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Monday, 21 July 2008
Saturday, 19 July 2008
Discovering Spiritual Gifts - Which Gifts Do I Have?
Benny Hinn - FIRE Fall on Audience in California
But the people in such a church do not grow much. They are not developing their spiritual gifts. Spiritual gifts only develop when they
are put to work.
Here in this article post, I am going to show you how to become aware of the spiritual gifts you already have so that you will be able to use them more effectively and strategically for the body of Christ and advancement of the Gospel.
Many people do not understand what spiritual gift is. They do not know how it relates to their lives, how it relates to the will of God for their life, how it relates to the lives of those around them, how it relates the local church, or how it relates to the body of Christ as a whole.
For several years, I also failed to understand what spiritual gift is and how it relates to God’s purposeful plan to enable us to serve. Mark 10: 43 – 45 That’s not the way it should be among you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must be a slave to everyone, because even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many people."
Spiritual Gift is God’s grace manifested in specific service to others.
1 Peter 4:10 As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.
Romans 12:6 We have different gifts based on the grace that was given to us. So if your gift is prophecy, use your gift in proportion to your faith.
(Romans 12:4-6a) Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us.
We can see clearly in these scriptures that every person who has received grace has already received spiritual gifts. Therefore every Christian has the responsibility to use his or her spiritual gifts in serving others.
God wants you to be aware of your gifts and what if you really mean business in your search, you will ask God to show you your gifts.If you make the discovery of your spiritual gifts one of the focus of your daily persistent prayer, he promises to answer you.
Matthew 7:7-11 "Keep asking, and it will be given to you. Keep searching, and you will find. Keep knocking, and the door will be opened for you. Because everyone who keeps asking will receive, and the person who keeps searching will find, and the person who keeps knocking will have the door opened. "There isn't a person among you who would give his son a stone if he asked for bread, is there? Or if he asks for a fish, he wouldn't give him a snake, would he? So if you who are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who keep on asking him!
What gifts do I have?
The following are twenty-five New Testament gifts that I have listed to help you discover what gift you already have, but before you read further, I will like you to take note of the following points:
- Discovering your gift(s) is not a matter of determining which gift(s) you have. If you are a true believer in Jesus Christ, you have at least one gift. The Holy Spirit is the One who determined your gifts, not you or any other person. He distributes the gifts, as He deems best.
- When we talk about “discovering” our gifts, we are merely referring to identifying those gifts that we already have.
- Do not to be fooled into thinking that these are the only gifts God has given his people! The bible nowhere claims that the gifts listed by the apostles are the only ones. Almost all theologians agree that the biblical list of gifts is not exhaustive
- I would also like you to note in the following list that there is what might be called natural abilities alongside some rather extraordinary gifts like prophecy, healing, working of miracles, interpretation of tongues etc. In fact, some spiritual gifts are, abilities that anyone might have, whether Christian or non- Christian. Many non-Christians have gifts of singing, hospitality, leadership, teaching and giving.
Why is this so?
The God who created us already built in us with particular and unique natural abilities, talents and creativity. When He redeems us from being spiritually dead, that is becoming Christians, everything becomes new [2 Cor 5:17] and this includes natural abilities. When God regenerates us, He doesn’t start from scratch but builds on what He has already made.
We could say that natural abilities are either talents or skills that have been learned through conditioning from the environment we lived in or training we have received. Again, both believers and unbelievers have natural abilities. Spiritual gifts, however, are an empowerment of divine origin, not a result of genetics, training, or conditioning. Only believers have spiritual gifts. For more go here
Compiled List of 25 New Testament Gifts:
- Tongues (1 Cor 12:10, 30; 13:1; 14:26)
- Interpretation of tongues (1 Cor 12:10, 30:14:26)
- Speaking (1 Pet 4:11)
- Celibacy (1 Cor 7:7)
- Marriage (1 Cor 7:7)
- Singing (1 Cor 14:26)
- Revelation (1 Cor 14:26)
- Sharing/giving (Rom 12:8; 1 Cor 13:3)
- Leadership/Managing/Caring for (Rom 12:8)
- Administration/Ability to lead (1 Cor 12:28)
- Showing Mercy/ Being kind (Rom 12:28)
- Apostles (Eph 4:11; 1 Cor 12:28)
- Evangelists (Eph 4:11)
- Pastors (Eph 4:11)
- A word of wisdom (1 Cor 12:28)
- A word of knowledge (1 Cor 12:28)
- Ability to discriminate between spirits (1 Cor 12:10)
- Workings of miracles (1 Cor 12:10, 28)
- Healing (1 Cor 12:9, 28)
- Faith (1 Cor 12:9; 13:2)
- Prophecy (Rom 12:6; 1 Cor 12:10, 28; 13:2; Eph 4:11)
- Service /help (Rom 12:7; 1 Pet 4:11)
- Ability to help (1 Cor 12:28)
- Encouraging/comforting/urging/counselling (Rom 12:8)
- Teaching (Rom 12:7; Eph 4:11; 1 Cor 12:28;14:26)
Find out if any of these gifts fits you. If you feel comfortable with it, then carry out exercising it. If it stems from the grace that God has given your unique self, then it will fit. It will correspond to the new you God has made. Go here for more on
spiritual gifts
Using your suspected gift
If God has given you speaking gifts, you could use this gift in delivering messages in your church or fellowship meetings, speaking at conferences, leading a seminar, working at a Christian radio or television station, or teaching as a Sunday school teacher, a Christian college professor or a seminary instructor.
