The Gifts of The Spirit

The gifts of The Spirit bring about a certain persona with them. Either you lean charismatic and are considered flaky and weird or you lean cessationist and are considered lifeless. This is a topic that is often debated with great passion and emotion at times. Let’s dive into the deep end a little. There is a lot to talk about when it pertains to the gifts of The Spirit, they can be categorized in a few different categories.

Overview of the Gifts of The Spirit.

First, there are the fruits of The Spirit found in Galatians Chapter 5. Yes, this can be considered a gift because some of us are gifted with more patience than others, while some people are more kind, self-controlled, etc. I believe we are instructed in scripture to all live by The Spirit and live with the fruits of The Spirit. However, to a certain extent, some may be gifted in certain fruits over others.

Then there is what can be called the Ephesians gifts. When broken down these gifts are the following, Apostle, Teacher, Shepherd (also in some translations Pastor) Evangelist. Some also call these the APEST gifts. These have more to do with the way the Lord created you and ordained you for ministry. Some are more naturally inclined to shepherd while others may be more inclined to teach. Others may wish to evangelize to the nations. These gifts are in direct relation to the way the Lord created you and can show within your personality. If you are unfamiliar with these classifications of gifts then I would encourage you to read through Ephesians where Paul addresses these.

However, there is another classification of gifts that gets a little trickier when talked about, and by tricky, I mean very controversial. These are commonly known as the apostolic gifts of The Spirit. They get that name as these were the gifts that the apostles were known for during the rise of the early church. As in the gift of prophecy, healing, and speaking in tongues (Both as in the Book of Acts and as the prayer language in 1st Corinthians) This is where people disagree, not that these gifts were ever evident, but that these gifts are no longer in use today.

This is where we get the terms cessationist vs continueist. Cessationists, in the simplest of terms, believe that the apostolic gifts of The Spirit are no longer in effect today because the Lord used those gifts to provide authenticity to the apostles’ work to build the early church. It’s not that the gifts aren’t real, it’s that they believe they were gifted for that time and that time only. The Lord can still give those gifts, however, there is no need so he doesn’t. One of the most common misconceptions about cessationists is that they are against the gifts and that is simply not true. They believe that there is no need for these today. Because the authenticity of the church has already been established by the apostles.

Now when it comes to those who would label themselves continueist they believe that the apostolic gifts are still very much so active today. That those gifts God still freely gives and that it is continually used within the church today. Personally, I believe that the gifts are still active today but just as in the time of the apostles, there are guidelines in which the gifts operate within. Now I’m not saying there is some special pattern to activate these gifts, rather I am saying that when the Lord allows the use of these gifts there is a guideline in which they should be used within.

The Guidelines, or better said the Guardrails.

Very simply, the gifts of The Spirit are given for a few major reasons. First and foremost, they are given to be used so that Jesus may be glorified. If the Lord isn’t glorified when the gifts are used, sorry to break it to you but it probably wasn’t The Spirit of God. It’s why we have the Holy Spirit to guide us and teach us. The Holy Spirit leads us to walk within these guidelines. Through the leading of The Holy Spirit and the studious pursuit of God’s Word, we gain discernment to know what’s from the Lord and what’s not.

When you are talking about these specific gifts you are talking about a supernatural God who intervenes within the natural. Who changes the very things we thought were impossible and makes it possible. Things as mind-boggling as prophecy, healing, and tongues start to make a little more sense when you know that it is The Spirit of God at work; A supernatural God who intervenes within our natural confines of this earth. Sometimes it can be hard to understand or even believe. Somebody being healed from a terminal illness? People being healed of great diseases and injuries? A prayer language that is not of this earth? Different languages being interpreted and understood without a translator? These things listed above can be hard to comprehend or even believe.

We see countless examples of these gifts being used throughout scripture from the Old Testament through the New Testament, even to this day. Here is the funny thing, for some, when it comes to supernatural gifts (also called the apostolic gifts) many become a little too gullible and eager to believe something that may not even be from God. Or, even if it is a gift given from God, we may be eager because of our flesh to twist it in such a way that it does not glorify the Father.

Now as I mentioned earlier about the guidelines, one of the other guidelines is that it must edify the body of Christ and strengthen their faith in God. When the gifts are used with the leading of The Spirit, it encourages the body and increases our faith. However, when the gifts are used in an unbiblical non-spirit-led way, it is self-centered and prideful and it causes great harm to the body of Christ. I have seen many people hurt by the church because someone improperly taught or used the gifts. People walk away from church because they believe it’s just a bunch of superstitions to get money. Now this could just be my soapbox for a second but when it comes to the gifts of The Spirit, it’s not some “call this number and spend $250 and receive healing or know your future” type deal. The gifts weren’t given so that you may fill up your bank account but they were given to encourage the body and raise the church in love. Second, the gifts aren’t given to you to wield whenever you please. Only when The Spirit is at work through you.

Many have tried to put some monetary value on the gifts of The Spirit and try to sell out what the Lord gave for the building of the body. You see this is where the enemy comes in to take hold of a believer and bring destruction to their lives. It makes us hard, unbelieving, skeptical, bitter, and angry, and in no way does this help the body grow. Things like prophecy, speaking and translating of tongues, healing, and so forth were all given to glorify God and build the faith of the church. To know that a supernatural God cares for us enough to intervene in our everyday and painfully dull lives to move in a mighty and powerful way. It is truly humbling and incredible.

One thing to make certain is that, as the term goes, when we operate in the gifts it is not us at work but the Holy Spirit at work within us. The idea that we ourselves possess this kind of power is quite false and brings us to a place where we begin to build ourselves up in pride and not in humility submitting to the leading of the Lord. For who are we if we do not follow the counsel of the Lord?

Lastly, the gifts also build our faith. Here is where it is important to understand the full picture and that picture is Jesus; Christ glorified and lifted high. That is the big picture. Now when the Holy Spirit works through us and these gifts are at use it doesn’t just encourage the faith of the body but also encourages us. But in humility. When led by The Spirit in submission to the Father, the gifts will never lead you to grow in pride or self-centeredness. For the Lord opposes the proud so how can his gifts make us prideful? Unless it is that we do not use them in the created intent? When we try to operate in the gifts outside of the confines of the Lord’s leading, we go astray.

When we walk in line, led by The Spirit, we are encouraged and our faith is built. We turn and rely even more so on Christ and who he is, instead of ourselves. Our ultimate calling is to glorify Christ and spread the gospel. The gifts of The Spirit help us walk effectively in this calling. Not to build the platform of a personal ministry that elevates our status or bank account. Discernment is a crucial part of the gifts of The Spirit. Without discernment, how do you know if you are building Christ’s kingdom, or Satan’s? This harsh reality must be considered. Without discernment, you will never fully know what is from the Lord or not. See the devotional on John 4:1-6, testing the spirits.

Conclusion

In closing, we can’t get caught up in a meaningless debate on whether the gifts are active today or not. Rather we should focus our efforts on building up the body of Christ in love and remaining submitted to God and his word. Discernment is forged in the fires of the studious pursuit of God’s word. We are called to build up the church and encourage the body. We can not effectively do this when arguing about the existence of supernatural gifts today. God chooses to operate how he will. Whether that be through supernaturally intervening in the natural, or through the teaching and preaching of his word. As long as we stay submitted to the Lord and submit ourselves to his word, we aim to build his kingdom.

It is better to spend more time pursuing God and studying his word than arguing about matters that are secondary to our calling.