LESSON SEVENTEEN

SPIRITUAL GIFTS

by Steve and Terri White 

I Corinthians 12, 13, 14 

WHAT IS MY GIFT?

Spiritual gifts are for every member of the Body of Christ. The more God can trust you to obey Him, the more He will flow His gifts through you. It is God’s intention that every Christian who is filled with His Spirit exercise every gift.  In order to keep His Body interdependent, however, God desires that members function together as a team, without any one believer monopolizing the use of the gifts (I Cor. 12:7).  I Corinthians 12:8-10 lists the gifts: word of wisdom, word of knowledge, discerning of spirits, prophecy, tongues and interpretation, faith, healing, and miracles.

As you grow in the Lord through your obedience to His ways, you will become more sensitive to God’s Spirit. You will be in situations with people who have varied needs and are hungry for God to minister to their needs. Different gifts are required to match the different needs, and God will use you to meet that need by flowing a spiritual gift through you. If a person needs a miracle, God will use you. If someone needs a word of wisdom, then that gift will flow through you to meet that need.

Learn to grow in the gifts by DOING. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. Your obedience will increase your sensitivity, your faith, and the anointing.

DEFINITION OF EACH SPIRITUAL GIFT:

Jesus said that He didn’t do anything unless He first saw His Father do it. This is an important key: don’t say, do, or reveal unless He does, says, or reveals FIRST. (John 5:17, 19, 20)

• GIFTS OF UTTERANCE:

Purpose: usually given to the congregation (1) to edify (build up), (2) to exhort (to urge to pursue some course of conduct; admonish), (3) to comfort

PROPHECY: the inspired utterance in a known language. Prophecy will not guide, but confirm what you already know in your heart. It will never contradict God’s written word.

DIFFERENT KINDS OF TONGUES: supernatural, public utterance in an unknown language (separate from the sign received when you receive the gift of the Holy Ghost as described in Acts 2:4; 10:44-46; 19:1-6). They are intended to be a sign to the unbeliever (I Cor. 14:22).

INTERPRETATION OF TONGUES: the interpretation of the public utterance in an unknown language. The person who speaks out in the unknown language should give out the interpretation (I Cor. 14:13); however, sometimes a different person will give the interpretation. An interpretation is not a word for word translation. Tongues plus interpretation is the equivalent of a prophetic utterance.

• REVELATION GIFTS:

Purpose: usually given to individuals. You know things in order to help people. If these gifts are ever used for anything but helping people, you will lose the anointing of God, and you will open yourself up for Satanic 'familiar spirits' to dominate your life. Under the influence of a familiar spirit, you will know things about people, but you will not know these by the Holy Spirit; and people will not be helped.

KNOWLEDGE: a divine revelation from God that tells or shows us what is happening in the present, or what has happened in the past.

WISDOM: a divine revelation from God that tells or shows what is going to take place in the future.

DISCERNING OF SPIRITS: the divine ability to see or discern: (1) when and how the Holy Spirit is moving (2) the presence of demons or angels (3) false doctrine, false prophecies, false prophets, and the hearts of men (what motivate them).

For the revelation gifts to begin to operate in your life, you must get alone with God. When you get quiet, you drain yourself of the things of the world, and you become sensitive to the anointing. You begin to learn the ways of the Holy Spirit. You learn to test the spirits. You learn to know when God is speaking and when it is not God. You learn to know when it is your mind and when it is the Holy Spirit.

• POWER GIFTS:

Purpose: to destroy the works of the devil (The Lie)

FAITH: a supernatural manifestation of God’s faith imparted to you at a specific time, in a specific place, for a specific purpose. This gift has nothing to do with simple faith expected of every believer at all times that comes "by hearing . . . the word of God" (Rom. 10:7). When the gift of faith comes on you, whatever you pray or speak come to pass.

MIRACLES: a supernatural intervention of God in the course of nature. Miracles are creative and instantaneous: turning water into wine, walking on water, limbs growing out, new heart, new eyeball, etc. Gifts of miracles and faith work together.

HEALINGS: a supernatural intervention of God’s healing power over sickness and diseases without natural means. A healing can be instant or gradual, but it is not creative. Gifts of healings and faith work together.  

CONCLUSION

I Corinthians 13 teaches that it is by love that you exercise spiritual gifts. God’s love will soften you and enable you to reach out with tenderness to those needing ministry. It is important that your focus be on growing in God’s love instead of being used in the spiritual gifts (I Cor. 14:1). As you grow in the love of God, you will be trusted with more ministry in the use of the gifts.

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