One of my favorite Biblical topics is spiritual gifts. I have read just about anything I can get my hands on, done the questionnaires and love to tell others about it. It has been so helpful for me personally to learn what my gifts are and how I can do what I love doing to serve the Lord - I often can't help but feel like knowing more about this would help so many more people.
Many times, people are very leery about the subject because it has been either misunderstood or misrepresented. There are two extremes - those who feel that there are certain gifts that are no longer being used by the Holy Spirit (like speaking in tongues and prophesy) and others who put too much emphasis on those gifts (to the point that they make it seem as if certain gifts are more important than others.)
Neither way seems appropriate or biblical to me. First, because I can't imagine the Bible would list gifts and not have them be applicable today. I believe God's Word is inerrant and I can't reconcile that with throwing parts of it out. That being said, I also can't quite grasp how more importance is placed on certain gifts. It would seem to me that every individual, once becoming a Christian, will receive a different combination of gifts and that those combinations are what makes believers able to minister to each other. Not everyone is going to receive every gift, but each gift is still needed and important.
So, knowing all of this, and yet still knowing how few people truly know their gifts, I nearly fell out of my chair when Pastor Elmer Liimatta said he would be speaking on that very topic on Saturday afternoon at the ALC conventions. I really wanted to stand up and say, "Praise the Lord!" but my conservative Lutheran upbringing made me too self-conscious to do so.
He did a wonderful job presenting the topic, explaining its importance and encouraging people to find out what their spiritual gifts are, either through a questionnaire or by figuring out how they enjoy serving. (The questionnaire was an easier place to start for me because it gave me somewhere to focus on, rather than trial and error.) I loved how he brought out Paul's statement that he doesn't want us to be ignorant about spiritual gifts and how he mentioned that the main chunk of Scripture about gifts (1 Cor. 12 and 14) sandwich 1 Cor. 13 - the love chapter. He pointed out that without love, our spiritual gifts and our service using them will be nothing more than noise.
I'm not sure what the fallout (if any) will be in bringing up a subject as potentially controversial as this, but I'm praying God will use it to His glory. I've already heard of women's Bible study group wanting to use it, people who really enjoyed the sermon about it and others who are simply curious and want to do a questionnaire.
All of this makes me so excited and gives me hope for the future of our church. If you're interested in this subject - here are a few good books:
Your Spiritual Gifts Can Help Your Church Grow by C. Peter Wagner - Now considered a classic that helps you learn more about the gifts and how they can be used in the church. It identifies and discusses 28 spiritual gifts, tells you how to find your gifts and outlines how you can use your gifts effectively This is one of my favorites and this is also the author Pr. Liimatta referenced.
Finding Your Spiritual Gifts Questionnaire by C. Peter Wagner - Covers 27 gifts outlined in Scripture with 137 questions to answer, along with Scripture verses and suggested gift definitions.
Discover Your Spiritual Gifts by C. Peter Wagner - a short book that outlines 28 different gifts Wagner identifies from the Bible. It also includes the questionnaire and is a better bargain than simply buying the questionnaire alone.
Discover Your God-given GIfts by Don & Katie Fortune - This book has a very long question section. It's very comprehensive, but the downside is that they don't list as many possible gifts as others do.
What's So Spiritual About Your Gifts? by Henry Blackaby - A good short book that seeks to explore what gifts are and how the focus should not be on the gift per say but the Holy Spirit working through us. Blackaby is a well-known author of the classic "Experiencing God" but I was still disappointed that he didn't include the gifts listed in 1 Cor. 12.
What You Do Best in the Body of Christ by Bruce Bugbee - This book goes beyond the gifts into personal style and ministry passion, helping a person find what they're equipped to do, how they can serve with energy and where they're motivated to serve.
Happy reading.
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