In his book, Maximizing Your Effectiveness, Aubrey Malphurs says, ‘most people have a profound inner desire to accomplish something of importance with their lives during their brief stay on planet earth. They want more than anything to lead fulfilling, productive lives that leave them with a deep sense of significance.’ (Notice he says, ‘significance’ and not ‘fame’ or ‘success?’) How many here this morning, have this desire? How many of us here this morning want to live a fulfilling and productive life and find a deep sense of significance at the end of our days?
(Slide 1) How is this done? What does it take to make happen? What are the challenges to achieving this? How can we find deep and God-honoring fulfillment not just in our work but in our lives as believers and members of the church?
Consider the following story, entitled, ‘A Rabbit on the Swim Team,’ as you ponder these questions.
‘Once upon a time, the animals decided they would do something meaningful to meet the problems of the new world. So they organized a school.
They adopted an activity curriculum of running, climbing, swimming, and flying. To make it easier to administer the curriculum, all the animals took all the subjects.
The duck was excellent in swimming; in fact, he was better than his instructor. But he made only passing grades in flying and was very poor in running. Since he was slow in running, he had to drop swimming and stay after school to practice running. This caused his webbed feet to be so badly worn he became only average in swimming. But average was quite acceptable, so nobody worried about that-except the duck.
The rabbit started at the top of his class in running but developed a nervous twitch in his leg muscles because of so much makeup work in swimming.
The squirrel was excellent in climbing, but he encountered constant frustration in flying class because his teacher made him start from the ground up instead of from the treetop down. He developed a ‘charlie horse’ from overexertion, and so only got a C in climbing and a D in running.
The eagle was a problem child and was severely disciplined for being a nonconformist. In climbing classes he beat all others to the top of the tree but insisted on using his own way to get there.’
This is the final sermon of our series ‘Four Resolutions for 2008.’ The past three weeks we have studied these themes and examined a New Testament chapter that relates to each theme as indicated on the slide.
(Slide 2)
Live Free In Christ
Galatians 5
Aim High
Colossians 3
(Slide 3)
Live Well With Others
Ephesians 4
Find Your Place and Serve
I Corinthians 12
Which of these has become a part of your life for this coming year? I hope and pray that all of them will!
(Slide 4) Today we focus on the final topic of finding our place and serve and our New Testament chapter for this morning is I Corinthians 12. Here is what it says, ‘And now, dear brothers and sisters, I will write about the special abilities the Holy Spirit gives to each of us, for I must correct your misunderstandings about them. You know that when you were still pagans you were led astray and swept along in worshiping speechless idols. So I want you to know how to discern what is truly from God: No one speaking by the Spirit of God can curse Jesus, and no one is able to say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
Now there are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but it is the same Holy Spirit who is the source of them all. There are different kinds of service in the church, but it is the same Lord we are serving. There are different ways God works in our lives, but it is the same God who does the work through all of us. A spiritual gift is given to each of us as a means of helping the entire church.
To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice; to another he gives the gift of special knowledge. The Spirit gives special faith to another, and to someone else he gives the power to heal the sick. He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and to another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to know whether it is really the Spirit of God or another spirit that is speaking. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages and another is given the ability to interpret what is being said. It is the one and only Holy Spirit who distributes these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.
The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up only one body. So it is with the body of Christ. Some of us are Jews, some are Gentiles, some are slaves, and some are free. But we have all been baptized into Christ’s body by one Spirit, and we have all received the same Spirit.
Yes, the body has many different parts, not just one part. If the foot says, “I am not a part of the body because I am not a hand,” that does not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear says, “I am not part of the body because I am only an ear and not an eye,” would that make it any less a part of the body? Suppose the whole body were an eye—then how would you hear? Or if your whole body were just one big ear, how could you smell anything?