If your gift is teaching, seek an opportunity to do some teaching in your local church or a Christian education department. You may want to teach a basic doctrine course to newcomers or new Christians or host quarterly small group studies on different topics. You may enjoy doing research for the pastor or others who teach. You do not necessarily have to teach the Bible to be a help to the church ministry. Although you can help with interpretation or teaching teachers and others.
As someone with gift of mercy, you are willing to deal with and minister to people who have needs that most people feel very uncomfortable working with. With a counselling course, you could become a good counsellor. Other appropriate ministry areas include missions, committee member, furlough assistance, and correspondence helper. You would work well with the elderly and with people who have mental and physical disabilities, in nursing, and with special ministries to migrants, released offenders or abused children and women.
Do you think you have gift of exhortation? You may want to be a leadership trainer. You could certainly serve as a counselor in church or in a counseling center. You would work well as an encourager with those who are discouraged and as a counselor in a drug or alcohol program, rescue mission, poverty program, half-way house or runaway ministry or in a shelter for abused women and children. You could also use your gift in organizing or serving in a Men's or Women's Ministry.
If you think your gift is service, you may find yourself assisting people with their physical needs. You might ask your church to include you in some of their activities to put your gift to work and see.
If your gift is giving, your giving may provide finances or material goods to assist those with physical needs or to help in time of crisis. Have a list of those ministries you feel concerned for. Some categories of ministries you could include are your local church, your denomination, parachurch organizations, foreign missions, Christian education, Christian literature, urban ministry, prison ministry, and various ministries. Many of these ministries are usually unable to implement their plans due to lack of funds. Purposeful, planned and regular giving to these ministries will play a very important role than sporadic and one time giving.
If you think you have the ability to lead, seek an opportunity within your church or fellowship meetings to lead in some capacity.
Do you have the gift of hospitality? You could host elderly people, unwanted or disabled children, disturbed teens. It could be a tremendous way to make them feel special and know the love of Christ.
Some people may not have the primary helping gifts but may nonetheless have a passion toward these areas or toward people in need. They could fulfill leadership or administrative roles within these ministries. They could be teaching and training others to do the work. They could be praying for the ministry. These believers may not be in regular contact with the people in need but still hold integral roles in ministry to them.
Warnings
In order to avoid some lessons in the school of hard knocks, we really need to learn to be selective about which role we accept. Do not just say yes to everything because people who say yes to everything are not only being unfair to themselves and others, but they may also be taking time and energy away from another ministry they ought to be doing. God who give gifts will orchestrate the whole body so that we each are free to concentrate on our own small part and do it well.
Beware of Satan's attack on your gift. He can cause pride because of your particular ability. He may influence you to disregard rules and authority. Don't hesitate to read directions and work on developing tolerance for others' mistakes.
Spiritual gift assessment
Every Christian needs to know how he or she is gifted. The most effective Christians are those who are ministering within their areas of giftedness. Taking spiritual gift assessment helps you not only to understand how you are gifted but how you can use your giftedness to lead others in God’s Kingdom.
Are you are a pastor, building an effective team in your church depends on putting the right people in the right places. The best way to determine what place each person belongs in is by determine everyone's spiritual gifts.
Here’s a link for anyone to take a spiritual gift assessment free of charge. It is actually a really useful tool to becoming aware of one’s spiritual gift.
Take the spiritual gift assessment here now. It is free!
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Finding Your Spiritual Gifts Questionnaire - Updated and Expanded
By C. Peter Wagner / Gospel Light A ministry tool no congregation should be without! An easy-to-follow new format---with an updated 137-question Houts inventory---helps church members, group leaders, teachers, and pastors identify and use their spiritual gifts. Now complete, this booklet lists 27 gifts found in Scripture, with references and descriptions. "Plug it in" and discover the power to serve! |
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