The Holy Spirit’s gifts are our gauge of sanctification. The Holy Spirit brings a set of nine gifts, linked together like a surveyor’s chain. If you grew up with Christian parents, or went to a Christian school, you might have memorized them: Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-control.
That’s usually as much as teachers asked for, but there’s more to the verse. It ends with these words: “Against such things there is no law.” I believe it’s important to remember this, because the Spirit’s gifts are appreciated by nearly every human being, even many of those who do not believe in Christ as the Son of God and our Savior.
The Holy Spirit is symbolized by a dove.
Why is Love first?
Jesus summarized the Ten Commandments and the rabbinical laws by saying love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself. The Holy Spirit’s gifts also start with Love. The subsequent gifts are easier to receive and express when Love is present first.
Like the other gifts for sanctification from the Father and the Son, The Holy Spirit’s gifts are given to mold our character. However, because of our human tendency to compare, the Holy Spirit’s gifts are our gauge of sanctification since they’re visible to others.
We gauge our progress against Christ, our model for Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-control. The people around us gauge our progress by their understanding of each gift. Flawed as we are, the links of our measuring chain probably aren’t equally developed. Others notice.
What isn’t as obvious is our personal focus on whether or how much we’re trying to display Jesus’ character. Throughout my life, I heard frequently from my mother that she was impatient, as though that was an unchangeable factor. I didn’t hear about what she did to combat impatience. She lectured me on my ostensible lack of self-control.
Don’t do these things in your family. Instead, remember the Holy Spirit’s gifts are our gauge of sanctification, and measure yourselves against the character of Christ.
If you’ve ever been curious about Heidi’s fiction, there are links to short stories and an anthology on this page.
Ruth DeMaat
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