This week we have also had a song prepared for us
THE SUPERNATURAL COMMUNITY IS HERE
TO ENABLE US TO USE OUR GOD-GIVEN GIFTS
1 Cor 12:1-31
It’s always good to receive a gift isn’t it
someone passes me a gift I unwrap it and its a hair brush
Well may be not always
For me the best sort of gifts are the ones I can use and really enjoy using.
Did you know that God, our Father has a load of gifts he wants to give us. And he is really good at choosing the ones that are absolutely right for us.
All of them are to be used
In the Body of Christ, the church, the Supernatural Community, it is supposed to work like this.
God gives us a gift that is just right for everyone of us
It will help us to do what we find we enjoy doing
It will be just the right gift to bless and help people around us
He will help us to learn all about the gift and how we are to use it so that our ability in that gift grows and grows.
And – we’ll probably get more than one gift!!!!!
Sounds great doesn’t it. How come then I have seen so many people doing things that they haven’t really the gifting to do and so many others who have gifts and are not using them. And even worse, others who don’t realise they have a gift.
There are always things to do in church life and some churches have an annual recruitment drive!
Positions in church life need filling by a certain date, the minister will lead up to it by preaching on gifts of the spirit followed by one on serving with maybe one on all the martyrs of church history just to make us feel guilty
Then there is the trump card – We still need Sunday School Teachers so we get a small child to stand at the front looking really sad and ask them – “How will it be if you don’t have anyone to take your class?”.
Coming up with things that we feel need to be done and finding people to do it is the wrong way round.
This motivates people by guilt, guesswork, or misplaced loyalty. Of course, occasionally, we get it right, and the new volunteer happily serves. But for the most part within a year or so people who are press-ganged into serving are disheartened, discouraged, and resign, determined never to agree to volunteer again. Even worse they continue to do something they are not very good at and critics rightly, complain “why are they doing that”. People end up Burnt Out, Worn Out, and therefore Shut Out.
So we learn to keep our head down!
There must be a better way! There must be a better way of doing church!
There is. Imagine a church where teachers teach; where careers care; where givers, give; and helpers help. A church where prophets prophesy; healers heal; and the mercy-full are merciful. Imagine a church where, yes, leaders lead; and administrators administer. Imagine a church where we find ourselves doing things that we enjoy, that give us life and energy, where we are able to use our gifts in just the right way.
Imagine a church where we do what God is gifting us to do!
The great news is that the Lord knows what is best for each one of us, in order that we may fit into His body, the church, and take our part in it.
It follows that nobody should envy someone else’s gift, for all these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines. 1 Cor 12:11. All the gifts are needed within the fellowship of the church. We have of course in 1 Cor 12 the references to the body and how vital it is that all members work together for the common good. It is for the Common Good
It is a mistake is to think that a need necessitates a ministry. Just because there is a need doesn’t mean that it has to be met. Some people are brilliant at thinking up new projects and identifying new needs. I know, people always tell me what needs to be done! I know, because I have an even longer list myself!
We don’t have to do everything. We just need to do what we are called and gifted to do.
Too many churches get people to do things they are not called and gifted to do. ‘But who would do the youth work if no-one is gifted to do it? – ‘No-one’. Surely we wouldn’t seriously suggest that someone not gifted to do youth work should do it.
Now I know that this can be taken too literally, I’m not gifted in clearing up after me, I’m not gifted in being friendly …. I hope I don’t have to explain.
And whilst some are evangelists, all of us are called to give a reason for our faith; some of us are especially gifted to give, but we are all expected to give responsibly, some will have a gift of wisdom but all are to use their common sense! There are many things in the supernatural community which we can all do!
1 Cor 12 gives us a list of gifts which are for the body, the supernatural community. These gifts are not about status but service. Elsewhere there are lists of ministries where we can use our gifts. We are all called to be ministers, we are all called to serve. Some are called into particular ministries that involve particular functions or offices in the church, but we are all called to serve one another (Gal 5:13).
