Gifts of the Spirit, Part 2.

Steve Gentry

[0:00] If you have your Bibles, go ahead and open them back up. [0:02] Same place we were last week, 1 Corinthians chapter 12. [0:05] 1 Corinthians 12.

[0:09] I wanna start, as a church, I was helped greatly [0:12] this morning last Sunday night at Village Palooza. [0:17] Because if you weren’t here, number one, you missed out. [0:21] You really, really missed out. [0:23] Because what happened last Sunday night [0:25] is really what I wanna talk about today.

[0:28] And it was this great combination of all of the giftings [0:32] that we have as a church. [0:35] I mean, there were people baking, [0:37] there were people offering to do construction projects [0:41] for people, I even offered to clean toilets, [0:44] because I don’t know how to do anything else.

[0:47] But what we had is this great auction [0:49] for international missions. [0:51] And these great giftings and abilities that people had, [0:54] they said, let me redeem that to further the gospel. [0:57] And then other people came, [0:58] and some of them were the same people offering services,

[1:01] and they took the means by which God has given them [1:04] to be able to be generous with with their finances. [1:07] And you guys blew me away with generosity last Sunday night. [1:12] I don’t wanna be mean, but if you weren’t here, [1:15] you missed a move of the Spirit. [1:17] And if you were here, I don’t even know if you know

[1:19] what you were a part of yet, but it was a church [1:21] stepping up to, as the body, go on mission to East Asia. [1:27] And those are kind of the moments when I’m like, [1:29] oh, thank you for letting me plan a church, Father. [1:33] Thank you so much, because what you did [1:36] is you provided means, and I’ve been having

[1:38] some conversations with some of the people [1:39] on the East Asia team, and they didn’t know [1:41] how they were gonna get there. [1:43] I mean, these aren’t people that just have vacation homes [1:47] in the Hamptons, all right? [1:49] And you as a church combined your talents,

[1:52] you combined your treasure, you combined your time, [1:55] you gave of a Sunday evening, and you showed up, [2:01] and you put them together and said, let’s be the church. [2:04] And I’m so thankful for you guys, and I was so blessed. [2:07] And man, I went into this week fired up, [2:09] we had great crowds show up, and then the worship

[2:12] collective, we praised Jesus with some friends of ours [2:14] in the band called the Worship Collective, [2:16] and I just wanna say thank you to you, [2:18] but most importantly, I wanna say thank you to God [2:21] for giving you those talents, giving you that treasure, [2:24] giving you those abilities.

[2:25] And that’s what we’re gonna talk about today [2:27] in 1 Corinthians 12. [2:28] Last week, we covered the fact that God has given us [2:33] this gift. [2:33] Jesus said when he was leaving, right? [2:35] Before he’s going to the cross, he’s kind of walking

[2:38] through a garden in John 14 through 16 with the disciples, [2:41] and he’s giving them this discourse, [2:44] and he says something very strange that would be strange [2:47] to me if I was one of the disciples. [2:48] He says, it’s better for me to leave, [2:51] so that another helper can come,

[2:54] and that helper’s the Holy Spirit. [2:56] He says, if I leave, the Holy Spirit can come, [2:59] and greater works than you’ve seen me do [3:01] will the Holy Spirit do, and what he means by that [3:03] is the Holy Spirit is going to empower us, [3:06] and he’s actually going to transform us from sinners

[3:08] to people who actually have the ability to obey God, [3:12] actually have the ability to experience the presence of God.

[3:17] And so, once we come to follow Jesus, [3:20] we have this somewhat mysterious reality in our lives, [3:23] and it’s the presence of the Holy Spirit, [3:26] and it’s something that quite often, [3:27] we kind of neglect it, we kind of neglect talking about it, [3:30] we kind of neglect learning about it,

[3:32] because it’s some types of mystery to us, [3:34] where we don’t really, we can’t get our minds around it, [3:37] because whereas Jesus was right there, [3:41] the Spirit isn’t somebody that’s right there [3:43] that I can see. [3:44] So could you imagine being one of the disciples?

[3:47] You’ve seen Jesus heal the blind, [3:48] you’ve seen Jesus turn water into wine,

[3:53] and then he says, it’s better that I leave, [3:56] and someone that you can’t see come, [3:58] so that you can experience what I’m doing. [4:02] They must have been thrown for a loop. [4:04] Then in Acts chapter two, we see the Spirit come, [4:07] Jesus has died, he’s risen from the dead,

[4:10] he’s ascended up to the throne room, [4:12] and the Spirit comes in Acts chapter two like a fire, [4:16] and Peter preaches the first sermon [4:19] of the New Testament era under the New Covenant, [4:21] and it says 3,000, most likely more than that, [4:25] they typically only counted men at that time,

[4:27] so it says 3,000 came to faith in Jesus, [4:29] and were baptized in the Spirit. [4:32] I don’t know if you know this, [4:33] but in the Old Testament, the way it would work [4:35] is that the prophet of God would speak [4:39] as the mouthpiece of the Lord,

[4:40] and the Spirit would come in, [4:41] and then the Spirit would go, [4:43] and the Spirit would come to individuals [4:45] at specific points at specific times. [4:48] But what you see throughout the book of Acts, [4:49] and I’m gonna summarize the whole book for you,

[4:51] you’re welcome, is that the Spirit comes, [4:55] and he doesn’t leave.