But God made our bodies with many parts, and he has put each part just where he wants it. What a strange thing a body would be if it had only one part! Yes, there are many parts, but only one body. The eye can never say to the hand, “I don’t need you.” The head can’t say to the feet, “I don’t need you.”
In fact, some of the parts that seem weakest and least important are really the most necessary. And the parts we regard as less honorable are those we clothe with the greatest care. So we carefully protect from the eyes of others those parts that should not be seen, while other parts do not require this special care. So God has put the body together in such a way that extra honor and care are given to those parts that have less dignity. This makes for harmony among the members, so that all the members care for each other equally. If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad.
Now all of you together are Christ’s body, and each one of you is a separate and necessary part of it. Here is a list of some of the members that God has placed in the body of Christ:
first are apostles,
second are prophets,
third are teachers,
then those who do miracles,
those who have the gift of healing,
those who can help others,
those who can get others to work together,
those who speak in unknown languages.
Is everyone an apostle? Of course not. Is everyone a prophet? No. Are all teachers? Does everyone have the power to do miracles? Does everyone have the gift of healing? Of course not. Does God give all of us the ability to speak in unknown languages? Can everyone interpret unknown languages? No! And in any event, you should desire the most helpful gifts. First, however, let me tell you about something else that is better than any of them!
This chapter is a widely quoted, preached, studied, and discussed chapter. It contains some very important beliefs and practices that are critical to our faith, individually and corporately.
As with our other chapters, we need to bring our study of this chapter into context so that we have a better and more correct understanding of what it says and means to and for us today.
Again, as with our other chapters, certain words are used by Paul, to prepare his audience for a new point to be made or clarified. In this case, it is the phrase, ’And now.’
In chapter 11 Paul dealt with the issue of public worship and more precisely, how the Corinthian believers should conduct themselves during worship, especially the Lord’s Supper or communion. It was another of the many problems that Paul had to address in this book which I call, ‘The Church’s Troubleshooting Manual’ because it deals with issues regarding personal relationships (including lawsuits), leadership expectations, personal morality, conflict, spiritual growth, worship issues, and motivational issues.
We also need to understand the cultural context that the Corinthian church existed in. (Slide 5) The town of Corinth was, among other things, a strategic seaport the Romans developed over the years. It was also a city in which temple prostitution, a common practice in pagan temples and shrines, was very common. It was a city filled with all sorts of things that are, unfortunately, common in our society today.
So the believers in Corinth came out of a challenging and sensual background that made it hard to become pure and holy. As a result, there was a great deal of spiritual maturity that had to take place and certain issues and standards had to be made clear.
Competitive is a very good description of this faith community. From the very beginning of this book in chapter one, there is constant comparison and competition about which spiritual leader is the better leader as we read in chapter 1 and verses 10 through 17. Was Paul, Peter, or Apollos the better leader? Or was Jesus?
Now while this book contains numerous and serious problems that Paul has to address, he also points out that this church was gifted, as we read in verses 4 through 6 of chapter 1:
‘I can never stop thanking God for all the generous gifts he has given you, now that you belong to Christ Jesus. He has enriched your church with the gifts of eloquence and every kind of knowledge. This shows that what I told you about Christ is true.’
‘Gifted’ then is another description of this church that we often overlook. But its competitive nature caused many problems, including who was the most spiritual and which gifts were the most spiritual as well.
So, after addressing issues related to personal standards, moral values, especially relating to sexuality, and proper conduct of and in worship, Paul turns to an issue that is about power, how you use it, who has it (and doesn’t have it). But I think that we could see this chapter as a resolution to ‘live free in Christ,’ ‘aim high,’ and ‘live well together’ by ‘finding your place and serve.’ (Slide 6)
(Slide 7) Let’s look at verses 3 through 7 and then verses 12 and 13 more closely as we first examine how we find our place and serve by living free in Christ.
