What We Believe Series -Part 11
How the Holy Spirit Gifts Us
(Acknowledgement: Dr. Heny Schorr, Centre St. Church, Calgary AB)
In his book the Holy Spirit Billy Graham says that man has two huge spiritual needs
o One is for forgiveness; the other is for goodness, to make a positive contribution to this world
o God heard that first cry for forgiveness
o He answered that when Jesus died on the cross for our sins
o This is God’s gift of salvation to us, Jesus Christ God’s Son
o Paul describes it as God’s indescribable gift
o Were going to celebrate that gift as we celebrate communion near the end of the service
o The second need is for a life of goodness, what Rick Warren calls purpose
o The Holy Spirit enters into our lives when we embrace Jesus as savior, giving us at least one spiritual gift
o In God’s kingdom the person with a behind the scenes gift is just as important in God’s sight as the person with an up front gift
o God calls you to serve Him with your gift to the glory of God
o We need to serve the Lord, not our ego
o As you serve God transforms you into the character of Jesus
o It is the Holy Spirit who gives each at least one spiritual gift just as he determines
o But are you aware of what He has given you?
o Are you using that gift?
o Two weeks ago I preached on the Serving and Management Gifts and the Speaking and Motivational Gifts
o As we go through these gifts you may realize that is me – I believe I have that gift Randy is now speaking about (follow along with the sheet)
o The other thing is you may realize when I speak on a particular gift – that is Bill or Jane
o When you do call them up and affirm them in the ministry
o Support Mentoring Gifts
1. Faith – is the divine enablement to act on God’s promises, believing that God is trustworthy and He will fulfill His promises
o The Christian with a faith gift trusts God through difficult circumstances, believing God for the seemingly impossible
o The person with the gift of faith is not deterred
o For example, someone may say I am in financial trouble; the person of faith will say when you take care of the things of God, He will take care of you; then they will pray that God will meet your needs
o People say I don’t feel God’s presence but the person of faith gracefully shares that God’s says ‘don’t fear. I am with you. I have called you by name.’
o Your goal oriented and you thank God for what He is going to do in advance
o You love verses like “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father (John 14:12 NIV).”
o I know some of you have this gift of faith
o The question I have for you this morning is ‘are you using it?’
2. Gift of Giving
Definition: is the divine enablement to give in faith trusting that God will use and multiply the gift to his glory
o If I could summarize in one word the person with this gift it would be generous
o The Bible says we are all required to give and support the ministry
o Everywhere in the Bible covetousness and greed are condemned, and generosity and charity are encouraged
o I can tell you the truth about something – many people try to cheat the government out of taxes
o We owned a business called ‘Hamel’s Tax Service’
o One of the most important words accounting words you have to learn if you have a tax business is no (help me out now)
o Can I deduct my dog care expenses from the doggie day care
o Answer: no
o Can I deduct my running shoes because I use them daily for work
o Answer: no
o Can I deduct my lures that I use for recreational fishing
o Answer: no
o You guys are really good
o Your almost ready to start a tax business
o Well some may get away with cheating the government but you will never get away with cheating God (Mal. 3:8)
o The Bible says don’t be deceived ‘you will reap what you sow’
o Paul says we must be cheerful as a giver and not give grudgingly
o You don’t give to the church; you give to God for His work
o My story (tires)
o Those without the gift of giving look at their budget and say ‘how much can I afford to give to God this week’
o Those with the gift of giving look at the budget and give every available dime to God’s work; they are generally unconcerned with percentages
o They readily see the needs of the church and others and are moved to give
o They see giving as worship
o Even though the church is not perfect, they believe in the church and give joyfully,
o They have the God given ability to make money; usually their ideas bring them extra cash
o You are careful with resources and only buy things you really need
o You have a deep conviction that all you have belongs to God
o Person with the gift of giving understands that you cannot out give God
o They give to the Lord with no strings attached
o Reminds me of the story of the woman at the local church
o The giving was away off so the speaker said whoever gives the most can pick out three hymns
o After the collection he noticed a rather large bill
o Then he said whoever gave that large amount come here and pick out your three hymns
o At which time the little old lady sheepishly came to the front
o She looked over the congregation and said ‘I pick him, and him and him.’
o Well she did not give with right motives
o The Bible from beginning to end speaks of joyful giving with the right motives
o A multi-millionaire, R.G. Letourneau gave away 90% of his income to support numerous churches and ministries. He established a Christian technical school in Longview, Texas known today as LeTourneau University. He was one of the original founders of the Christian Business Men’s Committee and supported missionary efforts worldwide.
o A New York Times tribute written upon his death said, “Robert Gilmour Letourneau liked to do two things: One was to design machines, turn on the power and see them work; the other was to help turn on the power of the Gospel and see it work in people’s lives. He did both in a big way.”
o Now I know many of you have the spiritual gift of giving?
o The question I have for you this morning is ‘Are you using it?”
