God has given each believer a spiritual gift that He wants us to use for His glory. We have different responses to those gifts. Some of us use them the right way. Others will not use them, deny them and even doubt them. Still others may not know what those spiritual gifts are. God wants us to be involved with His work. Through the Holy Spirit, God wants us to know our spiritual gifts and expects us to use and grow them daily. Join us for this series as we understand more about spiritual gifts and God’s purposes for them.
Ephesians 4:1-16
Gifted – What are Spiritual Gifts?
Consider Your Relationship
Many believers begin wanting to know their Spiritual Gift but forget that the Holy Spirit Himself is a gift. He offers us a relationship.
“We want to do great things for God, but haven’t understood that
greatness in the kingdom of God comes out of a relationships with
Christ and the filling of the Holy Spirit” – Henry Blackaby
If we seek the gifts of the Spirit and not the Holy Spirit Himself, we will always focus on our selves. We need to take time to evaluate our current relationship with the Holy Spirit.
| How do you currently experience the Holy Spirit’s presence? What do you want to learn more about the Holy Spirit? |
From the sermon we took a closer look at Ephesians 4:11-13. What are the gifts listed here?
| A | S |
| P | T |
| E |
| What is the purpose of these gifts? What are the blessings and challenges related to each of these gifts? |
| Which of these gifts do you think God may have given you? |
| As you seek to use your gifts, what areas of need are you most aware of? |
| How have these areas of need limited your service to God? |
| What is one step you could take this week to address this need? |
Prayer Ideas
Think of ways that God has used people to make a difference in your life because of their abilities or their gifts. Take a moment to thank God for them.
Pray that God would help us to know how to use the natural abilities and spiritual giftings that He has given to us.
Pray that God would give us courage in our actions and work. Think about ways that maybe you have not lived life in God’s power and ask him to correct you in that way. Ask God to give us clarity in our thinking over the next weeks as we study on this topic.
Acts 2:1-21
Building up the Church
The purpose of Spiritual gifts are to ____ up the church.
“What then shall we say, brothers and sisters? When you come together, each of you has a hymm, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. Everything must be done so that the church may be built up.” – 1 Corinthians 14:26
1 Corinthians 12:10-12 – God determines which gifts He will distribute to each person. However, it is our choice to actively receive these gifts by faith and put them to practice in our daily life.
| Do I eagerly desired Spiritual Gifts? Have I taken the time to ask God to give me Spiritual Gifts? What might hinder me from receiving the gifts God has prepared for me? |
What are some ways we see the Gifts of the Spirit given to believers in the NT?
Romans 1:11
Acts 9:17-18
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Positioning myself to receive from the Holy Spirit How important is humility in seeking Spiritual gifts? On a scale of 1-10 how teachable do you see yourself? Have you ever sought out a mentor to further develop your Spiritual gifts? What role do you think faith has in the exercising of your Spiritual Gifts? Romans 12:4-8 |
Prayer Ideas
Think of ways you can develop your gifts. Is there someone who could mentor you the areas you are hoping to grow? Pray for opportunities to develop your Spiritual Gifts. Ask God to bring people into your life that you can learn and glean from.
Think of ways that you could share your gifts with others. Are you actively serving in your area of gifting? Is there someone you can mentor to help develop their Spiritual Gifts? Pray for opportunities to use your gifts and develop the God given gifts in others.
1 Corinthians 12:1-11
Building up the Church (1 Corinthians 12:11)
The Manifestation of Spiritual gifts are given for the _____ .
“Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.” – 1 Corinthians 12:7-11
What are the nine gifts listed in 1 Corinthians Chapter 12
1. __________
2. __________
3. __________
4. __________
5. __________
6. __________
7. __________
8. __________
9. __________
| Have you ever experienced or observed the working of these gifts in your life or the life of others? If so how did it impact you? ____________________ |
“The gift of tongues is one of nine coequal spiritual gifts; where it is excessively emphasized it must be restrained and where it is neglected, it must be encouraged.” – Thomas Holdcroft
| How can we ensure that we value each gift of the Spirit without over emphasizing the importance of one over the other? ____________________ |
| Positioning myself to use Gifts of Spirit Have you ever been afraid to use your Spiritual Gifts? If so why do you think you have been fearful? Are there any gifts in the 1 Corinthians 12 list that you are interested in learning more about? Each of these gifts of the Spirit are given by God but there is an action of faith required on our part to use these gifts. What are some practical ways you might step out in faith when you sense God may have given you one of these gifts? |
Prayer Ideas
Thank God that He is the One who determines which gift each person will receive. Ask God to give you whatever gifts He desired in your life and to teach how to use these gifts to build up the church.
Express to God any fears you may have about using the Spiritual gifts He has given you. Ask Him for boldness to step out in faith in the God given gifts He has gven you.