“It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.”
1 Corinthians 12:11 (NLT)
Spiritual gifts aren’t souvenirs we shop for at Walmart. They’re supernatural tools distributed by the Holy Spirit for God’s purposes, not our preferences. Today’s passage makes it clear—He alone decides who gets what and when. We can’t manufacture the power of God, and we don’t get to use it however we want.
This portion of scripture repeats one critical truth: there is one Spirit behind all these gifts. The same Holy Spirit empowers healing, wisdom, discernment, and prophecy—even if they show up differently in each person. It’s not chaos; it’s coordination.
But over time, fear and misuse have caused some churches to put a “governor” on the gifts of the Spirit. Like a speed limiter on a truck, we’ve capped the impact of the church in the name of safety. And while we’ve stayed “in control,” the world has suffered from the church’s restraint.
If we want to see the power of God move, we must remove the limiter. That starts by acknowledging the Holy Spirit is still distributing gifts today—and they’re not for our glory but for the advancement of God’s kingdom.
Let’s not suppress what God gave us to express.