Weekly Article

Now What?

Weekly Article 10/28/05

by the Rev. Matt Kennedy

Church of the Good Shepherd

So, you've invited Jesus Christ into your life, joined a faithful church, joined a weekly bible study, and you spend time in prayer and the Word of God every day; now what?

Jesus in John chapter 3 likens new believers to babies. In a very real sense you have been reborn, or to use the words Jesus used, “born again”. You are a new person. God's Holy Spirit is living in your heart transforming you daily and helping you grow more and more mature in the faith.

Just like a baby, you need to be fed and nourished. That's why it's so important to do all of the things I listed in the first paragraph above; worship in church every Sunday, attend Christian education, participate in a group bible study, pray and read the bible every day. These things are like mothers milk to newborn Christians. They feed and nourish you. Without them you begin to atrophy and you stop maturing. You can even begin to shrink a little.

But as you feed on the nourishment God provides through his Word, his Church, and his Holy Spirit in your heart, you will soon come to the point where you'll no longer be content simply to receive God's love and nourishment. You will want to give.

This is a sign that God's work in you is beginning to bear fruit. You are becoming a mature Christian.

In his first letter to the Corinthian church the apostle Paul says that all believers are part of the Body of Christ (1 st Corinthians 12:12 -27). As a member of the Body, God has equipped you with very special gifts to be used to help the whole body grow.

Your new desire to give and serve is very likely linked to the special Spiritual gifts God has given you.

The gifts are named in 1 st Corinthians chapter 12. In verses 27-31 Paul provides the primary list, "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.”

Preceeding these , in verses 8-10, Paul that lists some additional gifts not mentioned in the primary list. This list includes the gift of "wisdom" (12:8), the gift of "knowledge" (12:8), the gift of "faith"(12:9), the gift of "distinguishing between the spirits"(12:10), and the gift of the "interpretation of tongues" (12:10).

The gift of apostleship, being a representative and messenger of the gospel, was given in the first century church to those who had seen the risen Christ and whose ministry was directly approved by the original twelve disciples. Today, the gift of “apostleship” or “leadership” is given to those God appoints as shepherds or pastors of his people and it is retained and cultivated by those who faithfully hold to the teachings of the original apostles.

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“Prophets” are people gifted in proclaiming the Word of God. Believers given a gift for preaching are “prophets” in that sense. They do not foretell the future, but they proclaim what God has already revealed in his Word. They should have the ability not only to communicate Christian truth, but also to exhort and encourage people to live accordingly.

“Teachers” are believers who have been given the capacity for a deep understanding of God and his Word and the corresponding ability to communicate what they learn to others. They must be clear thinker articulate communicators. They differ from preachers in that they are concerned primarily with communication and only secondarily with exhortation.

The gift of miraculous power was given to believers primarily in the first century church in order to provide proof of God's approval of the gospel before the New Testament was completed.

Some believers are given the gift of healing. God works through these people to heal mental, physical, and spiritual suffering.

The gift of “helping others” is a special insight into the needs and sufferings of the church and fellow believers. People who have the gift of “helping others” always seem to know what to say, what to do, when to call and how to approach when help is needed.

God gives some believers the gift of “administration”; the ability to direct and administer the day to day business and make the day to day decisions that enable a church to function.

Some are given the gift of "tongues"; a personal prayer language that facilitates their communication with God.

Paul teaches in 1st Corinthians 14, that the gift of tongues should only be used privately unless there is someone present with  the gift of the "interpretation of tongues" (12:10). The interpreter who has the ability to understand the special prayer language of tongues will be able to make sure that the message is consistent with the scriptures and then communicate what is being said to the congregation.

The gift of "wisdom" mentioned in 1st Corinthians 12:8 is usually associated with (but not limited to) the gift of "leadership." God gives some believers special insight into the circumstances and situations of the church and fellow believers and the corresponding ability to guide and/or advise them with wise counsel. The gift of wisdom is essential to local congregations and it is a necessity for Christian leaders either to possess this gift themselves or to be in close counsel with a fellow believer who does.

The gift of "knowledge", also mentioned in 1st Corinthians 12:8, may be associated with the gift of miraculous power. People with the gift of knowledge are given special and very specific knowledge by God about the future, present, or past. God often reveals to them the thoughts and intentions of enemies, his own plans for a person's or a church's future, and his decisions with regard to the specific requests and prayers of the faithful. As with all "prophetic" gifts, any knowledge revealed in this way must be tested to make sure it is consistent with God's revelation in the bible before being accepted as true.

