Motivational and leadership gifts 

We’re exploring the gifts of the Holy Spirit. 

Last time, we looked at what are called motivational gifts. We all have one or two of these gifts wired into our DNA. If you don’t know yours yet, I encourage you to go before God and say, “Lord, I’m looking at this list of gifts that You have put here in Romans chapter 12 – which one is me?”

Now, let’s take a look at what the Bible has to say about the second group of gifts – leadership gifts.

Leadership gifts

There are five leadership gifts: apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor and teacher: 

The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ. (Ephesians 4:11–12)

An apostle is someone who gets sent out by the church to go and do a new work. The 12 Apostles were Jesus’ disciples who were then ‘sent out’ to build the church – to plant new churches. Paul was ‘sent out’ and he planted a lot of new churches.

Then there are prophets, who speak God’s will into people’s lives. They go to God in prayer and say, “Lord, what are You doing today?” They have a gift to hear Him really clearly, and then to go and speak that into people’s lives.

Other people are evangelists. Friends of mine, Peter and Ruth, are born evangelists; they can’t help themselves. They sit at a bus stop and before long they are talking to some stranger about Jesus (again!). That’s just how they’re wired; it’s how God has made them.

Churches are full of people who are gifted to be pastors. And I don’t mean the ‘minister’ of the church. By ‘pastor’ I mean the sort of person who hangs with people for the long term; who walks with them through difficult times; who cares and encourages and prays.

Finally, some people are called to be teachers – that’s what I’m doing now! If we were all teachers, life would be very boring. Fortunately, God picks only a few.

These are the leadership giftings. They are not for everyone, but their role is to build the body of Christ. 

Next time, we will look at the third group of giftings, called spiritual giftings.

LIFE APPLICATION QUESTIONS 

Leadership gifts are not given to all believers, unlike motivational gifts and spiritual gifts. So here are some simple tests that you can apply to see whether God is calling you to be a leader in a given situation:

• Ask: do I feel a strong call and motivation to lead in this particular situation? Even if you have the motivational gifting of a leader, you may not be called by God to lead in every circumstance. The Holy Spirit helps us to work together with other believers as the body of Christ. So what is He saying to you right now?


• Ask: what do other people say and think? Getting the wise counsel of mature believers is important. So when you’re seeking God’s call in terms of leadership, consult with people you know to be mature, godly, and discerning. Ask them to weigh in on your decision.


• Seek confirmation. If you feel a call, and it is confirmed by other believers, then that is a strong indication of God’s anointing of a leadership gifting in you. But if you aren’t certain, pray and ask God to confirm His call on your life. You’ll be amazed how readily He will answer, one way or another.