Romans 1:11
For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established;
Paul had a great desire to see the Romans and minister to them spiritually. He wanted to give them a spiritual gift or blessing. This is not to be confused with the spiritual gifts or enablements given by the Holy Spirit. (1 Cor. 12:7-11)
Paul wanted to teach them spiritual truth, which is the gift he wanted them to have. His goal in teaching was that they become strong, firm and stable in their spirituality. This is the very reason God gave Paul, as well as all preachers and teachers, to the Church.
[Jesus] is the one who gave these gifts to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ, until we come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature and full grown in the Lord, measuring up to the full stature of Christ. Then we will no longer be like children, forever changing our minds about what we believe because someone has told us something different or because someone has cleverly lied to us and made the lie sound like the truth. Instead, we will hold to the truth in love, becoming more and more in every way like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. (Eph. 4:11-15, NLT)
