.
Romans 12:6–8
1 Corinthians 12:8–10
1 Cor 12:28–30
Prophecy
Serving
Teaching
Exhortation
Giving
Leadership
Mercy
Word of wisdom
Word of knowledge
Faith
Gifts of healings
Miracles
Prophecy
Distinguishing between spirits
Tongues
Interpretation of tongues
Apostle
Prophet
Teacher
Miracles
Kinds of healings
Helps
Administration
Tongues
Apostle
Prophet
Evangelist
Pastor
Teacher
These abilities are often termed "supernatural gifts", and are also described as the word of knowledge, increased faith, the gifts of healing, the gift of miracles, prophecy, the discernment of spirits, diverse kinds of tongues, interpretation of tongues.
For the purpose of instruction, we are focusing on the 9 gifts listed in 1 Cor 12: 8 -10 for explanations. Then we will focus on how to develop and possibly delivery your service to God, using the gift of prophecy.
Where Do The Gifts Come From?
These gifts are given by the Holy Spirit to individuals, but their purpose is to build up the entire Church, the Body of Christ. In 1 Corinthians 12:31 Paul encourages Christians to “eagerly desire the greater gifts”.
How can we “seek gifts”? The Lord has said: “For all have not every gift given unto them; for there are many gifts, and to every man is given a gift by the Spirit of God. To some is given one, and to some is given another, that all may be profited thereby”
The manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.
a. The manifestation of the Spirit is given: The Holy Spirit is always present in and among Christians. Jesus said of the Holy Spirit, He may abide with you forever (John 14:16). However, at some times the Spirit’s presence is more apparent than at other times. There are times when He may choose to manifest Himself, that is, to make Himself apparent. However, we should never think the Holy Spirit is “more” present when He is manifested through the gifts. The Holy Spirit is always present with believers, but at times He is more apparent through the manifestation of the Spirit.
b. Given to each one for the profit of all: The purpose of the manifestation of the Spirit is to benefit the whole church family, not just a particular individual.
c. The manifestation of the Spirit: As Paul begins to mention different manifestations of the Spirit, he begins by mentioning the word of wisdom. This is the unique ability to speak forth the wisdom of God, especially in an important situation, as shown in Stephen (Acts 7) and Paul (Acts 23).
d. The word of knowledge: The unique ability to declare knowledge that could only be revealed supernaturally, as shown in Jesus (Matthew 17:24-27) or Paul (Acts 27:10, 27:23-26). When Charles Spurgeon was saved, it was at the preaching of a man who directed a portion of his sermon right to young Spurgeon, and who supernaturally spoke right to where Spurgeon’s heart was. This is another example of the word of knowledge. We do well to understand the difference between the word of wisdom and the word of knowledge. One may have great knowledge, even supernatural knowledge, yet have no wisdom from God in the application of that knowledge. As well, we must always use discernment in receiving a word of knowledge, remembering that God is not the only source of supernatural knowledge. Even if a word is true, it does not mean that it is from God and that the one speaking the word is truly representing God.
e. The gift of faith: Though faith is an essential part of every Christian’s life, the gift of faith is the unique ability to trust God against all circumstances, as Peter did when he walked out of the boat onto the water (Matthew 14:22-33). Another mighty example of the gift of faith was the Christian leader and philanthropist George Mueller, who in nineteenth century England provided for thousands of orphans completely by prayer, without ever asking for donations.
f. Gifts of healings: This is God’s healing power, either given or received, and has been repeatedly documented in the New Testament and since. Adam Clarke on gifts of healings: “The power which at particular times the apostles received from the Holy Spirit to cure diseases; a power which was not always resident in them; for Paul could not cure Timothy, nor remove his own thorn in the flesh; because it was given only on extraordinary occasions, though perhaps more generally than many others.”
g. Working of miracles: Literally dynameis, or “acts of power.” This describes when the Holy Spirit chooses to “override” the laws of nature, working in or through an available person.
i. Gifts of healing and working of miracles often operate in conjunction with the gift of faith, as in Acts 3:1-8. These things are not done on the whim of the individual, as if the power to heal or work miracles was at their permanent disposal. Instead, they operate as an individual is prompted by God and given the faith to perform such a work (another example of this is in Acts 14:8-10).
h. Prophecy: The telling-forth of God’s message in a particular situation, always in accord with His Word and His current work. Sometimes this has the character of foretelling the future, as in Acts 21:10-11 and Acts 27:21-26. Oftentimes, people who believe the miraculous gifts have been removed from the church, wish to define prophecy as “preaching.” Though this is common, it is inaccurate. There is a Greek word for preaching, and a Greek word for divinely-inspired speech. Paul uses the word for divinely-inspired speech, not preaching. Although good, Spirit-anointed preaching will often use the spontaneous gift of prophecy, it is inaccurate to define prophecy as “good preaching.”
