Introductory Texts
1. 1 Corinthians 12:1-6 – Diversity in the Spirit
2. 1 Corinthians 15:1 – God is a God of variety
3. Proverbs 13:17 – Reliable communication permits progress
Diversity
1. Diversity in the Spirit
2. God has also given us diverse personalities
The Diversity Found in Personalities Among The Apostles
1. Peter: a man of impulse and strength.
2. Peter’s strength or gift was also his weakness.
3. James was a man of silence.
4. But when James spoke his words carried a lot of weight.
5. John was one of the sons of thunder, had a temper.
6. But after spending time with Jesus, John became known as a man of understanding and love.
7. They were normal guys, but time spent with Jesus changed them into the best version of their personalities.
8. Andrew was the man of decision and one of the first evangelists.
9. Not one of the apostles was perfect.
10. They all had to be taught, tempered and tamed.
Diversity of Languages
1. Diverse languages don’t lead to division
2. Unreliable communication leads to division and stymies progress (Proverbs 13:17)
3. Believers speak the same language through shared faith in the Word of God
Conclusion: You can choose to be one of God’s men of courageous personality and Christlikeness, just like the apostles, if you admit and commit to it. We all have the ability inside us through the power of Jesus Christ, but we fail to admit it because we often don’t want to commit to it.
The Personality of Courageous Manhood
Today we’re talking about the personality of courageous manhood. In order to do that, I want to read to you a couple of verses of scripture. In 1 Corinthians 12, beginning with the first verse:
1NOW ABOUT the spiritual gifts (the special endowments of supernatural energy) brethren, I do not want you to be misinformed.
2You know that when you were heathen, you were led off after idols that could not speak [habitually] as impulse directed and whenever the occasion might arise.
3Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking under the power and influence of the [Holy] Spirit of God can [ever] say, Jesus be cursed! And no one can [really] say (genuinely say), Jesus is [my] Lord, except by and under the power and influence of the Holy Spirit.
4Now there are distinctive varieties and distributions of endowments (that is gifts, extraordinary powers distinguishing certain Christians, due to the power of divine grace operating in their souls by the Holy Spirit) and they vary, but the [Holy] Spirit remains the same.
5And there are distinctive varieties of service and ministration, but it is the same Lord [Who is served].
6And there are distinctive varieties of operation [of working to accomplish things], but it is the same God Who inspires and energizes them all in all.
In 1 Corinthians 15, and we begin with the 39th verse:
39For all flesh is not the same, but there is one kind for humans, another for beats, another for birds, and another for fish.
40There are heavenly bodies (the sun, moon, and stars) and there are earthly bodies (men, animals, and plants), but the beauty and glory of the heavenly bodies is of one kind, while the beauty and glory of earthly bodies is a different kind.
41The sun is glorious in one way, the moon is glorious in another way, and the stars are glorious in their own [distinctive] way, for one star differs from and surpasses another in its beauty and brilliance.
I want you to know that God, again, says there are differences and there are varieties and there are distinctions in our lives that make us different, one from another. God is a God of variety.
God is a God of distinctiveness. God is a God of diversity. Personalities, colors, plants, skin, physically, mentally, eyes, ears, hair, gifts, talents, God is a God of diversity, and God is a God of individualism. That’s why he made all of us individuals. And God is a God of distinct purpose. He created us. And then when we sinned. He recreated us in Christ Jesus so we could be, through Christ, what He originally created us to be in the first Adam in the Garden of Eden.
God is a God of ultimate possibilities. That is to say there is no limit in God. God puts no limitation on faith. Faith puts no limitation on God. There’s no limit to God, either in creativity, ability, or productivity. That’s also true in our lives, because He’s put those three in us: ability, creativity, and productivity. And there’s no limit to what our life can become in Christ. God created us in His image. And He is recreating us in His glory and for His praise and honor.
Talking about the personality of courageous manhood means that you’re going to talk about the personalities who have exhibited courageous manhood. I went to Matthew Henry’s Commentary, and I looked up the apostles. And I found an incredibly good outline, and you can do the same, ‘cause it’s not original with me. The original thought with me to bring to you at this particular time is that God has created you as an individual. And you are no different from the apostles that Christ chose and called to Himself to follow Him and be the world leaders that would change the world.
Consider this man called Peter. Now, we hear a great deal about Peter. Many people speak of him negatively and some preach of him—speak of him positively. But Peter was a man of impulse. Peter acted. Peter didn’t wait. There was no hesitation. Now, a lot of times, being a man of impulse or being a little too quick can get you in trouble. On the other hand, procrastination and slackness can also get you in a whole lot of trouble.
Peter was a man of strength and the strength of being a man of impulse was when he made up his mind he acted on it. He didn’t delay. He didn’t wait around. He just flat did it. Jesus said, “Follow me,” and he did. He jumped out of the boat, walked on the water when all of the rest of them were still in the boat yelling at him, “Get back in the boat. You’re making us look bad.” And when he took his eyes off Jesus because of what they were saying and put it on the waters, he began to sink beneath it. That’s where we get that old statement that winners look at what they’re going to. Losers look at what they’re going through.
