SERIES: Christ is the Answer When the Church Is in Crisis
Have You Considered Joining the Priesthood?
SCRIPTURE: 1 Cor. 12:7-11, 27-31
Introduction: On the way to the office on Tuesday I heard a radio interview with the new head of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Wilton D. Gregory, of Belleville, the first black bishop to hold that post. He was being asked about the severe shortage of priests in the Catholic Church. You may be aware that liberals and progressives in the Church are arguing that the priest shortage is due to the requirement of celibacy and the prohibition of women in the priesthood, and, of course, they would like to see that changed. But Bishop Gregory responded persuasively that even mainline Protestant churches, who welcome married clergy and women pastors (and, I might add, even those with alternative lifestyles) still have a shortage of pastors and full-time church workers.
Now I could offer some suggestions as to why mainline churches have trouble filling their pulpits, but they haven’t asked. Besides, I’m far more concerned about the shortage of ministers in our evangelical churches. Oh, you weren’t aware of the shortage? True, we don’t have a problem finding qualified clergy; as a matter of fact, our evangelical seminaries are filled to overflowing, and there are scores of candidates from which to choose whenever there is a vacant pulpit. We actually have a surplus of professional ministers.
But a different problem plagues our churches, and that is heavy unemployment in the ranks of the laity. There are many believers who have failed to grasp and accept a great truth of Scripture–the priesthood of all believers, or, to put it in more modern terms: the ministry of all members. The Bible tells us that every person in the world who has trusted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior is a MEMBER of the Church, the Body of Christ. And, the Bible also tells us that EVERY MEMBER is a MINISTER in the Church, both locally and worldwide.
Perhaps the key reason why many have not joined the priesthood (or accepted their role as ministers) is because they do not understand spiritual gifts, which are the tools God gives to enable us to serve Him effectively. I quote from Pastor Jerry’s excellent sermon on November 4: “Spiritual gifts are God’s plan to provide full employment and full enjoyment for all of us in the work of ministry.” Sue Mallory, in her new book The Equipping Church, illustrates this well as she tells about ministering to a man in her church named Joe, who was dying. At the same time her mother was seriously ill. Here’s where we pick up the story:
“During one particularly stressful day, when my mother’s life seemed to be hanging by a thread, I got an urgent message that Joe was dying. I immediately called the church to alert one of the pastors. They were not available. I left messages for them at every number and on every answering machine I could reach. I hurried to Joe’s home.
When I arrived, I met several of Joe’s friends. They had gathered to keep him company in his last hours. Joe’s room was a place of hopeful sadness. Light and flowers added brightness. Wonderful music filled the space. I prayed with him, and we sat quietly for a couple of hours. At one point I was called to the phone, hopeful that it was one of the pastors. Instead, Joe’s sister was calling from a distant airport, on her way, concerned that Joe not be alone. I assured her that he was with friends and that his church family was supporting him in prayer. During all of this I was keenly aware that my time was limited and that the pastors were not showing up. Each telephone ring in the other room brought a moment of hope, but no clergy materialized. I stayed as long as I could. When the time came for me to leave, I prayed with Joe again. I realized he was at peace and that he wouldn’t be alone. I returned to my mother’s bedside.
I found out later that Joe died about fifteen minutes after I had left. His departure was peaceful. I was upset. Why hadn’t any of our pastors made it to his bedside? When I had a free moment later in the evening, I called our senior pastor, Charles, at home. He waited patiently throughout my holy tirade. After allowing me to vent my frustration over his absence from Joe’s bedside, Charles gave me time to take a breath and then said quietly, “Sue, I called Joe’s house when I received your message. The person who answered assured me that the minister was already with Joe. That was you, Sue. Why should I go when God had already provided someone to minister to Joe?
I was stunned. Charles caught me doing ministry, and he had the wisdom to point it out. He trusted me in a situation where he could have easily moved in and taken over. Instead, he had the joy of knowing that a person he had helped equip for ministry was actually doing it!
The people in your church need to have that kind of overwhelming sense of shock. They need to experience the joy of having someone call what they do for Christ ministry. They need to be taught and then caught serving the Lord. They need that significance and worth. Why? Because ministry is their birthright as believers.” [i]
Now the reason I’m wearing a clergy collar this morning (for only the second time in my life) is simply to draw attention to my topic. If the truth be told, however, this collar actually argues againstmy theme, for it tends to separate the vocational minister from the volunteer minister, and that is exactly what I don’t want to do. We’re all in this together. If anything, you are to be the front-line ministers while I and my pastoral colleagues are to be the behind-the-scenes equippers.
