Questions About Spiritual Gifts
Unleashing Your God-Given Potential: Discovering Your Spiritual Gifts
Have you ever sat in church watching others serve and wondered, “Where do I fit in?” Perhaps you’ve felt like one of those spectators at a football game that Bud Wilkinson described: “A professional football game is happening where 50,000 spectators desperately needing exercise sit in the stands watching 22 men who desperately need rest.” Too often, our churches operate the same way—a few people doing all the work while most watch from the sidelines.
But that’s not God’s design for His church. If you’re a follower of Jesus, I have good news for you: “If you are born again, if you know Jesus, if your life has been changed, I assure you on the authority of the Scriptures, you have at least one spiritual gift.”
What Is a Spiritual Gift?
Let me share two definitions that help us understand spiritual gifts:
Leslie Flynn defines a spiritual gift as “a Spirit-given ability for Christian service.” Similarly, William McRae calls it “a divine endowment of a special ability for service upon a member of the body of Christ.”
In other words, if you’re part of Christ’s body, God has equipped you with something special to contribute. And as we heard recently, “We need each other. We all need people in our lives who will speak truth and grace and people who can come and love and serve us as God has given them a particular spiritual gift.”
The Biblical Foundation for Spiritual Gifts
If you want to study spiritual gifts in Scripture, focus on these key passages:
When you examine these passages, you’ll find between 19-21 spiritual gifts mentioned in the Bible. These gifts aren’t distributed equally—”I will also assure you that there’s not someone in the audience that has all the spiritual gifts.” But every believer has something to offer.
Types of Spiritual Gifts
The Bible shows us different categories of spiritual gifts:
Speaking Gifts
These are “public in nature, word and doctrinally centered.” According to Ephesians 4, these gifts are “given to equip the saints.” I’m “very thankful for those who stand in this pulpit, very thankful for those pastors and lay pastors that serve the body here. I’m very thankful for our teachers, not only our adult teachers, but all of our teachers who minister and teach our children and our teenagers.”
Service Gifts
These are “often less visible, but greatly impactful, oriented toward practical needs within the church.” As 1 Peter 4:11 says, “If anyone serves, let him do it as the ability or the strength that God has given.”
Sign Gifts
These include “miracles, healings, tongues.” While Christians differ on whether these continue today, we must remember that “God will never contradict His Word. God has the sovereign power, authority to do whatever he wants, whenever he wants, wherever he wants. But we must be submitted to the Scriptures.”
Common Spiritual Gifts Explained
Here are some of the mainstream spiritual gifts you might have:
- Evangelism: Do you have a heart for souls? Do you love talking to people about Jesus?
- Pastor/Teacher: Do you have a passion for God’s Word and sharing it with others?
- Teaching: Do you have the ability to apply Scriptures to adults, teenagers, or children?
- Exhortation: Are you gifted at coming alongside others to encourage them?
- Wisdom: Do you have a great depth of spiritual discernment?
- Knowledge: Can you understand, organize, and communicate deep truths of Scripture?
- Helps/Ministering: Do you love visiting people, praying with them, encouraging them?
- Giving: Are you naturally generous with your resources?
- Leadership: Do you have the ability to lead with diligence and care?
- Mercy: When wrong is done, are you the first to step in and say, “That’s not right”?
- Faith: Do you have supernatural confidence in God’s promises and power?
How Can I Discover My Spiritual Gift?
If you’re wondering what your gift might be, here are some practical questions to consider:
- Study the Scriptures: What do these passages teach about spiritual gifts?
- Reflect on past experiences: “How has God used me in the past? What have I enjoyed doing for the good of others and the glory of God?”
- Consider your enjoyment: “What do you enjoy doing as you’re surrendered to the Lord?”
- Seek feedback: “What do spiritual people say about you?” Ask someone who loves Jesus what they see as your gift.
- Notice your burdens: “What burdens do I have when I walk through these doors? What’s not getting done?”
- Pay attention to challenges: “What challenges you? What does the Holy Spirit lay on your heart?”
- Look for opportunities: “What open doors are before me?”
Putting Your Gifts into Action
Remember, “We are not saved to sit. We’re saved to serve. We’re saved to impact other people.” Your spiritual gifts aren’t about you—they’re for others and for God’s glory.
“The same Savior who bled and died on the cross for you and for me is the one who gave you your spiritual gift. He loves you. He cares for you. He is the head of the body, and he desires that his body functions and works well together.”
Next Steps
- Acknowledge your gift: Recognize that if you’re a believer, you have at least one spiritual gift.
- Remove barriers: “Maybe fear, pride or comparison has held you back from serving. Just step forward.”
- Start using your gift: Begin serving in areas aligned with your gifts—not just at church on Sundays, but “on Monday morning” and throughout your week.
- Seek unity: Remember that “we are one body in Christ, and he’s the head. We’re not one body because of a particular denomination. We’re not one body because of some theological system. We’re not one body because of our ethnic background. We’re not one body because of our material status as believers.”
As you discover and use your spiritual gifts, you become a vital part of God’s work in the church and the world. You’re not just a spectator—you’re a participant in God’s grand plan to build His kingdom through His people.
Remember: “God has given you a gift and he wants to use you for the good of others and for his glory.”
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Full of Grace And Truth
Point To Jesus
When Light Broke The Darkness
That You May Believe – The Gospel of John
Biblical Leadership Matters
We hope you enjoyed the sermon and would love to see you in person. Plan your visit to Community Baptist Church in Spring Hill, Tennessee today!