Why Are We So Very Different?
NETWORK 3: 1 Corinthians
12
“Heavenly Father, thank you
for this opportunity to meet and learn more about your design for us serving in
the Church. Open our hearts and minds to what you have to teach us. Help
us to learn how you have created each of us unique, and how even though each of
us is different, it is when we serve you together that we are truly one in Christ.”
I
don’t know what kind of week you have had but mine has been quite eventful - not
exactly the kind of week I had scheduled. In fact it was probably the first week
in my ministry when I have been without a diary, telephone and computer. A couple
of late night visits to the doctors and various emergency health centres, four
different anti-biotics, and a short stay in hospital has left me physically drained
in more ways than one but curiously refreshed and deeply reflective about what
matters most to me in life. I can’t say I found spending a night on a bed in Accident
& Emergency or a few days on a hospital ward exactly heaven. I did however
meet many angels, guardian angels or a wide range of nationalities.
In the space of 72 hours, as I observed the world going by my temporary three
foot wide home on wheels, in my enforced child-like dependence, I realised that
a hospital is far more than just a loose collection of doctors and nurses but
a highly disciplined, multi-tasked operation working 24 hours a day. From the
paramedics and ambulance crews, I met at the entrance to the receptionists and
porters, the nursing staff, the auxiliary’s, ward sisters, surgeons, anaesthetists,
junior doctors, consultants, pharmacists, technicians, lab assistants, cleaners,
chefs and hospital chaplaincy team.
These
highly qualified and deeply motivated guardian angels,
were each using their skills and talents with one objective in mind – to help
me get well again. Each had been trained, equipped and recruited for a specific
role within that organisation. Each knows their job description, what is expected
of them and to whom they are accountable. Despite their different uniforms, positions
and titles, most had one thing in common – the desire to serve, to heal the sick,
listen to the troubled, counsel the confused and comfort the dying, with patience,
grace and humour. Isn’t that a picture of the Church?
These Sunday mornings we are asking the question – ‘Does God have a purpose for
my life?’ The answer is an unequivocal ‘yes’. In Ephesians 2:10 we read, “For
we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God
prepared in advance for us to do.” The intention is that through the Network Course
we will each discover or confirm the person God has uniquely made you to be and
how you can be fruitful and fulfilled in His place of service. There are a variety
of resources available from the bookshop which I commend to you.
There are three dimensions to discovering
our place in the Body of Christ. A combination of our passion, spiritual gifts and personal style.
1. First, we are told to be aware of them “Now about
spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be ignorant.” (1 Cor. 12:1).
This is a biblical command. Ignorance about Spiritual Gifts is no excuse. Paul
is saying, “Listen up! Take note! The emphasis on gifts is dramatic and critical
because they are indispensable to the growth of the church.
2. Second, we are expected to use them Like a spiritual father, Paul writes
to Timothy, “Do not neglect your gift, which was given you
through a prophetic message when the body of elders laid their hands on you.” (1 Timothy 4:14). Would Paul have made such a statement unless
neglect were a possibility? Unfortunately such neglect
happens every day. Either through ignorance or disobedience.
If you needed convincing why this subject is so important, Paul gives us a third
reason.
3. Because as stewards we are accountable (Matthew 25:14-30). We will one
day be held accountable for the use of the gifts God has given each one of us.
God expects a return on his investment. So how are you doing as God’s steward?
Are you aware of what you have been given? Are you keeping your gifts stuck away
in a safe place or are you investing them for the kingdom? Lets
begin with a definition. What is a spiritual gift? 1 Cor
12:7 describes a spiritual gift as a manifestation of the Spirit. “Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit
is given for the common good.” (1 Cor. 12:7)
That simply means - a God-given ability,
a supernatural ability or grace, - a God-given gift that enables us to serve meaningfully
and fulfillingly.
A
few verses later we learn something more about their source. “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).
Spiritual Gifts are therefore given to
every believer according to God’s Sovereign design and purposes. So we don’t get
to choose which ones we want. God knows best. Nor do we get the chance to opt
out from service. We have all been called and all been gifted.
So
we are given a definition and told of their source.
We are also reminded of their purpose in Peter’s first letter. “Each one should use what ever gift he has received
to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.”
(1 Peter 4:10)
So, Spiritual Gifts are for the common good, to glorify God and edify others,
not ourselves. Lets take a closer look at 1 Corinthians 12 to
discover what it means to use spiritual gifts for the common good of the Body
of Christ. Lets read together verses 20-25. “As it
is, there are many parts, but one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, "I
don't need you!“ And the
We
each have a unique contribution to make – there is great diversity in the body
because our differences are God’s design but his purpose is growth in unity. How is this achieved? When we were young we
were dependent on our parents. They provided nurture, care and protection. We
did not know what we would grow up to be – we were just dependent. As we got older,
we began to understand that we were not like everyone else, that in some way we
were unique. With that awareness, we began moving toward independence and started
to assert ourselves.
To
be independent seemed to be the goal. Culturally we have equated maturity with
independence. But achieving uniqueness and diversity is not necessarily the same
thing as maturity. How does a body function? What is the relationship of all its
parts?
I
have had a week long biology lesson – some of the theoretical drawings, and technical
terms I remember from my boring biology class, all those years ago, suddenly took
on graphic and painful significance and I became an avid learner. I had a vested
self interest in asking, how does each one do its part and remain healthy? By interdependent relationships.
Just as pain at one end was felt at the other, so drugs administered
at one end brought relief to the other.
We
shall pick up on this unity in diversity next week when we explore in more detail
the various kinds of spiritual gifts. For now lets simply
reflect on the wonder of God’s design. “There are different kinds of gifts, but the
same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are
different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all.” (1
Cor. 12:4-6). We were put on this earth to make a contribution
of eternal significance.
At
the end of your life on earth you will stand before God, and he is going to evaluate
how well you served others with your life. As we saw from the
parable of the stewards, “each one of us will have to give a personal account
to God” (Romans
Let
me close with a challenge from Rick Warren’s brilliant new book, The Purpose Driven
Life. (read pages 232-233).
This morning we have discovered
that every Christian has
Next
week we will examine in more detail the different kinds of gifts God has given
us and how we can indeed be faithful stewards of his grace.
Lets pray.
Lord, Thank you for so generously giving
spiritual gifts to everyone who belongs to you through Christ Jesus. Help me to
better understand what those gifts mean to me and how I can use my gifts the way
you want me to. Help me please you by being a good steward. Help me be an active
participant in your church. Enlighten me, Lord, and reveal the gifts you have
given me so that I can use them to bless others and glorify you. In
Jesus’ name, Amen.
This
sermon draws heavily on Bruce Bugbee’s “What you do
best in the Body of Christ” published by Zondervan, and the NETWORK Leaders Guide
by Bugbee, Cousins and Hybels also published by Zondervan.