i. Discerning of Spirits: The ability to tell the difference between true and false doctrine, and between what is of the Holy Spirit and what isn’t (Acts 8:18-23 and 16:16-18). Satan appears as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14). He deceives with a false, tempting message (Genesis 2:16-3:5). There can be lying spirits in the mouths of prophets (1 Kings 22:21-23 and 2 Chronicles 18:20-22). Satan can speak right after God speaks (Matthew 16:23). Sometimes people who seem to say the right things are really from the devil (Acts 13:6-12 and 16:16-18). It is important to test the word of anyone who claims to speak from God (1 John 4:1-3). Satan can work deceiving miracles (2 Thessalonians 2:9-10 and Revelation 13:11-14). The devil will try to infiltrate the church with false teachers (Jude 4 and 2 Peter 2:1-2). How we need the gift of discernment in the church today!
j. The gift of tongues is a personal language of prayer given by God, whereby the believer can communicate with God beyond the limits of knowledge and understanding (1 Corinthians 14:14-15). Language is an agreement between parties, where it is agreed that certain sounds represent certain objects or ideas. When using the gift of tongues, we agree with God that as the Holy Spirit prays through us, though we may not understand what we are praying, God does. Tongues have an important place in the devotional life of the believer, but a small place in the corporate life of the church (1 Corinthians 14:18-19), especially in “public” meetings (1 Corinthians 14:23). When tongues are practiced in the corporate life of the church, it is to be carefully controlled, and never without an interpretation given by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 14:27-28). The ability to pray in an unknown tongue is not a gift given to every believer (1 Corinthians 12:20). The ability to pray in a tongue is not the evidence of the filling of the Holy Spirit; this emphasis has led people to seek the gift of tongues (and to counterfeit it) merely to prove to themselves and others that they really are filled with the Holy Spirit. Many people believe the gift of tongues died with the apostles. Curiously, many of these define the gift of tongues as merely the ability to speak in other languages for the purpose of spreading the gospel in other languages. But that need has not changed one bit since the days of the apostles. Instead, the Bible clearly says that the gift of tongues is meant for an individual’s communication with God, not with man (1 Corinthians 14:2). Even on the day of Pentecost, when the disciples spoke in tongues, they were not preaching to the crowd (Peter did that in the Greek language which was common to them all). Rather, they were praising God (speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God, Acts 2:11), and the crowd at the day of Pentecost heard the disciples excitedly praise God. Often, those who speak in tongues today are mocked by those who deny the gift with the accusation that they are speaking “gibberish.” Acts 2 is wrongly used to support this, because Acts 2 tells us that those speaking in tongues on the day of Pentecost were speaking intelligible languages understood by others. But it does not tell us that all of the 120 or so who spoke in tongues spoke in languages that could be understood. And we should not assume that those who were not immediately understood by the bystanders spoke “gibberish,” as tongues are referred to with derision. They may have praised God in a language completely unknown, yet human (what would the language of the Aztecs sound like to Roman ears?), or in a completely unique language given by God and understood by Him and Him alone. After all, communication with God and not man, is the purpose of tongues (1 Corinthians 14:2). The repetition of simple phrases, unintelligible and perhaps nonsensical to human bystanders, does not mean such speech is “gibberish.” Praise to God may be simple and repetitive, and part of the whole dynamic of tongues is that it bypasses the understanding of the speaker (1 Corinthians 14:14), being understood by God and God alone.
k. The gift of the interpretation of tongues: This gift allows the gift of tongues to be of benefit for those other than the speaker, as they are able to hear and agree with the tongue-speaker’s words to God.
l. Though in these verses we tend to focus on the list of gifts, Paul does not. Since he does not give a detailed description of each gift, it is probable that the Corinthian Christians were familiar with them all. What Paul emphasized is that each of these is by or through the same Spirit, repeating the idea five times and concluding with the statement, “But one and the same Spirit works all these things.”
Apparently, the tendency for division among the Corinthian Christians had made them think separately or competitively about the gifts. Perhaps the “tongues speakers” thought themselves superior to the “prophesiers,” as if the gifts had come from two different gods! Paul emphasizes to them that one and the same Spirit works all these things, so they should reflect that same unity among themselves.
Distributing to each one individually as He wills: Here is another reason for unity, and a reason against any sense of superiority regarding the gifts. They are distributed not according to the will of man, but as the Spirit of God wills – as He wills.
