Premise For Studying Motivational Gifts (Romans 12)

“Scripture strongly suggests each person should know his/her place in the body.”

Romans 12:3 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that Yahweh has assigned.

No one gift is higher or lower in priority; all are of equal importance.  All the “tools” must be available for the work of Christ.

Seven gifts are listed in Romans 12:4-8.  People express themselves in the body through these gifts, or perspectives, or motivations:

Rom 12:3-8  For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that Yahweh has assigned. {4} For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, {5} so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. {6} We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us; prophecy, in proportion to faith; {7} ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; {8} the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness.

Gleaned from this passage are the seven “motivational” gifts or perspectives: prophecy, serving (ministering), teaching, exhortation (encouraging), administration (leadership), giving, and mercy (compassion).  Each receives one of these gifts (and only one) from the Almighty upon regeneration (or, some say, at birth, activated in regeneration).

2 Timothy 1:6  therefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of Yahweh, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.

   Only the Romans 12 gift may be “stirred up” at the will of the possessor.  In this case, “stir up” means “make available for use.”  Each person’s gift must be discovered and put to use in the Kingdom.

 

Purpose of the Motivational Gifts

   Yahweh’s ultimate goal for the church is revealed in

Ephesians 4:16: From Christ the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. Jesus is the head of the body, which consists of members.

 

Romans 12:4-5 For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, {5} so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another.

   Gifts provide the body of Christ with functional members.  If one member of the body is absent, then it may not function properly.  This is because the motivational gifts are perspectives from which the member of the body accomplishes the tasks that Christ and the church has given that one to do.  Such gifts are carried on through this dimension into eternity.  (“Heaven is a four-letter word - WORK!”)

   Discovering motivational gifts is also useful because they help members of the body realize that they are differently motivated, different in perspective and thinking, and therefore go about their tasks in different ways.  This is illustrated by the story of Mary and Martha: Martha was motivated by serving and Mary was motivated by mercy.  Their differing motivations and tasks caused them to come into conflict, as Martha complained, “She sits at your feet while I do the dishes.”  In this particular situation, Mary “had the better part,” though service is the more practical part.  Both were essential in ministering (serving) Yahshua.

 

Gifts We Are Not Including in this Study

   Besides the motivational gifts found in Romans 12 and referred to in 1 Peter 4:10-11, there are two other passages that refer to different types of gifts.

1) The “Life Support” gifts (or gifts to the church, or “five-fold ministries”) are recounted in

Ephesians 4:11-13: The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, {12} to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, {13} until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of Yahweh, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ.

These gifts are offices in the church that come not from human appointment, but from the Almighty.  These gifts are not for everyone (“some would be”), because they require uncommon sacrifice, devotion, with persecution.  The purpose of these “offices” are to “equip the saints.”

   The Apostle is a missionary - a person called from place to place for a limited stay in order to teach new truths or set the body aright.  The apostle does this by equipping saints. 

(But see “Sorting Gifts“ for a counter-argument).

The Prophet speaks the word and mind of Yahweh, is able to tell the future, and guide and direct the body in the way it should go. The Evangelist does not evangelize, but instructs the saints how to share their faith.  The Pastor “shepherds the sheep” with a ministry of direction and exhortation.  The Teacher “divides the scripture” correctly for the purpose of teaching the body the ways of Yahweh and humankind. Again remember!  The primary purpose of these five offices is to “equip the saints” of Yahweh, not to minister to the unbeliever.

2) The supernatural (or pneumatic) gifts are found listed in

1 Corinthians 12:8-11: To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, {9} to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, {10} to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. {11} All these are activated by one and the same Spirit, who allots to each one individually just as the Spirit chooses.

These are supernatural gifts - that is, beyond the natural.  One cannot use a supernatural gift without supernatural intervention.

Therefore, they not resident in the member, but are bestowed as Yahweh wills and needs arise.  Of course, the member may never choose to exercise the supernatural gift, but suppress it, which is too often the case.

   These are the supernatural gifts: 

Wisdom - supernatural insight into how to manage situations or people.

Knowledge - knowing something without having learned it.

Faith - trusting Yahweh in situations where natural power is limited. Hood says there are three biblical kinds of faith; the “measure of faith,” “great faith,” and “Yahweh’s faith.”  The supernatural gift of faith is often received when one turns one’s “measure of faith” godward in a given situation.

Healing - curing diseases and casting out disease-causing demons.

Miracles - being able to suspend the natural course of events to bring about Yahweh’s purpose.

Prophecy - inspired speech, not gift of gab.

Discernment of Spirits - ability to tell whether someone is being honest or whether their motive is evil, inspired by a demon.

Tongues - speaking in unlearned languages.  There are four general types of tongues useful for speaking to Yahweh, speaking to demons, speaking to humans in their native language, and speaking the mind of Yahweh to others.

Interpretation of Tongues - the ability to interpret the languages spoken by the gift of tongues into the common vernacular.

 

Supernatural gifts are meant to edify the body of believers and be signs to unbelievers, pointing them godward.  (For more on supernatural gifts and many case histories and true stories about their use, see Charismata in a Wesleyan Framework (c) 1992, Jackson Snyder.)

The Motivational Gifts of Romans 12 Must Be Pursued?