He was the one that, when Jesus said, “Whom do men say that I am,” Peter replied, “Thou art the Christ, the son of the living God.” And Jesus commended him for it. He spoke up while the others were hesitant, delaying to say anything because they didn’t want to be wrong.
And then he was the one who said, “Hey, if I’m supposed to forgive, I’ve got some people I don’t know about.” He said, “How often do I have to forgive?” He wanted to know. Now, there was another man who was a man of facts and figures. But Peter wanted to know the principal of forgiveness, and in essence, Jesus said, “There is no limit to how many times you shall forgive.” Seven times seventy simply means no limitation. It means you are going to do it from now on.
Now, the weakness of being a man of impulse was that he jumped on a horse and rode off in all directions at one time. Peter was the one that until Paul came was assembling with the Jews. He started out at Cornelius, a Gentile’s house, and then when the Jews protested, he sat with them. And then when Paul came, he rebuked him for it, because Peter acted impulsively, precipitously, without thought, and Paul had to reprove him for it
It was Peter who said, "I will never forsake you." And it was Jesus who said, "Before the cock crows three times, you will." Peter impulsively made the statement, "I will never forsake thee." And yet he was the first one. But the interesting thing was Jesus loved him enough that Jesus had him preach on the day of Pentecost. And the reason why Jesus had him preach on the day of Pentecost was because he was the first one to repent.
Today, Peter stands first on the list of all of the apostles, because you see in every one of our lives, there are weaknesses and there are strengths. And I'm trying to point this out to you that in every church, in every country, in every place, there are diversities.
One of the things that we have to understand about diversity is that there are a diversity of languages. Languages are as diverse of the ethnicity of all of us. Some speak one language; some another—sun, moon, stars, diversity. But diversity does not necessarily mean division and particularly when it comes to language. In a nation such as ours, in America, there is a great deal of controversy right now about allowing people to become citizens who do not speak the English language.
Now, the issue that’s before us is simply this, that at the Tower of Babel, they were all of one language and one persuasion, and they were able to build that tower. But when God came down and divided their languages, it brought disagreement. And the disagreement brought powerlessness.
It is not multiculturalism that divides a country, because we have welcomed everybody from all over the world into America. We are a melting pot as it were. We are a melting pot of diverse nationalities all over. But when you don’t speak a common language, then the division of the language creates problems for us, because we cannot communicate properly.
The Bible says in Proverbs 13:17, “Reliable communication permits progress.” Now, whether that’s in communicating with your wife or communicating with your children or at work—reliable communication permits progress. By the very same token, reverse that around. Unreliable communication stymies progress.
And so when it comes to diversity, and it comes to one of one color skin and another color skin, and another country or this country, multiculturalism doesn’t divide. It’s the language barrier that divides. Now, that’s particularly true when it comes to Christianity. When we all speak the same language that comes from the Bible that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior and that the Holy Spirit was prayed for by Him to come into us to rebirth us into the Kingdom of God so that we’re born anew of God’s own spirit, and we all speak the language of the Word of God, and we all come to an agreement on who Jesus Christ is, though we may speak various languages all over the world, yet we are all speaking the same thing.
So the message then makes the language no longer divisive. That’s why it’s important that we all speak the same thing.
Now, the body of Christ is a variety of different denominations, a variety of different people, and they’re all speaking different things. And what divides us is the language that we speak based upon what we believe, but when we are all born of God’s spirit, and we all have the same Bible, there should be no divisions among us though there are diversities. But many people don’t understand that. Diversity isn’t a problem; division is. “A house that is divided cannot stand,” Jesus said. And that’s the way it is in our life.
So we’re not divided if we’re all speaking the same thing based upon the fact that the word of God says, “Thus sayeth the Lord.” See the thing of it is, in the Old Testament, the profits always said, “Thus sayeth Lord.” When Jesus came, he said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you.” He didn’t say, “Thus sayeth the Lord.” He was the Lord. And so you and I must speak the language that God gives to us based upon the word that He’s given to us because the word makes our language what it is and gives us our unity.
Now, not only was Peter a man of impulse, but we come to James. James was a man of silence. James didn’t say that much. Peter was an outstanding leader and John was a man of love. Peter, James, and John were the three that were in the inner circle with Jesus. But James was the man that Jesus wanted beside Him. He was the one that Jesus wanted close to Him, because he didn’t do a whole lot of talking, but he did a whole lot of walking. He was the one that was there, and he was the one that acted on things.
Eusebius tells that the man denounced James to the authorities and testified against him at trial because the man saw in James something that made him repent, ask for James to baptize him before he died and then when both of them were on the way, he asked James to forgive him.
And James said, “Pax vobiscum. Peace be with you.” In other words, here was James; James was as man who didn’t say much, but when he said it, his words carried the weight of his convictions, the weight of his character, the weight of his faith. When he spoke, every word he said meant something.
It was said of Samuel that when Samuel spoke, none of his words fell to the ground. You and I know that idle talk, words just fall to the ground. They just fall down. They just go nowhere. In fact, I’ve even heard preachers preaching, their words just fell to the ground, because they didn’t have weight and substance. They didn’t penetrate. James, the man of character, the man of substance, the man who when he spoke, one word meant a whole lot.
