February 18, 2007Who Are You? #2: Unwrapping My Spiritual Gifts 1 Corinthians 12:1,4-7,27 What if you one day opened your front door, and there, sitting on your doorstep was a gift? Would you be inclined to open it? Or would you question why you got the gift? Or wonder where the gift came from? Would you receive the gift with a grateful heart or fear opening it because it may require you to give something in return? You know, about 12 years ago I found myself asking those very same questions. You see, I knew my life was good (job, house, husband, kids) – but I still felt there was something missing. A “purpose” for “my” life. It was only after I opened my heart to Jesus and accepted him as my savior I received a very special gift, one with my name on it. On it the tag read, “Your free gift of eternal life”. It was then I started discovering the plans God had for my life. It wasn’t long until God gave me another gift. One I didn’t open right away. One that I kept all wrapped up – too scared to open it. Let me take you back to that time…… Today we’re going to talk about Spiritual gifts. God is a giver. He is patiently waiting for you to have a relationship with him. The first thing you need to understand is that the moment you give your life to Jesus Christ, God gives you three things. I. THREE GIFTS GOD GIVES ME WHEN I TRUST CHRIST 1. Eternal life. When I open my life to Jesus Christ, I'm given eternal life. "The wages of sin is death but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23 I don’t have to worry about where I’ll spend eternity, I know I'm going to heaven. . 2. His Spirit. The moment I give my life to Jesus Christ, God gives His Spirit to me - to live inside me. The Bible says God has given us His Spirit to fill our hearts with His love. God is with you from every point on after you give your life to Christ. Most of you know about those two gifts -- the gift of eternal life and the gift of God's Spirit in you. There's a third gift God gives you the moment you give your life to Christ. 3. A special ability to use for His purpose. God gives you a Spiritual Gift. Romans 12:6 "God has given each of us the ability to do certain things well.". When you are saved, when you become a believer, a follower of Jesus Christ, God gives you a brand new purpose for living, a new life purpose. And He never asks you to do something that He doesn't give you the ability to do. So when He gives you a new life purpose, He also, at the point of salvation, gives you a special gift or gifts to fulfill that purpose. A Spiritual Gift. The Bible has a lot to say about spiritual gifts. There are at least twenty of them listed in Scripture. The Bible says that every Christian gets at least one gift. A Spiritual gift is different from a natural ability. Everybody has natural abilities. Only believers of Jesus Christ have Spiritual gifts. Talent depends on natural power, Spiritual Gifts depend on spiritual endowment. When you were born physically, you were given some physical gifts by God. Hear, taste, touch, sight, smell... When you're spiritually born – also known as “born again” -- God gives you some spiritual abilities to serve Him. Every believer has at least one. They are given to you at the moment of salvation. God gives them sovereignty. That means He chooses which ones you're going to get -- you don't choose. They're given by grace – meaning - you don't earn the gift. It's just God's free gift to you. II. WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO KNOW MY SPIRITUAL GIFT? Because the Scripture tells us God wants you to know it. I Corinthians 12:1 says "I don't want you to be ignorant of gifts. I want you to know them." God isn’t talking about knowing what every gift is, he’s talking about you discovering the gift he has given YOU. The first reason to know why it’s important to know your Spiritual Gift is: 1. My Gifts Show God's Plan For My Life. I Corinthians 12;4-6 "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 works in all of them." Your spiritual gifts determine how God wants you to serve Him. Once you understand what your spiritual gift is, that was given to you the moment you were saved, it answers a lot of questions, like "What's God's will for my life?", "What does He want me to do now that I'm a Christian?", "What should be my ministry?", "How should I spend my time?", "Where should I focus my life?", "What is God's will and purpose and plan for me?" All of these factors are answered when you understand your gift. Every Christian is called to serve the cause of Christ, but your spiritual gift shows how you are to serve Him. If you're gifted in organizing then God wants you to be an organizer. If your gifted in teaching then you need to be a teacher. If you're gifted in music then you ought to be a music person. If you're gifted in reaching non Christians you ought to be an evangelist. Whatever you're gifted in determines how you're to use your life for God. Notice the word "differences". It's used three times here. It says there are different kinds of spiritual gifts, different kinds of service, there are different kinds of working. Every gift in your life is unique. You're not to copy other people's spiritual gifts. Sometimes there’s a temptation for us to want to copy someone else’s gift. God doesn't want you to copy anybody else. He knows the gift that is best for you. That's why He choose it. (OK – let me confess, I used to be jealous because God didn’t give me long legs and a beautiful singing voice. C’mon now, you all have your “wish list”. But let’s go back to last week’s sermon, God created each of us uniquely – as His Masterpiece. When I think about that, I truly am grateful for what he has given me – for my gift of Administration and Service. Maybe those long legs and singing voice will be my heavenly body!) Our Spiritual Gifts can even explain why Christians - who believe the same things - still see things differently. Why? It's because of your giftedness. We see things differently because we tend to emphasize what we're gifted in. If you're gifted in evangelism all you can think about is reaching non Christians for Christ. Another person says, No, we don't need to reach more non Christians; we need to help the Christians we've got to grow. That's teaching. Don’t believe me, let me do a quick exercise I do with the folks who take the “Discovery My SHAPE Class”. After I say what I’m about to say, I want you to write down, or think in mind, what your very first reaction would be to this situation. Ready? You’re at a friends house. You know they made your favorite dessert. Mine happens to be a carrot cake – you imagine whatever yours would be. As the hostess emerges from the kitchen, you already licking your chops, she takes a nose dive and drops the dessert on the floor. OK what’s your first reaction?