[4:57] No longer is the work of the Spirit [4:59] gonna be a temporary reality, [5:01] but if you are a follower of Jesus, [5:03] if you are someone that trusts in his work on your behalf, [5:07] if you’re someone that believes [5:08] that he’s defeated death and sin in his resurrection,

[5:12] then you are baptized in the Spirit, [5:14] you are given the Spirit, and he never goes away, [5:17] because the sin that once separated you [5:20] from his power is gone, it’s paid for, [5:22] it’s fully atoned for in Jesus. [5:25] And last week we looked at this reality

[5:27] of transformation in our lives, [5:29] helps us come to an understanding [5:31] that our hope is not in the things of this world, [5:34] that we should not be saturated, [5:36] and we should not be filled with hope from this world, [5:38] but rather we should be trusting in the kingdom

[5:40] that God promises to come. [5:43] And in trusting, we invest our time, [5:45] we invest our talents, we invest our treasure, [5:48] and we till the soil of the garden of our soul,

[5:53] and the Spirit works, and the Spirit moves. [5:58] That it’s not something, [5:59] we never see the move of the Spirit happen, [6:03] usually just in someone that’s waiting, [6:06] that’s kind of living their lives, [6:07] totally obsessed with this world, totally captivated,

[6:11] they’re totally spending all of their time [6:12] on things that have nothing to do with God, [6:14] and they’re experiencing this great movement [6:16] of the Spirit in their lives, it doesn’t happen. [6:18] But rather what we see is people preparing, [6:22] people trusting that God’s going to work,

[6:25] and he does, always does. [6:30] And so we saw that we need to create margin in our lives [6:34] where we’re proactively doing the things [6:36] that God has commanded in scripture [6:38] as a sign that we trust, and then the Spirit empowers.

[6:45] So today, I wanna go a little further [6:47] in 1 Corinthians chapter 12, [6:49] so go ahead and open your Bibles up, [6:50] 1 Corinthians 12, starting in verse seven.

[6:57] To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit [7:01] for the common good. [7:03] Now, in the original language, each means each, okay? [7:07] So when it says each, it doesn’t mean most, [7:11] it doesn’t mean some of you are left out. [7:14] If you are a follower of Jesus Christ,

[7:17] to each, to all followers of Jesus Christ, [7:21] has been given the manifestation of the Spirit [7:24] for the common good. [7:26] For the one, excuse me, for to one, [7:29] is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, [7:31] and to another, the utterance of knowledge

[7:34] according to the same Spirit. [7:36] To another, faith by the same Spirit. [7:40] To another, gifts of healing by the one Spirit. [7:43] To another, the working of miracles. [7:45] To another, prophecy. [7:46] To another, the ability to distinguish

[7:48] between the Spirits. [7:49] To another, various kinds of tongues. [7:52] To another, the interpretation of tongues. [7:54] All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit [7:58] who apportions to each one individually as he wills. [8:03] For just as the body is one and has many members,

[8:07] and all the members of the body, [8:09] though many are one body, so it is with Christ. [8:15] So let’s unpack that quickly.

[8:19] So I’m just gonna jump right into it. [8:21] We’re gonna move really fast [8:22] because we have a lot to cover. [8:23] Point number one today, the gifts of the Spirit [8:26] include all our abilities and are from God and for God. [8:32] The gifts of the Spirit include all our abilities

[8:34] and are from God and for God. [8:37] Now here’s what quite often we do. [8:40] We see this list of abilities, [8:43] this list of spiritual gifts, [8:46] and we kind of start to minimize them and say, [8:48] okay, there’s wisdom, there’s knowledge, there’s healing,

[8:50] there’s all these different gifts. [8:52] Now which one do I have? [8:55] When we do that, we miss the total message [8:59] of what’s going on here. [9:01] He starts out by saying each one of you [9:03] has the manifestation of the Spirit.

[9:05] So if you’re a follower of Jesus, [9:06] you just need to trust that you have the Spirit. [9:08] Like we said last week, if you believe in Jesus, [9:12] that’s the evidence of the work of the Spirit in your life. [9:15] The Spirit does that. [9:16] You do not do that of your own ability.

[9:18] The Spirit gives you that faith. [9:21] And then he continues to go on, and if you notice, [9:24] whenever you’re looking for the context [9:26] of a verse in the Scriptures, what you need to do is say, [9:29] is there anything that he’s repeating in here? [9:32] And if you notice, over and over again,

[9:34] he says same Spirit, and he says one Spirit. [9:38] The focus of this text is not the gifts. [9:44] The focus of this text is the gift giver, [9:48] the one who gives, and that is the Spirit. [9:54] In the church at Corinth at that time, [9:56] there was great controversy going on

[9:57] for a lot of different reasons. [9:59] And one of those controversies that was going on [10:02] that he’s kind of gonna spell out [10:03] between chapters 12 and chapters 14 [10:05] is that people understood the manifestation [10:08] of the Spirit in their lives,

[10:10] and they were seeking all of them [10:12] to have the most spectacular looking gifts. [10:17] And they were not doing it for the purpose [10:19] of worshiping this God, but rather, [10:22] they were doing it so that they could have authority [10:25] inside of the church.

[10:27] Because if you got the flash, [10:29] you’re gonna have the cash, all right? [10:32] You like that? [10:34] Took me like three weeks to come up with that, [10:36] to say like five seconds. [10:39] But here’s the key.

[10:41] If you were in the church at Corinth, [10:42] they really wanted a manifestation of tongues, [10:44] they really wanted to see healings, [10:46] they wanted to do all these, [10:47] and they thought that if I can just [10:49] have that happen through me,

[10:52] I can have the power inside of this church. [10:55] I can have authority, I can have influence. [10:59] The focus was me, me, me. [11:03] And so what Paul is saying here is [11:04] is that through God comes all of these gifts, [11:08] so who is it all about?