Intercession
Definition: the divine enablement to lead the church in prayer, praying fervently on behalf of others, praying for revival, and seeing frequent answers to their prayers
o I believe this gift exists because it’s evident in many people in the Bible and the church today
o If I could use one word to describe the person with the gift of prayer it would be perseverance
o The Apostle Paul had a prayer partner, Epaphras (Col. 4:12)
o A model for prayer is Daniel – Daniel 6:10 (NIV) Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before. This was during a time when his life was at stake for praying
o John Wesley, an Anglican 17th century minister and founder of the Methodist movement recognized the power in prayer when he wrote “Give me 100 preachers who fear nothing but sin and desire nothing but God, and I care not a straw whether they be clergy or laymen, such alone will shake the gates of hell and set up the kingdom of heaven on earth. God does nothing but in answer to prayer.”
o Charles Spurgeon, an 18th century brilliant man and preacher wrote ‘Whenever God determines to do a great work; He first sets his people to pray.’
o The person with the gift of prayer understands that ‘God’s hands move when pastors and people pray together
o Through prayer God makes the impossible, possible
o What is it in your life that seems impossible right now?
o I invite you to come and pray with us here at 9:00 AM here for the ministry – we believe the Holy Spirit is going to do a revival in this area
o I can tell you that the pastors in this community are united to pray for revival
o That is why were having inter-church prayer summits
o The thing Satan hates the most is when pastors and people come together for prayer
o The person with the gift of intercession is called and gifted to pray for the church, leading the charge in that area
o You know you have that gift when you say I will pray about that and you follow through
o You easily devote large blocks of time to prayer
o Your always encouraging others to pray
o Your first response to anything someone brings up is ‘we need to pray about that’
o You believe that God is a hearer of prayers and that God delights to answer prayers
o You do not look down on others who do not pray as fervently as you
o Any effectiveness that I experience in preaching and a leader has nothing to do with the training I have had, although it is helpful, it is solely due to the praying of the people of the church and elsewhere
o We will only achieve the vision of our church if it is based and bathed in prayer
o Prayer unlocks all the storehouses of God’s grace and power
o I know that that greatest thing we need in this church is prayer
o It is obvious that many of you have the spiritual gift of prayer
o The question I have for you today is are you using it to the glory of God?
o The eternal destiny of men’s lives depends on it
Knowledge
Definition: the divine enablement to bring truth to the body through revelation or biblical insight of God’s word
o If there is one word that I could summarize someone with this gift it is studious
o You have a desire to research and study various scholarly works
o You have an insatiable desire to study God’s word and other Christian writings
o You have unusual insight that you use in a HOME group or with other Christians
o You have a long attention span –which means you tend to enjoy my sermons
o Your reflective and analytical - you like to analyze everything to death
o You love to analyze topics like world religions, are sign gifts for today, was the world literally created in six days, do dogs go to heaven, or other topics
o You can write a 20 page paper on some obscure topic like the number 666 in Revelation, and even if nobody else is interested, your not deterred
o You are more comfortable with ideas than with people
o You could sit for days in a library all by yourself
o Idle chit chat bores you terribly
o Many people with the gift of knowledge are authors
o I have been blessed by the likes of Dutch Sheets (Authority in Prayer), Peter Wagner (Churches That Pray), John Maxwell (Partners in Prayer) to name a few
o A premier author and speaker with the gift of knowledge, who I believe is one of God’s gifts to the church today is Beth Moore (Get Out of the Pit, Praying God’s Word, Breaking Free, To Live is Christ)
o Some of you have this gift of knowledge
o The question I have for you this morning is ‘are you using it?’
Wisdom
Definition: the divine enablement to apply truth and knowledge effectively to meet a specific need in a given situation (1 Co. 2:6)
o As you know knowledge without wisdom can destroy the world
o I may have the knowledge to destroy a lot of the world
o The problem is I may use the gift in an unwise way
o A person with the wisdom gift tends to get to the heart of the problem quickly
o You are not a procrastinator; you have a desire to see godly outcomes
o You have little difficulty in making decisions
o When you speak other members realize this is the right thing to do
o When you speak it makes sense to others
o You have a good overall understanding from the scriptures
o We have all been in situations where we did not know what to do, or which way to go
o I personally have a conference call once a month with our bishop Lorne Meisner
o Lorne has the uncanny ability to pull loose strings together and give godly advice and wisdom that I have a peace about
o My prayer supporter Laurie McAllister also has this gift
o There is another person in our church who also has this gift
o When I pray, listen to these men, our thoughts often line up
o I thank God for the collective wisdom of those with this gift
o This person is not proud but humble
o They do not come across as a know it all
o They listen carefully to others
o Advice: In the middle of a marital argument and your not getting your way do not remind your wife that they have ‘the collective gift of wisdom.’ That is just not a good move!
o I know some in this church have this gift of wisdom
o The question I have for you is ‘are you using it?’