The gift of "faith" in 12:9 does not refer to the normal sort of faith posessed by all believers, but to a very special ability to trust God and not worry. People with this gift are great assets to any church. They provide hope and encouragement for the leaders and people through times of disaster and despair.

The gift of "distinguishing between the spirits" (12:10) refers to the ability to recognize and identify the influence or presence of demonic powers in a place or person. It is a very rare gift, but an essential one for exorcists and believers who engage in spiritual warfare.

Notice that all of the gifts listed with the exception of the gift of tongues are intended to be used in the church. This is one reason why it is impossible for believers who don't go to church to reach spiritual maturity. Mature believers use their gifts to help bring growth and life to the body of Christ. If you don't belong to a church, you have no opportunity to use the gifts God has given you. If you don't use your gifts, you don't grow.

If you have surrendered your life to Christ, you have one or more of the gifts listed in 1st Corinthians 12.

If God were to give you two handfuls of gold, what would you do with it? If you just hang on to it all of your life, then that's all he can give you. Your hands are full. But if you give it where it is needed, then your hands will be open for God to give more. That is what happens when you use your spiritual gifts. You allow God to continue to equip you and build you up.

My primary spiritual gift is teaching. If I never use that gift, if I never teach, then God will never be able to use me to build up his people and I'll never grow into a good experienced teacher. The more I use that gift, the more God equips me to use it well and the more capable I am of being used by God to build up his Body.

Four important notes:

First: These gifts are not like the natural gifts you were given by virtue of birth. Some people are natural leaders, or natural speakers, or natural builders. God uses these natural gifts in his church, but they should never be confused with spiritual gifts. Spiritual gifts are not given at your natural birth. They are given at your new birth when you become a believer in Jesus Christ and filled with the Holy Spirit.

Second: Nobody has been given all the gifts. God generally gives each believer one or two primary gifts and several lesser ones.

Third: Each gift listed in 1 st Corinthians is important to the health and growth of the body as a whole. No church can survive long without them. In even the smallest churches people with the most vital gifts are an absolute necessity.

Fourth: At the same time, nobody is indispensable. We can get into a lot of trouble by assuming that God needs us to build his church. He can equip anybody with the gifts any given church needs. When someone with a vital spiritual gift leaves the church, God either brings in a new believer or equips a believer already there to fill that role. Thus, if you're a preacher, you shouldn't assume that God needs you. He can turn anybody into a preacher. The gift of preaching is necessary, the individual preacher is not. God gave you your gifts because he wants you to use them. But he does not need you to use them.

How do you know what gift you have?

There are at least three indications to look for: desire, ability, and a strange strength.

Desire: You will feel a deep desire to do what God has equipped you to do. Before I gave my life to Christ, I was deathly afraid of speaking in public. After two years of being nourished in my church, I started to feel a very strange longing to preach. It became so strong that I finally approached one of the pastors who agreed to give me a chance. It was amazing. Not the sermon, which was probably pretty bad, but the experience. The more I did it the more I longed to do it. God had given me a desire to use my primary gift. You will have a deep desire to do whatever it is that God has equipped you to do.

Ability: Not only will you have the desire, you'll have the ability. This does not mean that you will be perfect at using your gift. It does mean that you and others in your church will recognize your potential. Like your natural abilities, your spiritual abilities need to be trained and honed before they reach a level of excellence. My first sermon was not very good, but people saw that God had given me the gift to preach. It took me the next five years to develop the gift God gave me and, as you certainly know, it is still being developed. With every spiritual gift comes the potential to be excellent if you work at it.

Strange Strength: What a strange title? But I could think of no other way to describe it. When you use your gift God is actually working through you. That means that you will experience a strength and a power and an endurance that goes beyond your own. I may be exhausted and collapse later, but when I teach I hardly notice that I'm tired. Someone with the gift of helping others might be full of energy while serving food at the Shepherd's Bowl, or giving someone a ride to church, or staying up late to talk to a fellow believer in trouble. God will give you his strength when you are using his gifts in his way.

There may be more ways to tell, but these three are a good start. At Good Shepherd there are opportunities for you to use whatever gift God has given you. If you feel God has equipped you with a certain gift and that he's calling you to use it, approach Anne or me and we'll do our best to help you discern your gifts and find ways for you to use it and continue to grow and mature in your walk with Jesus Christ.

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