[11:10] Not you. [11:12] It’s about God, and it’s for God. [11:17] Now, very quickly, I wanna summarize [11:20] all the spiritual gifts in the New Testament for you. [11:22] There’s a lot of them, I could just get that [11:23] up on the screen right now.

[11:25] If you notice, there’s a lot of things here. [11:28] First Corinthians 12, eight through 10, [11:31] First Corinthians 12, 28, Ephesians 4, 11, [11:34] Romans 12, six through eight, [11:35] First Corinthians 7, seven, First Peter 4, 11. [11:38] Now, this is where the gifts of the Spirit

[11:40] are all spelled out, now I am not going to go through [11:43] all of these today, okay? [11:45] But here’s what I want you to understand. [11:47] There’s a lot of them. [11:49] I wanna focus in on First Peter 4, 11 [11:52] for our purposes this morning.

[11:55] First Peter 4, 11, Peter is talking to a church [11:57] that’s in a different type of turmoil. [12:00] They’re outside of their country [12:01] in what is modern day Turkey, [12:03] and they are surrounded by a pagan society [12:06] as they’ve been driven out of their home in Jerusalem.

[12:09] And he’s summarizing the spiritual gifts to them. [12:12] He summarizes it to the point where he says, [12:14] here’s what the spiritual gifts are. [12:16] Whoever speaks and whoever serves. [12:20] So, whatever you say and whatever you do. [12:24] Those are the gifts of the Spirit.

[12:27] And he said, well, that sounds like everything. [12:29] Right.

[12:31] What we like to do in our lives [12:33] is we like to do sometimes what the church at Corinth does. [12:35] We wanna compartmentalize our lives [12:38] for that which is for the church and that which is mine. [12:42] My ability to be great at business [12:45] has nothing to do with God.

[12:49] So, I have to find what else I’m good at [12:52] inside of the church, [12:53] and I’ll do that for the church when I have time. [12:57] But then in my personal life, [12:58] I’ve got all these other gifts.

[13:01] The list in 1 Corinthians 12 and Ephesians 4 [13:04] and in Romans 12 and even in 1 Corinthians 7, 7, [13:09] even boils it down to say, [13:11] the ability to be married is a spiritual gift [13:13] and the ability not to be married is a spiritual gift. [13:17] They’re both from God.

[13:19] These are not exhaustive lists.

[13:23] These are not lists to where we say, [13:25] I don’t think I have any of these. [13:27] Number one, you do. [13:29] But number two, these are very general, very broad. [13:34] Every ability that you have in life [13:38] is a spiritual gift from God

[13:42] because everything is spiritual.

[13:47] Your ability to work is a spiritual gift. [13:53] Your ability to read is a spiritual gift. [13:56] Your ability to be a doctor, to be a teacher, [13:59] to be a plumber, to be a salesman, [14:03] whatever it is that you do, [14:05] it’s a spiritual gift.

[14:08] Your money is a spiritual gift. [14:12] My wife is a spiritual gift. [14:15] I hope yours is. [14:17] It’s a spiritual gift. [14:19] Your children are a spiritual gift. [14:21] Your home is a spiritual gift.

[14:24] I can go on and on all day. [14:28] It’s all from God, therefore it is all for God. [14:35] Whatever it is that you do.

[14:39] So why is Paul giving us this particular list? [14:42] Notice what he says. [14:42] He says things like wisdom. [14:44] He says things like knowledge in his first list. [14:46] And then he’s going to go on in 1228 [14:49] and he’s going to be even more specific.

[14:50] A specific word of wisdom, a specific word of knowledge. [14:54] Gifts of healing, miracles, prophecy, [14:56] distinguishing what is from God and what is from the devil. [14:59] And then in Ephesians 411, [15:01] he gives us offices that the Holy Spirit has.

[15:06] But the point is never for me [15:08] to simply find my place and stay there. [15:12] The point is to find that which I’m strong in [15:16] so that I can be strategic and discerning [15:19] in the way that I follow God [15:22] and the way that I push the gospel forward.

[15:26] And then understand that it’s all from God. [15:29] Because of that, all right? [15:33] If you are not naturally a merciful person, [15:37] you may say, well, my gift is teaching. [15:41] I don’t have to have mercy on anyone. [15:43] It’s not my gift.

[15:44] So I’ll just be mean to everyone. [15:47] All right? [15:47] You laugh, it happens. [15:50] There was a while I probably thought that too. [15:51] Well, I know that proactively I do that. [15:54] I’m like, it’s okay if I’m not merciful.

[15:55] I’ll just teach them about something. [15:57] No. [15:58] What he’s saying there is you have to understand. [16:02] You’re not naturally obedient. [16:05] But because that’s not a good gifting that you have [16:08] doesn’t mean God doesn’t want you to be obedient.

[16:10] It means that you need to depend on God for your obedience.

[16:16] See, my lack of mercy on people, [16:18] my lack of giving grace to others, [16:22] you know what that’s a sign of? [16:24] Sin. [16:25] Who do I need to trust to overcome that? [16:28] God.

[16:30] I once had a conversation with someone [16:32] who said that the one thing God cannot do [16:36] is change your personality. [16:37] And I said, you did not know me a decade ago.

[16:43] You see, quite often where we’re looking for the spirit [16:46] is in some type of physical manifestation, [16:48] a burning bush, parting the Red Sea, something like that. [16:51] What if the miracle that you need in your life [16:53] is to stop being a jerk?

[16:57] What if the miracle that you need in your life [16:59] is to learn how to be generous [17:00] instead of such a stingy, greedy person?

[17:05] What if a miracle from God is not enough? [17:07] What if God says that in such a materialistic culture, [17:09] you are generous with all that God gives you?

