Let's look over what exactly the Scripture is saying.
Every single Christian upon becoming a believer is given at least one gift. (1 Cor. 12:7) So what exactly do the above gifts mean and how do you know what ones you have?
1. Wisdom: The ability to understand and to apply God's Truth to a given situation.
2. Knowledge: The same as Wisdom.
3. Faith: Believing God for what He wants to accomplish in the church's ministry, that He will lead and provide.
4. Discerning of Spirits: Being able to determine what is of God and what is of Satan.
5. Helps: This has to do with the serving of others and the guiding of the church.
6. 7. & 8. Governments, Ministry, Ruling: See Helps.
9. Evangelists: These majored with sharing the Good News of salvation with the lost. All ministers should do the work of an evangelist (2 Tim. 4:5) and seek to win souls, but some men have been given evangelism as a special calling. Most Evangelists today are usually called Missionaries.
10. Pastors/Teachers: These people instructed converts in the doctrinal truths of the Christian life. They taught from the Word of God and the teachings of the Apostles. They did not receive their message immediately by the Spirit, but the Spirit helped them in their teaching.
11. Exhortation: Providing encouragement and rebuke when necessary.
12. & 13. Giving & Showing Mercy: Sharing material aid with those in need as well as supporting God's servants in ministry.
14. Apostles: An spostle is a person appointed, sent, and inspired by the Holy Spirit to preach the Gospel and to establish Christ's church. The main work of the apostles was to faithfully pass on the teachings of Christ, and to establish His church. In Ephesians 2:20 the apostles are also called the church's foundation.
15. Prophets: These were New Testament spokesmen for God whose messaages came immediately from God by the Spirit. Their ministry was to edify, encourage, and comfort. (1 Cor. 14:3)
16. Healing: The ability to instantly heal a sick person.
17. Miracles: The ability to perform a supernatural event from power given by God.
18. Tongues: The ability to speak a language unknown by the speaker.
19. Interpreting Tongues: The ability to translate the language unknown by the speaker into the native language.
The gifts were given for the good of the whole church. They aren't for personal enjoyment, but to build up and edify others. These gifts were given to help unite the church into one body, not divide it. The Spirit gives these gifts to whom He will, therefore we should not complain or brag about what gifts we may have.
What gifts do you have? Well before we determine what gifts you might have, we need to determine what gifts are still existence today. There are no longer any apostles or true prophets in our modern time. God no longer has any use for prophets because all He has said is now in the Bible. The Apostles were only among the first generation of Christians and once they died, there were none left. The sign gifts (16-19) had been given to the Apostles and to some other people during the first generation of the church as examples to show that God was at work in their lives and to give proof they were really of God. Many people argue on both sides that the sign gifts still exist today and many say they do not. The Bible gives sufficient evidence to state that the sign gifts were given during the first generation of believers and are no longer in existence today. These gifts were used as a sign for the unbelieving jews. The New Testament mentions all through out it that the Jews required a sign. The Apostles gave the Jews the signs they desired and even then most of the Jews still did not believe. The Apostles have died and those gifts with them. Near the end times God will again use signs and other tools (for example the Two Witnesses) to preach to the Jews and many will believe...but many, like they did to Christ, will reject them.
To determine what spiritual gifts you possess, take a look at the definitions of gifts 1-13 and honestly ask yourself if you have any of those abilities. If you can't think of any, then ask someone else...sometimes we don't notice in ourselves what others see more clearly.
Love: Love for God and love for others
Joy: Spiritual joy which remains even during hardships and suffering. This joy comes to us by God's grace and it is the joy of our salvation.
Peace: We have peace with God through our faith in Jesus Christ.
Patience: Endurance in trials and hardships and having sympathy and understanding towards our brothers and sisters in Christ. Christ is patient with us...we should be patient with others.
Gentleness: Being merciful and forgiving
Goodness: Seeking opportunities to do good for other people.
Faithfulness: Being faithful and reliable
Meekness: Meekness is also called Humility. It involved being humble not only on the outside, but also on the inside. This is the most delicate of the fruits of the Spirit, it perishes easily. The hardest sin for man to overcome is pride, which is the chief enemy of humility. Whenever we seek to preserve our honor, we do so because of pride. A humble person, does not care about his own honor; he cares only for the honor of Christ.
Self-Control: This means refusing to gratify the desires of the sinful nature. Retaining control of your body and not giving in to lustful desires.
If you truly are filled with the Spirit, then you will exhibit the characteristics described above. Being filled with the Spirit doesn't mean speaking in tongues like many people have misinterpreted from the Books of Acts and 1 Corinthians and it doesn't mean some supernatural force seemingly invades your body causing you to convulse and spaz all over the place. The Holy Spirit does indwell each believer...and in doing so helps bring out the above characteristics in every Christian. If you truly believe and are filled with the Spirit or want to be filled with the Spirit...then exhibit the fruits of the Spirit.
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