And then there was John. John was one of the sons of thunder. He was a man of temperament, wasn’t a man of temperament as much as he was a man of temper. He wanted to call fire down from out of Heaven. He was the one that called himself an apostle of love in his writings in the Gospel of John. But it was his hot temper and his fierce loyalty that made him, at times, very narrow and intolerant. He rebuked the man who called unto Jesus because he said, “He followed not with us.” And Jesus said, “Forbid him not.”
The label on the bottle is never as important as the contents in the bottle. And the label that people wear, many times, is not as important as the character that is within them. Character is always more important. Jesus taught us that. He said, “Commit to men of character. Commit to faithful men who shall be able to teach others also.” Commit to character. God doesn’t commit to talent. God commits to character.
John—the interesting thing about John, he began as a man of thunder, but when you read I John, II John, III John, you find that apostle of love. You find that temper tamed. You find that John, the son of thunder, has become John, the man of understanding. That over the years of being with Jesus, walking with Jesus, his nature, his character changed. He became the very name that he gave himself when he said, “Here is the man whom Jesus loved.”
Varieties, diversities—these men were like you and me. They were as common as you and I are. But when they had been with Jesus, it changed them. They became something other than what they had been when they started with Him.
Andrew, the man of decision, the moment he gave his life to Christ, he said, “I’m going to go find my brother.” He went and found Peter and brought him to Christ. He knew that Peter was more able than he, but it was precisely the reason for bringing him. Andrew realized that Peter was more capable, more able, had more personality, more character, more everything, more potential than he did. And so he immediately ran and got Peter. That’s why you have the ministry of soul winning or the ministry of reaching out to people without Christ, and you call them the brethren of Andrew or the disciples of Andrew or the fellowship of Andrew because they’re reaching out to bring men into the Kingdom of God.
Phillip, the matter-of-fact man, and I could go on down, but I’m just going to come to the end of this in just a moment. But here is Matthew, the man of business Here’s Thomas, the man of moods, very moody individual. Here is Simon Zelotes, the man who was a zealot, the man who was a flame of fire. He was a patriot. He would belong—he would found the Christian Coalition of his day. He was churchman. He believed in Jehovah. He stood with a party of protest. He was a good citizen, wanting good government. And now that he’d found Christ, he could really pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Judas was the man who might have been. Barnabas was the man of sympathies. You go on down, Paul, the man who made good.
What I’m trying to point out is that there isn’t one of these men that was a perfect individual. There isn’t one of these men that had a perfect character. There isn’t one of these men who didn’t have flaws. There isn’t one of these men who didn’t have character deficiencies.
There isn’t one of these men who didn’t have to be taught, who didn’t have to be tempered, and who didn’t have to be tamed. There isn’t one of these men that’s any different from you. We’re all cut of the same cloth. We’re all men. We all put our pants on one leg at a time. And Jesus has chosen us, called us, equipped us to do His will, fulfill His purpose, so that His glory could cover the earth.
Why do you think you’re sitting where you are right now? Because you happen to be there? Because you just felt as though it was necessary? Because somebody invited you? Don’t you realize that you’re there right at this particular time because God is saying to you, “You’re a man of diversity. You’re a man of distinctive person. You’re a man that I can use. You’re a man that can go to India. You’re a man that can go to Kuala Lumpur. You’re a man that can go next door. You’re a man that can carry the message of the Gospel and be the man God created you to be.” But you’ve got to have the courage to admit it.
And you know the reason why a lot of us won’t admit it? ‘Cause we don’t’ want to have to commit to it. Once you admit it, you’ve got to commit. And so we don’t admit it, ‘cause we don’t want to commit to it. Any new level in life that you grow to will always require a greater commitment than the level on which you lived before and many men don’t want to pay that price. They don’t want to be disturbed from their personal pleasure. They don’t want to be rocked out of their cradle. They don’t want to have to grow up. Don’t come to me or your pastor or anyone else and say, “I can’t, but I’m a nobody.” God takes nobodies to make somebody out of. You are God’s men.
I don’t care what color the skin is. I don’t care your ethnic background. I don’t care the language you use. I simply don’t care and neither does God. God is looking for a man to whom He can point to and say, “There’s my workmanship. There’s someone that I can trust with my Gospel, trust with my anointing, trust with my revelation, trust with the priceless possession of the knowledge of my Son, Jesus Christ, and commit to Him my own spirit so that He can manifest my glory and the power of the anointing of the Holy Ghost to do the work of God.” You’re the man. You can’t turn to somebody else and say, “You’re the man,” ‘cause you’re it.
I don’t know what God’s going to choose you to do. I don’t know what kind of work you’re going to do. All I know is that you’re one of that grand, glorious bouquet of flowered diversity that God uses to reveal his glory on this earth. Choose now to be the man God created you to be, a man of courageous manhood, who like all the other apostles and all of these others to whom God gave ability to be Christlike, be that kind of a man.