Today it is my privilege to conclude our study of 1 Corinthians 12. I want us to focus on two paragraphs in chapter 12 that we have so far largely neglected. Please follow along as I read:
(12:7-11) “Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.”
(12:27-31) “Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues. Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? But eagerly desire the greater gifts. And now I will show you the most excellent way.”
You will notice that a number of specific spiritual gifts are mentioned in these two paragraphs. But before putting each of those under a microscope, I want us to look through the other end of the lens–let’s consider the big picture.
“Every member a minister” is a key biblical concept.
It’s found right here in verse 7: “Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.” It’s found also in 1 Peter 4:10: “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.” It’s found in Ephesians 4:11-13: “It was he (Jesus) who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service….” And it is found in Romans 12:6-8: “We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.”
Nothing could be clearer from these passages than that it is God’s design for every member of His Church to be a minister and that He has supernaturally equipped us for ministry.[ii] The “every member a minister” concept is crucial for several reasons.
It changes the function of clergy from hired guns to equippers. I have mentioned recently that our leadership has come to the conclusion that in a large church like ours we cannot hire enough people to do the ministry. We must adopt a new approach–one in which we identify, train, develop, and empower the members of the Body of Christ to do the ministry. I really believe that in order for any Christian to have meaning and purpose in his life, he must discover and accomplish the ministry God has intended for him to do. After all, isn’t that what all of us really want, to know our life has counted for something, to make a positive impact on our world?
It changes the function of laity from parishioners to participants. Too many members of the church think of themselves as dependent upon their pastors. Some people actually feel cheated if, when they are in the hospital, a fellow-believer comes to visit them instead of the Pastor. Some are offended if a pastor doesn’t show up to pray at an event they are planning. Now there may be, and probably are, a few functions in the church that call for pastors, but not many. Certainly not hospital visitation or praying.
There are also some functions in the Church that require so much time that a volunteer simply cannot accomplish them, so someone must be hired to who can give full attention to that function. But I think it’s time for us to view ourselves– clergy and laity, vocational ministers and volunteers–as equals in ministry. Every calling is a sacred calling; it’s just that some are carried out by full-time church workers and others by volunteers.[iii]
It applies to every member of the universal church, not just members of a local church. It’s not possible to squirm out of your responsibility just because you may yet have not gone through the membership process at First Free. If you’re a Christian, you’re responsible to be a minister. If not here, somewhere–like Bible Study Fellowship or Young Life or Pregnancy Resource Center or Sunshine Mission.
But maybe now is the time for you to ask, “Why haven’t I joined First Free?” It’s a fairly simply process that pays great benefits. It gives you a sense of ownership and a stake in what is happening here.
The second basic issue I want us to understand is that …
“Every member a minister” is based squarely upon the concept of spiritual gifting.
Let me try to communicate my point here by focusing on five truths:
1. Every believer has at least one spiritual gift, but probably no one has them all (except Jesus). (12:7, 29-30). Verse 7 says, “Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.” And then immediately Paul begins to list spiritual gifts. We all have them. However, a strong hint is given in verses 29-30 that no one holds every gift. He asks a series of rhetorical questions, each of which demands a clear “no.” “Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers?” No, no, no! Well, if no gift is held by everyone, then it is most likely that no one holds every gift. I suspect most of us have several gifts, one that is dominant and another one or two that are held to a lesser degree. Remember the concept I concluded with two weeks ago: “None of us has it all together, but together we have it all.”
2. Each spiritual gift is sovereignly given by the Holy Spirit, but it’s OK to pursue the greater gifts. In verse 11, right after listing some of the key spiritual gifts, the Apostle states, “All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.” If you don’t like your gift mix, you’d better take your complaint to the top–to God Himself, because that’s where it came from. Nevertheless, there is an intriguing comment in verse 31: “But eagerly desire the greater gifts.” This statement has caused no end of controversy, because if God sovereignly gives the gifts, what place is there for us to desire or pursue certain ones over others?
