The gifts of the spirit are one of the most profound treasures a believer can possess, yet so many Christians struggle to understand and operate in them. During a recent revival meeting, I had the opportunity to dive deep into this topic and share some incredible stories from my own ministry journey. The gifts are not something we can earn through works, but are freely given manifestations of the Holy Spirit to be earnestly desired.
You Cannot Earn the Gifts
So many believers fall into the trap of thinking the gifts of the Spirit are rewards to be earned through fasting, giving, or other spiritual disciplines. But as I explained to a dear sister in my church, if the gift of tongues came after doing all those things, it would be called the rewards of the Spirit, not the gifts of the Spirit. The gifts are imparted sovereignly by God’s grace, not earned through our efforts.
In my experience, it’s often those who are the most generous givers who struggle the most to receive spiritual gifts for themselves. It can be hard for people whose identity is wrapped up in giving and serving others to simply receive something as a free gift from God. There’s an inherent identity struggle in understanding how we, as simple humans, could be empowered to operate in profound gifts like prophecy.
To Say Something
The gifts of the Spirit are often categorized into three groups of three – the first group enables us to “say something.” This includes prophecy, tongues, and interpretation of tongues. Consider how many times in Scripture, God instructed His spokespeople to quite literally “say something” – to speak forth His word and declare His messages.
I’ve seen the gift of tongues manifest in incredible ways, like the time my own prayer language sounded strikingly similar to ancient Italian as I interceded for my backslidden sister Sarah. The Holy Spirit was speaking into the very DNA and root system of her Italian heritage.
To Know Something
The second category allows us to “know something” beyond our natural abilities or circumstances. It includes the gifts of wisdom, knowledge, and discernment of spirits. Like Jesus knowing the Samaritan woman had five previous husbands, these gifts impart supernatural knowledge and insight.
I’ll never forget praying for a man who had the incredible gift of knowledge operating in his career field. As I prophesied over him about this advantage, I started getting words like “undercover” and “agent” – turns out, he was one of the highest-ranking FBI agents in America! The gifts allow us to know things in the supernatural realm that are impossible to know naturally.
To Do Something
The final three gifts – faith, healings, and miracles – empower us to “do something” beyond our human capacities and limitations. Every believer has a measure of faith, but those with a special gift of faith seem to create an atmosphere where others around them become emboldened to believe God for greater things.
I love to see healings and miracles in operation because they are such powerful demonstrations of God’s power and love. Like the woman who regrew the bones in her ear after I prayed for her hearing, or the many medical verifications we’ve received documenting miraculous healings of metal turning to bone and missing limbs being restored. The working of miracles is an incredible gift!
The Source of the Gifts
At the core, every good and perfect gift comes from the Father of Lights above. While there are different administrations and operations of these gifts, it all flows from the same Spirit. We must honor the diversity in how these gifts manifest while remembering the Source is the same. As I shared about my journey of being misjudged and misunderstood early in my ministry, exercising honor and grace towards one another is crucial for creating an atmosphere where the gifts can flow freely.
Each Gift Unveils His Love
One of the most profound truths the Lord has taught me about spiritual gifts is that each one opens up a unique way for us to experience the love of Christ. When exercised properly, even a hard prophetic word or intense deliverance should be permeated with the unmistakable aroma and fragrance of the Father’s love.
Too often, Pentecostals and Charismatics have divorced the gifts from sound theology and the love of the Father. But these gifts originate from God’s heart of love! When I operate in deliverance and see hundreds being freed from demonic oppression, there is a tangible sense of the Father’s love saturating the atmosphere instead of darkness or foreboding. Each gift is intended to unveil Christ’s passionate love for His children in unique ways.
A Source of Restoration
At their core, the gifts of the spirit are meant to be tools of restoration, healing, and reconciliation – not punishment or condemnation. Even when I had to confront my former pastor’s infidelity and financial misdeeds, it wasn’t to “be right” but to create an opportunity for repentance and healing in the church.
I’ll never forget years later seeing that same pastor overcome by conviction, walking through a crowd of 1,000 people to ask me to walk him through deliverance as he recommitted his life to Jesus. Though it took over 15 years, the prophetic word created a path to redemption and restoration. The New Covenant gifts are always an expression of the Father’s heart to restore and redeem His children.
An Identity Issue
For many, a blockage to receiving and operating in spiritual gifts is an identity issue of feeling inadequate or ill-equipped. We look at the daunting manifestations of the miraculous and think “How could someone like me ever move in those kinds of gifts?” The beautiful truth is that it’s not about our qualifications – it’s about Christ being formed in us.
The greater our intimacy and love relationship with Jesus, the more naturally the gifts will begin to flow out of our lives. Like the disciples being clothed with power from on high after the outpouring at Pentecost, our identity is meant to be rooted in His indwelling presence. From that place, the gifts cease being strange phenomena and become natural outpourings of the Spirit who lives within us.
Conclusion
The gifts of the spirit are not rewards to be earned, but gifts of grace to be earnestly desired and stewarded for the glory of God and the edification of the church. They open up profound avenues for encountering the passionate love of the Father in fresh ways. And though the manifestations may look different, the Source is the same – the Holy Spirit working in and through us.
My prayer is that this teaching would stir up holy desire and impart fresh courage to the Body of Christ. Let’s yearn, not earn, for the profound treasures of the spirit that are meant to be normal, not novel. And may the gifts release the fragrance of the Father’s love everywhere they flow!
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