Pneumatology (Doctrine of the Holy Spirit): Spiritual Gifts
1. Spiritual Gifts and the Growth of the Church
The New Testament presents the church as a living body built and sustained by the Holy Spirit. Spiritual gifts are the means by which the Spirit equips believers for maturity and mission. “To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good” (1 Cor 12:7). These gifts are not incidental or optional but essential for the church’s growth.
Two dimensions of this growth stand out. First, spiritual gifts bring maturity as the church is conformed to Christ, safeguarded in truth, and enriched in fellowship. Second, spiritual gifts drive mission, enabling the proclamation of the Gospel and obedience to the Great Commission. As with providence, divine sovereignty and human responsibility work together: the Spirit distributes gifts, and believers exercise them faithfully.
2. Purposes of Spiritual Gifts in the Church
The purposes of spiritual gifts are broad and multifaceted. At their core, they serve to build up the body of Christ. Paul teaches that gifts exist “to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ” (Eph 4:12). Through gifts, the church grows in love, doctrinal integrity, and unity in Christ.
Spiritual gifts also confirm the truth of the Gospel. Hebrews 2:4 affirms that God bore witness to the apostolic message “by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.” In the book of Acts, miracles validated the message, such as when Peter raised Tabitha from the dead and “many believed in the Lord” (Acts 9:42).
Spiritual gifts also anticipate the future. They are a foretaste of the Spirit’s work in the coming age, reminding the church that Christ’s victory over death and Satan is already won (Eph 4:8). In giving gifts, the exalted Christ demonstrates his triumph and pours out his Spirit on the church as the down payment of the kingdom.
3. Biblical Affirmations about Spiritual Gifts
Four primary passages address spiritual gifts: Romans 12:4–8, 1 Corinthians 12–14, Ephesians 4:7–16, and 1 Peter 4:10–11.
Romans 12 emphasizes seven gifts and the proper manner of exercising them: prophecy in proportion to faith, service with diligence, teaching with clarity, exhortation with encouragement, generosity in giving, zeal in leadership, and cheerfulness in mercy.
1 Corinthians 12–14 highlights both the Spirit’s sovereign distribution and the call to pursue gifts for the edification of the church. “One and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as he wills” (12:11). Yet believers are commanded to “earnestly desire the higher gifts” (12:31). Love, Paul insists, is the indispensable context for every gift (ch. 13).
Ephesians 4 places gifts within the triumph of the ascended Christ. Gifts are not only abilities but also gifted leaders—apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers—given to equip the saints and unify the body until it grows up into Christ.
1 Peter 4 classifies gifts broadly into speaking and serving, urging believers to exercise them with God’s strength so that “in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ” (v. 11).
These texts together emphasize both divine sovereignty and human responsibility. The Spirit distributes and empowers, yet believers are called to discern and cultivate their gifts for the good of the body.
4. Diversity and Unity in Spiritual Gifts
One of the most striking aspects of spiritual gifts is their diversity. Paul compares the church to a body in which each member has a different function (1 Cor 12:12–27). No gift is unnecessary; no member is expendable. Public gifts such as teaching and prophecy do not negate the necessity of quiet gifts such as helping and administration.
This diversity is balanced by unity. All gifts are from the same Spirit, given for the common good, and exercised in love. By design, this prevents pride and discouragement. Those with more visible gifts must not boast, and those with less visible gifts must not feel inferior. Instead, each believer is called to steward his or her gift with humility and faithfulness.
5. Continuationism versus Cessationism
A major debate concerns whether all spiritual gifts, including sign gifts, continue today.
Continuationism argues that all gifts remain until Christ returns. Paul’s words, “you are not lacking in any gift … as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor 1:7), place their cessation at Christ’s coming. The prophecy of Joel, cited in Acts 2:17–18, describes the entire church age as marked by Spirit-empowered prophecy, visions, and dreams. Historical testimony also points to their ongoing presence.
Cessationism contends that certain gifts, especially revelatory and miraculous ones, ceased with the apostolic era. They argue that sign gifts authenticated the apostles (2 Cor 12:12), were tied to the giving of Scripture, and ended with the completion of the canon. To continue them, some argue, would undermine the sufficiency of Scripture.
Our perspective affirms continuationism. The biblical texts instruct believers to “pursue love and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy” (1 Cor 14:1). No passage signals their expiration, and the burden of proof lies on those who deny ongoing apostolic instruction.
6. Dangers of Neglect and Abuse of Spiritual Gifts
While affirming the continuation of spiritual gifts, the church must avoid two extremes: neglect and abuse. Neglecting gifts leaves the body weak and stagnant. Overemphasizing gifts, or misusing them for self-promotion, damages unity and contradicts Scripture. Paul rebuked the Corinthians for their disorderly and prideful use of gifts, urging them instead to seek edification, peace, and love (1 Cor 14:26–33).
The Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization (2010) rightly noted the dangers of manipulation and fraudulent claims under the guise of spiritual gifts. The church must exercise discernment, testing prophecies and holding fast to what is good (1 Thess 5:19–21). Above all, spiritual gifts must always point to Christ, serve the body, and glorify God.
7. Spiritual Gifts in the Mission of the Gospel
Spiritual gifts are not merely inward-focused but missional. They serve the spread of the Gospel and the advance of Christ’s kingdom. Evangelists are gifted to proclaim Christ, teachers to ground new believers in sound doctrine, leaders to shepherd and equip, and servants to display the love of Christ in tangible ways. Gifts of mercy, generosity, and helps embody the compassion of Christ, while gifts of prophecy and discernment guard the church’s holiness.
The Spirit empowers the church’s mission through gifts that proclaim the word, confirm its truth, and embody its power. In this way, the exercise of gifts anticipates the final day when every knee bows to Christ and the church, fully matured, reflects his glory.
Bible verses about Spiritual Gifts
Romans 12:6–8 – “Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.”
1 Corinthians 12:4–7 – “Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.”
1 Corinthians 12:11 – “All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.”
1 Corinthians 13:1–3 – “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.”
1 Corinthians 14:1 – “Pursue love, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy.”
Ephesians 4:11–12 – “And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ.”
Ephesians 4:16 – “From whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.”
1 Peter 4:10–11 – “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”
Hebrews 2:4 – “While God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.”
Acts 2:17–18 – “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.’”
