Gifts From The Giver Of Gifts

Gifts From The Giver Of Gifts

“...The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men...and would have done sacrifice with the people...Paul, heard...ran in among the people, crying out...Sirs, why do these things?  We are also men of like passions with you, and preach unto you that ye should turn from these vanities unto the living God...”  Acts 14:11-15

The “Gifts of the Spirit” are important and an essential part of the church and our ministry.  Unfortunately some misuse the Gifts and the power that comes through them.  God does not give us the Gifts for a show of our own power but to manifest His great power. We do not worship the “Gifts” or those used in a particular Gift. We worship the giver of Gifts (James 1:17). Simon the Sorcerer in Acts 8 desired to purchase the gift.  His Spirit was not correct.  He wanted this Gift for his own selfish use, glory, and power. This is not the purpose of the Gifts.   

Purposes of the Gifts

God has purposes for the “Gifts of the Spirit” and they are as follows:

1.  To show forth the power and love of the Holy Spirit in public gatherings, homes, families and in people’s lives.

2.  To help make the preaching of the gospel more effective by giving a supernatural confirmation to the message (Mark 16:15-20; Acts 14:8-18: 16:16-18; 19:11-20; 28:1-10).

3.  To meet the needs of the people.  Jesus always began at the person’s point of need.  He ministered to their felt need first and also to their hurts.  In His first sermon at Nazareth he preached on ministering to the needs expressed in Luke 4:18-19. As you read this Scripture you will see that Jesus’ total emphasis was on meeting needs and healing the hurts of people.  Because of this the Bible records, “And they were astonished at his doctrine: for his word was with power.”  (Luke 4:32)  “What a word is this!  For with authority and power he commandeth the unclean spirits, and they come out.”  (Luke 4:36)  When you meet the needs of someone, you immediately gain their interest and attention. If you are not meeting needs you are not ministering. The Gifts are given to meet needs and to strengthen the church and people.

4.  To wage spiritual warfare against the devil and his forces (Acts 8:5-7; Acts 26:18).

Points to Remember

When studying the “Gifts of the Spirit” we should always keep in mind:

1.  They are to build up the church.

2.  They are for the benefit of everyone.

3.  They are always associated with needs.

4.  They are not just for inside of the church 

     building but also for anywhere we go

     including our homes.

5.  They are for the glory of God and not to  

      lift up man.

6.  They require someone to be Spirit filled

     and obedient to the Spirit.

7.  They do not operate independent of each

     other.  They operate together.  They work

      just like the parts of the body--together.

8.  They are “Gifts” and the one being used

     should remain humble and not become

     proud.  As long as we remain humble we

     can be used mightily.  God wants to do a  

     work through us but He wants the glory.

The Apostle Paul identified nine Gifts of the Spirit in 1 Corinthians 12.  Others identify other Gifts in other places in the Word of God.  For the purpose of our study we will use the nine. 

The nine gifts of the Spirit

1.  Word of Wisdom

2.  Word of Knowledge

3.  Faith

4.  Gifts of Healing

5.  Working of Miracles

6.  Prophecy

7.  Discerning of Spirits

8.  Divers Kinds of Tongues

9.  Interpretation of Tongues

(Teacher should use a variety of methods for the students to memorize these nine Gifts right within this class session.)