ILL" diversity of cameras (film, digicam, dSLR, phone cameras), all with different purposes but all having one goal - to take pictures.
THERE ARE DIFFERENT KINDS OF GIFTS
Just like there are many different kinds of tools we can use to do many tasks, there are many different kinds of gifts in the church. In fact, there’s such a diversity of gifts that the Bible has to use all kinds of language to describe them. Even in this one passage, Paul’s language constantly changes. One minute he’s talking about gifts, the next minute things of the Spirit, the next minute manifestations of the spirit.
There are four main lists of gifts in the Bible and guess what? They’re all different! Some overlap, some are completely different. They come with different emphases and different types of gifts. There are even gifts that the New Testament doesn’t mention. Did you know that craftsmanship can be a gift? You won’t find it in any list of gifts in the New Testament, but we find this in Exodus 35.30-36.1:
Then Moses said to the Israelites, “See, the LORD has chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and he has filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills - to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, to cut and set stones, to work in wood and to engage in all kinds of artistic crafts. And he has given both him and Oholiab son of Ahisamak, of the tribe of Dan, the ability to teach others. He has filled them with skill to do all kinds of work as engravers, designers, embroiderers in blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen, and weavers—all of them skilled workers and designers. So Bezalel, Oholiab and every skilled person to whom the LORD has given skill and ability to know how to carry out all the work of constructing the sanctuary are to do the work just as the LORD has commanded.”
Doesn’t that sound like people who were spiritually gifted? But it’s not in any list.
So, as we approach the gifts, we need to understand that the Bible is less interested in a neat, systematic way of defining the gifts than it is about us understanding the purposes of the gifts and allowing people freedom to minister in their gifts. Like camera users - you can argue about them, or you can just get on with achieving your purpose. We’ll touch on that purpose in a minute, but first, lets have a look at the different kinds of gifts, and then what that means for how and why we use them.
DIFFERENT KINDS OF GIFTS
First of all, from v.4 we can see there are different gifts, service and workings.
CHARISMATA
’Gifts’, or charisma or charismata in the Greek. These are the abilities we usually think about when we talk about gifts. So someone has a gift of tongues or of leadership or of prophecy or whatever. Paul says, in v.7 that ’to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given,’ which we think means that everyone has at least one gift, and we get a bit worried if we don’t know what that gift is. Actually, Paul’s point isn’t that everyone has a gift, but that there are different kinds of gifts displayed by different people, so we shouldn’t label or categorise people because we don’t think their gift is very worthy, or because we don’t think they have one. These charismatic abilities are only one kind of gift to the church.
MINISTRY
Another kind of gift is acts of service. ’Service’ is the same word in the Greek that we get ministry from. Acts of service aren’t about what we’re good at, they’re about what we do. For example, in v.28 Paul talks about gifts of helping and guidance. He doesn’t necessarily mean that someone has a gift for helping, but that when they help, that act of service is a gift! So even if you don’t feel you have a particular ability, the fact that you are serving the church is a gift. Of course, very often it’s as we start to serve where we can that we discover what our ministry abilities, or charismatic gifts’ are! We discover that we’re good at something or that people are particularly helped by certain ministries we do. But even if we don’t discover that, the very act of serving is a gift.
WORKINGS
And then there are different kinds of working, which may refer to the activity of God among us - the displays of God’s power. Paul says there are gifts (that’s plural) of healing and miraculous powers. Now, these gifts come through a person, but sometimes the gift is the healing itself, not the ability to heal. Does that make sense? So lets say I have a speaking engagement coming up and lose my voice, but someone prays and I’m healed. That person may never have healed before and never do it again. They don’t have the gift of healing, but never-the-less, the gift of God is that I am healed in that instance. It’s God working in my life that is the gift.
PEOPLE
But we find it’s not only gifts, ministry and displays of power that are gifts, it’s people too. In v.28 Paul says God has placed in the church apostles, prophets and teachers. He says a similar thing in Eph 4.11 where we find Christ has appointed apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers as gifts to the church. Nobody has an apostolic gift - the apostle is the gift. There is not a gift of evangelism mentioned in the Bible, the gift is the evangelist. Sometimes the ability and the person go together. So Rom 12 does talk about a teaching gift, but it’s coupled with the person who has the gift - so the teacher has the gift and is a gift to the church!
NATURAL AND SUPERNATURAL
Are we beginning to build a picture of the diversity of gifts, here? When the Bible talks about different kinds of gifts it isn’t just talking about the difference between supernatural abilities, like healing or prophecy, it’s talking about the very nature of those gifts. - that one is a supernatural ability, another is an act of serving, another is the person who serves.
