Spiritual Gifts: Manifestations of God’s Presence in His People
Are spiritual gifts signs of spiritual maturity? Paul’s words to the Corinthians reveal a deeper truth: the Spirit’s gifts aren’t for self-promotion but for glorifying Christ and building up the church.
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Spiritual Gifts
1 Now concerning[a] spiritual gifts,[b] brothers,[c] I do not want you to be uninformed. 2 You know that when you were pagans you were led astray to mute idols, however you were led. 3 Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says “Jesus is accursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit.
4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. 7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8 For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.
Discovering Your Spiritual Gifts: God’s Supernatural Abilities for Ministry
In 1 Corinthians 12:1-11, the Apostle Paul addressed the Corinthian church’s confusion about spiritual gifts with a crucial declaration: “Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed.” This statement reveals both the importance of understanding spiritual gifts and the widespread ignorance that often surrounds them.
The Corinthian church faced problems not because spiritual gifts were operating, but because believers were exercising these gifts while walking in the flesh rather than in the power of the Holy Spirit. Their spiritual immaturity, competitive attitudes, and self-exaltation had corrupted what God intended as tools for building up the body of Christ.
Paul’s teaching provides essential guidance for contemporary believers who may have encountered negative experiences with spiritual gifts or who remain uncertain about their own spiritual gifting. Understanding these supernatural abilities given by the Holy Spirit can transform both individual ministry effectiveness and the health of the church community.
Understanding Spiritual Gifts
Spiritual gifts are supernatural abilities given by the Holy Spirit to glorify God and build up the body of Christ. The Greek word for building up (oikodomeo) means to edify, strengthen, and encourage fellow believers. When spiritual gifts operate properly, people experience spiritual nourishment, encouragement, and growth in their relationship with Christ.
Paul listed nine specific gifts in this passage: wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, miracles, prophecy, discernment of spirits, tongues, and interpretation of tongues. However, this represents only about one-third of the spiritual gifts mentioned throughout Scripture. Other passages in Romans 12, Ephesians 4, and 1 Peter 4 expand the comprehensive list of how God equips His people for ministry.
Spiritual gifts differ from natural abilities, though God can certainly use natural talents for His glory when they are yielded to Him. Think of brilliant minds like C.S. Lewis or Tim Keller, whose intellectual gifts became powerful tools for kingdom advancement when surrendered to God’s purposes. However, spiritual gifts represent supernatural enablement beyond human ability or training.
The Problem at Corinth
The Corinthian believers had fallen into several destructive patterns that corrupted their use of spiritual gifts:
Competitive Comparison: Like athletes comparing performance statistics or students comparing test scores, some Corinthians used their spiritual gifts as measures of superiority over other believers. This competitive spirit destroyed the unity that spiritual gifts were meant to foster.
Spiritual Elitism: Certain members claimed spiritual superiority based on their particular gifts, creating an unhealthy hierarchy within the church. They exalted their gifting rather than using it to serve others.
Flesh-Driven Ministry: Most significantly, they were operating in spiritual gifts while still walking in the flesh—motivated by pride, competition, and self-advancement rather than love for God and others.
Paul emphasized that spiritual gifts are not signs of spiritual maturity. A truly spiritual person is Christ-centered, not gift-centered. They focus on bringing glory to God and building up others rather than promoting themselves. Character (meaning, Christ-like character) represents the greatest sign of spiritual maturity.
The Foundation of Love
Paul’s structure in 1 Corinthians 12-14 reveals the essential foundation for spiritual gifts. He addressed spiritual gifts in chapter 12, devoted chapter 13 to love (the “love chapter”), and returned to practical application of gifts in chapter 14. This sandwich structure wasn’t accidental.
Every time spiritual gifts are mentioned in the New Testament—Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12-14, Ephesians 4, and 1 Peter 4—they appear in the context of agape love. This self-sacrificial love esteems God above all else and others above ourselves. Without love as the foundation, spiritual gifts become tools for self-advancement rather than kingdom building.
God prioritizes the development of Christ-like character over the expression of spiritual gifts. When spiritual gifts combine with Christ-like character and humble dependence on Jesus, the beauty of His witness manifests in greater measure through these supernatural abilities.
The Supernatural Nature of Spiritual Gifts
Western culture, shaped by Enlightenment thinking, often struggles with the supernatural elements of spiritual gifts listed in this passage. Concepts like words of knowledge, divine healing, and miraculous intervention seem outside our typical paradigm. However, these manifestations occur regularly in cultures less influenced by rationalistic worldviews.
The Scripture declares that God remains the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). While we should never elevate experience over Scripture, we shouldn’t dismiss God’s supernatural work simply because it challenges our cultural expectations. God has not stopped being God, and His supernatural intervention continues in both Western and non-Western contexts.
Consider the word of knowledge, which is supernatural insight God gives about situations beyond natural understanding. Similarly, divine healing continues to occur, though not every prayer for healing results in miraculous intervention. While not every prayer for healing is answered with immediate restoration, more people experience healing when believers pray for healing than when they don’t pray at all.
Every Believer Has Spiritual Gifts
Paul’s teaching emphasizes that spiritual gifts are not reserved for spiritually elite Christians but are distributed to every believer: “To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good” (verse 7). This means every person who has placed faith in Jesus Christ possesses supernatural abilities intended for ministry.
The word “manifestation” means “a clear indication of the existence or presence or nature of some person or thing.” Spiritual gifts represent clear expressions of the Holy Spirit working through believers. Every Christian has been designed to manifest God’s presence through their unique spiritual gifting.
Many Christians remain unaware of their spiritual gifts, often confusing them with personality assessments like Myers-Briggs, DISC profiles, or natural talents. While these tools provide valuable insights, they differ from the supernatural abilities God distributes through His Spirit.
