Spiritual Gifts

Within the church, all gifts, with believers in submission to their particular equipping, are designed to build up the body of Christ for the cause of spiritual unity and to encourage one another to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ. The greater of the spiritual gifts mentioned by the apostle Paul (1 Corinthians 12:31) manifest themselves through wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, miracles, prophesy, discernment of spirits, tongues, and interpretation (vs.8-10), which brings a great desire for the enemy to sift like wheat, those whom they work through, because of their spiritual wealth.

If believers do not earnestly seek God and His Word with prayer, humility, meditation and study, the enemy will pervert these gifts into a form of godliness, and the only power perceived will come from the those trying to force their own spirituality upon others. Their theology will be errant, and their witness will be questionable. All gifts must be built on and tested by the foundation which has already been laid (1 Corinthians 3:10,11), the very foundation that affords the body of Christ the basis on which to test the spirits to determine whether or not they are of God. (1 John 4:1-6)

Another purpose of spiritual gifts shed abroad to the church is to send the gospel to the unsaved world, revealing that the Kingdom of Heaven has come upon them. Practical gifts such as giving, serving, administration, etc. are the physical support of this evangelism. Yet even these gifts are commanded through the arduous process of sanctification so that the human behavior that accompanies them will possess a powerful heavenly presence whereby others will surely know that God is among them.

All gifts then, whether physical or spiritual, will possess the power and presence of God when they are exercised through the fruitfulness of humility, entrusted to the Holy Spirit for guidance. Apart from the meek and humble spirit of a servant of Christ, cleverly designed schemes of christian pretenders are borne for the cause of attracting attention, pursuing worldly gain, and creating self-righteousness. The root of these endeavors are based on human pride, manifest in the spirit of covetousness, greed, and idolatry.

PJR

"Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness." (Romans 12:6-8)