I think the best answer is that God’s sovereignty and human responsibility frequently function side by side in the Scripture. For example, salvation itself is a gift, yet it is also to be sought, gained, and worked out in fear and trembling (Phil. 2:12). Christians are encouraged to pursue the best of the gifts, but they have no right to any particular one–the ultimate decision is God’s. As to which gifts are the “best,” hold that question for a few moments, and I’ll try to hint at an answer.[iv]
3. Spiritual gifts are given, not for personal benefit alone, but “for the common good.” (12:7) Anyone who uses spiritual gifts to draw attention to himself or herself is misusing that gift, for the text says it is “given for the common good.” Every single spiritual gift is something that helps the Body of Christ function better. Now please understand that God gives many gifts to His children besides spiritual gifts. Many of these other gifts–children, marriage, work, health, banana cream pie–are for our personal satisfaction, and we should be very grateful for them. But spiritual gifts are for the benefit of the believing community.
4. Spiritual gifts are not intended to lock us into certain areas of service but rather reveal our most effective area of service. There are certain tasks in the Christian life that are general responsibilities, whether or not one has a spiritual gift in that area. For example, every believer is charged with being hospitable, even if he doesn’t have the gift of hospitality. We are all to share our faith, whether or not we have the gift of evangelism. We all must teach in some context, if only our own children, whether or not we have the gift of teaching. We must all show mercy and exercise faith and we must all give, even if we don’t have those particular spiritual gifts.
People who do have those gifts are responsible to excel in those areas, but the rest of us are not necessarily exempt. So we should not use spiritual gifts primarily as a way of saying “no” to what we don’t feel comfortable doing, but rather primarily as a way of saying “yes” to areas of service where God is intent on using us uniquely to build up the Body and help each other grow.
5. Some important distinctions can and should be made:[v]
Spiritual gifts differ from natural talents. Natural talents are given at physical birth. Spiritual gifts are given at the time of spiritual birth. Natural talents are an expression of God’s common grace to all human beings. Spiritual gifts are an expression of His special grace given to those who have received new life in Christ. Natural talents are for the benefit of the human race generally; spiritual gifts are for the benefit of the Kingdom of God specifically.
Nevertheless, I believe there is often some relationship between natural talents and spiritual gifts. And why should we not expect that? After all, God knew those who would become His children from before the foundation of the earth. He wasn’t caught by surprise when we accepted Christ and were adopted into His family. So, if He knew who we were before we were born, wouldn’t it make sense for Him to give us—at conception—those innate gifts He would later expect us to use in His Church? I think so, and I think that’s why one who is a school teacher before salvation, often exhibits the gift of teaching in the church after coming to faith.
Nevertheless, we should remain open to the possibility that God might give us some radically new capacity for service when we accept Christ. He’s certainly able to do so whenever He wants. A corporate CEO, then, may not become a leader in the church but rather a teacher of children. And a poor person, like the woman immortalized in the story of the widow’s mite, might be given the gift of giving.
Spiritual gifts also differ from the fruit of the Spirit. The fruit of the Spirit are identified in Galatians as “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” Both the fruit of the Spirit and spiritual gifts are necessary for effective ministry, but the fruit are “being” qualities, while the gifts are “doing” qualities. The fruit are attitudes, while the gifts are aptitudes.
Spiritual gifts differ from spiritual disciplines. Spiritual disciplines, like prayer, fasting, study, solitude, etc., strengthen the individual; spiritual gifts strengthen others. Spiritual disciplines are ways we receive grace; spiritual gifts are ways we extend grace to others.
Spiritual gifts differ from ministry positions. There is often a relationship between gifts and ministry positions, and generally there should be, but not always. A person may have the position of Pastor but not have a shepherding gift; rather he may have the gift of teacher, with someone else doing the shepherding function. A person may be a Small Group Leader without the leadership gift; instead he may have the gift of exhortation or mercy or evangelism. Ministry titles indicate organizational positions; spiritual gifts indicate ministry contributions.
Now for three weeks we have been talking about spiritual gifts, but we haven’t done much explaining as to what they are. So that’s where I want to head next.
What are these spiritual gifts that enable us to exercise our ministry?
Let me start with a definition: “A spiritual gift is a special capacity for service given by the Holy Spirit, which, when fully developed, enables the recipient to perform an essential function in the Body of Christ with great effectiveness.” How many of these spiritual gifts are there?
The lists of gifts vary considerably. I want to show you again the chart that Jerry used.[vi] Another way of showing the same information is to list the gifts in the order they are found in each of five key passages.[vii]
As we look at this chart, it seems to me that certain tentative conclusions can be drawn. There is no complete list of spiritual gifts in the Bible. No one gift appears in all the lists. Certain gifts appear pretty consistently near the top, while others appear pretty consistently near the bottom, probably indicating something about the emphasis we should be giving to those particular gifts. This may be the point Paul is making when he writes, “eagerly desire the greater gifts.” Aim high on the list but be willing to accept whatever God has granted you regarding gifts.
