Understanding Spiritual Gifts

by Nov 3, 2023

3 keys to understanding spiritual gifts

  1. If you have a saving faith in Christ, you have the Spirit living in you, and the Spirit moves through you through spiritual gifts. You have at least one, probably more. (1 Corinthians 12:7, 11, 29–30; Ephesians 1:13; 1 Peter 4:10)
  2. The purpose of spiritual gifts is to build the church. They are an expression of God’s mercy that motivates us to serve. We have a responsibility not only to use but also to develop our spiritual gifts. (Isaiah 6:1–8; Romans 12:1–2; 1 Corinthians 14:12; 1 Timothy 4:14)
  3. <>Spiritual gifts will result in giving God glory, not us. We use them in humility and love. Spiritual gifts will not bring chaos but clarity. (Romans 12:3; 1 Corinthians 13, 14; 1 Peter 4:11)

Spiritual gifts

(not an exhaustive list)

  • Administration<> – Spirit-given ability to guide and organize people and ministries toward a common goal. (1 Corinthians 12:28)
  • Craftsmanship<> – Spirit-given ability to creatively design and/or construct items to be used for ministry. (Exodus 31:1–11)
  • Discernment<> – Spirit-given ability to distinguish between truth and error. (1 Corinthians 12:10; 1 Corinthians 14:29 (verbal form); 1 Thessalonians 5:20, 21; 1 John 4:1–3; Matthew 16:21–23)
  • Encouragement<> – Spirit-given ability to strengthen people’s faith through a word of comfort or exhortation. (Romans 12:8; John 14:16, 26; Acts 11:22–24, 14:21, 22; 2 Corinthians 7:6)
  • Evangelism<> – Spirit-given ability to share the gospel with power and great effect. (Ephesians 4:11; Acts 21:8; 2 Timothy 4:5)
  • Faith<> – Spirit-given ability to “see” what God wants done and to believe He will accomplish His will, even if it seems impossible. (1 Corinthians 12:9; 13:2; Matthew 17:14–21 (mustard seed); 21:18–22 (fig tree); James 5:15; Hebrews 11:1 (if it were not mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12:9 we would not know that faith is a spiritual gift!)
  • Giving<> – Spirit-given ability to share your resources generously with those who are in need. (Romans 12:8; 2 Corinthians 8:1–5; Acts 4:32–37)
  • Healing<> – Spirit-given ability to restore people to health for the Glory of God. (1 Corinthians 12:9, 28, James 5:13–16)
  • Helps<> – Spirit-given ability to serve where needed so that God’s work is advanced. (1 Corinthians 12:28, Romans 12:7)
  • Knowledge<> – Spirit-given ability to receive and share biblical knowledge in various situations. (1 Corinthians 12:8, 13:2, 8–12, 14:6; Colossians 1:10)
  • Leadership<> – Spirit-given ability to provide God’s people with vision (foresight) and oversight, so that they may accomplish God’s purposes. (Romans 12:8, Luke 22:26)
  • Mercy<> – Spirit-given ability to joyfully embrace those in need, showing Christ’s compassion and kindness. (Romans 12:8)
  • Miracles<> – Spirit-given ability to do that which can only be done through supernatural means testifying to God’s power and arousing awe and wonder in those who see or hear it. (1 Corinthians 12:10, 28, 29)
  • Pastor – Teacher/Shepherd<> – Spirit-given ability to nurture and care for God’s people, using God’s word to guide them into Christian maturity. (Ephesians 4:11; Acts 20:28, 1 Peter 5:1–4)
  • Prophecy<> – Spirit-given ability to proclaim a message to God’s people so that they are strengthened, encouraged, comforted and instructed. (Luke 1:67; Romans 12:6; 1 Corinthians 12:10, 28; 1 Corinthians 14:1–33; Ephesians 3:5, 4:11; Revelation 19:10; 1 Timothy 1:16, 4:14)
  • Teaching<> – Spirit-given ability to teach God’s word with clarity, applying it with accuracy so that people grow in Christian maturity (Romans 12:7; 1 Corinthians 12:28, 29; Ephesians 4:11)
  • Tongues<> – Spirit-given ability to “worship” (pray or sing) God through a language not known to the speaker (1 Corinthians 12:10, 28, 30; 14:2–13, 26, 27)
  • Wisdom<> – Spirit-given ability to speak a message which will defend the truth of the gospel, or give insight and guidance to the church for a particular need. (1 Corinthians 12:8, Luke 21:15)

Interested in finding out your own spiritual gifts? Take the assessment!

How Hebrew Poetry Works

Rhyming Thoughts

While Western poetry often relies on metered rhyme (similar-sounding words), ancient Israelite poetry doesn’t follow a master system of meter or sound. Instead, its primary organizing principle is the parallelism of lines—essentially, biblical poets “rhyme” thoughts and ideas rather than sounds.

