St. John's Missionary Baptist Church is celebrating 130th years. This church is gifted. Every believer is gifted.
As we look at the text in 1 Peter 4:10-11 it indicates to us that every believer has been endowed with a special gift. Each person who has accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and savior has been given the gift of salvation or eternal life and we have been gifted with the internal presence of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit then manifests itself in the form of spiritual abilities or gifts.
Peter tells us the purpose of the gifts we have been given:
1) To serve one another
2) To glorify God through Jesus Christ
As we use our gifts to serve one another and carry out the purposes and plans of God, He is glorified. The text indicates that as we use our gifts we are now being good stewards of the grace of God that is working in our lives. Grace is the favor of God upon our lives. God has given us this favor for His purposes.
Two particular gifts are talked about in this text, the gift of speaking and the gift of serving. The person who has the gift of speaking utters the things of God. Their words should build people up and not tear people down. We would all love to be in a church that is building people up and not tearing people down. Wouldn’t all of us like to be a part of a church that is full of people who are serving because that is what God has called them to do. Wouldn’t we all like to be a part of a church where members were operating in their gifts, not judging and talking, and tearing down one another. For Ephesians 4:12 tells us the gifts were given for the perfecting or equipping of the saints, for the work of service or the ministry, and for the building up or edifying of the body of Christ. When we are using our gifts we will be doing these things.
Additional gifts are indicated in Romans 12:6-8; 1 Corinthians 12:8-10 and Ephesians 4:11. All churches are most powerful and most effective when the members, though they are many (1 Corinthian 12:20), are operating in their gifts and guided by one Spirit.
For this Church and so many others, 1 Corinthians 12:18 teaches us that every member in the church has been place there by God and this morning God tells us that each one has been given a special gift. Let us take a few application points to heart.
- Everyone should be viewed as special.
- Every believer is a part of the body of Christ.
- The body of Christ doesn’t function as it should unless every believer is doing its part.
- What we are doing should be done to the honor and glory of God.
I leave you with this prayer:
Lord, help us remember who we are in You. Lord, help us to remember that every part of the body is needed and necessary. Lord, help us to encourage one another and not tear one another down. Lord, help us to respect and utilize all the gifts that have been placed in each local body of believers. I ask this prayer in Jesus name. AMEN!
