Understanding and Utilizing Your Spiritual Gifts in the Church Community

SIMON TEMPLE AME ZION CHURCH REVEREND DR. KEITH D. TILLETT SR., PASTOR Presenter: Reverend Dr. Leon B. Newton, Assistant Pastor Subject: How to Identify and Effectively Use Your Spiritual Gifts, Compiled by Crosswalk Editors Dr. Roger Barrier and Crosswalk Contributors; Dr. Roger Barrier retired as senior teaching pastor from Casas Church in Tucson, Arizona. Foundational Scripture: 1 Peter 4:10[NIV], 10Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God s grace in its various forms. Date: July 19, 2023

INTRODUCTION It is said, Cancer is one of the debilitating diseases of our day. You know what cancer is? Cells that don t want to go with the program. They are deviant cells that have their own agenda. Now, this would be just fine if they would leave your body. The problem with cancer is that these deviant cells still want to hang out in you. They don t want go anywhere. They just want to be independent. Cancer cells still want blood, they still want to eat, and they still want oxygen because they want to grow. Not only do they grow, they also want to spread and metastasize. So in other words, they want to siphon off the body, but they don t want to contribute to it. And ultimately, unless addressed radically, the whole body is in trouble, because what they want are the benefits. Cancer exists in the church today too. There are cells of people that want the benefits of being in the body without the contributions. They want the sermons, they want the songs, they want to be ministered to, they want the toys for their kids, they want the food for their pantry, and they want the counseling for their problem. They want all the things that the body of Christ is designed to give, but they don t want to be part of the body. They just want to hang out in it. Evans 899, p. 300 2

THE GIFTS MAY BE ORGANIZED IN SEVERAL WAYS. WE WILL USE THE MOST COMMON GROUPING. Establishing Gifts (Ephesians 4:11 and 1 Corinthians 12:29): Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, and Pastor- Teachers. These gifts are used primarily for planting and growing churches. Supporting Gifts (Romans 12:6-8): Prophecy, Service, Teaching, Encouragement, Giving, Administration/Leadership, and Mercy. These gifts are used primarily to organize and administrate the church so that it may best carry out its responsibilities. Ministry Gifts (1 Corinthians 12:8-10, 27-31): Wisdom, Knowledge, Faith, Healing, Miracles, Prophecy, Helps, Administration, Leadership, Distinguishing Spirits, Speaking in Tongues, and Interpreting Tongues. These are the tools that the Holy Spirit utilizes for the ongoing ministry of the church. Consider the following: It is said, When Niccolo Paganini willed his finely crafted and lovingly used violin to the city of Genoa, he demanded that it never be played again. It was a gift designated for preservation, but not destined for service. On the other hand, when the resurrected Christ willed His spiritual gifts to the child of God, He commanded that they be used. They were gifts not designated for preservation, but destined for service. 1500 Illustrations, #1305, p. 352 3

14 COMMON QUESTIONS ABOUT IDENTIFYING AND USING YOUR SPIRITUAL GIFTS: 1.What is a spiritual gift? A spiritual gift is a God-given ability, distributed to individual Christians by the Holy Spirit that allows him/or her to work through their lives to help the church execute its mission on earth. 2.What is the difference between spiritual gifts and natural talents? Natural talents are physical abilities to do special things. Some natural talents might be musical ability, carpentry, mechanical aptitude, and artistic skills. Spiritual gifts are spiritual abilities to do certain things. Natural talents are often the vehicle through which spiritual gifts can be used. For example, a Christian vocalist may have the spiritual gift of evangelism being expressed through the vehicle of musical talent. 3.Are spiritual gifts the best sign of spirituality? No! Christ-like maturity is primarily indicated by the manifestation of the Fruit of the Spirit, not by the presence of spiritual gifts (Galatians 5:22-23). God may choose to shine forth in a spiritually immature baby Christian. However, that does not make the baby spiritual. A spiritual child may say excitedly, "I got the gift of tongues last night and now I m spiritual!" But, Jesus said: "For by their fruit you shall know them" (Matthew 7:16). Satan can imitate and counterfeit spiritual gifts, but he is baffled in trying to imitate the Fruit of the Spirit. 4

