Christian Family Services Ministry

5-24-2024 – A Word to the Wise – How understanding the gifts can add a new dimension to your study of Scripture.

If you go back through my reviews and teaching on the gifts you will see patterns which help you understand people better. Now we will apply this understanding of the gifts to Scripture.

Elijah, the Old Testament prophet is obviously a Prophet. His outspoken behavior, challenging others regardless the position, even the showdown with Ahab on Mt. Carmel all fit the picture of a Prophet. Elijah was relentless in confronting evil, and was not concerned with what anyone thought of him.

So let’s try apply what we have learned to a New Testament passage. The only purpose here is to make the person and the situation come alive as we observe the character, looking at clues to what their gifts may be. This example is two simple verses yet look at what happens when we apply our insights.

Mark 1:30-31. Now Simon’s mother-in-law lay sick with a fever, and immediately they told him of her. And he came and took here by the hand and lifted her up and the fever left her, and she began to serve them.”

The gift that stands out here is a Server. Notice how the first thing this woman does after being healed is to get up and serve them. She does not sit and listen to Jesus’ teaching or run off and tell everyone what He has done, rather she serves them. So, it is very likely she is a Server.

Now the traits of Server. They work tirelessly 12- 14 hours a day achieving a tremendous amount in a short time. They are exceptionally loyal to those who help them. They immediately see physical needs and act to help. On the negative side, they never feel what they have done is ever good enough. They do not like the help of others, preferring to do things themselves. They sometimes talk and do not make sense to other gifts.

Now you can see how knowing the characteristics of the gifts brings a two-dimensional Biblical character more alive. It helps you see them as a real person, and makes their actions more relatable.

I implore you to go to my website and download the positive and negative traits of the gifts, so you can begin to apply this information to Biblical characters. The outcome is not perfection or being totally correct, but rather to see the people and situations through a different lens, and for that to give you a new exciting tool for studying Scripture.