Spiritual Gifts: An Adequate Equipping for Ministry

Dedication

This book is affectionately and adoringly dedicated to the Canon of the Anglican Province of Southern Africa Hamilton Mbatha and posthumously to Canon Nimrod Ntshangase (of blessed memory) and Father Peter L. D. Biyela (of blessed memory). I met Father Biyela in 1979. These are brothers and fathers who have walked before us with impeccable integrity and their passion for Christ and the expansion of the Gospel is unparalleled. How I wish God could raise for us other Biyelas, Mbathas and Ntshangases. God might do so if we pray about it and believe Him for it.

Acknowledgements

This book is a product of the Anglican Conference I was invited to address on the topic of spiritual gifts. It had been organised by a group within the Anglican Church known as Iviyo, meaning various things including an army, regiment, warrior-band, legion, soldier-troops, band, ambassador, delegation, troop, team, group and company. The full name is Iviyo Lofakazi, meaning an army of those who witness for Christ and consists of a group of born-again believers within the Anglican Church whose purpose and vision is to be Christ’s witnesses within the Anglican; winning the unsaved to the saving knowledge of Christ.

It works within the Province of the Anglican Church that covers Namibia, Eswatini (formerly Swaziland), Lesotho and St Helena. The Anglican Province of Southern Africa has 25 dioceses, of which 21 are located in South Africa and one each in Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia and St Helena.

I was invited by the diocese of KwaZulu-Natal, having had a long working relationship with this diocese. I have also worked closely with the dioceses of Natal, Umzimvubu, Mthatha and Mbashe and it has been a privilege to work with this great church in our country and the southern African region.

Every group within the Anglican Church has a priest whose responsibility is to guide and advise it. With the Diocese of KwaZulu-Natal, the priest responsible for guiding the Iviyo is the President of Iviyo, currently Rev. S. B. Zulu. He extended the invitation to me to address their conference on 14-15 October 2021 and we worked well together. He is courteous, helpful and friendly and I truly enjoyed working with him. The bishop of the KwaZulu-Natal diocese, Right Reverend Dr. Vikinduku V Mculwane, was also present and made helpful contributions to the conference.

While short, the conference was fruitful and both the clergy present and the non-clergy members of this Anglican Diocesan Iviyo seminar were vibrant and participative. Consequently, I gained a significant amount from their input and questions.

In ending the conference, the delegates unanimously adopted Mculwane’s proposal that the topic be dealt with next year in their Clergy School. That was when I offered to write a book on the topic and ensure it was ready for the 2023 conference. The offer was foolish as it has caused sleepless nights pushing through these pages. Most nights I only went to sleep at 3am; on others an hour later. I thank God who sustained me. The book is now completed and ready to be sent to the publishers for their professional editing and the ultimately printing.

I want to acknowledge the KwaZulu-Natal Anglican Iviyo Ministry for their sterling work. I acknowledge Rev. S. S. Zulu and the leaders with whom he works. They did an outstanding job in organising the seminar and everything ran smoothly and efficiently. I was impressed. This book is the outcome of their seminary.

Preface

When thinking of a gift to give to someone, you take time to consider what would be valuable and useful. There are numerous aspects to contemplate, specifically the person and his or her current needs. Sometimes you ask those closest to him or her what he or she would appreciate. My point is a thoughtful person does not carelessly give gifts. He or she chooses the gift with extreme carefulness. One derives great joy when one sees the gift being appreciated and used by the recipient.

God did not carelessly distribute spiritual gifts to each of His children. He knows us deeply and when He decided to give each of His children their individual gifts, He did it according to His perfect knowledge of our makeup. God thoroughly knows us and no one needs to inform Him of who we really are; we are His people, the sheep of His pasture. He matches the gifts He gives us to our personalities.

The gifts God gives us are His equipping for service. It is not possible for us to serve God without heavenly equipping. While education is helpful, it is not adequate to equip us for effective ministry. Even ministerial training, helpful as it is, is not sufficient to enable us to acceptably serve God (Hebrews 12:28). Equally, someone without formal education but who has met Christ and been informally trained by the discipler (mentor) will do exploits for God. The prime example is the ordinary, uneducated fishermen who were with Jesus and equipped by Him for ministry. They baffled theological scholars with their adeptness in handling spiritual verities and with the courage with which they debated these scholars (Acts 4:13). We each need to discover what God’s equipping is for our service to Him and His people.

This book deals not only with spiritual gifts but with every gift God gives to His people for effective and productive ministry. We shall look at the three types of gifts He gives His people and learn it is possible for each person to have each type. In addition, we need God’s grace from which these gifts emanate. Then we need the empowerment of the Holy Spirit and finally we need Christ Himself to be the Worker in us.

I wish I had known the truths I shall be explaining in this book earlier in my Christian life, as I would have achieved far more. I do not want you to be as disadvantaged as I have been because of ignorance. Ignorance is not always bliss; it can be blight. Please prayerfully read this book and put into practice all you read. May God use you maximally to accomplish His purpose on earth!

Professor Prince Vuyani Ntintili

Fulfilling the Great Commission Missions

Mthatha, Eastern Cape, South Africa

January 2023

Introduction

When someone gives you a gift, you must not despise it. Hence, the English proverb, Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth. Instead, show appreciation for any gift you receive from a benevolent giver. If you do not know how to use it, ask him or her to explain its purpose (the purpose of the gift) and how it is used. I have received gifts I have not known how to use that became exceptionally useful after I learnt their purpose. When one receives gifts from God, one cannot take them lightly or in disdain. To do so insults God, the Giver of the gift.

