Leslie Griffiths, the well known Methodist minister and former President of Conference, tells of the time when he was invited to Easter People where thousands of people of all ages used to gather at a seaside resort for a Christian festival of worship, seminars, fellowship and fun.
He was ushered onto a stage in a theatre holding an audience of around 2,000 people. The leader was busy with the audience as Leslie crept onto the stage and took his seat. Several minutes later the leader noticed that he was there and announced his arrival to a crowd that was far more aware of his presence than the leader was.
Then in a kind of chat show experience the leader had a conversation with Leslie Griffiths. Leslie says that he felt an unwelcome intrusion into the carefully crafted event. But the interview continued.
Then, as if from nowhere came the question ‘Dr Griffiths, do you speak in tongues?’ Everyone there knew that the leader could because he made it quite clear. Dr Griffiths replied ‘Yes, of course I do. I speak French and Haitian Creole fluently. I have a smattering of Welsh, Italian and Spanish and a working knowledge of Greek and Latin. So, yes, I speak in tongues but only, as it happens, useful ones.’
The leader of the meeting wanted the audience to feel the weight of his disapproval. For him speaking in tongues was the hallmark of being a true Christian and a true Christian leader and Leslie Griffiths had admitted that he didn’t.
Spiritual pride. It’ so easy for us to end up with a sense of pride that comes from feeling as though we have been so blessed by God with a particular gift that we are better than others. And it’s not much of a jump then to thinking and even saying ‘my faith is so real, so deep, so fundamental, so all-important, that when I look at others they don’t seem to have had the same kind of experience I’ve had. They fudge on things that I think are central to faith and indispensable. They don’t show the same gifts I’ve been blessed with. Their faith can’t be as genuine as mine. True faith must be like mine.’
And it often goes further because we can begin to question who they should share fellowship with. I couldn’t possibly worship with people not like me, who don’t have the same beliefs and gifts.
And sadly it’s so true. I remember in my previous Circuit in local churches together a youth pastor at an evangelical church refused to acknowledge or have anything to do with the angelical curate because she had the audacity to be female. And that same church refused to worship with local Roman Catholics because they didn’t believe the same. When I first arrived in Chesterfield I met with the pastor of the church to introduce myself only to be part of what was an interview to see if I believed the right things, to see of I was acceptable to that particular church.
And in the past I’ve received a letter from a church member saying that they could no longer attend worship and listen to me preaching because my theology was at odds with theirs. Sad.
And so to the scripture, the epistle set for today. No-one in scripture saw clearer evidence of this kind of thinking than Paul. Right from the start of the early church Christians fell into the trap of taking pride in gifts, or pride in who they followed. Speaking in tongues, having the gift of tongues is one of those things in question. Many Christians will argue, wrongly, that you cannot be a true Christian unless you speak in tongues.
But in that list that Paul gave in the reading from 1 Corinthians there are many other gifts mentioned before the gift of speaking in tongues. Paul talks about wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, prophecy before he mentions tongues and their interpretation.
A whole list of gifts, and many more besides, that we have been given, not for our own benefit, but for the sake of the gospel. The glory of the church is that, in fellowship with each other we find a whole range of gifts. And rather than feeling superior because we have certain gifts, or inferior because we haven’t got particular gifts, feel threatened or uncomfortable, we should enjoy the gifts, learn from each other, feed on each other, seek to orchestrate the diversity into unity.
In that passage from 1 Cor 12, Paul starts by making a very bold and profound statement about who God is and what God is about.
There are different kinds of gifts but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working but the same God.
God is seen in many and varied ways, showing that God is wonderfully diverse yet on. Paul recognised this unity and diversity and is calling the church to think how it can be unified yt diverse.
There are times when we talk about unity in the church and believe that to get that unity we have to have to have uniformity of belief, doctrine, faith, actions, worship. Paul doesn’t say that, Paul says the opposite. To have unity is to have a belief in Jesus and then to share in the message of hope for the world within our uniqueness and diversity, with our gifts and passions. Each of us is gifted by the Spirit to share in the work of being church.
Then Paul gives us a list of gifts. It’s not an exhaustive list but represents the different aspects of the life of the church, all that is needed for the life, worship, witness and service of the church. Teachers, worship leaders, preachers, people who pray, people who care, people who use their hands and imagination to create images and pictures to present the message, musicians, missionaries and evangelists to broaden our vision.
As Paul shares his thoughts he paints a picture that we’re all given gifts to share the love of Christ with. In Greek the word for gift is ‘charisma’ with the root ‘charis’ which means grace. The gifts we are given are gifts of grace and we are called to share those gifts with others, not to hold onto for ourselves.
