Perhaps it feels audacious to claim discernment as our gift and no less prideful to claim wisdom or mercy. For others, defining their gift puts pressure on them and they’d rather leave ministry to the “professionals.” Still others simply have no idea how to begin to discover what our gifts actually are.

Ask your average churchgoer what their spiritual gifts are, and you may get a blank stare. Not many of us can say with certainty what God has supernaturally equipped us to do. And yet the Bible is clear that spiritual gifts are not just for pastors (Rom. 12:4–8).

Perhaps it feels audacious to claim discernment as our gift and no less prideful to claim wisdom or mercy. For others, defining their gift puts pressure on them and they’d rather leave ministry to the “professionals.” Still others simply have no idea how to begin to discover what our gifts actually are.

Theologian J.I. Packer’s book Keep in Step with the Spirit has been immensely helpful for me in bringing clarity to this issue. While the gifts function more like a footnote than a main theme in this book, his insight on the topic is invaluable.

What I Learned

1. Every believer has a gift.

According to Packer, “All Christians have gifts and tasks of their own within the church’s total ministry.” Ministry is not just for the pastors and clergy, it is “a necessary part of everyone’s discipleship.”

Many of us have wondered whether our spiritual gifts really matter. We see the highly visible gifts of preaching, teaching, and evangelism as “real ministry” and feel no compulsion to practice our “lesser” gifts with equal zeal. This logic may seem sound, but it is profoundly unbiblical.

The apostle Paul said that Christ gave us the “apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry” (Eph. 4:11–12, emphasis added). In other words, your pastor equips you for the ministry of your local church.

It shouldn’t surprise us then that Paul is so eager to have Christians exercise their spiritual gifts. He warns Timothy, “Do not neglect the gift you have” (1 Tim. 4:14) and seems no less eager to have every member of the Body of Christ participating in their various roles (1 Cor. 12:14–19).

While it may not be essential to nail down with certainty the shape and boundaries of our giftings, it is helpful to have some idea. With so many things rallying for our time and attention, a defined spiritual gift helps us know what to prioritize.

2. Spiritual gifts must be defined as Christ’s work in our midst.

The reason many of us feel presumptuous in claiming a spiritual gift is because we have wrongly assumed that our spiritual gifts are about us. But as Packer points out, “spiritual gifts must be defined in terms of Christ, as actualized powers of expressing, celebrating, displaying and so communicating Christ in one way or another, either by word or by deed. They would not be edifying otherwise.”

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