Discernment
Definition: In the early church this was the divine enablement to discern between truth and error and discern whether something someone says lines up with the inerrant word of God
o I referred to the early church because they never had Bibles like you
o That does not mean that the gift does not exist today
o But much of the New Testament was not written until 25 years after the resurrection
o Many were illiterate
o Those who could read could not afford the scrolls
o The Apostle Paul commends the Bereans because they studied the Old Testament Canon to see if his preaching about Jesus as Messiah lined up with the prophetic word (Acts 17:11)
o The person with this gift can distinguish truth from error
o You can listen to a conversation and discern whether something is good or evil
o You have a keen sense for recognizing inconsistencies
o You have the ability to categorize and think in logical steps
o If you have the gift of knowledge or discernment you need to go slow
o You should be consulting with someone with the gift of wisdom or your spiritual leader before you begin to exercise discernment
o Over the years I have seen people with this gift who lack a gracious spirit
o That is why the Apostle Paul wrote ‘knowledge puffs up’
o The gift of knowledge or discernment without wisdom, grace, and humility can cause great division, enormous damage in the body of Christ
o In other words you may be right about something but the way you say it divides rather than unites the church
o We all need to be aware of pride, arrogance and pushing our opinions on others
o I know that some of you have the gift of discernment
o The question I have for you is ‘are you using it in a graceful way?’
Special Ministry Gifts
Creative Communications (Psalm 150:3-5)
Creative communications is the divine enablement to communicate God’s truth in drama or other artistic ways
o Although this gift is primarily seen in the Old Testament it is inferred in the New Testament
o You have a strong desire to express Jesus through art, drama, role playing, skits, music, writing songs, using technology to enhance the gospel
o That ability may come without any formal training
o You see these gifts as one component to a healthy church
o You are thrilled when anyone steps up to the plate in that area
o You tend to hang out with people of that persuasion
o You don’t tend to be critical of those with different ideas or styles than you
o You tend to be abstract in your thinking
o Your desire to do something new for the church, and are constantly evaluating how to use those gifts to God’s glory
o Now I know that many of you have this gift
o The question I have for you this morning is ‘are you using it?’
Craftsmanship (Exodus 31: 1-5)
Definition: the divine enablement to work with their minds and hands to construct things to the glory of God
o God gifted people and gave them the desire and passion to rebuild the tabernacle
o They long to make things or fix things with their hands
o They tend to be perfectionists and specialists in making things
o They tend to see the big picture
o No question there are many fine craftsman who are not believers
o But the Christian sees their work in the ministry as empowered by God to further the work of the kingdom
o They do not see it as just bricks and mortar, no they see a new foyer with a library, a place where someone can grab a coffee and feel welcomed, children’s class rooms so that the ministry can expand
o They see a passion for a nursery because they know of the young mother who will not attend the church without one
o They see it as part of the God given vision of the church to bring a person to Christ or a family to Jesus
o Now I know that some of you have the gift of craftsmanship
o The question I have for you this morning is ‘Are you using it?’
Apostleship/Pioneering
Apostleship: is the divine enablement to start new ministries where others may not
o If there is one word or phrase that I could use to describe you it is pioneer or visionary
o In one respect the gift is now complete
o Because the Bible or the canon is now complete that office in that way is now complete
o Paul says the original apostles laid the foundation for the church of Jesus Christ
o They had been with Jesus since the beginning
o They saw his death and resurrection
o The Holy Spirit revealed the risen Christ to them
o They will one day sit on 12 thrones judging the 12 tribes of Israel
o However, we do know that others outside the original 12 were also called Apostles
o The Bible lists Matthias, Paul, Andronicus and Junias (Paul’s relatives), and possibly Barnabus became apostles
o But in another sense the gift carries on today
o The difference is those today have not seen the risen Lord
o But the similarity is they have that desire to spread the word where others have not been or where Christianity is weak
o You know you have this gift if:
o You have strong leadership
o You love to start new things like churches and HOME groups and move on to something else
o You have a strong calling to reach out where many may not dare
o You have a contagious enthusiasm to cross cultural, geographical and economic boundaries for Christ
o Your willing to totally surrender your life, career, and family to this God given calling
o Verses like Romans 15:20 burn in your heart “It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation.”
o Now I know that the Holy Spirit is stirring some of your hearts and nudging you towards this important ministry
o The question I have for you this morning is ‘will you follow?”
Conclusion