Romans 12.1 Reminds us that service is worship. Service does glorify God! Exercising service gifts sits firmly and confidently alongside singing, bible study, and prayer as part of our worship to God.
There is a further list in Eph 4, which includes evangelists and Pastors. Rom 12 lists the gifts of serving, exhorting, and giving. The NT mentions some twenty gifts and there is no suggestion that this is exhaustive.
All gifts that the Holy Spirit gives are related to ministry, service and witness, and the Lord is sovereign in their distribution. The fruit of the Spirit is related to character, and all of us are commanded to be filled up with Jesus, in whom is all the fullness of God. Col 2:9 For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority.
So what gift have I got? Where and How should I serve? What if I’m no good at it?
Let me tell you some shocking news. God expects nothing of you but failure! But God has given the Holy Spirit to you that you need not fail! You see I am, You are, We are absolutely nothing. That was why the cross was necessary in the Bible. If I could do anything to remedy my failure, the cross was simply a long ago tragedy. But because it was impossible for me to do anything for myself, the cross was necessary and Jesus came to die on it. He came for people at the end of their tether, who just cannot take any more, who are helpless to lift themselves from the pit of despair.
Into that arena of failure comes the Holy Spirit to live out Christ’s life and His power in and through those who will come to Him in their desperation. That discovery, may take place at your new birth in Christ, or at a subsequent time when it seems like you are being born all over again.
The truth is even when we recognise the gift that God has actually given us and start to use it, we probably won’t be very good at first. We need to learn how to use are gifts and where to use them!
So where do we serve God?
Very briefly there are a few things to consider – And they all begin with P!!!!!
Serve where your Passion is (Ps 37.3-5)
What fires you? What gets you going? – What keeps you up talking late at night? – that’s where your passion is.
Some people know what their gifting is, but where do we use it? Our passion tells us where to serve. ‘Passion’ is a helpful modern way of speaking about call, dream, burden, or vision. It is the desire which God has placed upon your heart. Passion enables you to serve, by giving direction, motivation and energy.
There is no right or wrong passion. It is part of God’s plan and purpose for our life. Our passion is God-given. It reveals the direction and focus of our ministry. “Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart” (Ps 37.4)
Too often we want everybody else to have our passion. Having different passions is God’s will for the church. Gal 1:15f But when God, who set me apart from birth and called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not consult any man, Paul’s passion was preaching.
Serve with what you Possess – what God gives you (1 Cor 12, Rms 12, etc)
There is a very wide range of gifts in the Bible. They tell us what we will do in the area of our passion.
Also we have possessions through which we can serve
Serve where there is Potential for you to serve
Opportunity
A need that can be met
A Problem that needs to be solved
The right Timing
Serve with Holy Spirit Power
Supernatural Power above and beyond anything that could be natural ability!
I have a passion for the outdoors, unsurprisingly I have some possessions to get me out into the outdoors – canoe, kayak, bike, walking boots, maps etc. I have discovered potential in that there are many people who want to get into the outdoors and there is an outdoor activity centre that needed some help. So guess what? I started serving there. I have gifts of leadership and encouragement and I have another passion in discipleship. All of this is useful in what I do there. I love it and the Holy Spirit is giving me the power to do well.
Serve how God made you. We are all made different, some are feelers, other thinkers. Some are up front, others are background. Some are loners, others need company. We are all made in the image of God and we will be most effective in our service, when we serve in ways which honour the unique way that God has made each of us.
I want to be part of a church where every member knows where, with what, and how they should serve God, and the supernatural community then releases them to do so? We should make it our business to facilitate passions.
1 Cor 14:12 says So it is with you. Since you are eager to have spiritual gifts, try to excel in gifts that build up the church. – and not in tearing it apart. Remember that between ch12 and ch14 there is ch13! Because it is there, 1 Cor 14:1 reads Follow the way of love (RSV Make love your aim) and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy.
I hope this is something of a prophetic word to the supernatural community!