Nine
Gifts of the Holy Spirit
Benny Hinn
Just before Jesus ascended into Heaven, He said, “Ye shall receive
power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you” (Acts 1:8). This promise of power comes after the Holy Spirit
visits your life, empowering you to witness, strengthening your Christian walk,
and equipping you for Christian service to defeat the Enemy.
As our life is empowered by the Holy Spirit,
spiritual gifts or new abilities called the “gifts of the Holy Spirit” enable
us to do the Lord’s work in new and powerful ways.
The Father desires that we understand spiritual
gifts. The apostle Paul wrote, “Now, concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not
have you ignorant” (1 Corinthians 12:1). Remember, the devil’s
success is dependent upon our ignorance. When you understand how to stir up
these spiritual gifts in your life, you will have power and authority over the
Enemy.
The Father has provided these gifts to profit His
children. Paul said, “The manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to
profit withal” (1 Corinthians 12:7). God doesn’t want us to miss
these special gifts (1 Corinthians 1:5).
Our Father wants us to actively pursue the gifts He
has provided. Paul wrote, “Covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you
a more excellent way” (1 Corinthians 12:31).
This scripture encourages us to seek the gifts, which are available to
each of us and necessary for our spiritual success. Now it is up to you and me
to understand these gifts and stir them up.
Three
Groups of Spiritual Gifts
Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit, listed each of
the nine gifts (1 Corinthians 12:8-10), which can be divided into three groups:
revelation gifts, vocal gifts, and power gifts.
1.) Revelation
gifts include the word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, and discerning of
spirits.
2.) Vocal
gifts are tongues, interpretation of tongues, and prophecy.
3.) Power
gifts include faith, healings, and the working of miracles.
Every believer is promised an empowered life to
intensify our ability to witness, strengthen our Christian walk, and equip us
for Christian service to defeat the enemy through spiritual gifts in new and
powerful ways.
The following information provides only a brief
overview of each of the gifts. I encourage you to take time to study each of
these gifts in depth and stir them up in your soul.
Revelation
Gifts
There are two revelation gifts:
1. Word of
Wisdom: the application of knowledge
We experience the word of wisdom when the Holy Spirit
gives us supernatural wisdom or understanding through His Word in certain
situations.
When Jesus was faced with temptations in the
wilderness, He ignored what Satan attempted to offer and responded by quoting
the Word of God. On the other hand, Eve, in the garden, failed to confront the
devil’s lies and was deceived.
You can use the word of wisdom to defeat the
purposes of the enemy by knowing how to apply the Word, and at times it can
mean the difference between life and death. In fact, the word of wisdom is
essential in the operation of all the other gifts, so it is important to seek
this gift. Pray for this gift. Ask God to saturate your life with it, and as
you study Scripture, the Lord will begin to give you the word of wisdom to
illuminate your understanding.
2. Word of
Knowledge: receiving facts supernaturally by the Spirit
The word of knowledge is something that couldn’t
possibly be known without the Holy Spirit’s prompting. There are numerous
examples throughout Scripture where the word of knowledge is given by the Holy
Spirit, with specific information concerning a need or problem. (Example:
Elisha the prophet knew that Gehazi had lied to Naaman the leper (2 Kings 5).
Ananias and Sapphira pretended to sell their land
and give all to God’s work, but Peter received a word of knowledge that allowed
him to boldly ask, “Why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy
Ghost?” (Acts 5:3).
A word of knowledge can be personal or may be given
for you to share with others. When you receive it, you should immediately begin
praying for God’s wisdom to share or apply this word.
3. Discerning
of Spirits: perceiving the source of a manifestation
The last of the three revelation gifts helps us
perceive whether a spiritual manifestation is from God, man, or the devil.
It was the discerning of spirits that helped the
apostle Peter understand the vision mentioned in Acts 10 that in turn led to
evangelism among the Gentiles, for he said, “Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of
persons.”
It was the gift of discerning of spirits that led
Paul to cast the evil spirit out of a fortune-teller, who seemingly spoke all
the right words, saying, “I command thee in the Name of Jesus Christ to come out
of her” (Acts 8:23).
We’re in a battle, and the devil is cunning. Sometimes,
evil masquerades as good. So we must be watchful with our supernatural senses,
exercising the revelation gift of discernment along with wisdom and knowledge.
Vocal
Gifts
The following are the Spirit’s three vocal gifts:
1. Tongues:
three supernatural means of communication
There is some confusion about the first of the vocal
gifts, because there are actually three different kinds of tongues.
•Tongues
unto God.
“He that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men,
but unto God” (1 Corinthians 14:2).
