How can I know how the Holy Spirit has gifted me?
This is the second part in what I anticipate will be a brief three-part series examining the spiritual gift of discernment. The first part is available here: The Gift of Spiritual Discernment. In this first article we looked at the question of “What is the gift of discernment?” and concluded that “Men and women with the gift of discernment are specially gifted in distinguishing between those words, deeds and appearances that are true and those that are false.” Today we move on to how you can know that you have been gifted in this way (or in another way). We pause briefly to look at how we can understand how we’ve been gifted.
How do I know if I have this gift?
The Bible seems to indicate that Christians will typically know how they have been gifted. There is certainly nothing that would hint at the modern methods of discovering gifts through surveys or assessments. And yet, while most Christians know that the gifts of the Spirit are given to God’s people, they continue to struggle with identifying the ways in which God has gifted them.
Because gifts are given for the benefit of the body, it seems likely that where there is a need, there will be someone with the gifting to fill that need. If a church has a desperate need for a person with the gift of teaching, it seems likely that someone within the church has been given such a gift and may fill the need, at least for a season. Similarly, if a person is a member of a church where there is no opportunity to exercise a certain gift, it may be that this church needs to create opportunities or that, in extreme cases, the person needs to seek a church where he can be of service to others. The leaders of churches should seek to ensure that they are providing opportunities for members to exercise the full spectrum of gifts. Wayne Grudem writes, “Though the lists of gifts given in the New Testament are not exhaustive, they certainly provide a good starting point for churches to ask whether at least there is opportunity for these gifts to be used.”
For those who continue to struggle with identifying how God has gifted them, here are a few principles that will prove helpful.
Begin with prayer. God promises to give wisdom to any who ask for it. “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him” (James 1:5). Thus we should begin our search for gifting by asking God to make it plain to us how He has gifted us and how He desires that we serve Him by serving others. We must ask for wisdom in seeing how God has gifted us and in opening our eyes to opportunities to serve Him.
Look for passion. Where God has given a gift, we can expect that He will also give passion. A good place to begin when considering spiritual gifts is to see where God has given desire and passion. A person who is passionate about having people into her home may well have a gift of hospitality; a person who loves to organize events may be gifted with a kind of leadership; a person who is passionate about the truth of God may be gifted with discernment. Those who look for their gifting should look to what interests them and what makes them feel passionate. As they look to their passions they may just find their gifts.
Ask others. Another way of seeking gifting is to ask other believers and especially those in spiritual leadership over you. Simply ask other Christians, those who know you best and who lead and guide you, where they feel you should serve within the church. Ask them to prayerfully consider your gifting. Their wisdom and guidance may surprise you.
Try them! Christians should try different opportunities to serve within the church. As we attempt different things and do so in the power of the Holy Spirit, we can expect that He will reveal passion and gifting in ways we may not expect. There is a danger in doing only those things that we are comfortable with or serving only in the ways we think we are most talented. Think of Moses, a frightened and timid man being called to lead a nation or the Apostle Paul with a thorn in his flesh being called to take the gospel to all the nations. God does not always gift us in ways we are comfortable with or in ways we might expect. By attempting different gifts we can look to those where God brings blessing and success and perhaps see that we have a special gifting in these areas.
Keep trying! The Bible does not tell us that all spiritual gifts are given at the time of conversion or that, once given, they are given permanently. As we grow in our knowledge and love of the Lord, we should continue to seek ways of serving Him. We may be surprised to find that our gifting changes along with the needs of our local church. We may find that God wishes us to emphasize different gifts now then in the past. So keep serving God and keep searching for His gifting in your life.
If confusion continues, take heart, wait patiently for God’s wisdom and guidance, and serve Him whenever and wherever possible. He will answer your prayers.
In the final article of this series we’ll look at what you can do with the gift of discernment, what to do if you want it, and what to do if you don’t have it.