In fact, not every gift is supernatural. One of my favourite gifts is hospitality! We’re all commanded to practice hospitality, but some people just seem to have knack for it more than others, and they’re often people who become legendary for their hospitality. Does that take supernatural ability? No! Does it build up the church? Absolutely! Mercy is another example. It doesn’t take a magician to be caring towards someone in need, it just takes a compassionate heart. We’re all called to be merciful, but it’s also a specific ministry mentioned in Rom 12. So are encouragement, giving and leadership. Supernatural? I don’t think so? Valuable? God honouring? Building the church? Totally!
MANIFESTATIONS OF THE SPIRIT
These gifts may not be supernatural in the sense that they don’t take an act of God to perform. For example, there are plenty of able leaders in the secular world. There are many compassionate people who live sacrificially for the sake of others. But they are supernatural in another sense. They are supernatural when they are expressions of the Holy Spirit living in us and displaying the character of Christ. These abilities become manifestations of the Spirit, sometimes because they are supernatural, but always because Spirit-filled people are doing them for a greater cause - the cause of Christ.
So what does this mean for us in practice? We make a lot about discovering our gift, but not knowing our gift is no excuse for not ministering. So how can I serve Christ and his church effectively?
INTIMACY WITH GOD
For a start, it’s less about what your gift is, and more about how connected you are with the Holy Spirit. Let’s call this intimacy with God. There are many, many highly gifted people who have come unstuck because they didn’t have a depth of relationship with the Lord. Effectiveness in ministry is more dependent on character than on ability.
See, if you’re full of the fruit of the Spirit - love and joy and peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control - you’re going to go a long way. People are going to see those qualities of Christlikeness in you and seek you out for ministry. You’re going to leak Jesus all over the place and be a bigger influence than you realise.
This isn’t to say that the gifts aren’t important, it’s just that we have to make sure we understand what’s more important. No one will ever judge you because you’re not a gifted person, but they will probably judge you because you weren’t a loving person.
OBEDIENCE
This intimacy with God also means that you’ll be listening to his voice. God wants to speak to you and through you. He does it through the Scriptures, and he does it in your spirit. Can you hear him? Sometimes he’ll bring a clear direction. Sometimes the words of Scripture will leap out of the page at us. He’ll call us to do something, not because we’re gifted, but because he wants us to do it. And when he does that he’ll enable - he’ll bring the gift, either in the form of a supernatural ability, or in the form a gifted person who can help you, or in some other way.
See, we want the gift first, but often the gift only comes with the obedience. We have to step out in faith.
USE WHAT YOU’VE GOT
And as we’re walking in the Spirit and obeying him, we shouldn’t get worried because we don’t feel like we’re a gifted person or we don’t know what our gift is. Just use what you’ve got for God. Yes, be open to him doing something more through you, even something supernatural. If you need an endowment of power, God will give you that. Remember, Jesus said in Acts 1.8, "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you." We should certainly seek to discover our gifts, but I’m saying that there’s more to it than that. God may have already given you the resources you need in ways you don’t realise, so don’t wait to discover your gift, get out and do and let your gift discover you!
THE GOAL - BUILD UP THE CHURCH
The main thing to remember in all of this is that it’s not about you. In 1Cor 14.12 Paul says, "Since you are eagre for gifts, try to excel in those that build up the church." You and I have been gifted in whatever way to glorify God and build up his church. I really don’t really care how gifted you are. What counts is, are you using what you have to serve Christ and to strengthen the church?
Now, it may be that what you have you can’t find a fit for. I think we have some holes in our church.
We do well with some things on Sunday for example - we’ve got some great musicians and I thank God for Simon and the team. But I know we have some artists in the church. I wonder if there’s some way you can use you gifts for God’s purposes?
Right now as we’re beginning to explore buildings we could use some people with business skills to help get that up.
And I’m sure there are many others present that I don’t know about. We have certain things we need done and that can sometimes make you feel like you’re squeezed into a box. I want to encourage you to break out of the box a bit. What have you got that you can serve God with? Is the Spirit speaking to you? Is there a need you see that you can fill? We need you!
CONCLUSION
Maybe you feel you don’t fit the mould. Guess what? There is no mould!
Maybe you feel you don’t have any particular gift. Maybe you are the gift! That’s scary!
Giftedness doesn’t start with fitting any mould or having any ability. Giftedness is as varied and infinite as God’s imagination! Giftedness starts with our relationship with God. It works through our obedience to him. And it’s goal is to glorify God and build up his church.
And if you can do that - you’ll be a rich gift to the church indeed!
