Motivational Gifts #6 The Source Of All The Gifts That God Gives Us
$1.00
Discover the Holy Spirit as the source of all motivational gifts and learn how prophecy, serving, and teaching shape your calling and daily life.
Description
Motivational Gifts Source Overview
In this sixth installment of his series on motivational gifts, Pastor explores the divine origin of every gift God places within His people. Drawing from Romans 12:4-8 and Psalms 46:1-5, the message establishes that the Holy Spirit is the ultimate source of all three categories of spiritual giftings: the motivational gifts of Romans 12, the charismatic gifts of First Corinthians 12, and the ascension gifts of Ephesians 4. A central theme throughout is the call for believers to recognize God’s presence not only in supernatural miracles but in everyday acts of serving, giving, teaching, organizing, and showing mercy. Using a vivid illustration of six blind men describing an elephant, Pastor underscores that every believer sees life through the lens of their dominant gift, and that no single perspective is complete without the others. The message then dives specifically into the motivational gifts of prophecy, serving, and teaching, unpacking each one with practical characteristics, biblical examples, and honest pitfalls. Luke is presented as the biblical model of a teacher-motivated believer, and the importance of applying Scripture to life rather than merely interpreting it academically is strongly emphasized. Believers are exhorted to embrace their gifts, resist discouragement, and keep functioning in whatever God has placed within them.
Motivational Gifts Source Outline
- 00:00 – Opening Reflection on God’s Joy and Nature: Pastor opens with a reflection on the fruit of the Spirit, affirming that God is joyful and that He rejoices over His people with love, setting a tone of grace and celebration for the teaching.
- 04:30 – Why God Saved Us and Why Our Gifts Matter: The congregation is challenged to ask not just why they were saved, but what God needs them to do. Gifts are framed as perfectly tailored by a God who knows each person more deeply than they know themselves.
- 11:00 – The Three Categories of Spiritual Giftings: Pastor outlines the three distinct categories of giftings found in Scripture: the motivational gifts in Romans 12, the charismatic gifts in First Corinthians 12, and the fivefold ministry gifts in Ephesians 4.
- 18:00 – Recognizing God in Everyday Gifted Actions: A key pastoral call is made for believers to stop limiting God to emotional experiences and to start recognizing His presence in acts of serving, giving, organizing, teaching, and showing mercy.
- 26:30 – The Blind Men and the Elephant Illustration: Using the classic parable of six blind men encountering an elephant, Pastor illustrates how each motivational gift provides a partial but valid perspective, and why the body of Christ needs every gift working together.
- 35:00 – The Motivational Gift of Prophecy: The prophetical gift is described as the ability to discern truth, perceive motives, and act as a watchdog for the church. Those with this gift are loyal to truth above friendship and tend to be verbal and direct.
- 43:00 – The Motivational Gift of Serving: Servers are the hands of the body, motivated to meet practical needs. They thrive on short-term goals, may overcommit, and find deep joy in completing visible tasks. Ecclesiastes 9:10 is applied as their charge.
- 51:00 – The Motivational Gift of Teaching: Teaching is defined using the Greek word didascon, meaning to instruct, clarify, illuminate, and simplify. Luke is presented as a biblical model, and the difference between interpretation and application of Scripture is explained.
- 58:30 – Pitfalls and Strengths of the Teaching Gift: The tendency of teacher-motivated believers to become dry, overly academic, or neglectful of relationships is honestly addressed, alongside their strengths of accuracy, detail, research, and dedication to truth.
- 1:04:00 – Closing Exhortation to Exercise Every Gift: Pastor closes with an urgent call for every believer to exercise their now gift without discouragement, pointing to Jesus as the ultimate example of one who kept giving His gift even when it was rejected.
Scripture References
Psalms 46:1-5, Romans 12:4-8, Romans 12:6, Romans 12:7, 1 Corinthians 12, Ephesians 4, Ecclesiastes 9:10, Luke 1:1-4
Key Takeaways
- God is the ultimate source of every motivational, charismatic, and fivefold ministry gift, and all of them flow from the river of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
- Recognizing God’s presence is not limited to emotional or miraculous experiences but includes every act of serving, giving, organizing, teaching, and showing mercy done through His grace.
- Each believer has a unique motivational gift deposited by the Holy Spirit that shapes their personality and the lens through which they view ministry and relationships.
- Understanding your own motivational gift and those of others reduces criticism, builds unity, and helps the entire body of Christ function effectively together.
- Gifts are not a burden to carry but tools given to help believers carry the burdens of others, and they are urgently needed now in this present troubled world.
- The motivational gift of teaching requires both accurate interpretation of Scripture and practical life application, or it risks being dry, frustrating, and disconnected from the people it is meant to serve.
- No believer should allow discouragement, ingratitude, or opposition to cause them to stop exercising their gift, because Jesus Himself kept giving even when His gift was rejected at the cross.
Motivational Gifts Source Notes
The Holy Spirit as Gift Source
Every gift a believer operates in finds its origin in the Holy Spirit, not in personal talent or human effort. Pastor distinguishes clearly between the three categories of giftings: the motivational gifts deposited within believers at the new birth as found in Romans 12, the charismatic gifts that manifest severally as the Spirit wills in First Corinthians 12, and the fivefold ascension gifts given to the church in Ephesians 4. Understanding this hierarchy helps believers approach their own giftings with humility, recognizing that what flows through them is divine rather than merely natural ability.
