God gives us different spiritual gifts, so that we have a deeper appreciation for what He is doing.
The following article uses a common story to help us understand how the gift of Discerning Spirits fits in with the other spiritual gifts. God gives us different spiritual gifts so that we focus on different things and praise God for different aspects of the same event.
Six wise men were blindfolded and told to investigate an animal. Each man was taken to a different part of an elephant and told to describe it.
The first one said, “It is like a giant spear. It is hard and sharp (The tusk).
The second one said, “No, it is like a giant leather wing with no bones (The ear).
The third said, “No, it is like a tree trunk, round and unmovable (The leg).
The fourth said, “No, it is like a whip, with a tassel at the end (The tail).
The fifth said, “No, it is round, flexible and long like a large snake (The trunk).
The last said, “No, it is a giant, flat wall (The side).
All six men were right about what they felt, but they were short-sighted to not show appreciation for what the others discovered. Because of their blindfolds and not feeling the whole elephant, their observation skills were limited. They assumed the others were wrong, because they did not focus on the same part of the elephant.
In contrast, we should use our spiritual gifts to increase our appreciation for what God is doing and appreciation for each other.
Consider the following event …
A man is abusive to his family, he robs a store and is thrown in jail. In jail, he hears the gospel and repents. He decides to follow Jesus and God changes his life and his family.
The Prophet says, “Praise God, justice was served. He was brought to justice and repented.”
The Teacher says, “Praise God, he heard the faithful teaching of God’s truth at the worship services and it changed his life.”
The Exhorter says, “Praise God the Hero. God rescued the man from the path to destruction and turned him into a man of God. Now his whole family is being witnessed to.”
The Servant says, “Praise God, he was demanding and selfish and now he is serving his family and meeting their needs.”
The Giver says, “Praise God, I gave the money as a strategic gift to buy the Bible that he read to learn about God.”
The Ruler says, “Praise God, he was lazy, on welfare and a thief, but now, he is productive and providing for his family.”
The Mercy says, “Praise the Lord, the man was abused as a child and decided that would never happen to him again, so he became a bully. Now he is able to forgive, and his family is being healed emotionally.”
The Discerner of Spirits says, “Praise God, the man was under Satan’s deception, full of addiction and serving Satan. Now he is free from addiction, the lies have been pushed back, and he is no longer Satan’s servant.”
God wants to be praised for the many aspects of what He is doing to save and change lives. Each gift initially praises God for a different part of what God did. When we appreciate the different perspectives that come with the different gifts, we have a deeper thanksgiving and praise for what God is doing.