Title: Okay, we got the presents, now what?
Text: ephesians 4:12-13
Author: Larry C. Brincefield
Author’s Website: www.pastorlarry.net
Introduction
1. Everyone loves to get presents!!
• Last week, we looked at some of the “presents” that God gives us…
• He gives us His grace…
• That’s an incredible gift that God gives to all Christians…
• But, He also gives some special gifts…
• Gifts that He doesn’t give to everyone…
• Gifts like…the gift of being an Apostle…
• An Evangelist…
• A Pastor…
• A Prophet…
• A teacher…
• And there are other gifts that we find in Scripture…
• That we DIDN’T talk about last week…
• In 1 Corinthians 12, Paul says, “Now about spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be ignorant”…
• And then he goes on to talk about some of these other gifts…
• To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom,
• to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit,
• to another faith by the same Spirit,
• to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit,
• to another miraculous powers,
• to another prophecy,
• to another distinguishing between spirits,
• to another speaking in different kinds of languages,
• and to still another the interpretation of languages.
• All these are the work of one and the same Spirit,…
• and he gives them to each one, just as he determines. 1 Cor. 12:9-11
2. In other places, we find the gift of encouragement…
• the gift of generosity…
• the gift of hospitality…
• and many, many more…
• I hope that God has revealed to you your gifts…
• If not, in Matthew 7:11 Jesus says, “If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!”
• In any event…on the basis of the Authority of Scripture…
• In Ephesians…and in 1 Corinthians…and in Matthew…and other places…
• God has given each of His children “presents”…
• Last week, we talked about “Wow…presents…and its not even Christmas!!”
• Tonight, we find as we continue our study, the answer to this question…
• “Okay, we got the presents…now what?”
Read Text: Ephesians 4:12-13
Body
1. Prepare God’s People for Works of Service v. 12
A. Paul says that we have been given these gifts…
• to prepare God’s people for works of service
• In the worldly sense…when we get presents…
• Those gifts are for US to use…
• For our OWN enjoyment…
• One thing that we are always trying to teach our children is to SHARE their gifts…
• With 4 kids in our family…
• If each child is willing to share his/her gifts with their siblings…
• Then it is like each person got 4 times as many presents!!...
B. The same holds true to our spiritual gifts!!
• Why hoard our presents to ourselves?
• “Hide it under a bushel?...NO!!!
• “I’m gonna let it shine!!”
• In the immortal words of Barney Fife…
• i got a uvula, you got a uvula, all God’s children got a uvula.
• I have a gift…you have a gift…all God’s children have spiritual gifts…
• If you’ve been given a gift…
• And I’ve been convinced that all God’s children have at least one spiritual gift…
• We have been given that gift…
• Not just for our own enjoyment…
• And, really, not just to share with others…
• Although it is certainly a noble thing to share our gifts with others…
• But more than that…
• Paul says that we have been given our gifts…
• In order to “Prepare God’s People for Works of Service”
• Certainly, that is the purpose of the gifts of:
• Apostleship…
• Prophesy…
• Pastoring…
• Evangelism…
• And Teaching…
• But what about the other gifts?
• How can you use your gift to prepare God’s people?
• I can really answer that question for you…
• The answer to that question depends on your gift…
• And it depends on how you are willing to use it…
• But certainly, ask God to help you to use your gift…
• NOT ONLY to be a blessing to others…
• But also to help prepare them for some type of ministry.
2. Why? So the Church Can be Built v. 12
A. But why?
• Why do we use our gifts to prepare God’s people?
• Paul says in verse 12…
• so that the body of Christ may be built up
• What is the body of Christ?...
• The Church!!
• What is the Church?
• It is the people who live the Christian life!
• God gives us gifts…
• And we are to use those gifts to serve Him…
• To prepare people for further ministry…
• So that the church can grow and flourish and make more Christians!!
B. When you use your gifts for God…
• God has a way of using that gift to reach others…
• We can have an incredible impact if we will simply use our gifts that we have been given…
• And allow God to further build His kingdom through us.
3. How Long? Until we reach unity v. 13
A. So, I’ve been given this spiritual gift…
• And I’ve been using it to prepare God’s people…
• And to further build the Church…
• How long am I to continue?
• Paul answers that question…
• He says, we keep using our gifts…
• “Until we all reach unity” in verse 13
• And he mentions 2 types of unity…
• until we all reach unity in the faith
• and until we all reach unity in the knowledge of the Son of God
• Unity in the faith refers to our belief in the Son of God…
• Jesus Christ…
• So, until everyone believes on Jesus Christ…
• We are to continue to use our gifts until we have ALL reached unity in the faith!!!
• We have a long ways to go,, don’t we?
B. Paul also ways that we must reach the unity In the knowledge of the Son of God…
• Some people don’t even know ABOUT Jesus…
• In spite of all the advances in communications…
• In spite of the reach around the globe in our missions endeavors…
• There are still people who have no knowledge of Jesus Christ…
• Then, there are other people…
• There are people who have HEARD of Jesus…
• They know Who He is…
• But they don’t KNOW Him personally…
• Our goal as Christians is to use our gifts to reach the unity in the Faith of Jesus…
• And the KNOWLEDGE of Jesus…
• And until that is accomplished…
• We must continue to use the gifts that we’ve been given in our efforts to build the Church…
• The body of Christ.
4. Paul continues, And we become Mature attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ v. 13
A. I dare say that I could preach an entire sermon just on that phrase!
• The goal of the Christian life is to become mature…
B. Attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ
• There are far too many people who desire just to get saved…
• Just so that they can avoid going to hell…
• They want JUST ENOUGH Jesus to get by…
• JUST ENOUGH to make it to heaven…
• But not so much that they get fully committed…
• Not so much that it is inconvenient…
• Not so much that it interferes with THEIR plans for THEIR life…
• But the goal for the Christian…
• AFTER they get saved…
• Is to continue to grow…
• Continue to develop…
• Continue to become more like Christ…
• To push on to a deeper walk…
• To pursue a life of holiness…
• In order to attain the FULL MEASURE…
• Not just a few drops in the bottom of the container…
• But full to overflowing…
C. the full measure of the fullness of Christ.
• Paul likes that word “fullness”…
• Out of the 9 times that it appears in the New Testament…
• 8 of them are from Paul…
• Earlier in our study in Ephesians, he said,
• “you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God” Ephesians 3:19
• Why would a Christian be content with “just” getting saved…
• When there is so much more that is available…
• We need to push on to attain the full measure!
Conclusion
1. With all this talk about “presents”…
• I Feel that I must caution you…
• Thomas A Kempis says, “A wise lover values not so much the gift of the lover as the love of the giver.
• Ultimately, we need to make sure that we are not greedily asking God for “presents”…
• We need to love the GIVER of the gifts…
• And not just love receiving the gifts.
2. I’ve known people who seek solely after the GIFTS of the Spirit…
• Without seeking the Holy Spirit Himself!!
• God certainly loves His children…
• He loves them so much that He gives them presents!!
• But let us not hunger so much after the gifts of the Spirit…
• That we don’t pursue a RELATIONSHIP with the Spirit of Jesus Christ.
• And then, when He gives you a gift…
• Be grateful…
• And use it to prepare God’s children for works of service…
• Use it to build the Body of Christ…the Church…
• And keep on until we all reach of faith in Jesus…
• And the knowledge of Jesus…
• and we become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ!!