All the gifts are necessary for the health of the Body of Christ. I don’t think the Holy Spirit has given any useless or unnecessary gifts to the Church, nor do I believe He gave some gifts to the early church and then took them away without telling us why. You may conclude, then, that I am not a cessationist, which is a popular view that holds that certain miraculous gifts ceased in the first century. I see no biblical evidence for that position.
Nevertheless, I do think it is possible that some gifts may not be as prominent in some churches as in others or in some periods of church history as in others. This could be due to neglect of certain gifts on the part of believers, or it may be due to the fact that the Spirit Himself is working differently in particular situations or times.
The individual gifts cover virtually every important function in the Church. I can hardly think of anything critical to the function of the church that is not contained among the spiritual gifts. If you mention music or counseling, Jerry helped us to see those as another form of teaching or encouragement. If you mention cooking or nursery work, we can see those as forms of service or mercy.
Now one of the most important things I want to do this morning, which will take the rest of my time, and probably then some, is to enumerate the individual gifts and explain what they are all about. The material I am about to share is too detailed for you to take notes, but it’s important, so I would encourage you to pick it up on the church website by Tuesday. If you do not have access to the website, there will be copies available to you on the rounder in the lobby next Sunday.
I’m going to deal only with the gifts found in 1 Cor. 12 this morning, but the notes will include the gifts from Romans, Ephesians, and 1 Peter as well. Let’s start, then, with the first of the gifts mentioned in verse 8:
1. Wisdom. The gift of wisdom is the divine enablement to receive, understand, and apply biblical truth to the spiritual life of the believer. Some have defined it as “sanctified common sense,” with emphasis on “sanctified.” In a day when humanistic philosophy is rampant, this gift is critical so that the Church can see beyond the smog of earthly intellect to the divine viewpoint and to godly priorities. A man who consistently exhibited the gift of wisdom in our church was George Andrews. I miss him greatly.
2. Knowledge is mentioned next. I believe this is the divine enablement to accumulate and analyze spiritual information effectively. It is most in evidence in Christian scholars who research, investigate, interpret, and explain God’s special and natural revelation. A seminary degree or even formal education, however, is not a prerequisite to this, or any other, gift. This gift is especially important today because of the proliferation of cults, post-modern thinking, and experience-oriented theology. One particular temptation that often goes with this gift is, not surprisingly, intellectual pride. Examples of individuals with this gift would be John Calvin, John Stott, and Don Carson from our own Seminary.
3. Faith is the divine enablement to see the Lord’s will and act on it with unwavering belief in God’s ability. It is characterized by utter dependence upon, and extraordinary confidence in God, and it enables one to tap God’s resources in behalf of others.[viii] There is a great need for this gift in this day when self-sufficiency and anti-supernaturalism are so much in evidence. Frankly, I think the gift of faith is rare in our country today, precisely because we have so much that many have concluded that we don’t need to trust God for it. George Mueller is the man of faith par excellence, but I have seen it in this church as well.
Just a few weeks ago one of my pastoral interns, who is also a seminary student, shared that finances were so tight for his family that he was thinking of cutting back on giving to some missionaries in order to make ends meet. But he sent the checks anyway, and that day when he went to work, he was told he was getting a $10 an hour raise immediately (that’s equivalent to a $20,000 raise, annualized, though he is working only part-time while in seminary). That met their need perfectly.
4. Gifts of healings describes the divine enablement to function as God’s channel of healing grace to the body, mind, and emotions of others. By the way, there is a double plural in this verse, for in the original it speaks of gifts of healings. In fact, every time this gift is mentioned it is always in the plural. This indicates to me that perhaps each healing is a separate gift and that no one has this gift permanently. The term “faith healer,” then, would be a misnomer, in case you had any doubts.
A question that often arises is, “How is this gift related to modern medical science?” Christian doctors, treating patients in the name of the Lord, may experience this gift. The fact that non-Christian doctors can produce similar results should be no problem to us, for that is true of many of the spiritual gifts. For example, a non-Christian can be a great teacher and show great mercy, but he can’t do it for spiritual benefit.