[17:14] See, I think sometimes we miss [17:16] what the greater works of God are, [17:19] that God can find someone that’s so self-absorbed, [17:23] so worldly in our understanding [17:25] of what our hope is really found in, [17:29] and can totally transform our lives

[17:30] into someone that now obeys God in all of his commands.

[17:37] All of our abilities are from God and for God. [17:41] Now, as you’re living your life, [17:43] as you’re cultivating what we talked about last week, [17:46] I don’t wanna just say everything I already said, [17:48] as we’re doing that, we have to understand is [17:51] that I think the spiritual gift tests are good,

[17:53] but I think that you can have an idea [17:56] as to what the spirit leads you into naturally, all right? [18:01] If I take myself, for instance, [18:03] teaching and preaching sometimes came [18:06] somewhat naturally to me, [18:08] so I didn’t have to take a test to know it’s a gift, right?

[18:14] Some of you just serve. [18:18] If someone needs something, [18:19] or if someone’s doing something wrong, [18:22] you’re not the one that just criticizes,

[18:25] because I don’t know if you know this or not, [18:28] but criticism is not a gift of the spirit, all right? [18:33] None of you have the gift of discouragement, all right? [18:37] Sometimes you act like you do, but you don’t. [18:41] Sometimes I act like I do, I’m in the boat with you.

[18:45] Now, if you just naturally jump in and say, [18:48] where can I help? [18:49] Where can I serve? [18:51] I have a feeling I know where your spiritual gift is. [18:54] And just like the mercy thing, [18:55] some of you are like, well, I don’t naturally do that,

[18:56] so I guess I won’t serve anywhere. [18:59] Oh, boy.

[19:01] This is where the Holy Spirit wants to transform your life. [19:06] See, no one can opt out of the gifts. [19:08] Now, the offices are different, [19:10] and that’s for a different day. [19:12] God calls and equips specific people for specific offices. [19:16] But I want us to wrap our minds around this morning,

[19:19] is that God has called each and every one of us [19:21] to be gifted in ways to serve him and to further his gospel. [19:26] And that’s point number two this morning, [19:28] is this reality that the gifts of the Spirit [19:31] should be invested as we seek the work of the gospel. [19:37] Now, in the church at Corinth,

[19:38] what they were doing is they were saying, [19:40] okay, what’s going on in the work of the apostles? [19:44] Okay, well, we’re seeing them speak in languages [19:47] that they don’t know, [19:48] we’re seeing people get healed of illnesses. [19:50] Okay, they’ve got a lot of power,

[19:52] they’ve got a lot of authority, I want that, [19:54] so this is how I’m gonna do it. [19:55] I wanna be the rock star in the church of Corinth, [19:58] so I’m gonna get all of those gifts.

[20:02] Paul comes and he says, no, you’re wrong. [20:06] The gifts are given specifically to build God’s church. [20:13] In 1 Corinthians chapter 14 verse 12, [20:17] here’s what Paul says. [20:18] So with yourselves, since you are eager [20:21] for manifestation of the Spirit,

[20:23] strive to excel in building up the church.

[20:29] This is where he’s beginning to put a cap [20:31] on all of the spiritual gifts, [20:32] and he’s saying, understand that the abilities [20:35] that God has given you is not to build you up [20:39] just for the sake of building you up, [20:41] but rather, he wants to grow you and develop you

[20:45] so that you can push the gospel further and further, [20:48] you can get it to people that don’t know it [20:51] so that we can build up the church of Jesus. [20:55] That is why your gifts exist.

[21:00] What’s very helpful for me when I’m trying to seek [21:02] how I should use my gifts for my life [21:05] is this parable that Jesus tells in Matthew 25. [21:09] Now I’m just gonna summarize it for you. [21:10] If you wanna jot that down, you can read it later, [21:12] it’s in Matthew 25 beginning in verse 14.

[21:16] He gives this parable and he says that the master [21:18] of the house was going on a journey. [21:21] So he begins to distribute talents to his servants, [21:25] and he tells them to invest them like he would [21:27] while he was gone, and when he returns, [21:31] he’ll have the gain.

[21:33] Now he goes off and two of the servants invest [21:35] that which the master has given them very well, [21:38] and they double it. [21:40] But one of them buries his so that he won’t lose it. [21:45] And he goes and he just does his own thing, [21:47] and he lives life for himself,

[21:49] and when the master comes home, he digs it up, [21:52] and he takes it back to the master, [21:53] and the other two servants come up, [21:55] and they say, we invested and we’ve doubled [21:57] what you’ve given us, and to them he says, [21:59] I’m gonna portion a great, huge part of authority

[22:03] in my kingdom to you. [22:05] And to the last one, he comes up and he says, [22:08] master, I know that you are a hard man. [22:11] In other words, I know that you’re mean [22:13] and you don’t really love me. [22:16] And because of that, I was afraid.

[22:18] So I hid it, but I still have it, it’s right here. [22:21] That talent you gave me, it’s right here, here you go, God.

[22:29] And he says, that servant, you’ve done nothing [22:31] with that which I’ve given you, therefore, [22:33] you have no part of my kingdom.

[22:36] That’s a hard parable, it’s tough, [22:38] but this isn’t a kingdom parable, [22:40] this is what the kingdom of God is like. [22:42] And he says, that servant who did not love the master, [22:45] but rather just thought he was some kind [22:46] of hard-nosed guy, he cast him into outer darkness.

[22:52] Now what this parable is telling us this morning [22:54] is that there’s a great reality that in redemption, [22:58] God has changed us to where we do not simply fear him [23:01] to take us to hell, but rather, we love him [23:04] because of the great mercy that he’s had on us, [23:06] and we’re so thankful that he has poured his spirit

[23:09] onto us, that we take that which he’s given, [23:11] we take those gifts and we invest them to build his kingdom.