  1. The Heartbeat: Parallelism Parallelism is an “associative mode of thought” where two things are placed next to each other to show their relation. It assumes that to truly understand an idea, you need to grasp another idea that is both similar and distinct. There are three main types:
  • Synonymous: The second line repeats the first using different words (e.g., “The heavens declare the glory of God; / the skies proclaim the work of his hands”).
  • Antithetical: The second line contrasts the first, often using the word “but” (e.g., “The Lord watches over the way of the righteous, / but the way of the wicked leads to destruction”).
  • Synthetic (Progressive): The lines build on each other to tell a developing story or narrative.
  1. The Color: Imagery & Metaphor Biblical poems are “terseness” personified—they use fewer words than normal speech to communicate rich, imaginative experiences. To understand them, we must understand the ancient Israelite worldview. Common metaphors include:
  • The Shepherd: Signifying God’s care, provision, and leadership.
  • The Rock/Fortress: Representing stability, safety, and refuge.
  • Unsafe Landscapes: Using deserts, storms, or waves to signify fear or tests of faith.

The Architecture: Structural Glue

The psalmists didn’t just write individual lines; they used sophisticated “structural glue” to organize their prayers into larger units.

  • Stanzas: Groups of lines that form a distinct “paragraph” or unit of thought.
  • Refrains: A phrase repeated at intervals, like a musical chorus, grounding the reader in a recurring truth during shifts in mood.
  • Inclusio (The Envelope): This is when a poem begins and ends with the same phrase. These “bookends” signal that everything in the middle should be interpreted through that specific frame.
  • Chiasm (Symmetry): A pattern where themes are repeated in reverse order (A-B-C-B-A). In a Chiasm, the “C” (the center) is the “hinge”—it is the most important point the author wants to make.

Our Language of Faith

Themes to Look For

As we dive into the Psalms together, use your reading guide to look for these six specific themes. These aren’t just categories; they are the “language of faith” that helps us trust in Jesus, become like Jesus, and do as Jesus did.

  1. Praise & Hymns (The Language of Adoration) These are songs of “orientation”—they recognize the right order of the world with God at the center. This language is used to express direct worship for who God is, not just what He has done. When we pray these, we align our hearts with the truth of His character.

     

  2. Lament (The Language of Raw Honesty) About one-third of the Psalms are laments—cries of pain, protest, and confusion. This is the language of “disorientation.” These psalms give us permission to bring our grief and anger to God. They remind us that God welcomes our honesty, and bringing our pain to Him is actually a profound act of faith because it assumes He is listening and He is the only one who can help.

     

  3. Petition (The Language of Asking) Petition often goes hand-in-hand with lament. It is the specific cry for help, protection, or intervention. Whether asking God to “wake up” or to “be a shield,” this theme gives us the words to express our total dependence on Him when we are in distress or facing injustice.

     

  4. Thanksgiving (The Language of Rescue) This is the language of “new orientation.” These psalms are the “before and after” stories of the Bible. They are prayed after God has delivered or rescued the psalmist. They move beyond general praise to specific gratitude for a concrete act of God’s faithfulness in time and space.

     

  5. Wisdom (The Language of Reflection) Wisdom psalms (like Psalm 1 or 119) invite us to reflect on how to live life well. They often contrast “two ways” of living—the way of the righteous who meditate (hagah) on God’s Word and the way of those who ignore it. This language helps us navigate the complexities of life in light of God’s instructions.

     

  6. Royal (The Language of Hope) Royal psalms focus on the King or the promised “Anointed One.” While they originally spoke of the Davidic kings, they point us toward the ultimate King, Jesus. This is the language of waiting and hope, looking forward to the day when God’s Kingdom fully arrives on earth as it is in heaven.

Reflect & Apply:

The 150-Day Challenge

Our challenge to you is to read one Psalm a day over the next 150 days. 

Choose Your Journey
  • The 150-Day Challenge: Read one Psalm a day for a steady, transformative experience.
Download Psalms Reading Plan
  • The Five Books & Torah Plan: Early Judaism arranged the Psalms into five “books” to mirror the five books of the Torah. This plan invites you to read the Psalms alongside Genesis–Deuteronomy to see how our prayers and God’s instructions connect.
5 Books & Torah Reading Plan

As you read, use these three questions from your bookmark to guide your meditation:

  • How should this psalm make you feel? Notice the psalmist’s raw honesty. What emotion is it designed to help you express to God right now?
  • Where is Jesus? Many psalms come from someone waiting on God. What is this psalm waiting for? Does Jesus answer that wait, or did He experience that same wait Himself?
  • Can you use this psalm to talk to God right now? If so, pray it! If not, “hide it in your heart”—you may need it soon.
Happy meditating (hagah-ing)!

 

Dive Deeper

Recommended Resources

If you want to go even further in your study of biblical poetry and the Psalms, here are some excellent resources compiled from our class:

Watch & Learn

The BibleProject has created several incredible video series that bring these concepts to life. We highly recommend checking out:

How to Read the Bible series: Includes specific videos on Poetry, Poetic Metaphor, and The Book of Psalms.

Read & Explore