5. Miraculous powers involves the ability to call upon God effectively for the altering of natural law and natural processes by supernatural power, linked almost always in the NT with the spread of the Gospel. If we see very little evidence of miracles in our day, we can take some comfort in the fact that there were only three great periods of miracles in all of biblical history–the time of Moses, the period of the major prophets, and during the apostolic age.
6. Prophecy is the authoritative proclamation of God’s message under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Foretelling the future is a very minor and rare aspect of the prophetic gift. Forthtelling the truth is the primary use of this gift. The principal way in which prophecy differs from teaching is that the teacher explains truth while the prophet confronts with truth. In the NT John the Baptist exhibited this gift, as did Philip’s four daughters and Simeon. In our day I think of Francis Schaeffer and Chuck Colson as individuals who have clearly demonstrated a prophetic gift.
7. Distinguishing between spirits has sometimes been called “a gift for gifts”; that is, a gift to tell whether a particular manifestation is a genuine gift of the Holy Spirit or a diabolical gift. Why would such be needed? Simply because Satan is the great imitator. Anything attractive that the Holy Spirit produces, he wants to imitate. We can see that in false religions, in cults, and even in aberrant movements within evangelicalism. In fact, every gift on this list can be duplicated by Satan, just as was nearly every one of Moses’ miracles during the Ten Plagues. There are false apostles in the Church, false teachers, false prophets, phony miracles, phony healings, phone speaking in tongues, phony whatever.
I suspect this gift may also function more broadly in the discernment of true from false doctrine, pure from impure motives, and unrighteous from spiritual decisions. But if someone misuses this gift or claims it falsely, it can lead to character assassination, constant and harsh criticism, spiritual pride, and divisiveness in the church. In the first church I served there was a man thought he had the gift of discernment. He let everyone know, frequently. He eventually discerned his way right out of the church, to the great relief of the rest of us.
8. Speaking in different kinds of tongues is the divine enablement to use a language one has not learned. Now my own understanding is that the “different kinds” refers not to different human languages, but to two different categories– human languages and heavenly languages. This gift enables some Christians to share the Gospel in a human language they had never learned (as in Acts 2), while it enables others to pray in an ecstatic language that is not even earthly.[ix]
9. The interpretation of tongues is the divine enablement to make known to the Body of believers the intent or meaning of what the tongues-speaker is saying. The presence of this gift is required by chapter 14 when the gift of tongues is exercised publicly. Starting the first Sunday in January we intend to work our way very carefully and honestly through chapter 14.
Now from the last paragraph of our chapter, verses 27-31, we will quickly pick up four more gifts that were not mentioned in the earlier paragraph:
10. Apostleship seems to be the divine enablement to plant churches in pioneer areas and to oversee their development. I’m talking about missionary statesmen, like William Carey, Adoniram Judson, David Brainerd, and, more recently, Don Richardson. Our own Rick Lowe, Carl Brown, and Paul Stolwyk may have the gift of apostleship. But whatever you do, don’t email Stolwyk and call him “Apostle Paul.”
I think it is very important for us to distinguish the gift of apostle from the office of apostle. The office was held by only 14 men in history (the Twelve, plus Matthias who was voted in to replace Judas, and Paul), but the gift of apostle was held by many, including women, and has continued down through the centuries.
11. Teaching is the divine enablement to understand, explain, systematize, clarify, and communicate the Christian faith as set forth in the Scriptures, so as to make truth clear to others. There are probably two prerequisites to exercising this gift: a love for studying the Word, and an ability to communicate. Some have one without the other, but good students don’t automatically make good teachers, nor do good communicators automatically make good teachers.
12. Helping (or ministering or serving) is the divine enablement to perform practical ministries to others. This is probably the broadest of all the gifts. The kind of help given may be anything from spiritual to financial to physical to social. Too often I’ve heard it said, “If you don’t know how to do anything else, at least you can have the gift of helping.” That’s too demeaning, for this is a high and significant gift given by God to specific individuals in the Church, and without it the Church could not function. I like Ken Gangel’s observation that “very few cults grow up around people who exercise the gift of helps!” [x]
13. Administration. This gift is the ability to make wise decisions and to plan, execute, and achieve procedures that increase effectiveness, and to mobilize, motivate, and direct others toward an objective in the Church. Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law is the card-carrying administrator in the OT, and Jerry Rich is his counterpart in our church. But we have many in our church who exhibit this gift in Small churches, youth ministry and elsewhere. Being administratively challenged myself, I sit in amazement when I see a Pam Schumacher put together a New York City trip in less than two weeks.