Paul commanded believers to “earnestly desire spiritual gifts” (1 Corinthians 14:1), indicating that discovering and developing these abilities should be a priority for every Christian. Imagine the transformation possible if the entire church understood and operated in their spiritual gifts for God’s glory and others’ benefit.
Discovering Your SHAPE for Ministry
Understanding spiritual gifts is connected to a broader framework for discovering one’s ministry calling. The acronym SHAPE provides a helpful tool for discerning how God has equipped each believer:
Spiritual Gifts: The supernatural abilities God has given you through His Spirit. These form the foundation for effective ministry.
Heart: Your passion for particular areas of ministry. Do you feel drawn to children’s literacy, student ministry, unwed mothers, or other specific needs? God often places burdens and passions in our hearts that align with our calling.
Abilities: Natural talents and skills you possess. These might include organization, connecting people, communication, administration, or countless other capabilities that God can use for kingdom purposes.
Personality: Your temperament and social preferences. Introverts and extroverts contribute differently to ministry, and understanding personality helps identify suitable ministry contexts.
Experiences: Life circumstances, including difficulties and victories, that equip you for particular ministry. God redeems painful experiences to enable ministry to others facing similar challenges. As the saying goes, “God never wastes a hurt.”
The Purpose of Your Life
Romans 8:28-29 provides crucial insight into God’s ultimate purpose:
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son.”
The “good” God works toward isn’t the absence of trials but the development of Christ-like character. Your purpose is to know Him, fellowship with Him, and be transformed into Jesus’ likeness through life’s circumstances.
Your mission flows from this purpose, becoming salty representatives of Jesus through the development of Christ-like character combined with the exercise of spiritual gifts. This twofold combination empowers effective ministry in workplaces, communities, nations, and local churches.
Practical Steps Forward
Three practical steps can help believers grow in their understanding and use of spiritual gifts:
Discover Your Spiritual Gifts: Take a comprehensive spiritual gifts assessment to identify your primary areas of supernatural enablement. Many churches provide these assessments or make them available online.
Develop Your Spiritual Gifts: Once identified, pray into your gifts, seek mentorship from mature believers who operate in similar gifts, and look for opportunities to practice these abilities in safe, encouraging environments.
Dedicate Your Spiritual Gifts: Direct your gifts toward bringing glory to God, building up the body of Christ, and ministering to a hurting world. Use them to serve others rather than promote yourself.
Moving Beyond Cultural Limitations
Western Christianity often suffers from what might be called “supernatural deficit disorder,” a reluctance to embrace the miraculous dimensions of faith that believers in other cultures readily accept. While maintaining biblical discernment, believers should remain open to God’s supernatural work through spiritual gifts.
The key lies in balancing supernatural openness with scriptural grounding. The Holy Spirit will never denigrate Jesus but will always exalt Him. Any claimed spiritual manifestation that draws attention away from Christ or contradicts Scripture should be rejected, regardless of how impressive it might appear.
However, fear of excess shouldn’t lead to neglect of God’s supernatural provision. Just as some have given spiritual gifts “a bad name” through charismania, others have given them “a bad name” through complete cessationism, which is the belief that supernatural gifts ended with the apostolic era.
The Church’s Potential
Imagine the transformation possible if every believer in a local church understood their spiritual gifts and operated in them with Christ-like character. Instead of relying entirely on human effort, churches would experience supernatural enablement for their ministries. Instead of a few gifted individuals carrying most responsibilities, entire congregations would contribute their unique spiritual abilities.
This vision aligns with Paul’s teaching about the body of Christ in the following verses of 1 Corinthians 12. Just as physical bodies require all parts functioning properly, spiritual bodies (churches) need every member contributing their spiritual gifts for optimal health and effectiveness.
The manifestation of the Spirit given to each believer serves “the common good,” which is building up fellow believers and demonstrating God’s love to watching communities. When spiritual gifts operate in love, they become powerful tools for evangelism, discipleship, and community transformation.
A Call to Action
Paul’s declaration “I do not want you to be uninformed” about spiritual gifts represents both an invitation and a challenge. Too many Christians remain ignorant about these supernatural abilities, limiting their ministry effectiveness and the church’s overall health.
The command to “earnestly desire spiritual gifts” (1 Corinthians 14:1) suggests that discovering and developing these abilities should be a priority for every believer. This isn’t about spiritual pride or superiority but about stewardship; using what God has given for His glory and others’ benefit.
As believers discover their spiritual gifts, develop them through practice and mentorship, and dedicate them to kingdom purposes, they position themselves for the ministry God intends. Whether these gifts involve supernatural elements like healing and prophecy or more administrative abilities like hospitality and organization, all serve essential functions in God’s kingdom.
The ultimate goal remains the same: conformity to Christ’s image through the development of His character combined with the exercise of His gifts. This combination creates the “saltiness” that makes believers effective ministers in their workplaces, communities, and churches.
Every believer has been designed to manifest God’s presence through their unique spiritual gifting. The question isn’t whether you have spiritual gifts—Scripture declares that you do. The question is whether you will discover, develop, and dedicate them for God’s glory and the building up of His people.
Discover Your Spiritual Gifts: Free Assessment Tool
TL;DR
Spiritual gifts are supernatural manifestations of the Spirit given to every believer, not just a select few.
The problem at Corinth wasn’t the gifts themselves but using them in the flesh—fueled by pride, competition, and division.
True spirituality is Christ-centered, marked by love and character, not gift-centered elitism.
Believers are called to discover, develop, and dedicate their gifts for the common good and the glory of God.
