The spiritual gifts are abilities that are given by God through the Holy Spirit to individuals to aid other followers of Christ in their faith, both collectively and individually. They were first bestowed on the original twelve Apostles at the Pentecost (Acts 1) but the Bible shows that many others had received the gifts after Pentecost.
Unfortunately we cannot turn to a specific place in the Bible and find a neatly laid out guide to the spiritual gifts. There are a number of places in the New Testament where the spiritual gifts are mentioned. The Apostle Paul wrote about them extensively in some of his letters. We have to take all of Paul’s writings and study specific chapters and verses where he talks about the gifts. There is also an abundance of material available from other teachers on Paul’s writings that can help us better understand what Paul is saying to us.
Where are the Spiritual Gifts in the Bible?
There are three primary sections of Paul’s writings that specifically address the spiritual gift: Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12, and Ephesians 4. In the following studies I will break down each section one by one and share what I have learned from scholars, authors, and my own discernment. Any materials from another author that I mention will be documented in that post and can also be found on the main reference page.
The table above lists the 18 spiritual gifts that are noted by the Apostle Paul. There are other authors who believe that there are many more spiritual gifts mentioned in the Bible, but I chose to focus on the ones mentioned by Paul. These 18 are balanced, compliment each other, and combinations of gifts lead to other gifts. As you move forward in your journey to discover your spiritual gifts these relationships will become more clear to you.