[23:17] And the reality of what Jesus Christ is saying right there [23:21] is that how you invest that which God has given you [23:26] reveals how you view God and how you view yourself.

[23:33] That if you love him and you want to obey him, [23:36] you will use them as one who’s been transformed [23:38] to live by the power of the spirit, [23:40] investing wisely with his gifts.

[23:45] But if you do not, you are not revealing the work [23:50] of redemption in your life. [23:54] You are revealing that you do not trust [23:57] the finished work of Jesus. [24:00] Because if you do that, I’m free to risk, baby, [24:04] I’m free to invest, I’m free to give

[24:07] of all that God has given me, [24:09] and I know that I can’t fail, [24:10] do you know that this morning? [24:11] That if God has given you a gift [24:13] and you invest it for the kingdom, there is no failure. [24:16] Yeah, you may plan a church and it doesn’t work out,

[24:19] but you haven’t failed ultimately, you want to know why? [24:21] Because all of your success is based on the cross of Jesus. [24:25] And that’s finished, that’s finished. [24:29] You can start a community group, [24:31] and you can say, I want to be a leader, [24:34] and you go to your small group leader

[24:35] and you become an apprentice, and you begin to serve, [24:38] and then you branch off, and then everybody says, [24:40] I don’t like you, and they leave, and guess what? [24:43] You didn’t fail in the kingdom of God. [24:46] You gave all that you had.

[24:50] Your fear of feeling inadequate is not a reason [24:56] to not invest in the kingdom of God. [25:00] It is a reason to trust God for the increase, [25:04] do it anyway. [25:05] Because you trust in Him.

[25:13] Because you know that those gifts that He’s given, [25:15] they should be invested for the work of the gospel, [25:18] because that’s why they were given. [25:21] Now I don’t mean to say everybody needs to be [25:23] a community group leader, [25:25] because some of you aren’t gifted in that area.

[25:31] But what I’m saying is, is where are you gifted?

[25:35] Not all of you should preach. [25:38] I’ve heard some guys preach, and I want their gift. [25:42] Some of you are like, yeah, I’m listening to one right now. [25:44] Whatever.

[25:48] Jesus makes me adequate, you don’t.

[25:54] Everybody laughed because that’s what they’re thinking.

[25:57] Here’s the reality. [26:00] What has God made you passionate about? [26:03] Think about that this morning.

[26:07] What are you passionate about in life? [26:09] Ask yourself a question, how can I use that [26:13] to further the kingdom of God? [26:15] How can I do that? [26:16] How can I give of my time? [26:18] How can I give of my talent?

[26:19] How can I give of my treasure? [26:20] To give the increase for the kingdom of God and His gospel.

[26:25] And it’s not gonna be the same for all of us. [26:28] It’s not gonna be the same.

[26:32] But you are uniquely shaped by God for God. [26:38] And He is pleased in you through the work of His Son Jesus [26:43] and how He made you.

[26:48] Yeah, it might not be in front of everybody, [26:50] but usually if you’re not gifted to be on stage, [26:53] preach or sing, play an instrument, [26:56] you don’t wanna be up there anyway.

[26:59] How’s God gifted you? [27:02] You may think it’s silly, [27:03] but I saw last week people making furniture. [27:06] I saw last week ladies baking baked goods [27:09] that helped me maintain my current weight.

[27:18] I saw people using these abilities. [27:21] And I think some of you are just like, [27:23] well, I’ll just do that, [27:24] because that’s all I know how to do. [27:26] Oh, that you’re able to do that. [27:27] And my attitude would be, thank you, God,

[27:30] that you’ve gifted me to do this, [27:32] to further your kingdom. [27:33] And last week we saw it. [27:37] And it happened, offering services.

[27:42] Praise God for the gifts of the Spirit. [27:46] Now, I just wanna spend about five minutes [27:48] talking about some of the more miraculous gifts. [27:52] So here’s the key. [27:53] The end of chapter 12, [27:56] Paul says, now, I would have you to seek the greater gifts.

[28:00] Now, in the original language, there is a possibility [28:04] that that terminology actually means [28:07] all you are seeking are the greater gifts. [28:10] And I tend to lean towards that because of his attitude [28:14] of their ignorance in 12.1 about the spiritual gifts [28:18] and the reality that they’re only seeking

[28:19] that which is spectacular and showy and flashy [28:23] and the toilets aren’t getting cleaned. [28:25] Because there’s an unflashy about that. [28:28] And what he’s saying is, is that you need to stop [28:31] having such a focus on these spectacular manifestations [28:35] of the Spirit because you’re not gonna get them

[28:36] if you ignore the others. [28:39] And here’s the reality.

[28:41] All of the gifts of the Spirit are still around today. [28:48] All right, now some of you may come from a background [28:50] that doesn’t believe that. [28:51] I’ve studied it for a long time. [28:53] And I used to be of that personality, [28:56] but it was based more in tradition than it was God’s word.

[28:58] When I just let God’s word be God’s word, [29:00] I can’t say he got rid of any of them [29:01] because there’s no verse that says he did. [29:03] In 1 Corinthians 13, 10, he says, [29:05] when that which is perfect comes, [29:06] that which is imperfect will pass away.

[29:09] Do you know what that means? [29:09] It means that the spiritual gifts are going to be around [29:12] until the return of Jesus Christ [29:14] because that’s when they’re not gonna be needed anymore. [29:17] Now, in the New Testament, the gift of tongues [29:19] most frequently was like it was in the book of Acts.

