There are several understandings of the gift. Many people, including even shepherds, do not know their gift. It’s amazing when we supposedly release gifts in people’s lives, but we don’t know our own gift.
First of all, the most important gift given by God is, as Jesus once said to the Samaritan woman: “If you knew the gift of God and Who says to you: “Give Me a drink, then you yourself would ask Him, and He would give you the living water” (John 4:10). If only you knew the gift of God! – Christ is not only the One Who serves us and makes our life brighter, easier, simpler and helps us. He Himself is a gift from God.
Christ is God’s gift to me. Christ has been given to me. Christ is the gift of God!
And He also gave gifts to men. There are not only nine of them. I think that the nine manifestations of the fruit of the gift of the Holy Spirit are like a classic, like the prayer “Our Father” – how to keep everything in the world view and pray correctly. The Lord gave the prayer “Our Father” as the focus of the worldview of a believer who prays to God along the “highway directions”, which the Lord gave man to pray.
There is a one-way nine-lane track in these nine gifts. But, in fact, there are many more gifts. It is written that miracles are plural, healing gifts are also plural – miracle powers are given to man. Those who lead, give, exhort are the multiple gifts of ministry.
It is very important that we in the church of Christ know our gifts, develop, care for them, sharpen and bring them to perfection. In the world of art there is such a concept: “there is no limit to perfection.” Any musician, actor, knows that no matter how much he does, he raises his bar every time and hone his skills. Artists, actors, writers work on their skills. Similarly, in the spiritual world – if we don’t care for the gift, for the gifts that we have, which we received from God – they go out, “grow moldy.” We need to sharpen our gifts. Therefore, take care of your garden and talent.
The Scripture says, “Achieve love; be zealous for spiritual gifts, and especially for prophesying” (1 Corinthians 14:1). “Even so you, since you are zealous for spiritual gifts, let it be for the edification of the church that you seek to excel” (1 Corinthians 14:12).
Be zealous, dear brothers and sisters! There is as much love in your church as much is manifested in the gifts. Because the human intellect has a limit, just like the body: even the healthiest and youngest body needs to be washed and fed daily, otherwise it will become unusable. It is impossible to replace the gifts of God with human ones; they can’t live and flourish by themselves. Therefore, we need to build up the church of God, so that the gifts work, and not human abilities.
This is very important, because the breath of the Father, Christ Himself must be manifested in the church through the gifts. So find your gift. Don’t invent it, find it.
“Zealous” – that is, manifest, reveal these gifts, what they are in you. So that the gifts show the face of Christ, so that Christ is manifested through gifts and ministry in your church. How good it is when you come to church, and there the gifts work, not a human tool, which smells unpleasant to a prophet.
Each person should know his main gift. There is a main gift of a person, which is higher than the gifts of the Holy Spirit from the nine listed. It is practically your destiny, your purpose on this earth – why you are here. My gift – the most important – what is it?
Paul tells Timothy, “Therefore, I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands” (2 Timothy 1:6). Of course, it’s not about prophecy, it’s not about deaconry. It’s about something greater. Paul knew and Timothy knew what a gift this was. I think it was the gift of Apostle in Timothy.
Find your gift. You must know the gifts of the Holy Spirit that you have, and you must know your gift, which is your calling on this earth. This is your goal, your mission on this earth.
More about the gift, the most important thing. This is when a man himself becomes a gift from God. When not only he carries the gift of God, when he himself is a gift.
“Yes, brother, let me have joy from you in the Lord; refresh my heart in the Lord. Having confidence in your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do even more than I say. But meanwhile, also together prepare a room for me; for I trust that through your prayers I shall be granted to you” (Philemon 1:20-22).
“I shall be granted to you,” – Paul was a gift. He attained a walk in God when he himself became a gift. When you received Paul, you received Christ. Paul, of course, demonstrated human qualities, you could see Paul as a human, there were sides, with which God was still working, naturally, certainly. But, by and large and in the main sense, Paul was a gift.
This has to be attained. Not everyone is capable of this. Paul says that he shall be “granted to them by God” according to their prayers. The gift is given, the man of God comes, Christ, the Lord Himself, visits. The gift came – God came.
Such a little tour of the gifts. But this is solid food, royal. Not every church has such knowledge. Therefore, we must today transfer our ships into spiritual language, into spiritual terminology, in order to move in this glory.
Remember that we must do the work with means that we have with us. You don’t need external “sponsorship”, investments and so on. This, of course, can be there, both prayers and brothers. But you have the means at hand by which you can do the work of God. Open your eyes!
The Lord asks, “What do you have in your hand, Moses?” “A stick”. “Stretch it forth!” Moses extend its, it turns into a rod, divides the Black Sea, gives water from the rock, becomes a rod. Under our feet are these means – things, that are called internal resources. With your inner resources you can do great things for the Lord, the great work of God. You have everything to do the will of God.
Remember that the ministry of the Spirit is the ministry of grace. Especially the shepherd, the leaders – your ministry should be gracious. It’s not about pleasing people. – No! You must set people free. The ministry of grace is a liberating ministry. It liberates a man and introduces the law of freedom on the royal path, raising him higher, into the best things of God.
Ask people difficult questions, life-changing questions that they themselves will have to find answers to. They will look for those answers. They will think about what to do with their lives now with the help of God. Release the people to the highest mountain, don’t drag them into uninteresting meetings that lead nowhere, but release them to the Lord. Not so that they would go to such “infinite” freedom, but to the goal, destiny. Let this “cabin boy” do something “wrong” in the “hold”, but let him do great things for the Lord. Free people, don’t enslave them.
This is what the Apostolic Church does – it elevates man above his destiny, it raises him up, and does not enslave.