Let’s take a look at different reactions according to a persons giftedness: But do you see how the different gifts are expressed? Every SG gives off clues that will cause you to act or react in a certain way in a given situtation. Your Spiritual Gift reflects God’s design and direction for your life. It’s part of what makes you – YOU. 2. My Gifts Show My Worth. 1 Corinthians 12:27 "All of you form the one body of Christ and each one is a separate and necessary part of it." Circle "necessary". That means - you're needed. You're important. You are valuable. There are no little people. You are just as important in the body of Christ as I am, as Pastor Jerry is and yes, even as important as Billy Graham. Every gift is needed. My gift is the power God gives me to bless others. God designed you to make a unique contribution. You're not gifted by accident. It shows that you're worthy. You are needed in the body of Christ. If I don't use my gift, you get cheated. If you don't use your gift, I get cheated. Without you the picture isn't complete. It's like a jigsaw puzzle with one part missing. Parents, you want to raise the spiritual self esteem of your children? A helpful thing to do is, once they've come to know the Lord, start helping them develop their spiritual gifts -- discover and develop them. Then each child can see "I can make an important contribution with my life." It raises their self esteem. Their gift shows them and shows us our worth. 3. My Gifts Are The Key To Fulfillment In Life. Every human being has the desire to be needed. Every human being has the desire to accomplish something, to feel significant, to feel like your life makes an impact. When you use the spiritual gift that God has given you you're not only productive, but you also enjoy it. It's fun! Notice John 15:8 and 11 "This is how my father's glorified in your becoming fruitful productive and in being my disciples. I've told you this so that you can share my joy and that your joy may be complete." Real joy does not come from making a lot of money. (Just take a look at Hollywood – plastic surgery is the fix for those unhappy with their looks, multiply marriages are prevalent as they continually seek to find the one that makes them happy, and the list goes fan) Real joy does not come from things. Joy does not come from: money, power, things or circumstances. Real joy comes from knowing Christ and knowing my life is productive, that it counts, that it matters. Real joy comes from knowing who I am in Jesus Christ (his child, his unique masterpiece). You find real joy by being what God meant you to be, by taking the gifts, the abilities He's given you, unwrapping them and start using them. There's nothing to compare to it. The thrill of being used by God is the greatest feeling and thrill you can experience in life. I know some of you can comprehend that – and some of you that just can’t. I would say if you've never experienced what it feels like to be used by God, using your gifts, you have not learned to really live yet. You're missing out on so much. Trust me on this one. Nothing compares to knowing that God gave me a gift and I'm using it and God is blessing it. God wants you to feel that feeling. He wants you to unwrap that gift. And he wants you to use it so you can experience the satisfaction that can compare to nothing else. He wants you to feel that. Three reasons:
III. WHAT DOES GOD WANT ME TO DO WITH MY SPIRITUAL GIFT(S)? He wants you to do three things: 1. Discover it. 1 Corinthians 14:1 "Eagerly desire spiritual gifts." Circle "desire". One of the marks that you can know that you're really a Christian is that you have a desire to know your spiritual gift and to use it serving God. How do I discover my spiritual gifts? Two ways to discover your gifts are by examining and experimenting. By examining my Christian life and by experimenting with different kinds of service. First, I discover my spiritual gifts by examining: Ask, "In the ways I've served God so far, what have I enjoyed doing? What has God blessed? Where have people been impacted? Where have I seen results?" If you've never gotten involved in any ministries since you've become a Christian there's no way you're going to know your gift. But when you are involved, often times other people will see a spiritual gift in you before you do. They can see it in you. The second way to discover your spiritual gift is by experimenting. (Now, if you don't have anything to look back on so far you're going jump right to this step.) - and that is by experimenting with different kinds of ministries and service. There must be 100 different ways for you to serve just at SUMC alone. We have all kinds of different ministries. Begin experimenting or trying one that interests you. On March 25th you’ll have the opportunity to decide how and where you can use your gifts. March 25th will be Time and Talent Stewardship Sunday. You’ll hear more about that in the coming weeks. You may have to try a few areas of service before one of them will feel like your niche, what God's gifted you to do, what you're good at. It will be enjoyable. You'll like doing it. You’ll feel as sense of worth and accomplishment. When you feel that, you most likely found your gift. It’s important to note that part of learning what your good at – is learning what you’re not good at. But as you try different things, you’ll eventually find yourself engaged in something during which time flies and you’ll feel a sense of connection to God. When I first became a believer... If you had told me 12 years ago that someday I'd be standing right here today, sharing with you today, I'd have said, "You're crazy!" I was in a place many of you may be right now. “What open my gift? No not yet”. Are some of you there right now? Have you been stuck there for a while? But then when I decided I wanted more out of life, I opened not only the gift God had given me, I opened a whole new world. I started small, trying this and that, and then “bam” I hit the sweet spot. A place where I could “feel” God’s pleasure in what I was doing and I could experience the pleasure and satisfaction is gave me. I then realized God had a plan for my life. I was important and needed in His Kingdom. The only way you discover your gift is get out there and start doing something. Try it. We have a class here in our church that helps you discover your spiritual gift along with the rest of your SHAPE. Let me encourage you to take the “Discovery My SHAPE” Class. 