4. Does every believer have a gift? Yes! Every believer has at least one gift (1 Corinthians 12:6-7, 11). All believers are to evaluate themselves in terms of their God-given gifts (Romans 12:3) 5.How many gifts are there? What are they? According to 1 Corinthians 12:8-10, 28-29; Romans 12:3-8; Ephesians 4:11; and 1 Corinthians 7:7, there are at least 22 spiritual gifts. They are as follows: Apostles; Prophets; Pastor-Teachers; Evangelists; Prophecy; Teaching; Wisdom; Knowledge; Faith; Miraculous Powers; Healing; Distinguishing between Spirits; Speaking in Tongues; Interpretation of Tongues; Helps; Service; Administration; Encouragement; Giving; Leadership; Mercy and Celibacy. 6.When does the believer receive his/her gift? There is no clear-cut Biblical teaching as to when the believer receives his/her gift. However, it seems that the gift comes with the Giver and is bestowed at conversion (2 Timothy 1:6). 7.Can a believer have any gift he or she wants? No! (1 Corinthians 12:29-31). The Holy Spirit gives out gifts as he sees fit (1 Corinthians 12:7, 8-9, 11). This is why there is no prescribed way to get a gift. However, if we are faithful with the gift, or gifts, that the Holy Spirit has already given us, he invites us to pray for another (1 Corinthians 12:29-31). 8. Do spiritual gifts come ready to operate? No! It often takes time for gifts to mature and develop into their full effectiveness. Spiritual gifts come "in the rough." Every believer is obligated to mature his/her gift. Each Christian should have an opportunity to use his/her gifts interdependently with others (Romans 12:4-6). 5

9.If a person doesnt have the gift of evangelism, is he/she excused from trying to win people to Christ? Of course not! The absence of gifts does not take precedence over clear-cut biblical demands. For example, we are all commanded to be liberal in our giving. Just because a Believer does not have the gift of giving does not mean that he/she can say, "Never pass me the offering plate again. I don't need to tithe. I don't have the gift of giving." We are all commanded to share the gospel with others whether we have the gift of evangelism are not. 10.Can spiritual gifts be lost? Yes! Gifts which are not used or developed can apparently be lost (like the appendix in the human body). Jesus' parable of the talents illustrates the danger of neglecting the gift that the Holy Spirit has bestowed. To do so means censorship and rebuke by the Master Himself (Matthew 25:14-30). 11. Are some gifts more important than others? Yes! Prophecy is the most important. Speaking in tongues is the least. All the others fall somewhere in between (1 Corinthians 12:31). The relative value of spiritual gifts is to be tested by their usefulness to the church as a whole. Paul wrote that due to the interdependent nature of all of the gifts, there should be no spiritual pride associated with any of these gifts. 12.Can spiritual gifts be misused? Yes! For example, Paul described the use and misuse of the gift of tongues in the Corinthian church (1 Corinthians 14). For example, Paul taught that speaking in tongues without someone in attendance with the gift of interpretation will only bring confusion to the church family and ridicule from unbelievers. Accordingly, Dr. Barrier states, When he was pastoring, in order to curtail the misuse of the gift of tongues in their church worship services, they encouraged people to use the gifts of tongues and interpreting tongues only in private settings. To use them in a worship service when most of the folks have no idea what s going on is to invite great misunderstanding and confusion. 6

When we were laying down the guidelines for the use of the gift of tongues in our worship services our Christian education pastor said, I ve got a great idea. If some woman stands up in the midst of a worship service and begins speaking in tongues, I ll wait until she s finished. Then, I will say to the crowd, I have the gift of interpreting tongues and this sweet lady has just donated her house to the building fund. (Of course, you know that this was a joke.) 13.Do spiritual gifts tests line up with Scripture? Mrs. Kathy Howard talks about a popular way that believers attempt to discover their spiritual gifts in her article, "Why You Need to Beware of Spiritual Gifts Tests." A spiritual gifts test is a manmade tool meant to help believers discern their spiritual gifts. The believer answers a series of questions designed to discover his or her specific gifts. When kept in the proper perspective, the test can be a helpful tool, but we must remember it is limited. How can a human tool effectively measure the infinite workings of the Spirit of Christ? At their best, spiritual gifts tests may identify spiritual gifts and natural talents. But at their worst, since they cannot distinguish between them, the tests could actually encourage believers to serve according to our natural talents rather than relying on the power and equipping of the Holy Spirit. So, while I think spiritual gifts tests can be useful, we must remember their limitations and proceed with caution. 14.Does the Holy Spirit still give believers the gifts of tongues and prophecy? Author and theologian, Mark Dever speaks about some of the more mysterious and debated gifts, tongues and prophecy, in his video, "Have the Miraculous Gifts Like Tongues and Prophecy Ceased?" Clearly God's word presents tongues as a gift that God's spirit gives to people sometimes. And there are a lot of questions I can't answer about it, but what I can say is I don't think we have an exhaustive list of gifts. I don't think there are those that operate it and [others] that don't. I think what we can say, is that God the Holy Spirit will build up his church and he will give us all the gifts we need to that end. He is sovereign, we don't need to worry about it. 7