The earlier one discovers one’s gifts from God, the greater their achievement will be. Yet, it is still better to discover your gift in later years than never to discover it. I am an example of such a person. I did not know God had given me the gift of writing and consequently never aspired to be a writer. However, this is my 19th book and, with God’s grants, there are many more to come. I am not writing because I want to see my name on the cover. No. I am raising issues that, when taken seriously, can help lives. Do I wish I had known my gifts much earlier? You bet I do. But do I regret I discovered my gifts only later in life? Not entirely. It is better late than ever.

If there is one thing I wish this book could do for you, it is for you to discover all your divine endowments and to put them into practice for the glory of the Giver, God, and the benefit of those who are meant to benefit from them. Even more importantly, I wish that the Church, the Body of Christ, could benefit from your gifts. Read this book prayerfully. I wish, after reading a chapter, you put aside the book and pray. Do not guess your gifts. Rather let God reveal them to you. He has vested interests in your gifts and will not refuse to guide you to your gifts. After all, the purpose of giving you your gifts was so that you might use them for His glory and for blessing your fellow humans. As you read, pay attention to things that strike you and stand out in your spirit. They may be the things God wants to raise with you. I pray the knowledge you glean from this book is not just intellectual insights but revelational. This is because the latter is transformative, while the former can lead to arrogance. The book is in your hands. May God use it to catapult you to the great heights of which you have never dreamt. May He carry you to those heights!

CHAPTER 1

God is the Giver

Introduction

The first thing to note is the meaning of the word gift. Some words are taken for granted and consequently lose their deep truths. The American Heritage Dictionary, Second College Edition, defines gift, among its meanings, as something that is bestowed voluntarily without compensation. It explains the word also means a talent, endowment, aptitude or bent.

Collins Paperback Dictionary, Major New Edition, adds some helpful nuances by stating a gift is a special ability or power, while The New Webster Encyclopaedic Dictionary of the English Language adds the word also includes a natural quality or endowment regarded as conferred. To confer means to award, grant, give, present or bestow, so a gift is something that has been awarded, bestowed or granted to a person.

There are many things we need to carefully notice from these definitions:

• A gift is bestowed voluntarily. If something has been given without compensation attached to it, I have no demands to make. All I can do is appreciate or depreciate it.

• A gift is a talent, an endowment or an aptitude.

• A gift is a special ability or power. Samson had a supernatural physical power as his gift from God.

• A gift is a natural quality or endowment regarded as conferred. The idea that a gift is conferred means it is not something earned or merited.

Please keep these definitions in mind as we talk about God’s gifts. They are endowments He has voluntarily bestowed on us. God did not have to consult us before bestowing these gifts. He did it voluntarily and without any compensation. Therefore, we have no say when it comes to the gifts He gives us. However, I must point out there are gifts we receive after we have made a request. With such gifts, one does influence God on what to grant. He has the sovereign authority to grant or refuse what has been requested, but if He does grant it, the recipient has a say in the gift he or she wants to get.

1. God is the Giver

Read the following verses and explain what you are learning from them about the fact that God is a Giver: Genesis 1:29, 30; 1 Kings 3:4-15; 2 Samuel 12:8; Job 1:21; Psalm 20:4; 21:2; 37:4; 106:15; Matthew 7:7-8, 11; Luke 11:9; John 14:27; Acts 8:20; 17:25; Romans 8:32; 2 Corinthians 9:9; Ephesians 4:7; James 1:5, 17.

Sometimes we do not realise God created our planet earth with all its endowments for us; as a gift to us. He does not personally use anything He created, but He created them for our use. The Bible rightly states, The highest heavens belong to the LORD, but the earth He has given to man (Psalm 115:16). It says God has given us the whole earth and this is an astounding truth. The Bible also says God gave us His beloved Son as a gift to us (Isaiah 9:6; John 3:16) and through Him, God has given us eternal life.

In Psalm 84:11, we learn that God will not withhold from us anything that is good for us, while Romans 8:32 says that since God gave us Christ, He will also, together with Christ, give us all things. As a benevolent God, He does not give us things because we deserve them. He gives the sun, rain and oxygen free of charge to both those who worship Him and those who do not. God gives good gifts even to His enemies and the Bible urges us to emulate Him:

You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: ‘Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous’. (Matthew 5:43-45)

God is indeed a Giver and He wants us to emulate Him and be givers.

2. Note the Different Things God Gives

Look at the following Scriptures and list the things God gives to humans: Romans 4:17; 1 Timothy 6:13; 1 Timothy 6:17; James 1:5-7; Proverbs 2:6; Ecclesiastes 2:26; Jeremiah 5:24; Deuteronomy 28:12; Zechariah 10:1; 1 Corinthians 3:7; Deuteronomy 8:18; Psalm 115:14; 1 Corinthians 15:57; Deuteronomy 12:10; 1 Samuel 17:46; 1 Thessalonians 4:8; Job 35:10; Psalm 29:11; 68:35; Isaiah 42:5; Jeremiah 24:7; Proverbs 29:13; Exodus 13:21; Psalm 146:7; Psalm 37:4; John 3:16.

We actually cannot finish enumerating the things God gives to His people, both those who worship Him and those who do not. God gives things tangible and material like rain, food and treasures (Isaiah 45:3), all things (Romans 8:22; Psalm 84:11) and land and cities (Genesis 12:7; 15:7). He gives life and things to sustain it.

He also gives us intangible yet very important things; some of which are more important than those you can touch. However, in their foolishness, people are more enamoured with touchable and visible things. God gives wisdom. Even when you have a wealth of tangible things like money and