The spiritual gifts of mercy and serving

Spirit-given mercy shows God's grace to hurting people with unusual passion.

Christ commands us to forgive others of our trespasses because God forgives us ours. Mercy as a spiritual gift, in particular, refers to giving mercy cheerfully (Romans 12:8). We can empathize with people’s guilt and pain but realize wrongdoing doesn’t define anyone. When someone feels distant from God and the church because of sin, those with the gift of mercy can show God’s compassion to draw them back.

For those with this gift, don’t allow the hurt and pain of others to overwhelm and consume you. It can exhaust you. Remember to point people back to the Holy Spirit as the ultimate comforter. Guard against becoming their savior. Don’t try to become someone else’s foundation; only Christ can be that.

For others, think of people who are hurting or ostracized. Don’t allow those things to prevent you from showing God’s compassion to them. Don’t allow prejudice to blind you to the need for mercy. And finally, don’t be afraid to show mercy because you don’t have the right words. The Spirit will provide in that moment, and words aren’t always necessary.

Ruth exemplifies mercy in Ruth 1:16–21.

Serving meets practical needs with unusual sacrifice and joy.

Service can take many forms, but at its core it must include the right heart posture of joy and sacrifice. We can probably all think of the person showing up early to church for years, serving selflessly in the same task over and over. We get the opportunity to practically serve others through work that needs to be done.

Sometimes these tasks go unthanked—especially when the work is behind the scenes. Firstly, remember that God sees your good deeds. Second, serve from a light heart of joy. If things become too overwhelming, bitter, or exhausting, you probably need rest and Sabbath. If every day and night is packed with service, remember that God commanded us to rest.

For others, remember to thank people with this gift. Take a moment to think through what it takes to run a church or a nonprofit. Think of a person who diligently serves, especially behind the scenes, and reach out to thank them. If you suspect they’re overworked, consider offering to take some of their load so they can rest.

Martha shows this gift and its potential downfall in Luke 10:38–42.

Choose to use your spiritual gifts

God has blessed each believer with the Holy Spirit who guides us, counsels us, and seals us for salvation. We can work alongside the Spirit as partners in doing all manner of things glorifying God. We each need to use our gifts in ministry, in a local church, and outside of it as well.

Whatever your gifting, God will use you if you submit to his will.

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To learn more about your gifts and God’s plan for them, go to whataremyspiritualgifts.org.

To learn about the “sign gifts,” which we did not include in this study, read “What are the sign gifts?” by Ryan Denison, PhD.