[29:24] In Acts chapter two, Peter preaches in Hebrew. [29:27] But there are people gathered for the festival at Pentecost [29:32] from all over the world. [29:34] And so people from Asia and Africa [29:35] who speak completely different dialects than Hebrew [29:37] are there and Peter’s preaching in Hebrew

[29:39] and they’re hearing it in their original language.

[29:43] That was to further the gospel. [29:47] I mean, clearly. [29:48] Now, he does speak of an unknown tongue [29:53] in 1 Corinthians chapter 14. [29:54] And this is understood in that time [29:56] as a language that God gives to build you

[30:00] in your relationship with God. [30:03] Now, I’ll be frank, I have never spoken in tongues [30:06] nor have I really ever seen it done properly. [30:09] But that’s because I haven’t been everywhere. [30:12] Right, I’m only one man.

[30:15] But here’s the key, because I’ve seen it done wrong [30:17] doesn’t mean you can’t do it right.

[30:20] It is a gift that does exist, [30:22] but my understanding of that gift, [30:24] it is not something that we sit around and wait on. [30:26] You don’t have to speak in tongues to be saved, [30:28] but some people that are saved do speak in tongues.

[30:31] For some, it is a missionary in Africa [30:34] that goes into a tribe he’s never been in before [30:36] and they understand what he’s saying [30:38] even though he doesn’t know their language.

[30:41] That’s most predominantly how it worked [30:43] in the New Testament. [30:44] But there are some who will find themselves praying [30:48] or in a specific moment and they will speak in tongues. [30:51] In 1 Corinthians chapter 14, Paul says that [30:53] if you speak in tongues in a church service,

[30:54] there needs to be an interpretation of the tongues [30:55] because building you up is not the point, [30:57] building up the church is the point. [31:00] So it’s not just going to be an unknown gibberish [31:02] inside of the church.

[31:05] Now, healings. [31:07] People do be, do be, people.

[31:12] How old am I? [31:14] People do get healed.

[31:17] I’ve prayed for people and God has miraculously healed them. [31:20] When I was in college, one of my friends, [31:22] his father had a 10% chance of living through the night [31:24] and so most of my dorm gathered [31:26] and we prayed for six straight hours. [31:28] He lived through the night and then days later,

[31:30] he was miraculously healed [31:31] and the doctor said they couldn’t explain it. [31:33] I absolutely believe there was a connection [31:35] between our prayer and his healing. [31:37] I believe prayer changes things. [31:38] I believe God uses prayer as a tool to further his will.

[31:42] I believe God wanted to heal him [31:43] and I believe that God wanted us to be a part of his healing.

[31:47] I believe absolutely the spirit heals. [31:49] I believe absolutely God gives certain people [31:51] with the faith to pray that someone is healed [31:54] and they are healed. [31:56] I absolutely believe that. [31:58] Now, I don’t think it involves me throwing a coat around

[32:01] on a stage and everybody falling over. [32:03] I don’t think it happens to be that way. [32:04] If you’re under that impression, that’s okay. [32:07] Still got a home in the village. [32:08] I’m just never gonna do that. [32:10] So you gotta be okay with it.

[32:12] The day I walk up in a $5,000 suit, leave. [32:16] Just letting you know that, just a side note. [32:20] God does heal. [32:22] God does the miraculous. [32:23] But here’s what I believe. [32:25] In the context, I think sometimes we’ll focus on one verse

[32:28] and lose the context of all of them.

[32:31] Does not happen while we’re sitting around doing nothing. [32:33] What happens is that we are living lives, [32:36] we are seeking the gospel of Jesus Christ, [32:38] we’re seeking to push it as far as we can with our lives. [32:40] We’re risking everything. [32:43] That’s when you’re gonna see the miraculous.

[32:45] That’s when God is gonna show up and do something [32:47] where you’re like, what? [32:50] Wow.

[32:52] I believe last Sunday night I saw the miraculous.

[32:55] I saw a bunch of people that couldn’t really afford [32:57] to give, give. [33:00] I saw a bunch of people sacrifice. [33:02] If you don’t think that’s a miracle, you’re crazy. [33:06] You’re crazy. [33:08] That was a miracle.

[33:10] And you’re like, ah, but it wasn’t that spectacular. [33:13] Yes it was. [33:15] Yes it was. [33:16] To see people in a materialistic culture [33:20] just freely give to someone [33:23] for the work of the mission of Jesus, that’s a miracle.

[33:28] Now, we will see God do incredible things. [33:30] We will see experiences that we never thought we would [33:33] before, I have over the last decade, [33:34] I’ve seen him do things I never thought was possible. [33:36] I saw him take a guy that was totally self-centered [33:39] and turn him into someone that could maybe pastor

[33:41] just a couple of people.

[33:44] My question for you in this point right now is, [33:46] what does God want you to do to further his gospel [33:49] and what are you doing to impede that progress? [33:52] What are you waiting on? [33:53] Are you waiting for God to burn a bush outside of your house [33:55] because he’s probably not gonna do it

[33:56] because if you’re not investing in that [33:58] which he’s already called you to obey, [34:00] I don’t think he wants to waste his time on you.

[34:04] God is waiting for you to get up and start following Jesus [34:07] and then he’s gonna make himself profoundly known [34:09] in your life. [34:11] He will do the incredible.

[34:15] You just have to be there for it. [34:17] Now, finally this morning, my time is winding down. [34:21] Finally this morning, the gifts of the Spirit [34:23] are given to build God’s church. [34:25] First Corinthians 14, 12, we saw that when we strive [34:27] for the manifestation of the Spirit,

[34:29] it’s not just the manifestation of the Spirit [34:30] that we’re going after but rather re-emphasize [34:32] that we’re going after the building of God’s church. [34:34] When we’re trying to build God’s church, [34:35] he’s going to do spectacular things to build his church. [34:38] Nothing can stop it.