   By studying the first few verses of Romans 12 again, we can discern that, since each regenerated person possesses a motivational gift, one should become aware of what that gift is.  It is a matter of knowing oneself better, and where one belongs in the body of Christ.  To learn about one’s motivational gifts also helps to judge why tasks are completed in our way rather than in another way.  This leads to ever-increasing faith and greater works.

   The work of the church cannot be done in Yahweh’s way without gifts being discovered and used.  Not discovering nor using motivational gifts limits Yahweh’s move in the church.  There are many church folks who become frustrated in their assigned committees and ministries, because they are not working within the framework of their giftedness.  This leads to burn-out and membership loss.

 

Gifted People, Their Strengths and Weaknesses

   (These are general characteristics.  Much more detail is presented in the text.)  These are the characteristic of the gifted, as listed in Romans 12:

 

Prophets:  have the ability to discern peoples’ motives.  They identify, define, and hate evil, and speak to injustice.  They are intercessors, with “inward groaning.”  They are direct, frank, and persuasive when speaking.  The prophets’ weaknesses include intimidation, lack of compromise, negativity, not people oriented, depressed, “black-and-white.”  The prophet is balanced by the merciful.

Servants:  see needs and meet them quickly, and are impatient with those who do not.  They have great stamina, and will work extra hard to complete a task, enjoying short-range goals.  They need appreciation and opportunity to serve others.  The servants’ weaknesses include pushiness, appearance of self-advancement, difficulty in being served, feelings easily hurt, wrongly seen as unspiritual, and exploited by the church.  The servant is balanced by the giver.

Teachers: believe their gift is the fundamental one; teachers love to research words and validate truth, or compare what is generally thought to be true or right with the Bible or some doctrinal standard.  Teachers are uncomfortable with anything that cannot be proven in the Bible; therefore they are essential to keeping doctrine biblical.  The teachers’ weaknesses are the appearance of lacking warmth and feeling, testing pastoral or other authority by a personal standard, and lack of practical application of scripture in favor of the academic research.  Teachers are balanced by exhorters.

Exhorters: desire to help people improve themselves, providing steps to improvement.  Exhorters are very practical, and able to see how suffering might produce maturity.  They need the acceptance of others, and are people-oriented.  They love to see their advice being used to meet needs, and often document their successes.  The exhorters’ weaknesses are the appearance of hardness, impatience, and oversimplification, seeming to have more faith in method than move of Yahweh.  Isogetical rather than exegetical.  The exhorters’ families suffer.  Exhorters are balanced by teachers.

Administrators (Leaders):  are organizers, able to see the final picture, and clarify long-range goals.  They are not procrastinators, but want to get the job done as expediently as possible.  They are networkers, aware of resources, and do not push for leadership positions.  Administrators are willing to endure negative reactions from other workers if the job is getting done.  The administrators’ weaknesses include dependence on the plan instead of Yahweh.  They respond strongly to criticism in kind.  They often do not explain their plans, and seem insensitive to workers.  The administrator is balanced by the servant.

Givers: make wise purchases and good investments.  They give without desiring to be known.  They often see needs that others overlook, and anonymously meet the need.  Givers are joyful when they find their gifts to be answers to prayer.  Since their gifts are high quality, they desire to be a part of the work to which they are giving.  Weaknesses of the giver include cause, not people, orientation; therefore they are judgmental about how others use their money and materials.  They appear to want to control, and seem stingy when they do not respond to a need.  Givers often live in a very frugal fashion, seemingly not interested in meeting their families’ needs.  The giver is balanced by the servant.

Merciful:  are empathic, and attract suffering people.  They hope to remove the hurts of others, and are sensitive to words and deeds that hurt others.  They are tolerant and liberal, and enjoy being with others with the same gift.  They do not tolerate those who they perceive to be insincere or intolerant.  The weaknesses of the merciful are that they are easily wounded and undisciplined in the faith; others think they are lead by their emotions.  Their motivation causes others to sometimes see them as seductive or interested in the opposite sex, and they are gullible.  The merciful one is balanced by the prophet.

  

Learning the Motivational Gift

   Attached is a twenty-seven question survey that, when correctly executed and scored, will discover one’s motivational gift.  The instructions emphasize that these gifts are useful not only in church, but at home, work, and in the wider community.  After the survey is completed, scored, and the gift is discovered, a session with the pastor is advised to help determine one’s place in the ministry of the church.  (If the survey is not attached, write to me for it or go here for more information.)

 

Practical Application

   There were eight participants in the session of the Leadership Training Event III, which was an evaluation of the motivational gifts.  Of the eight participants, one was prophetically motivated, three were servants, two were exhorters, one was an administrator, and one was merciful.  The congregation was endeavoring to provide the community with a food pantry ministry, which, as I discovered, was being administered by a prophet and two exhorters.  All three felt the food pantry was useful, but none really had a heart for the work of it.  It was apparent that, though prophetic and exhortational motivations are useful for this kind of ministry, those gifted in service and mercy might be more apt to actually do the work of it.  Through the evaluation of spiritual gifts and motivations, I expect to be more capable (as pastor) of assigning tasks suitable to personal motives.

Source:

Dr. Lynn Hood is an internationally known speaker, missionary, and church growth consultant.