Gifts vs fruit

Here is an important distinction to remember. The fruits of the Spirit are gifts...but the gifts of the Spirit are not fruits.

Gifts are the supernatural power of God working through you for the benefit of others, but fruit is a spiritual change in you for the benefit of your maturity as a believer. Gifts are for others in the expansion of the kingdom and fruit is for you in the expansion of your Christian maturity. Simply put: spiritual fruit is good for you, but spiritual gifts are good for others.

We went through the Christmas gift giving season a month ago, so I was reminded of something from my childhood.

When I was growing up, the church we attended gave out a Christmas treat bag on a Sunday before Christmas to everyone who attended. This small paper bag had candy and fruit. As a kid I never cared about the fruit, I only wanted what I considered the real gift...the candy. The fruit was good for me, but I didn’t care about boring fruit. I was only interested in the exciting candy gift.

And just like me as a child, most Christians want to focus on the exciting gifts instead of the boring fruit. As your pastor, Let me say it as clearly as I can. I would rather that you focus on growing the fruit of the Spirit in your life, rather than to be obsessed with the gifts of the Spirit. Because if you are producing good fruit, the gifts will operate the way they should.

Today we will begin to go over the different spiritual gifts that the scripture tells us about. There are at least sixteen different supernatural empowerment gifts that the Spirit gives to believers...listed in several passages. This is an important topic because there is a lot of misunderstanding and incorrect teaching about the gifts. The apostle Paul warned the Corinthian church about this.

1 Corinthians 12:1-3 “1 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2 You know that when you were pagans you were led astray to mute idols, however you were led. 3 Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says “Jesus is accursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit.

Verse one tells us why we need to study this topic. So, that we won’t be uninformed. Where does being uninformed lead you?It leads you into following idols. What will a false god say? It will say that Jesus is accursed.

Notice the last part of that verse. No one can say “Jesus is Lord,” except in the Holy Spirit. How does the Bible describe the process of salvation?

Romans 10:9 “9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

So no one can say that Jesus is Lord without the Holy Spirit leading them to that conclusion. Yes, God begins the process of salvation in a person. The Holy Spirit brings conviction to the unbeliever’s heart and this provides them with a choice to accept that God raised Jesus from the dead. Their confession and belief is the formula by which they are saved.

The beginning section of 1 Corinthians 12 sets up the basis of the Holy Spirit indwelling a person. And when that has happened, the Holy Spirit gives each believer supernatural spiritual gifts that are to be used in His service. As the chapter continues, the various gifts and the reason they are given is explained.

1 Corinthians 12:4-7 “4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. 7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.

There are gifts, services and activities. All of the gifts are a manifestation of the Holy Spirit and are given for the common good...not for your benefit individually. Let’s continue.

1 Corinthians 12:8-11 “8 For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utteranceof knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one

Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, toanother prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each oneindividually as he wills.”

The major thing Pauls is trying to tell them, is that all of these gifts come from the Holy Spirit...and it is only the Holy Spirit who decides which gift to give to which person. From this passage, it is clear that not every believer is given every gift. The Holy Spirit apportions to each believer individually as He wills.

The Holy Spirit knows perfectly what job He has assigned you,

for the expansion of the kingdom. And so, only He knows what gift you need to accomplish that mission.

1 Corinthians 12:29-31 “29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30 Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do allinterpret? 31 But earnestly desire the higher gifts.”

The answer to every one of these rhetorical questions is clearly, no. Not everyone has every gift. Let me say this plainly, there is no deficiency in you because you don’t have a gift that someone else does.

Don’t ever let someone convince you that you are a second class kingdom citizen, because you don’t have what they consider to be the most important gift. And whatever you do, don’t allow yourself to fall into the trap of looking down on others who don’t have the gift that you do. Having Spiritual gift pride...is still just pride. And we are warned about the sin of pride. Satan would love to use the gift that the Holy Spirit has given you to cause you to sin.

Remember, what you have is a gift. It did not originate with you. The Holy Spirit, in His wisdom, decided that you needed the gift He gave you, in order to accomplish the job that He has given you, in furthering the kingdom. And that is a huge thing to remember.

Think about this. A gift can only be given by the person who owns it. If I walk into the parking lot and tell you to pick out any car there and I’ll give it to you...you wouldn’t believe me. Why? Because I don’t own all the cars in the parking lot, so they are not mine to give. Only the owner of the car can give it to you.

It’s the same with the gifts of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit owns the gifts and He decides who gets what. Just because someone has laid their hands on you and prayed for you to receive a spiritual gift, does not obligate the Holy Spirit to give it to you.

This is an error that has been taught in some church circles, as it concerns the gift of tongues and prophesy. You cannot force the Holy Spirit to give you a spiritual gift by attending a class where they “teach” you to speak in tongues or be a prophet. That is a false teaching. Plain and simple. There are 3 other passages that list spiritual gifts.

Romans 12:5-8 “5 so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. 6 Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them:if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; 7 if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; 8 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 12:28 “28 And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues.”