[34:40] Jesus said in the book of Matthew [34:41] that the gates of hell would not prevail [34:43] against his church. [34:45] Do you believe that? [34:46] Well, if you believe that, [34:47] why are you spending so much time investing

[34:49] all that you have in things [34:51] other than the church of Jesus Christ?

[34:55] You exist to build the church. [34:57] We just spent 18 weeks going through the book of Ephesians. [35:00] It could not have been more clearer. [35:01] God wants to build his church [35:03] and he wants to use those whom he has redeemed [35:05] to himself to do it.

[35:08] And it’s all going to be the power of the Holy Spirit. [35:11] All of it. [35:13] Now, in First Corinthians 14, 20, [35:17] if I could get that on the screen just real quick, [35:18] here’s what we read. [35:20] Brothers, do not be children in your thinking.

[35:22] Be infants in evil but in your thinking be mature.

[35:27] In other words, in the way that you view the Holy Spirit [35:29] and the way that you view the Spirit’s going to work [35:30] in your life, Paul writes the inspiration [35:33] of the Holy Spirit, grow up.

[35:36] This is the only thing that I want you [35:37] to be immature in is evil. [35:40] In your disobedience, don’t be mature.

[35:45] But grow up in the way that you think about the Holy Spirit.

[35:52] Use discernment.

[35:54] Now, when we see wisdom, when we see knowledge, [35:58] when we see faith, I think we’re seeing something [36:00] that God wants all of us to have.

[36:04] But we have to be in a life that’s for him to grow in it.

[36:11] It’s not just some pie in the sky thing [36:13] that we can’t figure out. [36:15] Paul says, grow up, do that which Jesus has commanded you [36:19] to do and you will grow in the gifting of the Holy Spirit. [36:23] You will, he promises it. [36:25] And you will see God’s church be built.

[36:29] Now, as we close this morning, I want to give four steps [36:34] growing in the gifting of the Holy Spirit. [36:37] Number one, trust.

[36:41] Trust. [36:43] Trust Jesus. [36:45] Trust that what he has revealed in his life, [36:47] death, resurrection, what he has revealed in his word, [36:51] what he has said we need to do, he’s been very specific [36:54] about his mission, he came to seek and to save that

[36:56] which was lost, he said, go make a promise [36:57] to make disciples which means go seek and to save the lost.

[37:02] He says, use that as the catalyst for your life. [37:04] That’s the hinge on which your life should go, [37:07] nothing else. [37:09] And when you trust in that, you trust that he’s giving you [37:12] the spirit that he promises you. [37:14] He doesn’t say you have to have the whole thing figured out

[37:17] to do it, he says, as you’re doing it, [37:19] you’ll figure it out. [37:21] That’s what he means by grow up. [37:24] When I had a son, my wife had a son, I didn’t do that. [37:28] She did.

[37:32] When she had a child, it was our son and he’s two and a half [37:35] now and we got another one on the way, here’s the key, [37:37] you think I was ready?

[37:41] I thought I read a book.

[37:44] Then I saw a dirty diaper and I said, [37:47] the book wasn’t this clear.

[37:52] Guess what? [37:53] I’m as ready as he is old. [37:57] I’m ready for a two and a half year old right now. [37:59] When he’s three, I’ll be ready for a three year old. [38:01] You know when I’m gonna be ready to have two of them? [38:04] When she gives birth.

[38:08] You’re ready to follow Jesus where you are. [38:11] You’re ready. [38:13] See, when you use your inadequacy and your fear of failure [38:16] as an excuse, you’re not trusting. [38:19] You’re not trusting.

[38:22] You’re not. [38:23] Number two, show up. [38:25] And I mean this in two ways. [38:27] The first way is, show up for the work of the Spirit [38:31] in your life. [38:32] Show up to the word.

[38:35] Having it sitting on an end table doesn’t get it [38:37] in your life.

[38:40] Show up for prayer. [38:41] We’re gonna spend the next two weeks talking about prayer.

[38:45] Show up to lead your family, men. [38:49] Show up to raise your children, mothers, and men.

[38:54] But do it under the power of the Holy Spirit. [38:56] Now number two, how do you expect to build God’s church [38:58] when you don’t show up to his church?

[39:04] That’s not just about attendance. [39:06] What that’s about is being the church. [39:08] If you’re not showing up on Sunday to worship and serve, [39:11] if you’re not showing up to community groups, [39:13] if you’re not showing up, how do you expect to grow? [39:18] If you’re not building relationships during the week,

[39:22] how do you expect to grow? [39:24] If you do not have a mentor in your life, [39:28] it doesn’t necessarily mean it needs to be me, [39:29] it doesn’t mean it needs to be Nate, I’ll do it, [39:31] but there’s plenty of people seasoned in the faith [39:33] in this church that can be your mentor.

[39:35] If you’re not showing up in relationship with each other, [39:38] how do you expect to grow?

[39:44] I cannot exercise if I don’t show up to the gym.

[39:52] Show up. [39:53] Your presence matters.

[39:57] I do not like being away from my village family. [40:02] I do not like it because I’m afraid of what I’ll miss.

[40:06] I’m afraid somebody’s gonna be out there [40:07] to tell me a story that I’m not gonna be able to hear.

[40:13] Show up.

[40:16] Number three, invest.

[40:19] Invest, invest.

[40:22] When I go to the gym, I’m always amazed [40:25] at the people that I see just walking around, [40:29] chewing some bubble gum, talking to each other. [40:32] They showed up, but that’s all they did. [40:37] They’re not investing. [40:39] They’re not doing anything.

