Tag Archives: Gifts

There Are Two Sides of the Spiritual Realm

16 Oct

Paul says in the 12th Chapter of I Cor. That the church, as the body of Christ, are believers, exercising various gifts, even as the human body have different functions and purposes. Paul describes how these members working harmoniously together, become the mystical Body of Christ on earth. Without the Gifts of the Spirit, the Church becomes something quite different from that which God intended. Instead of being a supernatural organism, the Church is then only another human organization.

  • There is no evidence whatever that the Gifts ceased because the Lord withdrew them. (Gordon Lindsay, All About the Gifts of the Spirit)

    A Scripture that has been commonly used by those who hold the position that the Gifts of the Spirit have ceased is I Cor. 13:8-10. Here we are told that prophecies, and tongues, and knowledge shall cease, or pass away. Just one glance at the Scripture shows however, that the period referred to is not this age at all, but the perfect age which is yet to come! (Lindsay)

    • 8 Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.
    • 9  For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.
    • 10  But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away. (KJV)

    Many hold back in seeking the Gifts or even the knowledge of them. Some have decided (without Scriptural confirmation) that  the manifestations of the Spirit they see couldn’t possibly be “holy”, so they mistakenly decide that it must be from the devil himself.  We all have a little fear of the unknown but without knowing the facts it is like watching a football game without knowing there is a football on the field! We would just see big men, dressed kind of strangely, running around and knocking each other down! We would see part of it but not understand what it was all about because we didn’t know what the object of the “game” was.

  • We actually need the Spiritual Gifts to give us power in the battle – in our spiritual warfare. Scriptures give us means to test the spirits and discern which is not from God. Keep in mind that satan always attempts to counterfeit what God does. There will always be people in the world who prefer to believe in the evil side of the spiritual realm than the godly side. Why is that? If we can believe the things we read in God’s Word it should be evident that God doesn’t do things like man does. There is a touch of the supernatural in so many of the Biblical testimonies. God has not ceased to do His mighty works. The Scripture above does not mean that after Jesus came all the other miracles of God ceased! Just the opposite – Jesus came to fulfill those promises and magnify those gifts. If you read the verses again you will see that “when that which is perfect is come” — that means when Jesus comes to take us all home — He will take the place of everything we have known – He IS love and love (charity) NEVER fails.

  • Regular Bible reading is so vital to our spiritual growth! If we don’t study God’s Word for ourselves we will listen to so many untruths about God and His ways, including the gifts He has so freely given us to live in a world full of hate and evil. It seems obvious that we need His gifts in order to help us overcome our obstacles, as Jesus promised. Jesus also told us (in Scripture) that we would do GREATER things than He did (provided we are born-again believers).  We really need to relax a little about God’s spiritual gifts.

  • I heard a story about a man being given a tour of heaven after having just arrived. During the tour, he was shown many beautiful things. The angel  guiding him passed up one particularly large room with a beautiful door. The new resident of heaven asked why they passed it by without looking in. He was told that if he were to look inside the room he would become very sad. But, the new resident pleaded until he was granted permission. When the door was opened he saw a room full of unopened gifts – all sizes and shapes – beautifully wrapped. He asked the angel what all the gifts were for. He was told by the angel that they were gifts from God, intended for him while we was on earth but that they were never accepted.

  • Wouldn’t you just be heart-broken if you knew you were refusing to accept amazing gifts from your Heavenly Father? He won’t force them on us. He loves us enough that He gave us His only Son. Why in the world would He then offer us something that would hurt us in any way? God loves us so much. Think of how you have felt at a time when you wanted to give something special to someone you love and it was rejected. Remember how it felt. You were probably hurt and/or disappointed. But, you can’t force someone to accept a gift. A gift is just that – a gift. A gift is something given to someone to express love or appreciation.  It is usually something special, out of the ordinary.

  • What better way for God to express His love and appreciation for us and to reveal more of Himself to us than to give us Spiritual Gifts? God IS Spiritual – His gifts should be supernatural. He does give us all kinds of gifts in the natural – some we don’t even realize are gifts. God IS love – He desires to bless us. His spiritual gifts are one of the ways He does that. It is one of the ways He shows His love.

  • This is the season for Halloween – spooky – strange things. It is one of the largest holidays celebrated – bigger than Christmas to some merchants. People are curious about the supernatural – more so the evil side. They aren’t so willing to accept the godly side. Please understand that the spiritual realm is very real – both sides. We know plenty of the world’s carnal side – we need to desire more of God’s supernatural side. Our pride is usually what keeps us from it.

  • Pray about it. Study the Scriptures and ask God to open your heart to His truth. He won’t embarrass you. He won’t force anything on you. He wants you to have everything you need to fight the spiritual battle you face every day of your life. Trust Him.

    In addition to my own material I have included quotes from the following:

    • C. Peter Wagner “Your Spiritural Gifts”
    • Gordon Lindsay “All About the Gifts of the Spirit”
    • Adult Education and Discipleship Ministries – FBC – Garland “Gifts are for Giving”
    • Biblesoft Libraries
    • Sandy Trice
    • David Francis
    • KJV
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    • What Do You Love To Do?

    3 Jul

    Discovering Our Spiritual Gifts (1)

    Rom 12:3-8
    4 Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we who are many form one body , and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. 7 If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; 8 if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully. NIV

    I want to do a series on Spiritual Gifts. I believe that every Christian should know their Spiritual Gift. Knowing your gift will assist you in understanding why you do what you do. You will also better understand those close to you and what motivates them.