So I want you to know how to discern what is truly from God: No one speaking by the Spirit of God can curse Jesus, and no one is able to say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
Now there are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but it is the same Holy Spirit who is the source of them all. There are different kinds of service in the church, but it is the same Lord we are serving. There are different ways God works in our lives, but it is the same God who does the work through all of us. A spiritual gift is given to each of us as a means of helping the entire church…The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up only one body. So it is with the body of Christ. Some of us are Jews, some are Gentiles, some are slaves, and some are free. But we have all been baptized into Christ’s body by one Spirit, and we have all received the same Spirit.’
The Corinthian believers, as were many other first century believers, were surrounded by pagan faiths that created openings for Satanic activity and oppression in the lives of people. They also, as verses 12 and 13 note, came from a variety of backgrounds. As such, Corinthian believers needed to be very aware of the roots of the conflict within them and between them. Such correction, and such understanding and discernment came from the work of the Holy Spirit.
Therefore Paul begins his thoughts about spiritual giftedness with a very strategic and spiritually empowering reminder that the Holy Spirit, as allowed by our will and faith, is one who liberates us from sin and the oppression that sins causes in our spirit as well as alienation from God. This is why he says to them, I want you to know how to discern what is truly from God: No one speaking by the Spirit of God can curse Jesus, and no one is able to say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
As we seek to resolve to find our place and serve, we must do so for the right reasons and right motives because as we become free and life free in Christ, we are able to serve with greater joy and authenticity. (And in unity as well.)
Another reason that we need to understand and experience living free in Christ so that we can find our place and serve is the nature of spiritual gifts. Spiritual gifts are not talents or abilities that we have, although they are from God as well.
Spiritual gifts, as Paul makes clear, are ‘special abilities the Holy Spirit gives to each of us … as a means of helping the entire church.’ Spiritual health and freedom, which comes through a saving relationship with Jesus, creates the conditions for spiritual gifts to become operative in our lives. They are given as part of God’s tool box to be used by God as God leads and directs for God’s purposes and not our own.
So, to resolve to live free in Christ is one way that we find our place and serve as God has created and intended us to do.
Now, keeping in mind the fact that competition and comparison was a problem for the Corinthian believers, we turn to verses 8 through 11, verse 14, and then verses 18 – 21:
To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice; to another he gives the gift of special knowledge. The Spirit gives special faith to another, and to someone else he gives the power to heal the sick. He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and to another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to know whether it is really the Spirit of God or another spirit that is speaking. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages and another is given the ability to interpret what is being said. It is the one and only Holy Spirit who distributes these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have…
Yes, the body has many different parts, not just one part…
But God made our bodies with many parts, and he has put each part just where he wants it. What a strange thing a body would be if it had only one part! Yes, there are many parts, but only one body. The eye can never say to the hand, “I don’t need you.” The head can’t say to the feet, “I don’t need you.”
By using the analogy of the human body, Paul is saying, ‘God has gifted each of us in a certain way for His purpose. All of us, then, are important and all of us have a part, and a part to play in His body, the church, by aiming high at honoring and supporting one another.’
(Slide 8) We find our place and serve (and serve well) when we ‘aim high’ to honor one another in a couple of ways according to these two passages:
First, as we understand and accept that God runs the show.
Paul spends several verses explaining and re-explaining that just as our human body is put together in the right way so is the church. We read in verses 18 and 19, ‘But God made our bodies with many parts, and he has put each part just where he wants it. What a strange thing a body would be if it had only one part!’ But that is sometimes what we want!
We want the church to be and act like us! If we think that evangelism should be the main purpose of the church (and it is a very important purpose) then we are going expect that evangelism and outreach are going to be front and center. If we think that caring for one another is important (and it is very important) then we are going to expect that caring is going to be front and center.
But the church, as God has planned it, does not look like us! It is His church and all the parts and all the functions and all the purposes that are important to Him are built into the plan. Our role, is to discern, accept, and start using the gifts and place of service He already has for us.
