Serving God a Privilege for Believers, Not a Right, Says Blackaby
by Allie Martin
May 17, 2004
(AgapePress) - A well-known Christian leader, author, and Bible teacher says there's a huge misunderstanding about the true nature of spiritual gifts.In his new book What's So Spiritual About Your Gifts? (Multnoman Publishers, 2004), Dr. Henry Blackaby says a proper understanding of spiritual gifts will set Christians free to serve God as never before. Blackaby says many Christians seek the gifts of the Holy Spirit, but not the Holy Spirit Himself.
"The Holy Spirit is the gift -- and He manifests Himself," the author emphasizes. "Like King Saul, once God affirmed him to be king over His people, then the Spirit of God came upon him and equipped him to serve as king."
The book contends that the Old Testament is the "kindergarten" for understanding the pattern of the Holy Spirit's gifting and work. "All the way through the Old Testament, the assignment always preceded the equipping of the Holy Spirit," Blackaby explains, "but in our generation we have people wanting to find their spiritual gift before they have any kind of an assignment."
According to Blackaby, a believer's talents and spiritual gifts are not always connected. He explains that if there is a need in the body of believers, but it does happen to match with where an individual thinks their giftedness is, that person will opt out because "that's not where my gift lies.'
But the respected author says God often asks believers to accomplish something they cannot do in order to bring glory to Himself.
"[W]hen God assigns, His goal is not to make us successful, but to reveal Himself," he says. "And so often, for God to be able to reveal Himself through our life, He has to pick an area of our life where we are most weak -- because in our utter weakness, God can display His strength."
Henry Blackaby's co-author for What's So Spiritual About Your Gifts? is his son, Dr. Mel Blackaby. The father-son team also penned Experiencing God Together (Broadman & Holman, 2002).