There are other major gifts of the Holy Spirit that aren’t mentioned in our chapter, like evangelism, exhortation, giving, mercy, and pastoring. While the spoken sermon did not allow sufficient time to include these, I add them here for the sake of the reader.
14. Evangelism is the divine enablement to communicate the Gospel with courage, effectively bringing people to the point of personal faith. However, not having this gift does not exempt one from the obligation to share his faith, since the Great Commission was given to the whole church. Philip and Paul both clearly had the gift of evangelism in the New Testament, as does Billy Graham and Bill Bright today. In our own church I think of individuals like Barb Schnitzler and Judy Keffer, who have led many to the Lord.
15. Exhortation is the divine enablement to stimulate the hearer to act upon what God has said. The exhorter has the ability to “drive home” specific truths of the Scripture and to motivate the hearer to live out his obedience to the Gospel. The gift involves encouragement, admonishment, and advice. One manifestation of this gift in the church today is Christian counseling, whether lay or professional, public or private. Barnabas had this gift to the extent he was called “the son of consolation.” In our own church I see it used by Nap Easterbrook and Anne Sharp, among others.
16. Giving is the divine enablement to share one’s possessions with the work of the Lord and with the people of God so consistently, liberally, sacrificially, and with such wisdom and cheerfulness that others are encouraged and blessed. This is not a gift only for the wealthy. There are many ways to exercise it other than the giving of money; for example, through hospitality, time, skill, etc.
By the way, the gift of giving is not determined by the amount one gives. Some people give a great deal, but their giving is motivated by IRS deductions or by the prospect of getting their names on a plaque. The people with this gift who come to my mind immediately are an elderly lady in our church, Taeko Peters, and Bob and Marilyn Perkins, though there are many others.
17. Mercy is the divine enablement to help those who don’t necessarily deserve it. The believer with this gift is devoted to the care of the sick and afflicted, ministering with sympathy, empathy, selflessness, and patience. Romans 12:8 tells us that a spirit of cheerfulness must accompany the exercise of this gift. Why? A pleasing countenance is a great comfort to the miserable. It conveys to them that the mercy isn’t being shared grudgingly. This gift doesn’t always attract a lot of attention, but it is one of the most important gifts to the church. It is the backbone of Christian fellowship.
18. Pastoring/Shepherding is the divine enablement to care for the sheep, which is what God’s people are often called in the New Testament. The very analogy to sheep explains the various functions of this gift: protection, teaching, leading, seeking the lost, feeding, reprimanding, disciplining, and restoring. The danger in a gift that conveys so much authority and responsibility is that it will be exercised autocratically and for selfish gain (thus, the caution mentioned in1 Peter 5:2).
Great pastors are not often great expositors, because a love for people and a love for books are not often found in the same person. Pastors should have as their primary goal the equipping of believers for ministry. In fact this gift has been called “a catalyst geared toward releasing the potential of other gifts.”[xi]
Now I have one final point I wish to make, and it’s a very practical one:
How do I determine what my spiritual gifts(s) is(are)?
Five simple suggestions: Be informed, be open, be busy, be sensible, and be prayerful.
Be informed. By being here this morning you are becoming informed as to what the various gifts are. We’ve already mentioned that we are offering special classes to help you understand and discover your gifts. But you also need to know yourself. What are your passions? Where are you effective?
Be open. Don’t ignore or refuse any of the gifts. Non-charismatics sometimes criticize charismatics for trying to pass their gift of tongues on to others. I agree; that is inappropriate. But let me ask you, “If God sovereignly gave you the gift of tongues, would you be gracious enough to say, ‘Thank you,’ or would you scorn it?” The major problem in Corinth, as we saw two weeks ago, is that certain gifts were being scorned.
Be busy. Serve the Lord in a variety of ways; your gift will eventually surface. I really believe this. A moving car is a lot easier to steer than a parked one. If you’re just sitting back waiting for God to zap you with a spiritual gift, you’re probably going to wait a long time. I think He wants us to begin serving and then He will direct us toward our giftedness.
Be sensible. If you think you have the gift of leadership, but no one is following, the gift of teaching but no one is listening, the gift of mercy but everyone is crying, then perhaps you need to think again. Look for affirmation and confirmation. Are God’s people affirming you in your work, and is God confirming you through positive results?