(Slide 9) Second, we find our place and serve as we ‘aim high’ in honoring and supporting one another as equals and un-equals. Huh?
Let’s look at verses 22 through 27: ‘some of the parts that seem weakest and least important are really the most necessary. And the parts we regard as less honorable are those we clothe with the greatest care. So we carefully protect from the eyes of others those parts that should not be seen, while other parts do not require this special care. So God has put the body together in such a way that extra honor and care are given to those parts that have less dignity. This makes for harmony among the members, so that all the members care for each other equally. If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad.’
Notice here, please that Paul says two things: The human body has some very important parts that seem insignificant but are very necessary for our existence. The same holds true for the church. But He also says that as we give care to the seemingly less significant parts, it demonstrates dignity which creates harmony.
I must confess that I need help here from time to time. In fact, the church needs help here. In our impatience and desire for comfort, power, prestige, you name it, we run over people and that is not right. (God help us here!)
But in drawing the picture, Paul also says that we are not all the same and what he means by this is that some of us have quiet and behind the scene responsibilities and some of us ‘up-front’ and visible responsibilities. But they are responsibilities and places of service that God has deemed necessary for us to fulfill. (But, I just wonder sometimes that spiritual growth comes when we switch places.)
And in the final verse of this chapter, Paul notes ‘first, however, let me tell you about something else that is better than any of them!’ He is referring to love, which, as we heard a few weeks ago, is a very central characteristic of our life and witness as followers of Jesus and a necessary power to live together in God’s plans and purposes.
(Slide 10) Finally, in this whole process of finding our place and serve, we learn to live well with one another as we learn to really love and respect one another. This is something that is very much implied in this chapter.
For while Paul makes clear that the structure and ministry of the church is done at God’s discretion, it requires of us a willingness to live well with one another. Paul makes a wonderful suggestion at this point when he asks (verse 29), ‘Is everyone an apostle? Of course not. Is everyone a prophet? No. Are all teachers? Does everyone have the power to do miracles? Does everyone have the gift of healing? Of course not. Does God give all of us the ability to speak in unknown languages? Can everyone interpret unknown languages? No! And in any event, you should desire the most helpful gifts.’
I recently received an e-mail in which you were ask to name the five wealthiest people in America, the last five Miss Americas, the last five Heisman Trophy Winners, etc. Then you were asked to name some teachers who helped ‘aided your journey through school;’ ‘three friends who helped you through a difficult time;’ and five people who have made you feel worthwhile.’
The point of the e-mail was ‘The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with the most credentials, the most money, or the most awards. They are the ones that care.’
We are diverse church. We have varying educational levels. We are young and older. We have kids at home and we have grandkids living with us. We live in town and we live in the country.
We work in Ft. Wayne, Indianapolis, Kendallville, and around the Midwest. We work in offices, hospitals, factories, and classrooms.
We are Republican and Democrat. We are liberal and we are conservative. (Some of us are somewhere in the middle.)
Some of us feel like the ducks who can’t swim well at times. Others of us feel like the squirrel who can’t climb like we would like. A few of us feel like an eagle who cannot stretch its wings and soar!
But, we love the Lord and that is common thread that ties this whole chapter and this whole series together. It is neither our abilities nor our spiritual gifts, important and God given as they are, that matter. It is the love of God operating in our lives and through our acts of service that matters.
As we conclude this sermon and this series, I challenge us to let the Holy Spirit move in us to love more and love better. Do you resolve to love God and one another? Do you resolve to live well with others? Do you resolve to live free in Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit?
Do you resolve to aim high, in love, for God’s best for you and for others? Do you seek to find your place and serve with love, care, and respect in your heart?
Then I invite you to respond to the Lord as you need to this morning and let Him do a great work today. Amen.
Power Points for this sermon are available by e-mailing me at pastorjim46755@yahoo.com and asking for ‘012708slides’ Please note that all slides for a particular presentation may not be available.
