22: Common Ways the Holy Spirit Manifests Himself in All Believers – Gifting (Part Two)

If we were to chart the various gifts of the Spirit that Paul and Peter mention, we might get this:

Peter (1 Peter 4:10,11)	Speaking Gifts	Serving Gifts
Paul (Romans 12)	Prophesying Teaching Encouraging	Serving Giving Leading Showing Mercy
Paul (1 Corinthians 12)	Message of Wisdom Message of Knowledge Prophecy Speaking in Tongues Translating Tongues	Faith Gifts of Healings Miraculous Powers Distinguishing Spirits

 

What might stand out to us at first is that this is not likely a comprehensive list of gifts, since Paul does not mention all the same gifts in either of his lists. This opens the possibility that there are abilities or manifestations of the Spirit that are not listed anywhere in Scripture. Would evangelism be a separate gift, or is it speaking gift (say, encouragement or teaching) used in service of evangelism? Would counseling be a separate gift, or is it a speaking gift (say, encouragement and/or teaching) and the gift of mercy used in the service of counseling? Is administration a separate gift? Inspiration?

Paul mentions in Ephesians 4 that there are individuals that have been gifted to the church and who have various gifts that are critical to the church’s maturation:

^{Ephesians 4:11} 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 ¹³ 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.

Apostles have multiple gifts, including speaking gifts like prophecy and teaching, gifts of healings, miraculous powers, speaking in tongues, translating tongues, faith, distinguishing of spirits, etc. Prophets have the gift of prophecy, evangelists have various speaking gifts, pastors have leadership and speaking gifts, and teachers have a gift of teaching. The use of their gifts equips the people of Christ’s church for the use of their own gifts in “works of service” that move the body of Christ in unity toward Christlikeness.

Do we still have apostles? We definitely have those who have titled themselves as such, but do they really have the authority as Christ’s representatives? The Catholic and Orthodox communities believe so, the Protestant communities, not so much. Is prophecy still being given as a gift by the Spirit? What about tongues?

^{1 Corinthians 13:8} Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. ⁹ For we know in part and we prophesy in part, ¹⁰ but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. ¹¹ When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. ¹² For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

I think the best interpretation of this passage is that the gifts will be needed until we reach the “completeness,” which I take to be the arrival of Christ and the kingdom. When we are made perfect in Christ in heaven and then the kingdom, we won’t need the gifts and we won’t need hope. We’ll still need love, however.

So yes, these gifts are still being given. The Helper, the Holy Spirit, is still helping us by manifesting His abilities in each of us individually so that we can function corporately as the Body of Christ.