Comments (6) »
1. dave matre
August 31, 2007
10:24 AM
Our sermon last Sunday was on hospitality. Specifically, that it’s not a gift, but rather a command for all of us to practice (cf, Romans 12:13)
I hadn’t thought about it before. Since you listed it as a gift, I’m curious as to your thoughts.
Thanks,
Dave
2. Tim Challies
August 31, 2007
10:35 AM
I hadn’t thought about it before. Since you listed it as a gift, I’m curious as to your thoughts.
I would expect that it’s both. I think we are all commanded to practice all of the gifts…it’s just that we are specially gifted at some rather than others. Though I may not have the gift of hospitality, I’m still expected to be hospitable.
3. Don Engle
August 31, 2007
1:22 PM
Is there an online resource where I can read George Whitfield’s sermon “The Method of Grace” in its entirety?
4. Tim
August 31, 2007
6:28 PM
“Men and women with the gift of discernment are specially gifted in distinguishing between those words, deeds and appearances that are true and those that are false.”
Once upon a time, when I was 14 or 15 and not yet saved, I attended a church with a friend who had invited me. I didn’t know much about church or churches but in hind-sight I realize that the church was charismatic and believed in the continuation of the sign gifts.
It was a Sunday morning service and a woman, sitting on the same pew that I was on, began speaking in tongues. The man behind the pulpit, I’m assuming he was the pastor, interrupted her and announced that she had delivered a false prophecy through a demonic tongue and asked that she be removed from the building. Two men came and escorted her out. I remember that she wailed and screamed as they drug her from the auditorium.
I’m certain that the members of that church probably believed that their pastor had the “gift of discernment”. Today, I would pronounce the whole thing as bogus and false. I would say that they all lacked discernment and I’m certain that they would charge me with the same.
Your list of principles was good but perhaps we should emphasize that the gift itself should be carefully weighed by Scripture.
The Wayne Grudem quote “Though the lists of gifts given in the New Testament are not exhaustive, they certainly provide a good starting point….” also gives me a bit of pause. If the New Testament is not exhaustive, where else does he suggest that we search? Too many begin searching in their own imaginations!
5. Christine Northern
August 31, 2007
7:46 PM
Thank you thank you thank you! As a person with wisdom and discernment gifts, I am all too eager to know just what to do with a gift like this. Because after living with it for many years I’m just now realizing it’s not just for me to know, it’s actually to be put to use. I’m clueless. It’s not like there are any world-renown discerners, filling up stadiums.
To the comment above that’s a very interesting and scary scenario. I detect a familiar matter of factness that comes with having the gift of regularly being exposed to the motives of others, supernatural or otherwise. If it were me I would’ve waited for more signs- three seems to be the magic number- before pronouncing someone as false. I’ve come across many weirdos and found them to be, while exceptionally weird, relatively harmless. I’ve learned that the spirit realm is vast and more varied than I can imagine. It’s not easy to just go, “oh that’s evil.” but to what degree?
It’s scary to think of this scene on a grand scale. With many people going “that’s a fake!” “no, he is!” Like some episode of X-Men. I suppose the last days will look something like that.
6. CBM
September 1, 2007
10:28 AM
“God does not always gift us in ways we are comfortable with or in ways we might expect.”
The gift of discernment is often a highly uncomfortable gift! To use it for the benefit of the church one must sometimes do and say uncomfortable things. When I was younger I did and said nothing because, well, who was I to knock this pet project or that popular/well-meaning person. When the inevitable train wreck occurred, I felt bad but rationalized it by saying that no one would have listened to me anyway. The next stage was for me to tell God that I didn’t like this gift and to take it away. Well, that went nowhere, of course. So now I when something blips on the radar I pray about whether or not I am the one who should speak and I pray about the timing. Then I speak if that is what I am to do.
There are still times I wish I could have had the gift of hospitality or “helps”. Those are nice “female” gifts. Instead I got discernment and teaching. So I stretch myself towards hospitality and helps when I need to and try my hardest to use the primary gifts God gave me in a way that honors and glorifies Him.
I can’t wait to buy your book!