Ephesians 4:11-12 “11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ,”

As I go over this list, I want you to know that I believe all of the spiritual gifts are still active today, but certainly not the way that some more charismatic leaders would describe their active use.

Let’s go through some of the spiritual gifts and discover what each gift is and how it is supposed to be used. Some of the descriptions will be a bit more technical. Most of these descriptions come from the ministry website gotquestions.org.

I don’t always agree with them 100% but these definitions are good, since I have modified the ones that needed it. This is more of a random order of gifts...Not in an order of importance.

#1 The utterance of Wisdom.

A speech that is wise. Full of intelligence, concerning human and divine matters. The fact that this gift is described as the “word” of wisdom indicates that it is one of the speaking gifts. This gift describes someone who can understand and speak forth biblical truth in such a way as to skillfully apply it to life situations with discernment.

#2 The utterance of Knowledge.

Another speaking gift that is full of the general knowledge of the Christian faith. A deeper more perfect and enlarged knowledge of this religion, such as belongs to the more advanced.


#3 Faith.

A conviction or belief respecting man's relationship to God and divine things, generally with the included idea of trust and holy fervour born of faith and joined with it. The spiritual gift of faith is exhibited by one with a strong and unshakeable confidence in God, His Word, His promises, and the power of prayer to effect miracles.

#4 Healing.

A means of healing, remedy, medicine. Although God does still heal today, and while there is no biblical reason that God could not empower an individual with a miracle gift of healing today, the

way this gift is described in the Greek has more to do with a doctor or nurse, trained and gifted to deal with medical issues.

#5 Working of Miracles.

Ability, strength and power for performing the miraculous. A gift that involves performing supernatural events that could only be attributed to the power of God.

#6 Prophecy.

A discourse emanating from divine inspiration and declaring the purposes of God, whether by reproving and admonishing the wicked, or comforting the afflicted, or revealing things hidden; esp. by foretelling future events. To prophesy, is to declare the divine will, to interpret the purposes of God, or to make known in any way the truth of God that is designed to influence people.


#7 Distinguishing between Spirits.

A distinguishing, discerning, judging between the work of the Holy Spirit and other spiritual beings. Jesus said many would come in His name and would deceive many, but the gift of discerning spirits is given to the church to protect it from such as these.


#8 Various kinds of Tongues.

The language or dialect used by a particular people distinct from that of other nations. It involves the divine ability to speak in languages previously unknown to the speaker.

#9 Interpretation of Tongues.

Communication of what has been spoken more or less obscurely by others. A person with the gift of interpreting tongues could understand what a tongues-speaker was saying even though he did not know the language that was being spoken. The tongues interpreter would then communicate the message of the tongues-speaker to everyone else, so all could understand.

#10 Service.

Also referred to as “ministering,” this gift involves providing service of any kind; it is the broad application of practical help to those in need. “Serving“ is a translation of the Greekword diakonian, from which we get the English word deacon.

#11 Teaching.

This gift involves the analysis and proclamation of the Word of God, explaining the meaning, context and application to the hearer’s life. The gifted teacher is one who has the unique ability to clearly instruct and communicate knowledge, specifically the doctrines of the faith.

#12 Encouraging.

Also called “exhortation,” this gift is evident in those who consistently call upon others to heed and follow God’s truth, which may involve correction or building others up by strengthening weak faith or comforting in trials.

#13 Giving.

Gifted givers are those who joyfully share what they have with others, whether it is financial, material, or the giving of personal time and attention. The giver is concerned for the needs of others and seeks opportunities to share goods, money, and time with them as needs arise.

#14 Leadership.

The gifted leader is one who rules, presides over, or has the management of other people in the church. The word literally means “guide” and carries with it the idea of one who steers a ship. One with the gift of leadership rules with wisdom and grace and exhibits the fruit of the Spirit in his life as he leads by example.

#15 Mercy.

Closely linked with the gift of encouragement, the gift of mercy is obvious in those who are compassionate toward others who are in distress, showing sympathy and sensitivity coupled with a desire and the resources to lessen their suffering in a kind and cheerful manner.

#16 Helps.

Closely related to the gift of mercy is the gift of helps. Those with the gift of helps are those who can aid or render assistance to others in the church with compassion and grace. This has a broad range of possibilities for application. Most importantly, this is the unique ability to identify those who are struggling with doubt, fears, and other spiritual battles; to move toward those in spiritual need with a kind word, an understanding and compassionate demeanor; and to speak scriptural truth that is both convicting and loving.

I realize that was a lot to take in, but I hope that you recognized at least a few of those gifts in yourself. If you are unsure about what gift you have, there is a spiritual gifts assessment on our website, that list 22 spiritual gifts. It will help you understand what God has gifted you with.

Just go to fuelthechurch.org and click the “next steps page. There you will find a short test you can take. I would encourage everyone to take this test every couple of years, because as you mature in your faith, God may have gifted you with new things for the benefit of the body of Christ.