When you’re given a gift what do you do with it? Do you have any Christmas presents still hanging around unopened? I doubt it. They will have been opened and shared with others. So with our gifts from God.
In a society which values individualism, self progression, independence, it’s hard sometimes to understand how to work together. Yet we need our abilities and talents and gifts to male the church what it ought to be. Paul has in mind the church as a community of fellowship and service.
Paul goes on in the passage that follows to use the body image which helps to remind us that all parts are needed. Each part is intricately designed and created for a specific function and role in the church.
Think of an orchestra. If an orchestra were to be made up of just violins it would not be a very nice sound. If it were made up only of drums there would be little melody to it. Or if there were only flutes it might be a bit boring. But put each instrument together and you can get a wonderful sound – the violins, cellos, piano, clarinets, oboes, horns, trumpets, drums, flutes, double bass, cymbals … all playing together.
But it needs drawing together and that is the role of the conductor. Without the conductor each instrument would play on its own, wouldn’t be in time. The conductor, waving the baton means that there is a good sound, all together.
Think of some of the wonderful music – Hayden’s Creation, Handel’s Messiah, Bach’s Brandenberg’s Concerto; Vivaldi’s Four Seasons; Holst’s Planets and others.
Or take a football match. The team has to be balanced – goalkeeper, defenders, midfield players and a forwards. Each person in the team has a function, they know what they are meant to do, they know how they should contribute to the team. And they are coordinated by the manager of the coach.
So under Christ we offer our gifts, our talents, whatever they may be to the benefit of the church. Sadly sometimes we think we have nothing to offer. We sit back watching others and think that we cannot do anything, think we are nobodies. Yet we need to remember that God can use everyone.
Throughout the years God has used all sorts of people. He used Moses who was a murderer and full of doubt. He used David an adulterous murderer, cheat and sly character. He called 12 disciples, ordinary people with all their flaws – fishermen, tax collectors and doubters.
In the film Mr Holland’s Opus, made in 1995 Richard Dreyfus played the part of Glen Holland, a high school music teacher who entered the profession with the idea that he would teach for just a few years to make enough money to support his wife, and then leave to compose music. Life went on and they had a child, they moved into a bigger house, got bigger bills, found bigger demands on them and he ended up remaining in teaching for 30 years.
During that time he also wrote some music that took 30 years to produce. As he retired he looked back over his teaching career and wondered what impact he had had on his students. He thought about it and wondered whether his life amounted to very much. What did he have to show for 30 years of teaching.
As he left the school on his last day he heard, in the distance from the school hall chanting and clapping. He walked into the hall and a crowd of hundreds stood and applauded him. In the audience he saw hundreds of people who had been influenced by his teaching, people whose lives had been touched and enriched. They honoured him by playing the music it had taken him 30 years to compose.
Sometimes we think we have no influence, sometimes we think we are of no significance yet ordinary people, like the first disciples, like you and me are gifted by Christ to serve him in the church and the world. So what are you passionate about? What are you excited about? What are some of your gifts and talents? What could you do with your gifts and talents for the benefit of the gospel? These are questions we need to ask ourselves. We need to let our imaginations run wild with endless possibilities for ministry. From our passions, from our gifts new ministries can come to birth, new ways of being church can come forth, whilst other ways of doing things can die, other churches and ways of being church can die as new things come to fruition.
We’re not meant to be lone rangers in the life of the church but we are meant to pool our gifts, to be the body of Christ, the fellowship of believers, interdependent – we’re not all teachers, or preachers, or worship leaders, or teachers of children, or musicians, or readers, or makers of tea, or carers, or singers, or healers, or evangelists, and nor are we meant to be.
Let us pray that the gifts that God has given each of us can be channelled together for the benefit of the kingdom where no-one is superior, no-one is inferior and no-one can say ‘if I haven’t got that gift I’m not a Christian’.
Let me close with an example from my favourite sport, football. It has been said that football is a silly game, and many would agree. You get 22 players running around a field at the speed of light, tiring themselves out when really they need a good rest. Whilst watching them are 40 or 50,000 people or more who are in great need of some exercise, just sitting there watching on.
The church is often like that. A small number of people use their God given gifts whilst others are like hangers on. They turn up sometimes on a Sunday but never darken the doors between and expect others to make sure that they can worship on a Sunday. God has gifted everyone. Let’s oput our gifts together for the benefit of the fellowship, the church, our witness and our service and above all, for Christ’s kingdom.
