Spiritual gifts (Gk pneumatika, derived from pneuma meaning spirit) refer to operations in the church which come as gifts from the Holy Spirit working through believers for the common good. Holy Scripture describes three distinct categories of what may be included under the general term spiritual gifts. The first of these are “grace gifts” (Gk charismata, derived from charis meaning grace). These gifts involve both inward motivation as well as enablement received from the Spirit to carry out various kinds of service to others. These gifts help to spiritually strengthen the body of Christ and a number are described as representative of grace gifts in the 12th chapter of Romans.
“If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully” (Ro 12:6-8). These are inward desires or dispositions as well as abilities given by the Holy Spirit to individuals to build up God’s people. Each believer has at least one such gift and they are given to express God’s love to others within the body of Christ. Without gifts of grace, the body of Christ cannot function as God intends or be an effective witness of His love to the world.
A second category of gifts are those of ministries (Gk diakoniai, derived from diakonia which means service). Ephesians 4:11-13 lists types of spiritual leadership that Christ has given His church to prepare the people of God for works of service and for growth in the body of Christ. Speaking of Jesus, Paul writes, “It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God, and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.”
The third category of gifts are called “manifestations of the Spirit” which emphasize that the gifts are direct manifestations or evidences of the working and presence of the Holy Spirit among the people. These spiritual gifts are not the same as those mentioned in Romans 12:6-8 and Ephesians 4:11-13 whereby believers receive the power and ability to minister in a more permanent manner. Manifestations of the Spirit are given according to the Spirit’s will as need arises and according to a believer’s eager desire (1 Co 14:1). Some manifestations occur through certain people on a regular basis, and a person may have several gifts which enable the indwelling Spirit to minister to others for the glory of God.
It is unscriptural to assume that because one exercises a spectacular gift, that person is more spiritual than those operating in less spectacular gifts, or that God approves of all that a person does or teaches. And these manifestations must not be confused with fruit of the Spirit (see Gal 5:22,23) which relate more directly to Christian character and to sanctification. Furthermore, manifestations through spiritual gifts may be imitated by Satan or false workers disguising themselves as Christians (Mt 7:21-23). We’re not to accept every manifestation, but are commanded to “test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 Jn 4:1).
So then, let us review manifestations of the Spirit as we find them listed in 1 Corinthians 12:8-10. In all cases these are intended for edification of others with the exception of privately praying in tongues under the influence of the Holy Spirit using what is referred to as a “prayer language.‟ The first gift mentioned is the message of wisdom: This is not the same has having the wisdom of God for daily living as obtained by study and through meditation on God’s Word and prayer. It is wisdom spoken through the supernatural operation of the Holy Spirit as it applies to a specific situation or problem in one’s life.
Message of knowledge: This is a supernaturally inspired message that reveals knowledge which is not known through natural means about people, about some circumstance or situation in life. It is often associated with a message of wisdom, namely the application of biblical truth to the same situation. And messages of knowledge are additionally often associated with the gift of prophecy as well.
Faith: This is not the gift of saving faith, but is special supernatural faith imparted by the Holy Spirit which enables one to believe God for the extraordinary and the miraculous. It is a faith which moves mountains and often is found in combination with miracles and the gifts of healing. Such faith is usually imparted by the Holy Spirit on special occasions rather than being a faith which exists at all times.
Gifts of healing: These gifts are given to restore physical health by supernatural means. Use of a plural word “gifts” suggests every act of healing is a special gift of God for the person receiving the healing. While gifts of healing do not operate through every believer, all are nonetheless encouraged to pray for the sick.
Miraculous powers: These are deeds of such supernatural power as to alter the normal course of nature. These deeds are evidence of God’s divine power in which the kingdom of heaven is manifested against Satan and his kingdom of evil, and include miraculous deeds such as the raising of the dead to life and the creation of new limbls and organs.
Prophecy: Here we must distinguish between prophecy as a temporary manifestation of the Spirit available to every Spirit-filled Christian and prophecy as a ministry gift given to some believers (Eph 4:11) who function as prophets in the church. Prophecy as a spiritual manifestation is not delivery of a previously prepared word. Rather, it brings an inspired word or revelation directly from God under impulse of the Holy Spirit to offer comfort, strength, encouragement, warning or even judgment. All such prophecy must be tested to determine whether it conforms to the Word of God, whether it promotes godly living, and whether it is uttered by one sincerely living under the lordship of Jesus.
Distinguishing between spirits: This gift is a Spirit-given ability to discern evil spirits and to distinguish as to whether or not an utterance is from the Spirit of God or comes from a false prophet. This gift is of extreme importance, and will become increasingly so toward the end of the church age when the activity of false teachers and deceiving spirits is more and more prevalent within the visible church.
Speaking in different kinds of tongues: “Tongues” (Gk glossa, meaning language) as a supernatural manifestation of the Spirit may be in an existing spoken language (Ac 2:4-6) or be a language unknown on earth (“tongues…of angels” in 1 Co 13:1). Such speech has not been learned and takes place apart from activity of the mind. It involves the human spirit and the Spirit of God intermingling so that the believer communicates directly to God in prayer, praise, blessing or thanksgiving. When used in the congregation, tongues must be accompanied by a Spirit-given interpretation that communicates the content and the meaning to those assembled. Tongues with interpretation may contain a revelation, knowledge, prophecy or teaching.
Interpretation of tongues: This is a Spirit-given ability to communicate the meaning of what is said in tongues. When interpreted, tongues function as a directive to worship, prayer or as prophecy and a body of believers is able to participate in this Spirit-inspired message or instruction. Interpreted tongues is a means of great edification for the body of Christ and the gift of interpretation may be given to the one who speaks in tongues or to someone else. An absence of interpretation indicates the speaking in tongues was out of order and not genuinely Spirit-inspired.