•Tongues
as a sign to the unbeliever.
Some people marveled at hearing their own native
tongue (Acts 2).
•Tongues
that edify the body of believers.
“Greater is he that prophesieth than he that speaketh with
tongues, except he interpret, that the church may receive edifying” (1
Corinthians 14:5).
There is a place for each kind of tongues. Paul was
certainly not dismissing the value of tongues, for he wrote, “I would that ye
all spake with tongues” (1 Corinthians 14:5) and “forbid not to
speak with tongues” (1 Corinthians 14:39).
He even wrote, “I thank my God, I speak with tongues more than ye all”
(1 Corinthians 14:18).
This gift is critical for intercession and spiritual
warfare. It’s a powerful entranceway to deep, intimate fellowship with the
Savior. Without tongues, you overlook one of the most special of all the gifts
of the Holy Spirit.
2. Interpretation
of Tongues: translation of divine utterances into recognizable language
To understand the interpretation of tongues, the
second of the vocal gifts, we must remember that there are three different
kinds of tongues. Only the third type, edifying the body of believers, requires
interpretation. With this type of tongues, the interpretation of tongues is
crucial. The Word shows that interpretation becomes equal to prophecy.
As we begin to use this gift, it’s important to
understand this instruction: “Therefore let him who speaks in a tongue pray that he
may interpret” (1 Corinthians 14:13).
This gift requires spiritual maturity and is received
only through diligent prayer, study of the Scriptures and intense time with the
Holy Spirit. May we all be more willing to pay this price, for the
interpretation of tongues to edify the church is desperately needed today in
the Church.
3. Prophecy:
revelation for edification
For the third vocal gift, prophecy, Scripture is
clear: “He
who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men” (1
Corinthians 4:3).
The gift of prophecy builds up and encourages us. It
stirs us up. It comforts us. It is not condemning. It always exhorts and
encourages. It brings life and vision and light, not doom and gloom and death.
And we must remember that anything spoken out of the
gift of prophecy must always be completely consistent with the Scriptures, and
it will never contradict God’s Word in any way.
Power
Gifts
The following are the Spirit’s three power gifts:
1. Faith:
the God-given ability to believe Him for the impossible
The gift of faith is the greatest of the power
gifts. It’s the exceptional ability to trust God to work, even in unusual ways
or in particularly challenging situations.
Again, there is sometimes confusion about the gift
of faith. There are actually three revelations of faith in the Bible:
•Saving
faith (Romans 5:1) is that measure of faith given to every person.
•Fruit of
faith (Galatians 5:22) is an important part of the fruit of the Spirit. The
fruit of faith is within each of us, as planted by the Holy Spirit.
•Gift of
faith (1 Corinthians 12) comes for a moment, for a season and for a reason. The
gift of faith is the instantaneous assurance of God’s ability to act in a
specific situation. It does not deny fact but changes it.
How do we move into this gift? Paul said, “Faith comes by
hearing, and hearing by the Word of God” (Romans 10:17). The gift of
faith can only happen when God’s promises become more real to us than our
circumstances. Therefore, this gift can work through us when we act through
revelation of Scripture and direction by the Holy Spirit. What begins as hope
builds to prayer then moves into faith.
2. Healings:
restoration of health
The power gifts of healing (1 Corinthians 12:9) are
plural, not singular, for they apply to both physical and emotional areas of
life, and the gifts also come in two ways, immediate and gradual.
Healing restores what is broken. The Holy Spirit can
use a multitude of acts of faith to heal. The spoken word is used most often,
but the woman with an issue of blood was also healed as she touched the hem of
Jesus’ garment and by faith was made whole. We read of the laying on of hands
and anointing with oil, but even the Apostle Peter’s shadow brought healing.
God desires that we be healed and be used as
instruments of healing. The secret is obedience to the Holy Spirit’s guidance.
3. Working of
Miracles: divine creative acts
The power gift of working of miracles is a
supernatural occurrence against the law of nature. It was against the natural
order of things for God to turn back the Red Sea for the children of Israel to
walk on dry land to the other shore. It was not natural for God to suspend the
rotation of the earth to allow time for victory or for the walls of Jericho to
fall flat, but these miracles happened to Joshua and his armies.
When arthritis no longer afflicts a body or blind
eyes see again, we sometimes call them miracles, but they are actually
healings. Healing is a work of restoration, but miracles are creative acts that
go against normal laws of nature.
I believe we are coming into a new dimension of
creative miracles, when we will see supernatural moves of the Holy Spirit’s
power in ways that we’ve only dreamed about. Readiness can only come through
the Word. God’s Word points to this: “By the Word of the LORD were the heavens made” (Psalm
33:6)
True miracles are a product of His Word. The more we
read, understand, and act on His Word, the more we will be able to move into
the powerful dimension of His gifts, including the working of miracles.
