Who? Me? A Disciple? Spiritual Gifts Series

TITLE: Who? Me? A Disciple? Spiritual Gifts 051903a

TEXT: 1 Corinthians 12:7-11 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 8) To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9) to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10) to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another the ability to speak in different kinds of tongues, an to still another the interpretation of tongues. 11) All these are the work of the one and the same Spirit, and He gives them to each one, just as he determines

I. IT?S IMPOSSIBLE!

A. If you?re going to be a real disciple of Jesus?a learner and a doer?

you?re going to have to get outside yourself. You will not be successful with all your striving in natural strength.

ILL. Has your boss, parent, teacher ever given you a task to do that was completely beyond you?even impossible? How did that make you feel? You probably became so exasperated that you did even start to try.

1. John 14:12 12I tell you for certain that if you have faith in me,

you will do the same things that I am doing. You will do even greater things, now that I am going back to the Father.

--How frustrating is this to any one who knows just a little bit of

what Jesus accomplished?

2. A disciple is really one who has accepted the task of continuing the

earthly ministry of Jesus. Since Jesus ministry was a miracle ministry, you will get real frustrated if you are counting on some natural ability you were born with to compete a supernatural task.

3. What are we missing? What?s the missing ingredient? It is

impossible to be a disciple of Jesus in this literal sense with out the Holy Spirit and the special abilities that He gives. These abilities are called gifts.

4. This morning I am going to give you an introduction on the 9 gifts

of the Spirit as listed in 1 Corinthians 12. This is not the only list of gifts in the Bible. There is one in Romans 12 and another in Ephesians 4 I will primarily consider the gifts as listed in 1 Corinthians 12 .

5. I?m even going to give you a little breakdown of each gift and how if

fits into the biblical context of living as a part of the body of Christ.

TS. But before we talk about what spiritual gifts are, to avoid

misunderstanding let consider what...

II. SPIRITUAL GIFTS ARE NOT...

A. Let?s first clear up some misunderstanding about the gifts I have

heard people struggling with through the years. Here?s what spiritual gifts are not:

1. Spiritual gifts are not natural talents. Though you may have the

propensity to receive certain gifts due to faith and experience. The gifts do not become part of your natural ability. You are not the one to decide when the gifts are to be used?that is left to the sovereign will of God of God that you.

a. Talents are usually physical. Annette has been blessed by God

with the physical talent of being able to sing well. I have practiced ten times the amount of time that she has practiced in her lifetime but I will never be able to sing as well as she does.

b. Sometimes people ask Jim-how did you get to play the guitar so

well, it must be a gift, I?ve heard Jim say, ?I?ve been practicing since I was 7 years old?there?s not magic about it.?

c. The Bible teaches that God has given people certain talents?

these they are often able to use or misuse at will.

2. They are NOT ?The Fruit of the Spirit? (Gal 5:22-23). 22God?s

Spirit makes us loving, happy, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, 23gentle, and self-controlled.

a. These things though marking a miraculous change in most of us

when we truly give Jesus the reigns of our lives are not in the same category as gifts. These will naturally mark your days without you even thinking about them

b. They are the expected outcome of God?s work in our lives ?

developed, not discovered.

3. They are not ?Counterfeit? Gifts. Interpretation of Omens,

Extrasensory Perception, Channeling.

ILL. I?ve heard people talk about a friend of a member of their family who could tell you that the phone was going to ring before it rang. We?ve heard of people who can make warts go away, call fire out, divine for water. Incidentally. When I first met my friend Larry, he could divine water. I watched him do it with a peach limb?it was kind of spooky. But after he accepted Jesus?that ability went away.