As they are given as He wills, and sometimes if not often, the will and wisdom of God is different than our will and wisdom (Isaiah 55:8-9), we should never assume the gifts are distributed as we would distribute them.
Often, we assume spiritual gifts are given because a person is especially spiritually mature or closer to God, but this may not be the case at all. We should never assume that giftedness is connected to maturity. God can and does, for His own glory and purpose, distribute spiritual gifts to those who are not especially spiritually mature or close to Him. This is why spiritual giftedness is never the criteria for positions of leadership among Christians, but Christian maturity and character are (1 Timothy 3:1-13 and Titus 1:5-9). God can grant anyone remarkable spiritual gifts in a moment, but character and maturity take time to build.
If the Spirit distributes to each one individually as He wills, why would He choose to give a particular gift at a particular moment? The larger reasons may not be apparent, but the goal of the Holy Spirit’s work is always to glorify Jesus and to build His nature and character in us. The Spirit’s goal is never to amaze or confuse, but to build the fruit of the Spirit, and He will use or not use any gift He thinks right towards that end.
o. Distributing as He wills: Though the manifestations of the Spirit are given as the Spirit wills, the believer still must receive them with faith. He distributes and we receive, and the receiving and exercising of the gifts is often very natural.
What does the Bible say about the continuation of all the gifts of the Spirit?
a. Jesus made a promise in Mark 16:17-18: And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.
i. This is a simple and straightforward promise, in context, given to those who are involved in spreading the gospel – they will be unstoppable, and God will even use miraculous means to protect them and make them effective.
b. Acts 2:33, 39: Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear… For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call. The promise of the Holy Spirit – specifically including miraculous gifts – is a promise made to all generations.
c. 1 Corinthians 14:12: Even so you, since you are zealous for spiritual gifts, let it be for the edification of the church that you seek to excel. The purpose for spiritual gifts, even miraculous gifts, is the building up of the body of Christ and individual Christians; that need remains today.
d. The natural, consistent testimony of the New Testament is that the miraculous gifts described in the New Testament have not been retracted. No one with a fresh reading of the Scriptures could ever come to such an understanding.
i. There is no indication that miraculous gifts would die out when the apostles died.
ii. There is no distinction made between “sign gifts” or “miraculous gifts” and other gifts in the New Testament; they come always and only as a package.
iii. Little is said about the continuation of all the gifts because it was a given among the apostles. One might just as well ask, “Where is the Scriptural evidence that someone can be saved beyond the time of the apostles?” One would be hard pressed to find one conclusive verse to refute the argument, because it was simply assumed.
Many Christians consider developing their spiritual gifts as optional. They consider it low priority relative to evangelism, group growth, missions, Bible study, or prayer. Although you may sympathize with this way of thinking, you must also recognize that the development and exercise of spiritual gifts is a basic provision of God for group growth. In fact, the primary job of a Christian leader is “to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up….” (Eph. 4:12)
How do Christians serve others? The apostle Peter says, “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.” (1 Peter 4:10)
What Is the Simple Definition of God’s Spiritual Gifts?
According to Peter, a spiritual gift is God’s grace manifested in specific service. Discovering and developing spiritual gifts within your group will produce growth through people serving each other and displaying God’s grace in their lives.
So let’s begin with some basic points:
1. Every person who has received grace has also received one or more spiritual gifts.
2. Every Christian is responsible before God to use their spiritual gifts.
3. It is a good idea to discover your spiritual gifts.
4. The list of spiritual gifts in the New Testament is not an exhaustive list. (Your gifts may not coincide who those listed in Scripture).
5. Spiritual gifts are often natural abilities that God recreates along with the whole person.
These points may help you help others find their spiritual gifts. But the real questions of many is “How do I find what gifts God has given me?” One way is to follow these five steps:
1. Prayer — Ask God daily to reveal your gifts.
2. Scripture — Familiarize yourself with passages pertaining to spiritual gifts (especially Rom. 12, 1 Cor. 12-14, Eph. 4, and 1 Peter 4).
3. Contemplation — Deliberate on your most basic joys, desires, and inclinations.
4. Affirmation — Ask the opinions of respected fellow Christians on what your gifts might be.
5. Experimentation — Put your suspected gifts to work in ministry.
Once you become aware of your spiritual gifts, you will be in a position to begin developing them — to begin using them more effectively, frequently, creatively, skillfully, and purposefully. To develop one of your gifts, do the following:
1. Accept some responsibility in the area of your gift.
2. Seek encouragement and feedback from trusted friends and leaders.
3. Take inventory of the opportunities available to you for using your gift.
4. Take time to learn from those who are more experienced in the area of your gift.
5. Plan your life in light of the gifts God has given you.