Seeing God Beyond the Goosebumps
One of the most practically challenging teachings in this message is the call to recognize God outside of purely emotional or miraculous moments. Pastor urges the congregation to understand that when someone feels compelled to serve a neighbor, give generously, organize a team, or encourage a discouraged friend, that is the presence of God manifesting through their motivational gift. Limiting the recognition of God to dramatic feelings or supernatural signs causes believers to miss the consistent, daily movement of the Spirit working through the body of Christ in ordinary life situations.
The Elephant Illustration and Body Unity
Drawing from the book Discovering Your God-Given Gifts by Don and Katie Fortune, Pastor uses the parable of six blind men each touching a different part of an elephant and arriving at a completely different conclusion. None was entirely wrong, and none was entirely right. This powerfully illustrates why the body of Christ cannot function on one dominant perspective alone. A prophetically motivated person sees sin and motive. A server sees practical need. A teacher sees the need for accurate information. An organizer sees the big picture. Every perspective is necessary, and dismissing any one of them impoverishes the whole community.
Luke as the Model Teacher
Luke 1:1-4 is presented as a defining portrait of a teacher-motivated believer. Luke did not simply copy what others said. He carefully investigated everything from the beginning, consulted eyewitness accounts, and produced a systematic, accurate record so that Theophilus could be certain of the truth. This same research-driven, accuracy-focused motivation characterizes those with the teaching gift today. Whether or not they stand behind a pulpit, they are driven to understand, verify, and communicate truth in ways that bring genuine clarity to those around them.
The Gap Between Teaching and Preaching
Pastor draws a practical distinction that many believers overlook: preaching is primarily the application of Scripture to stimulate faith and life change, while teaching focuses on accurate interpretation and building doctrinal understanding. A teacher who never moves toward application risks losing their audience in dry information. A preacher who never grounds messages in solid interpretation risks misusing Scripture. Believers motivated by teaching must learn to bridge both, ensuring that the truths they research and validate are also made alive and relevant for the daily lives of those they serve.
Exercise Your Gift Now Without Delay
Citing Ecclesiastes 9:10, Pastor delivers a straightforward exhortation: whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, because there is no work in the grave. Gifts are not eternal tools to be saved for a perfect moment. They are present-tense graces designed for this troubled world, in this season of life, among real people with real needs. The enemy actively works to discourage believers from using their gifts through disappointment, ingratitude, or failure. The antidote is to keep moving in what God has deposited, just as Jesus kept giving His gift even when the world crucified Him for it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the motivational gifts found in Romans 12?
Romans 12:4-8 identifies seven motivational gifts: prophecy, serving, teaching, exhortation, giving, leading or organizing, and showing mercy. These gifts are deposited within believers by the Holy Spirit and shape how each person naturally perceives and responds to the needs around them. Most believers will find one or two of these gifts are dominant in their lives, though all seven can be experienced to some degree.
What is the difference between motivational gifts and spiritual gifts?
Motivational gifts, found in Romans 12, are deposited within believers at the new birth and represent consistent personality-level drives toward certain kinds of ministry. Spiritual or charismatic gifts, found in First Corinthians 12, are manifested by the Holy Spirit as He wills, meaning they may appear differently from one situation to another. Both are from the same source, the Holy Spirit, but they operate differently in the believer’s life.
How can I identify my motivational gift?
A practical way to identify your motivational gift is to notice what you naturally gravitate toward when you see a need. Do you immediately want to serve and fix the problem, teach the person how to avoid it next time, encourage them emotionally, give resources to help, or organize others to respond? The gift that consistently motivates your thinking and action is likely your dominant motivational gift, and understanding it brings both personal freedom and greater understanding of others.
Why does the Bible say to prophesy in proportion to our faith in Romans 12:6?
Romans 12:6 instructs believers to prophesy in proportion to their faith because the motivational gift of prophecy requires rooting in the Word of God and a solid foundation of trust in God’s truth. Speaking beyond what one knows from Scripture risks adding human opinion to divine truth. This principle protects both the one prophesying and those receiving the message, ensuring that what is declared is grounded in genuine biblical knowledge rather than personal assumption.
What does it mean that the gift of teaching involves both interpretation and application?
Interpretation refers to accurately understanding what a Scripture passage means in its original context, while application involves showing how that truth practically changes everyday life. A teacher-motivated believer must pursue both because accurate interpretation without life application tends to be dry and disconnected, while application without accurate interpretation can distort Scripture. Luke 1:1-4 demonstrates both: Luke carefully investigated the facts and wrote so that Theophilus could be certain of the truth and live accordingly.
Why does Paul say to show mercy with cheerfulness in Romans 12:8?
Paul includes the instruction to show mercy with cheerfulness because the enemy works specifically to discourage those with the mercy gift. When someone who has extended mercy is taken advantage of, abused, or treated ungratefully, the temptation is to close off and stop showing mercy altogether. Paul’s charge is to keep the motivation pure and joyful, recognizing that mercy is a grace from God meant to flow consistently regardless of how recipients respond.
How do motivational gifts affect relationships and conflict in the church?
Each motivational gift causes a person to view the world through a different lens, which naturally creates tension when believers do not understand one another’s giftings. A leader may seem controlling to someone with the mercy gift, while a server may seem task-focused and cold to someone who is exhortation-motivated. Understanding these differences replaces criticism with compassion, helping believers recognize that different approaches are not character flaws but reflections of how God has uniquely wired each member of the body to contribute.
What is the significance of Psalms 46 in the context of spiritual gifts?
Psalms 46:1-5 declares that there is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, and that God is in the midst of His people. Pastor uses this passage to establish that the flow of spiritual gifts is like that river running through the life of every believer, bringing life and gladness in the midst of a troubled world. The gifts are not given for eternity but for this present age, making their exercise an urgent and joyful responsibility for every child of God today.
