LIVING BY THE SPIRIT (III)

 The Gifts of the Holy Spirit 

Ephesians 4:11-12 NIV

[11] So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, [12] to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up.

The Holy Spirit is a gift from God to those whom he loves. Why is the Holy Spirit a gift? A gift refers to a provision freely made, a person freely given, or an item freely supplied to meet another person's peculiar needs. Anything that is given to solve your peculiar need free of charge is a gift. Our talents are natural gifts given by God to enable us meet peculiar needs such as our need for a job. Our extraordinary or supernatural abilities are spiritual gifts given by God to enable us do extraordinary works on his behalf. A gift may be in the form of an arrangement made, a person given, or an item supplied to meet the peculiar needs of another person free of charge. From a giver, gift reaches a recipient. The Holy Spirit is God's complete and perfect gift to his lovers, for the Spirit has boundless power to meet every human need often in extraordinary ways. 

Most often than not, God's best gifts to us are not the items he gives to us but the persons he provides to meet our needs. Just like the Holy Spirit, God has provided several persons to meet your peculiar needs. You have to discern them or else you lose them. God is a living God, and so, expect living and precious gifts from him. 

We are not able to see God's gift in the persons he provides for us because, we care so much about what we will eat, what we will wear and where we will sleep more than who we are meant to be in life. This is a natural limitation characteristic of the human nature. The persons whom God gives to us are meant to help us become who God has destined us to be. They are destiny helpers. See the persons God has provided for you as his precious gifts to you and value them accordingly. 

The same accounts for why some Christians do not value the Holy Spirit as much as the extraordinary abilities he gives to them to be able to do the work of the ministry. God's most precious gift to you is the Holy Spirit whom he has given to dwell in you and to be your comforter, meaning, helper, counsellor, advocate, intercessor, strengthener, encourager, teacher and guide. Care to discern God's gift in the persons he brings your way to assist you become who you are destined to be. 

Two kinds of spiritual gifts 

There are two kinds of spiritual gifts, namely, grace-gifts and ministry gifts.

Christ, when he ascended on high gave gifts to his people. He gave grace-gifts to the individual saints to be used to serve the local church which is his body. He also gave ministry gifts to groom the saints until they are completely furnished in understanding and skill to use their special endowments to serve the church which is his body. 

Grace-gifts

Grace-gifts are extraordinary abilities given by the Holy Spirit to each and every believer to enable them do extraordinary works in the church. These include the word of wisdom, the word of revelation knowledge, the gift of prophecy, the gift of speaking in different kinds of Tongues, the gift of faith, the gifts of healing, and the performing of miracles (1Cor 12:8-10). Other gift set includes hospitality [the extraordinary ability to receive and to serve strangers], service [the extraordinary ability to selflessly serve other people's interests], gift of oratory [the extraordinary ability to give a moving oration] (1Pet 4:9-11). Also, the Holy Spirit gives extraordinary ability to teach, to exhort, encourage or inspire others to achievements beyond their wildest imagination; the extraordinary ability to give and to share one's wealth with others; the extraordinary ability to lead people or to manage an organisation to achieve goals (Rom 12:6-8). Each and every believer has been endowed with grace-gifts to serve the local church. 

Ministry gifts

Ministry gifts are the endowed officers whom the Lord has provided to serve the saints by teaching, guiding, inspiring, encouraging and motivating them to be completely furnished for the services to which they have been called. These officers are gifts to the universal church in general, and to the saints in a local church in particular. To some saints he gave an apostle, to others he gave a prophet, to still others he gave an evangelist or a pastor-teacher. This means that all saints are not called to be apostles, or prophets, or evangelists, or pastor-teachers; each saint has his peculiar calling and purpose, and it is up to you to discover your own purpose by relating closely to the ministry gift that the Lord has provided to serve you. You must also respect and cherish these personal gifts to you so as to partake of the graces upon their lives. Often it is difficult for humans to respect and cherish their fellow humans as God's gift to them. 

Purpose of the Ministry gifts 

The ministry gifts are generally mandated to equip, that is, to teach, guide, inspire, encourage and motivate the saints until they are completely furnished in understanding and skill to serve the local church with their grace-gifts provided by the Holy Spirit. The intent is to make all of us in the body grow together and be united in the faith and united in the full discernment of the Son of God and become mature Christians, attaining to the whole measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ. The fulness of Christ means the very nature of Christ permeating our inner being, completely filling us, overflowing within us and pouring out to the world through our demonstration of Christlike faith and love. 

Conclusion

As a minister of Christ endowed with grace to equip the saints, it is your duty to, first of all, study to show yourself approved to God, and to be able to rightly grind the rock of God's word into fine sand, chop the solid meat of God's word into pieces and pound the bone of God's word into powder for easy consumption and quick assimilation by the babes in Christ. So then, perform your functions diligently, play your roles satisfactorily, and fulfil your divine purpose joyfully.

Changing lives and society through God's word!