What are Spiritual Gifts?
God’s supreme gift to his people is himself. He gave his Son for us, sending him to die in our place so our sins could be forgiven (John 3:16). He has made us his children by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9), giving us new life in his Spirit (Romans 8:9).
Now his Spirit lives in us (1 Corinthians 3:16) and wants to use us to lead others to follow Jesus. He has given us “spiritual gifts” as a means to this end. Spiritual gifts are to the church what organs and limbs are to the human body. When we learn about spiritual gifts, we discover the anatomy of the church, the body of Christ.
Our gifts are God’s equipment, provided to help us grow in our faith. When we identify our God-given gifts and abilities, we know better how to serve our Father. We are empowered by God’s Spirit for accomplishing God’s will for our lives. We live and share the Christian faith with joy. And at the end of our work on earth, we can say, No reserve, no retreat, no regrets.
How many spiritual gifts do I have?
Every believer has at least one spiritual gift (1 Corinthians 12:7, 11; Ephesians 4:7), given at his or her salvation. No believer has every spiritual gift (1 Corinthians 12:12, 27, 29-30). Our gifts differ from each other (Romans 12:3-6a). We receive our gifts according to God’s will, not our own desire or experience (1 Corinthians 12:11; Ephesians 4:7-8).
The New Testament includes three lists of spiritual gifts. In Romans 12:3-8 we encounter seven gifts: “prophecy,” serving; teaching, encouraging, “contributing to the needs of others,” leadership, and mercy
In 1 Corinthians 12:7-11, we find nine gifts: wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, miraculous powers, prophecy, distinguishing between spirits, “speaking in different kinds of tongues”, and “the interpretation of tongues”.
And in Ephesians 4:11, we discover five gifts: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers (some interpreters see pastors and teachers as two separate gifts, though the Greek syntax seems to indicate that they are one function).
This gifts discovery tool does not include the so-called “sign” gifts (healing, miracles, tongues, interpretation of tongues) even though we believe they are valid today because most churches do not offer ministries that use them. We include the additional gifts of “music” and “hospitality” since many interpreters see them as spiritual gifts (see 1 Corinthians 14:26and 1 Peter 4:9-11), and because they are very important to most churches’ ministries.
How many different spiritual gifts are in the Bible?
Combining the various lists, this discovery tool catalogs eighteen different gifts:
administration: organizing people and ministries effectively
apostleship: adapting to a different culture to share the gospel or do ministry
discernment: distinguishing spiritual truth from error or heresy
evangelism: sharing the gospel effectively and passionately
exhortation: encouraging others as they follow Jesus
faith: seeing God’s plan and following it with passion
giving: investing with unusual sacrifice and joy in God’s Kingdom
hospitality: using your home and/or resources to help others follow Jesus
intercession: praying with unusual passion and effectiveness
knowledge: discerning and sharing the deep truths of God’s word and will
leadership: motivating and inspiring others to serve Jesus fully
mercy: showing God’s grace to hurting people with unusual passion
music: sharing God’s truth and love with unusual effectiveness
prophecy: preaching the word of God with personal passion and effectiveness
serving: meeting practical needs with unusual sacrifice and joy
shepherding: helping others grow spiritually
teaching: explaining God’s word and truth with unusual effectiveness
wisdom: relating biblical truth to practical life with great effectiveness
Some of these ministry areas are the responsibility only of those gifted to fulfill them, while others are the responsibility of all believers. For instance, those with the gift of prophecy should preach; those with the gift of teaching should teach the Bible to others; those with the gift of apostleship should be our leaders in missions ministry.
On the other hand, God expects all of his people to discern truth from error, share their faith, encourage others, have faith in him, give sacrificially, show hospitality to others, intercede regularly, seek to know and share his word, offer mercy to hurting people, meet practical needs with joy, help others grow spiritually, and relate his truth to life.
What are my spiritual gifts?
Whether we are “gifted” in these areas or not, we are responsible to meet these needs as God directs us.
Those with spiritual gifts in these areas will typically be called to lead the rest of us in these ministries and will model them with great effectiveness. Those I have known who possess the gift of evangelism, for example, encourage me to share my faith when they demonstrate their gift in action. Those with the gift of serving will take the initiative to help in this area, and will show the rest of us how to serve with joy.
The spiritual gifts, then, do not confine our service only to the areas where we are gifted. Rather, they point the way to ministries where we will lead and serve with our greatest passion and joy.
Spiritual gifts assessment
This in-depth assessment will help guide you in the process of identifying these gifts. Note that all questions must be answered in order for an assessment to be given.
After answering every question and clicking “Submit,” you will see a new page with your results. A copy of the results will also be emailed to you. Furthermore, a copy of the results will be emailed to the church so that the leadership can affirm, pray and help you discern how those gifts are used for the glory of God.