Lesson 15: “Seek Ye Earnestly the Best Gifts”

Purpose

To help class members identify gifts of the Spirit, seek to obtain them, and use them to serve others.

Preparation

• Prayerfully study the following scriptures and other materials:
  • Doctrine and Covenants 46; Articles of Faith 1:7.
  • 1 Corinthians 12–13; Moroni 10:8–18
• To gain a greater understanding of historical events related to the doctrine in this lesson, consider reviewing the following:
  • "Religious Enthusiasm among Early Ohio Converts": This article gives context for the revelation contained in Doctrine and Covenants 46.
  • "A Love for Words: The Legacy of Mabel Jones Gabbott": This article shares the story of Mabel Jones Gabbott, who developed a gift for spiritual expression and blessed the Saints with her poems, songs, and hymns.
  • "Suddenly the Thought Came to Me": This article describes how the prophetic dream of a young girl in northern Italy led to some of the first conversions there.
  • Daughters in My Kingdom, chapter 8: This chapter includes a section that discusses spiritual gifts.
• Read the following accounts from Our Heritage:
  • Newel Knight administering to Philo Dibble (pages 42–43).
  • Amanda Smith receiving revelation on how to treat her injured son (pages 47–48).
  • The Prophet Joseph Smith prophesying of Dan Jones's missionary service (page 63).

Questions to Ponder

1. All faithful members of the Church can receive gifts of the Spirit.

The gifts of the Spirit are spiritual blessings or abilities that are given through the Holy Ghost. These gifts were taken from the earth during the Great Apostasy, but God restored them in the early days of this dispensation. The exercise of these gifts can bless, edify, and unify us.

• What gifts of the Spirit does the Lord identify in D&C 46?
  1. D&C 46:13. 
  2. D&C 46:14. 
  3. D&C 46:15.  Elder Bruce R. McConkie of the Quorum of the Twelve said that this gift is "used in administering and regulating the church" (A New Witness for the Articles of Faith [1985], 278).
  4. D&C 46:16. 
  5. D&C 46:17–18.
  6. D&C 46:19.
  7. D&C 46:20.
  8. D&C 46:21. 
  9. D&C 46:22.
  10. D&C 46:23.
  11. D&C 46:24.
  12. D&C 46:25.
  13. 1 Corinthians 12:4–12; 
  14. 1 Corinthians 13:1–13;
  15. Moroni 10:8–18.
• Who can receive gifts of the Spirit? (See D&C 46:8, 11.) 

2. God gives gifts of the Spirit for the benefit of His children.

• What are some purposes of the gifts of the Spirit, as revealed in D&C 46?
• Read D&C 46:9. In what ways can the gifts of the Spirit help us individually? What gifts have been of special value to you?

Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve taught that gifts of the Spirit "can lead us to God. They can shield us from the power of the adversary. They can compensate for our inadequacies and repair our imperfections" ("Spiritual Gifts," Ensign, Sept. 1986, 72).

• Read D&C 46:11–12, 26. How has a particular spiritual gift helped you serve others? How have you been blessed through the spiritual gifts of others?

Elder Orson Pratt of the Quorum of the Twelve said, "Spiritual gifts are distributed among the members of the Church, according to their faithfulness, circumstances, natural abilities, duties, and callings; that the whole may be properly instructed, confirmed, perfected, and saved" (Masterful Discourses and Writings of Orson Pratt, comp. N. B. Lundwall [1953], 571).

• Read D&C 46:8. How can gifts of the Spirit help us avoid evil influences or deception?

3. We should seek and cultivate gifts of the Spirit.

The Lord has told us, "Seek ye earnestly the best gifts, always remembering for what they are given" (D&C 46:8).

• What can we do to discover the spiritual gifts that God has given us? What can we do to cultivate and develop the spiritual gifts we have been given?
  The Prophet Joseph Smith taught that many gifts of the Spirit, such as wisdom or the gift to heal, are not evident until they are needed. He said that "it would require time and circumstances to call these gifts into operation" (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, sel. Joseph Fielding Smith [1976], 246).
• What can we do to seek gifts of the Spirit?
  1. D&C 46:7, 30.
  2. D&C 46:9.
  3. D&C 46:31.
  4. D&C 46:32.
  5. D&C 46:33.
  President George Q. Cannon taught: "If any of us are imperfect, it is our duty to pray for the gift that will make us perfect. Have I imperfections? I am full of them. What is my duty? To pray to God to give me the gifts that will correct these imperfections. If I am an angry man, it is my duty to pray for charity, which suffereth long and is kind. Am I an envious man? It is my duty to seek for charity, which envieth not. So with all the gifts of the Gospel. They are intended for this purpose. No man ought to say, 'Oh, I cannot help this; it is my nature.' He is not justified in it, for the reason that God has promised to give strength to correct these things, and to give gifts that will eradicate them" (Millennial Star, 23 Apr. 1894, 260).
  Elder Dallin H. Oaks explained how his mother applied the principle of seeking gifts of the Spirit: "Having lost her husband, my widowed mother was incomplete. How she prayed for what she needed to fulfill her responsibility to raise her three small children! She was seeking, she was worthy, and she was blessed! Her prayers were answered in many ways, including the receipt of spiritual gifts. She had many, but the ones that stand out in my memory are the gifts of faith, testimony, and wisdom. She was a mighty woman in Zion" (Ensign, Sept. 1986, 72).