HERE ARE FIVE QUESTIONS TO HELP YOU IDENTIFY YOUR SPIRITUAL GIFTS. 1. As I study how gifts operate in the Bible, do any resonate in my soul? 2. What do I enjoy doing? 3. What is the holy spirit telling me? 4. What ministry in my life is God blessing? 5. What gifts do others see operating in me? Note: Dr. Barrier suggests, As we are engaging in Christian service in obedience, others may see a gift in us long before we ourselves are aware of it. Occasionally, others recognize that we don't possess a gift we think we have. 8

THREE THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND BEFORE TAKING A SPIRITUAL GIFTS TEST: Kathy Howard goes on in her article to say the following: 1. Spiritual gifts test can encourage us to put our purposes in place of God s purposes. Since spiritual gifts tests tend to reveal our own strengths and talents, we may use the assessment to find ways to serve that can be undertaken in our own power. We may hesitate to step out in ways that require the Spirit s power, thus missing out on God s greater purpose. Serving in our own strength brings us credit. Serving in God s strength brings Him glory and honor. 2. Spiritual gifts tests can limit the Holy Spirit. Even when the test does reveal a true spiritual gift, we may find ourselves only serving in ways that use that specific gift. We may forget that as a believer we have the entire person and power of the Holy Spirit residing within us. Yet we may hear God s call but reject it because that s not in our area of gifting. With the Holy Spirit, God can do anything through our life He chooses to do. 3. Spiritual gifts tests can become an excuse. It s a big temptation to follow something concrete and human like a test rather than depending on the leadership and guidance of the Holy Spirit. If we aren t careful, believers can easily fall into the trap of making spiritual gifts all about us instead of all about the Giver. We ask, What can I do for God? How can I use my gifts and talents? When instead, we should be asking, How does God want to use the gifts He gave me? I have taken spiritual gifts tests in the past. But I have also followed God to work in areas that didn t line up with the results of any test. And He did things that only He could do! I am so glad I didn t rely on that test. 9

PRACTICE! PRACTICE! PRACTICE! Every Christian is given at least one gift at conversion. Our initial gift may lie dormant for a while as we mature. These gifts seem to remain with believers throughout their ministry lives. I used to think that I could have only one gift. However, as my ministry increased, my need for gifts increased. As we manage well our initial gift, and as our ministries expand, we may ask God for other gifts under the direction of the inner promptings of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:31 and 1 Corinthians 14:39). When necessary, spiritual gifts may operate as a toolbox full of tools. For example, God may utilize a particular gift in our lives on a short-time basis in order to minister to a particular need in the body of Christ. The existence of a gift is a call to exercise it. Paul advised Timothy, "Neglect not the gift that is in you," 1 Timothy 4:14. Faithful utilization of a gift brings increased effectiveness in its ministry, but failure to develop a gift curtails ministry! Consider the following: It is suggested, when a speck of dust blows into an eye, on impulse the eye is rubbed with a finger. There is no debate with the finger about whether to help the eye. Later, after pulling down the lid, causing the eye to water, the speck is washed out. In a short time the eye is back to normal. But without the hand, including its specially functioning fingers, the irritant would have remained. Each member in the body of Chris is equally important. We all need each other.1500 Illustrations, #1308, p. 353 10

IN CONCLUSION It is said, Imagine how a parent would feel if on Christmas Day when the gifts for their children were handed out, the children just took them, said, Thank You, and laid them aside with no attempt to open the gifts, not even to find out what they were! Imagine how the Lord must feel when he has given gifts to us that he intends for us to use, and yet we never take the trouble to find out what they are, never put them to work, and then excuse ourselves from serving the church by saying that we can t do anything! 1500 Illustrations, #1306, p. 352 11

REFERENCES Evans, Tony. Book of Illustrations: Stories, Quotes, and Anecdotes. (Moody Publishers, Chicago, IL., 2009). https://www.crosswalk.com/faith/spiritual-life/how-to-identify-and-effectively-use-your-spiritual- gifts.html 12