Spiritual vs Natural Gifts

It is an element of Christian doctrine that at the moment that a person becomes a believer and is converted, they are given a "spiritual gift". Usually we talk about spiritual "gifts" (in the plural) because they are described that way in various lists in scripture. This has led to a gift-directed method of determining God's will for the believer. The process is as follows: first, you will take various tests to determine what your spiritual gifts are. People sometimes do this for themselves, and sometimes it is done by church leadership when new members come in or when a new pastor arrives. Then, the results of the test are tallied and the information is used to help steer the member in a ministry direction that is indicated by the spiritual gift test.

An alternative view is given by teachers like John MacArthur, who believe that the best way to determine one's spiritual gifts is to be obedient to God and minister in one's local church. While following the leading of God and exercising your gifts, they will become evident. In addition to this, I have recently heard a clarification that I also liked. In much the same way as the "fruits" of the Spirit often quoted from Galatians 5 are actually different aspects of a single fruit of the Spirit, we are given a spiritual "gifting" that consists of a unique combination of the gifts, as listed in scripture, that is tailor-made for our unique position in the body of Christ.

This supernatural enablement for ministry is given at the moment of spiritual birth (salvation) with the "seal" (or baptism) of the Holy Spirit that places us in the body of Christ for eternity (1 Cor 12:13). These gifts are part of our new nature (2 Cor 5:17) and are never taken back (Rom 11:29) by God, just like our salvation. There are two aspects of our spiritual gifting that deserve some consideration: (a) how and when they are exercisable, and (b) the relation between spiritual and natural gifts.

The more difficult of these questions is the latter. What is the relation between spiritual gifts and natural gifts? The lists as given in 1 Cor 12-14 and Romans 12 include things like word of wisdom, word of knowledge, faith, gifts of healing, effecting of miracles, prophecy (prophet), distinguishing of spirits, various kinds of tongues, interpretation of tongues, apostles, teaching, service, exhortation, giving, showing mercy and hospitality. Leaving out the more supernatural things, like tongues and miracles, and offices, like apostle, the rest could be generalized to sound like evangelizing, helping the suffering, exhorting the weak or sinful, teaching God's word, preaching to affect hearts, sharing goods and home with others, and wisdom involving people and scripture. I am generalizing the "official" lists in many books for a specific point. My point is that many of these, especially those involving people skills or attitudes or even general insight and wisdom, are also available in large measure as natural skills. In other words, while someone exercising mercy in the flesh may not have eternal or higher spiritual effectiveness (John 15), the person whose hand you are holding in their hospital room will appreciate it nonetheless!

The reason this is an interesting question is that many people have a personality that immediately lends itself to service, even before any spiritual growth has happened, or even before real salvation has occurred. Contrarily, many others have less appealing personalities or skill sets that make them stand out in a church as "unspiritual". It has been my observation that having a sweet or compliant personality can actually shield a person from the type of humble "iron-sharpens-iron" interaction that causes real spiritual growth through pruning. It can also cause rampant spiritual pride that will destroy a church!

A few examples should illustrate this. I will use myself as my first example. I have natural strengths and interests in teaching and contemplating and comprehending philosophical issues. I also am often good at organizing things and have some talent with music as well. My personality is somewhat contemplative and non-assertive and I don't have a problem following someone else's rules - I prefer a framework of organization or behavior as long as it is clear. I like structure and cooperation. On the bad side, my social skills are not great - I tend to be an introvert and find socializing, especially in large groups, to be difficult. So, on the positive side, I enjoy studying theological and philosophical subjects, I am not naturally overtly rebellious and respect authority for the most part. I have always enjoyed helping other people understand things, and I am usually (pitifully) anxious to please. This means that if I am measured by my ability to respond to rules or traditions in church or seem to be able to understand and explain deep theological issues, I can get a free pass without having to grow spiritually at all. On the other hand, those to whom social interactions come as easily as falling off a log have often seemed to look on me with contempt and suspicion because, for instance, speaking with strangers is natural for them but is a difficult ordeal for me.

Example #2: I knew someone who expressed for years their love of being in church. This person was always generous with their things, and would think nothing of giving the keys of their new vehicle to a teenager with a new license. In fact, this person was so unattached to things that they would frequently give away things to others without a thought, even if they were things that they had painstakingly collected over time. This person was very involved in evangelism and youth work, and was open and loving to others. Later I found out that this person was regularly visiting the nude bar down the street from their church and grew more and more bitter about some things that eventually made complete shipwreck of their faith. During all this time, all of the positive traits mentioned above manifested with very little visible variation. We all know cases like this - someone who has enough good traits that they are given a pass for a consistent personal problem or who are kept on a pedestal. Images come to mind quickly (these are all composite general examples by design, hopefully not aimed at anyone in particular):

• the person who is involved in everything in church and beloved by everybody even while everyone knows that you don't cross them or you will find yourself in a meeting with the pastor to defend yourself or who will pin you against a wall for 45 minutes complaining about how you fall short of their view of what a good Christian should do,
• the person who has been a part of church forever but who openly admits that they never bother to study the Bible and don't care (that is evidently only for special people to do),
• the person who teaches but can't be taught, who leads but won't accept that any rules they don't like should apply to them, who teach forgiveness but often take personal offense that general policies are somehow aimed at them, who will serve but only in their own way, who will be part of a ministry but only if they are in charge of it,
• the person who sits and reads unrelated secular magazines during bible study and group prayer (excused because a family member is leading the activity),
• the person who expounds how things should run in the church but never seems to implement what they propose in their own life.

So many hundreds of examples (including mine) can be thought of, but my main point was just to set up this premise: The semblance of a "spiritually gifted" Christian life can be counterfeited by a believer in a carnal state or even by an unbeliever, especially if natural friendliness can be easily manifested in the social fabric of a church body. A quick mind and basic understanding of the gospel can also lead to actions that look like spiritual activity. An understanding and merciful disposition can win friends and be a force for good, but it can also (combined with a sense of self-sufficiency) prevent pressure that would otherwise force self-evaluation in other areas that need to be addressed. So, what is the measure of spiritual growth if all this is true?

Years ago, example #2 above caused be to think about this a lot, and I formulated the following idea: We all have natural strengths and gifts, and these become sanctified, useful, and even more powerful after we are saved and submit them to God for use. Generally a church can be quite functional, at least from the outside, with no further growth. Unless there are very few people in membership, any grouping of people will include many types, and if people are of a mind to serve, a body of sorts will be built. But are the spiritual gifts we are given always just glorified versions of our natural gifts, or are we mostly empowered in *new* directions, either redirecting our natural tendencies or "filling out our portfolio"? While the likelihood is that all of these are true in different cases in the sovereignty of God, I think that the measure of spiritual growth of any individual Christian is probably in those areas that are weak in his portfolio of natural gifts, not in those that are strong. For instance, I scored high on an old spiritual gifts test for "hospitality". That was because the questions had to do with actions, and we open our house to others as much as we can. Two possibilities exist, though. It could be that this is a clear manifestation of a spiritual gift, or it could just be that as an introvert I prefer to meet people on familiar ground. Which is it? Hopefully both, with a trend toward the first. But a better measure is needed.

A better measure for me, for instance, would be how much I grow in areas where I don't tend to be as obedient because I am weak there - those involving public speaking and personal communications, for example. Mostly, though, I just need to be humble enough to accept exhortations in others, and in the types of relationships where I invite others to evaluate me. Accruing lots of "pats on the back" is not only useless, it is destructive to growth. Churches are really spoiled by those who start believing their own success story and forget 'from where they have fallen', (Rev 2:5).

more later...