[40:43] Maybe you’re showing up and that’s a great start, [40:45] but pretty soon God wants you to invest. [40:49] He’s given you gifts. [40:50] He wants you to know what you’re passionate about. [40:52] He wants to reveal that to you. [40:54] He wants to do it in His word.

[40:55] He wants to do it through relationships, [40:56] and He wants you to begin investing. [40:59] Some of you make it very hard for your community group leaders [41:01] because you expect them to do everything.

[41:05] Maybe they need your gift to help their gift. [41:08] If you read 1 Corinthians chapter 12, verses 12 through 28, [41:12] you see God diagrammed the church as a body. [41:15] Some of us are hands, some of us are feet, [41:17] some of us are the tongue that talks, [41:19] some of us are the ears that listen.

[41:22] We’re just these different parts, [41:23] but if somebody rips off my ear, guess what? [41:25] I’m handicapped.

[41:29] Maybe you are the ear to someone else’s mouth [41:32] and you can be a great guider for them. [41:35] You hear what someone’s saying before that they do, [41:37] so that you can tell them, here’s what they meant by that. [41:40] They need our help. [41:41] And I can’t figure out what to say to them,

[41:43] but I know you can.

[41:45] See, God calls us to be partners to further His gospel. [41:50] Invest, invest, invest. [41:53] Some of us use 1% of our income to further the gospel. [41:57] Where’s the other 99% going?

[42:01] I don’t just mean offering, part of it is, [42:04] but the other part is, is where is 99% of your income going? [42:09] For some of you, where’s 100% of your income going? [42:12] Is it going to things that proactively and intentionally [42:15] further the gospel in your life and the lives of others? [42:18] When was the last time you were generous?

[42:21] Now, some of you are giving 1% of your time to the gospel. [42:24] Where’s the other 99% going? [42:26] Do you really need to watch that episode again?

[42:32] Fourthly, trust.

[42:35] Because when you’re showing up, and when you’re investing, [42:38] at the end of the day, you’ve got to trust [42:39] God’s going to do something with it. [42:42] And you say, that sounds redundant. [42:43] That’s the way it works, that’s the gospel. [42:45] Every time Paul says something that the gospel is doing

[42:49] in my life, and something that I need to do with it, [42:51] he begins it by giving me the gospel of Jesus Christ, [42:54] and then once he’s done giving me an imperative, [42:57] guess what, he follows it up. [42:58] [42:58] He’s following it up with another declaration

[42:59] of the gospel, because he knows that while I’m doing it, [43:01] I might forget the gospel and think it’s all about me.

[43:06] Trust, show up, invest, and then trust.

[43:12] Friends, Jesus has given us everything.

[43:16] God has fully revealed everything. [43:21] He’s given us a great journey that we can walk on [43:24] under his power, where we do not have to depend [43:27] on ourselves, but rather, we can fully depend on him.

[43:33] Now we are entering into a season as a church [43:36] where God has already done mighty things. [43:40] If you’re new here, you’ve missed some stuff [43:43] that God’s done, but welcome, because you’re about [43:46] to be a part of God doing even more. [43:49] And I’m telling you this, that God is going to build

[43:54] his church, and he’s going to build part of it [43:56] through this local church, the village church. [43:58] Now what that’s going to depend on is us gathering together [44:01] all of our giftings and pushing forward.

[44:06] We must be willing to sacrifice that which is temporary [44:11] for that which is eternal, and we trust that it is eternal [44:14] because of what Jesus has done. [44:18] I can only trust in the gifts of God if I trust [44:22] in the savior that has given them to me.

[44:32] Jesus has given us a new life.

[44:38] Stop depending on the old one. [44:42] Break through into the life of the spirit.

[44:49] Next week, we’re going to get even further [44:50] when we talk about prayer. [44:53] We’re going to spend two weeks on that. [44:56] Prayer is the fuel to the kindling of God’s fire. [45:00] Then we’re going to finish it up with two weeks [45:03] on decision making and the will of God.

[45:07] How do we know we’re doing what God has called us to do?

[45:12] It’s all through the spirit, and it all starts, [45:17] it’s not back there anymore, it all starts with his gifts. [45:23] All of it.

[45:26] Right now, we’re going to enter into a time of communion, [45:29] the bank, and come on up.

[45:32] It all starts with trusting Jesus. [45:34] I said that’s step one, but what are we trusting in? [45:37] We’re trusting that his body was broken, [45:40] his blood was shed to pay a penalty that I owed [45:43] to a God that I could not obey.

[45:47] I deserved to die, but Jesus took that death for me.

[45:53] And we can celebrate that death because he rose again [45:57] three days later, victorious. [45:59] He defeated sin, it no longer has the power over me. [46:03] I now can obey God freely, and he defeated death. [46:08] So I know that I’ve been reconciled with God, [46:10] and I will spend eternity in worship of him.

[46:14] Do you trust him today? [46:17] If you’re in here this morning and you say, [46:19] I haven’t seen the work of the spirit, [46:20] I don’t know that I’ve ever really seen it. [46:22] I’ve never really trusted in him. [46:24] Today is the day of salvation for you.

[46:27] If you’ve already trusted him today, [46:30] I want you to come forward, and I want you to declare [46:32] to one another and declare to God that Christ has died, [46:35] Christ has risen, Christ will come again, [46:38] and until then, I will invest my life and my gifts [46:42] to further his kingdom.

[46:45] That’s what you’re proclaiming today, don’t take it lightly. [46:49] But if you don’t know him, I’d love to talk to you. [46:54] I’d love to introduce you to the man that saved my life.

[46:58] Church, when you’re ready, come.