The
Holy Spirit’s Gifts Are for You Today!
God gives us these three revelation gifts, three
vocal gifts, and three power gifts—nine gifts in all.
These gifts were given as a means to spread the
Gospel and establish His Kingdom. None of the gifts are to be forbidden (1
Corinthians 14:39), and everything must be done in an orderly manner (verse
40).
As we heed His commands, both empowered by the Holy
Spirit and guided by the Scriptures, we can move, even today, toward the unity
of believers and a dimension of power and authority in the realm of the Spirit
that the prophets of old only dreamed of.
The greatest days are here. Decide to be empowered for service!
Are you willing to be used in the mighty outpouring
that is coming in an unprecedented way upon believers around the globe?
Seek
Your Gifts
The Enemy has always hated the Spiritual gifts,
because they strangle his effectiveness. These gifts are not only essential to
doing God’s work, but stirring up and releasing the gifts brings divine,
scriptural prosperity in all areas of life.
We cannot do any part of God’s work effectively
without His gifts. The Holy Spirit uses these gifts to produce eternal fruit.
If a time ever existed when the gifts of the Holy
Spirit are essential for victorious Christian living, that time is now!
And this is my prayer for you.
Coming,
a Mighty Outpouring
A mighty outpouring is already beginning to shake
the nations, as prophesied in Scripture: “I will shake all nations…and fill this temple with
glory” (Haggai 2:7).
Unprecedented doors of opportunity for the Gospel
are opening in nations around the world, with the potential to reach millions,
even billions, for Christ, just as Jesus promised when He said, “Vast fields of
human souls are ripening all around us, and are ready now for reaping” (John
4:35, TLB).
There is so much more to be done.
I believe God is going to shake the nations!
Today, the world’s population is over 7.5 billion
souls, and each one will spend eternity somewhere. Less than a third consider
themselves to be Christians, even by the broadest definition. Some estimates
point to a few as 10 percent are born again believers!
In other words, somewhere between 4.9 to 6.6 billion
people living today have not received Jesus Christ as Savior!
That number should shake each of us to our core. The
shaking of the nations prophesied in Haggai 2:7 should begin with each of us!
Even
More, Not Less
But there is so much to be done. We cannot look to
the past and be satisfied. There is an aching need for more evangelism, not
less.
That’s what God is telling me. We need even more,
not less!
Just as He desires to draw us into His presence in
the Holy of Holies, He is always drawing us to the fact that He desires to
shake the nations.
I truly believe that all we have seen in past months
and years is but a foretaste of what is to come. God has even more in store for
us, not less!
I am believing for millions to hear the Gospel of
Jesus Christ proclaimed through all the different outreaches of this ministry,
and I believe with all my heart that vast multitudes will receive Him as Savior
and Lord.
This is the season of supernatural harvest, a mighty
outpouring that is shaking the nations, and I believe we will see a glorious
harvest of souls.
The nations are calling, and we must respond now
before it’s too late. We must do even more, not less!
As God orchestrates our steps with divine perfection
and opens the way, we will march forward together like a mighty army, obeying
the Lord’s command to “go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every
creature” (Mark 16:15).
I believe that God is asking you and me to go to the
nations of the world and tell them about His precious Son, Jesus Christ.
Doors are opening all over the world as never
before, and the Gospel message is being welcomed in nations whose borders were
once closed. I’m willing to go. I’m willing to spend and be spent for the sake
of the Gospel.
My
Request to You
Just as God desires for each
believer to move into a deeper relationship with Him, He also wants each of us
to see beyond ourselves and look upon the lost and needy all around us.
Will you send me to the nations by
sowing a sacrificial seed today so I can proclaim the Gospel to the vast fields
of souls so we can reap a supernatural harvest of souls for all eternity?
What seed will you sow today to help
me reach the lost?
Will you give even more, not less?
Yes, a seed may seem small in your
hand, but when you sow seed in expectant faith, you release its God-given
potential to produce a supernatural outpouring: “He which soweth
sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap
also bountifully” (2 Corinthians 9:6).
Dear, I’m asking you to look deep
within your heart and make a decision today that will affect eternity. I’m
ready to go wherever the Lord leads. Sow the largest seed you can today to be
part of this mighty outpouring that is shaking the nations.
Millions, even billions, are waiting
to hear the Good News and witness the miraculous power manifested, and we must
do even more, not less!
For the glorious and eternal cause
of our precious Lord, Jesus Christ,