Be prayerful. Bathe the process in prayer.
For our part, we are committed to helping you discover and use your gifts in God’s Church, but this is a ministry under construction. Do you ever click on a website that gives you the message, “Site under construction”? Well, that’s where we are. We are offering STEPS classes regularly, and we are offering Journey to Maturity, and we are working toward establishing a centralized system whereby willing workers can be put together with tasks that need to be done.
Conclusion: As we close this morning, may I ask you to imagine a church where everyone is using their gifts, talents and passions wholeheartedly. Think of having such a meaningful ministry that you get up early in the morning all fired up, and you live, eat, and breathe that job until the setting of the sun? A fairy tale? No, this is God’s vision for the Church of Jesus–a place where everyone serves in a meaningful role with joy and purpose. Would you all pray that dream becomes a reality here at First Free? And are you willing to be a vital part of the answer to your own prayer, as you discover and use your gifts and find your unique niche? If you do, I can promise you that you will be both fulfilled and thrilled, fulfilled in ministry and thrilled by be used by God in a dream job.
DATE: November 25, 2001
Tags:
Priesthood of all believers
Spiritual gifts
[i]Sue Mallory, The Equipping Church, 13-15.
[ii] If we have not functioned according to God’s design in the past, I am willing to lay the majority of the blame on the clergy. Too many of us have not been committed to giving away the ministry to the people; we have jealously guarded our turf and tried to do too much on our own. While being involved in evangelism or edification or encouragement, we have too often neglected disciple-making and the development of young leaders. We have just hired new leaders. It’s time to change that; in fact, it’s past time.
[iii] I am personally very gratified that many of our full-time staff started out as volunteers here at First Free and have taken on significant ministries for God and His Church, some without seminary training: Karen Woolsey, Gene Moniz, Paul Stolwyk, Steve Heerboth, all of our Youth Staff, all of our Children’s Ministries Staff, Kevin Bauer, Jeff Schultz, Pam Schumacher, Ellen Dykas, and probably others.
[iv] D. A. Carson, Showing the Spirit, A Theological Exposition of 1 Corinthians 12-14, 41.
[v] I am indebted for some of these ideas to Bruce Bugbee, What You Do Best in the Body of Christ, 62-67.
| Spiritual Gift | Rom 12:6-8 | 1 Cor 12:4-11 | 1 Cor 12:28 | Eph 4:11 |
| Prophecy | _ | _ | _ | _ |
| Teaching | _ | _ | _ | |
| Serving | _ | |||
| Encouraging | _ | |||
| Giving | _ | |||
| Leading | _ | |||
| Mercy-showing | _ | |||
| Wisdom | _ | |||
| Knowledge | _ | |||
| Faith | _ | |||
| Healing | _ | _ | ||
| Miracle-working | _ | _ | ||
| Discerning | _ | |||
| Tongues | _ | _ | ||
| Interpretation (of tongues) | _ | _ | ||
| Apostleship | _ | _ | ||
| Helping others | _ | |||
| Administration | _ | |||
| Evangelism | _ | |||
| Shepherding | _ |
[vii]The lists of the Gifts
| Rom. 12:6-8 prophecyserviceteachingexhortationgivingleadingmercy | I Cor. 12:8-10 wisdomknowledgefaithgifts of healingsmiraclesprophecydistinguishing of spiritskinds of tonguesinterpretation of tongues | I Cor. 12:28-30 apostlesprophetsteachersmiraclesgifts of healingshelpsadministrationskinds of tonguesinterpretation of tongues | Eph. 4:11 apostles prophetsevangelistspastor/teachers |
[viii] However, Ken Gangel has well stated that “the gift of faith is not necessarily to be equated with deficit budgeting…. Sometimes we overextend God’s credit without asking Him about it, then call it faith when, in desperation, we call on Him to redeem His good reputation.” (Quoted from The Standard, September 15, 1973, 21.
[ix] Let me take you down a little rabbit trail here that will help set up next Sunday’s message from 1 Corinthians 13. The first verse of the great love chapter opens this way: “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.” I personally believe “tongues of men” looks back to chapter 12 and the supernatural ability to speak in human languages unlearned, while “tongues of angels” looks ahead to chapter 14, where it is evident to me that tongues is an ecstatic prayer language. Either way, the gift is worthless if the speaker does not have love.
[x]Gangel, The Standard, December 15, 1973, 19.
[xi]Gangel, 20.