Summary

What Are Spiritual Gifts? The subject of spiritual gifts can seem complicated: Who has spiritual gifts--""spiritual people" or everybody? What are spiritual gifts anyway? Understanding Spiritual Giftstakes you straight to God's Word to discover answers from the Gift-Giver Himself. As you dig into Bible passages about God's design for each of us, you'll find out that spiritual gifts aren't complicated--but they are life-changing. Here you will uncover what spiritual gifts are, where they come from, who has them, how they are received, and how they work within the church. As you study, you will have a new vision for how you can use your God-given gifts to bring hope to your home, your church, and a hurting world. 40 Minutes a Week Could Change Your Life! The 40-Minute Bible Studies series from the teaching team at Precept Ministries International tackles the topics that matter to you. These inductive study guides, designed to be completed in just six 40-minute lessons with no homework required, help you discover for yourself what God says and how it applies to your life today. With the leaderrs"s notes and Bible passages included right in the book, each self-contained study is a powerful resource for personal growth and small-group discussion.

Author Biography

PRECEPT MINISTRIES INTERNATIONAL, founded in 1970 by Jack and Kay Arthur, has trained millions of people to discover God's truth for themselves. The Precepts for Life radio and television programs, hosted by Kay Arthur, reach a worldwide viewing audience of over 94 million. In addition to inductive study training workshops and thousands of small-group studies across America, PMI reaches nearly 150 countries with inductive Bible studies translated into nearly 70 languages.

How to Use This Study	p. v
Introduction: Understanding Spiritual Gifts	p. 1
What Qualifies You to Receive a Spiritual Gift?	p. 3
Where Do Spiritual Gifts Come From and What Is Their Purpose?	p. 15
Can You Choose or Earn a Particular Gift for Yourself?	p. 25
What Does God Expect You to Do with Your Spiritual Gift?	p. 37
Why Does the Church Need Your Gift?	p. 49
Examples of Spiritual Gifts in Action	p. 63
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Excerpts

Many churches these days seem to place a great deal of emphasis on creating seeker-friendly environments, implementing membership growth programs, building a phenomenal multimedia ministry, and bringing on board “big-vision” staff members with charismatic personalities. Who is really being glorified in all of this: God or man?

In our efforts to package church into something exciting, we may have overlooked one of God’s key provisions for our growth and maturity: spiritual gifts. Spiritual gifts are a necessity in the ministry of every body of believers. All of us, as Christ followers should be working together to strengthen the body, to produce unity, to be lights shining in the darkness, and to bring glory to God. This is done through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit, through the gifts that He gives us.

As the preacher A.W. Tozer wrote, “These are not natural talents merely, but gifts imparted by the Holy Spirit to fit the believer for his place in the body of Christ. They are like pipes on a great organ, permitting the musician wide scope and ranged to produce music of the finest quality. But they are, I repeat, more than talents. They are spiritual gifts.”*

Unfortunately, many Christians seem to be unaware of the gifts of the Spirit—what they are, how they are received, or how they are to be used. In the next six weeks of study you will learn the answers to these questions and more. As you discover a fuller vision for how God intends spiritual gifts to work within the church, your study of this subject will
prepare you to tap into God’s agenda and play an active role in His ministry, not only to the body of Christ but possibly even to the rest of the world.

We have yet to see what God would do for His Church if we would all throw ourselves down before Him with an open Bible and cry, “Behold Thy servant, Lord! Be it unto me even as Thou wilt!”†

* A.W. Tozer, Keys to the Deeper Life (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1984), 44.
† Tozer, Keys to the Deeper Life, 47