Don Stewart :: Foundational Truths about the Gifts of the Spirit (Introduction)

Foundational Truths about the Gifts of the Spirit

Introduction to Spiritual Gifts – Introduction

The work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer can be divided into two categories – spiritual gifts and the filling of the Holy Spirit. Spiritual gifts are the abilities that God gives each believer to do the work of the ministry while how we allow these gifts to work in our lives comes under the heading of the filling of the Holy Spirit.

This topic deals with the various gifts of the Holy Spirit, or spiritual gifts. This subject, which had been neglected for so long among Christians, has now become something of unprecedented interest in recent years.

There are a number of issues concerning spiritual gifts where good people disagree. We will do our best to present the best case that each side offers and let the student decide which is the most consistent with biblical revelation. Because this area of study is not fundamental to the faith there is room for disagreement among Bible-believing Christians. We trust that our discussion in this part of the course will add light to a subject that is too often controlled by emotions rather than solid biblical understanding.

As is true with all of our courses, we have written this section to be used by all Christians – no matter what their particular belief about spiritual gifts. Its purpose is to clearly present the various views that Bible-believing Christians have on this subject. The material is written in such a way that all Christians who want a further understanding of what the Bible says, and what various groups believe about the subject of spiritual gifts, can study and benefit from it. Above all, it is our desire to emphasize what unites us in Jesus Christ – not what divides us.

We have purposefully not taken a stand on this issue. Instead we have presented the best arguments that we could find for both perspectives. This way Christians from various points of view can use this material on this controversial subject. It will help everyone understand why there are fundamental disagreements between Bible–believing Christians regarding these certain gifts.

We trust that the exercise of studying spiritual gifts will not only be beneficial intellectually but that it will also encourage each believer to use his or her gift to the fullest extent for advancement of the kingdom of God. Gifts are indeed to be studied; but they are also to be used. Therefore let us learn everything that we can about them and then let us put into practice what we have learned.