2. Develop it The second thing you need to do is develop it once you've discovered it. Paul tells Timothy in 1 Timothy 4:14 "Don't neglect the spiritual gift that is in you." Circle "neglect". A lot of you already know what you're good at. You know how God's gifted you. But you're not using it for God's glory. You're neglecting your spiritual gift. Why? I don't know. Maybe you think, "I'm too busy" or "I've got the wrong priorities" or "Maybe I'm just lazy". Maybe it's the fear of failure or embarrassment. Satan will do everything he can to keep you from discovering and developing your spiritual gift. He'll try to get you involved in all kinds of other good things to keep you from the best so you don't know that thrill of being used by God. Don't get discouraged. Don't quit. Keep it alive, strengthen it, deepen it, increase it, cultivate it. Just because you're gifted in an area doesn't mean it's easy. I'm gifted in Administration but it's not always easy to stay organized in a church this size. You may be gifted in counseling or caring for people who are hurting - but that's not easy week after week. Just don't give up. Keep on going. God will give us the strength we need to persevere. 3. Use it. The third thing God wants you to do is use it. Use my gift. 1 Peter 4:10 "Each one should use whatever spiritual gift he has received to serve others, faithfully managing God's grace in its various forms." Circle "use". God wants you to use it. Each person should use their Spiritual Gift for building up the Church, the body of Christ. That's one of the purposes of SUMC - to help you discover, develop and use your gift. Ephesians 4:12 "Why is it that he gives us these special abilities to do certain things best? It's so God's people will be equipped to do better work for Him, building up the church, the body of Christ, to a position of strength and maturity." When I look at this I think God's plan is brilliant. God's plan is this: "Everyone will get a spiritual gift if you're a Christian so that everybody can contribute, so that everybody's important, so that nobody feels insignificant, so that we all function together. Every person can be a partner with God in the most important task in the world, building His kingdom." God's plan is that some people set up, some people organize, some people do music, some people teach, some people work with kids, some people know how to raise the money financially, some people put it all together. Everybody's important. No one is more important than the others. It's all God's plan. It takes everybody. Right now there are scores of people who have discovered their gift and are actively involved in a ministry. Many of them are behind the scenes and you'll never even know them. But they're what makes this church run to benefit everybody. What motivates somebody like that to keep on serving, helping, working, ministering when nobody applauds them. What gives them the motivation? What keeps them keeping on? They're gifted to do it! You just have to know from experience when you're gifted to do something and you do it, it is pleasurable, satisfying and fulfilling! That's the way God meant for it to be. When you use your Spiritual Gift you will find: Joy, Satisfaction and Fulfillment. Folks this is serious business. In Matthew 25 there's a very important story called the Parable of the Talents. Jesus told an entire story to say this, "One day you're going to stand before God and the ultimate question is going to be, `What did you do with what I gave you?'" That's the whole purpose of that story, "What did you do with what I gave you?" One day there's going to be a final exam. I want you to be able to give the right answer. Let me give you a pop quiz. Question #1: Are you a follower of Jesus Christ? If you are, then let me ask you this: Are you using your Spiritual Gift? Are you contributing to the body of Christ? If not, what excuse are you giving? When you stand before Jesus Christ one day with pierced hands who died on the cross for you and He says, "What reason do you give for not discovering and developing and using your gift?" What response will you give? What we're talking about here is of vital importance. God is not going to hold you accountable for gifts He didn't give you. But He is going to hold you accountable for gifts He did give you. Discovering your SG is not your ultimate goal, using them to bless others is. God has made an investment in you and it is a sin to waste it. There are a lot of people out there who fear death. Don't fear death! If you're a believer you're going to heaven. Instead of fearing death, you ought to fear a wasted life. God has shaped you for significance. And the first of that shape -- S -- is spiritual gifts. Imagine what the church and our world could look like if each one of us used the gift God has given us? Now that you understand the importance of knowing and using your Spiritual Gift – let me ask you - What will you do with the gift God has given you?
Thank You for Taking The Time to Read This Message. |