    A Spiritual Gift is sort of like an assignment from God. It is an ability He give us. Some may describe it as a natural ability we possess. This gift from God motivates us to use our talents in a specific area.

    As born-again Christians we have been commissioned by God to go into all the world with the Good News. Hold on – this isn’t just for Pastors, Music Leaders, Sunday School Teachers and other Church Leaders. We all have a part to play. Remember that Jesus said we are all one body of which He is the head. God empowers us with the desire and the energy to accomplish His work with excitement, not dread. There is a difference between “good work” and “God work”.

    The Spiritual (Motivational) gift God has given you makes you happy. You are the happiest when you are using this gift. You seem to have more energy in this particular area. You get excited at the thought of being involved in projects where your gift can be used. God has something for each of us to do for Him. He never intended for us to just sit and watch everybody else get things done.

    As an example, let’s take a look at how many workers are needed for any event. A successful event cannot be accomplished by only one person. There are a number of gifted and talented people involved. Look at the list below to get an idea of some of the helpers needed in any event. This list covers only a few of the areas where those with differing gifts will be asked to help.

    • The Origination of the event – A Banquet
    • Establish a Committee to make decisions
    • A Treasurer
    • A Secretary
    • A Venue
    • A Caterer
    • Decorations
    • Tables & Chairs
    • Table Linens
    • Musicians
    • Media Person
    • Concessions
    • T-Shirts
    • Transportation
    • Printer
    • Speaker
    • Entertainment

    This will give you an idea of the teamwork required to create a successful event. Everyone has a particular area of interest they are responsible for. No one is more important than the other. It takes everyone doing their part to make it all happen successfully.

    We can’t all be the leader. Each one of God’s children is gifted and their gift is as important as any other on the team. Consider a football team without a football; a concert without musicians; A play without actors.

    God has distributed His gifts throughout the church to prepare us to do His work – so that we can help one another – so that we can build up one another.

    Throughout this series we are going to examine this subject closely. God gave His children, you and me, ministry gifts, speaking gifts, gifts of faith, the desire and ability to serve, a hunger to speak to the world about Jesus (Evangelism), the ability to understand and explain God’s Word to others, the ability to lead, the heart of mercy to comfort those in pain, and exhortation to help people in setting goals.

    These are only a few of God’s gifts to us. Stay with me and we will explore this subject in greater detail. I invite your comments and questions.

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    Everyone Is Watching You!

    12 Jun

    Let’s get back to Lydia. Lydia was raised as a pagan, worshiping idols, but she knew something was missing. She renounced that and became a proselyte (a new convert). God had prepared her heart and upon meeting with Paul, she became a believer. Clearly, Lydia immediately embraced Jesus and her new-found place in His kingdom. Her heart was filled with joy and gratitude and a desire to share Christ. She also immediately wanted to do her part to further God’s message and to minister to His servants.

    How could we possibly know all this through the brief mention of Lydia in the Bible? Scripture does not say all of that. Oh! But it does. All throughout God’s Word we learn of God and His ways. We learn through the examples in stories we read about. From that we can determine that Lydia responded just the way God wanted her to. Lydia had no Scriptures to read. She had not heard the gospel before meeting Paul on that divinely appointed day. She hadn’t heard how God wanted her to behave. What she did have now, that she didn’t have before, was the Holy Spirit of God living in her heart in leading her in the way to go!

    Lydia had and not read any self-help books or watched any TV preachers, or even gone to church and sat under Sunday School teachers and Bible study leaders. She “just knew” in her heart what to do by the leading and guiding of the Holy Spirit. Lydia was also humble, as evidenced by the way she spoke to Paul and Silas in invited them to her home.

    Let’s bring this story into the 21st century. We don’t much like being around grumpy, whiny people who are always negative and always complaining. The spirit within us rejects this. There is just something about a joyful, smiling individual who offers encouragement and a positive attitude. Our day is brightened and our hearts changed and uplifted. That’s what God is all about. He is a good God. He has given to us promise after promise throughout His Word. We can learn from the Scripture that loving God and following Him doesn’t promise us a life without trials and tribulations. We may also suffer loss and pain. The good news God has for us is that Jesus came to overcome the world and to make us also overcomers through Him.

    God wants us to learn dependence upon Him. He wants us to trust Him and let Him lead us. Our actions and our reactions tell others just how much we love and trust God. We can say it all we want. Our actions may confirm what we say or negate what we say. If you think no one is watching – be aware – everyone is watching.

    This doesn’t mean we should do everything we can to make others think more of us or like us more. Actually, that would totally backfire. It may work briefly but in time, it would become obvious. The point is, every life around us is on display, today, in this time, more so than ever. Think about those we see every day and the thoughts that run through our minds as we observe them or listen to them. It doesn’t take long for us to notice things that we like or dislike, or things we agree with or object to. Know that the way we live our lives for Christ becomes clear to those around us. Just be careful not to judge. That is not our place, but God’s.

    Let Lydia be an example! Live with an open heart, a humble spirit, the joy of the Lord, a willing and serving heart, and a desire to tell others about God and His love. Lydia was brave, conscientious and hospitable. She had a giving spirit. Lydia had been searching for truth and when she found it she knew in her heart her life was forever changed. She wasted no time opening her heart her life and her home to God’s people.

    We can also see through Lydia’s actions that she was wise. Lydia was not presumptuous but humble. She presented herself to the men of God in good taste and in reverence. Lydia was a gracious hostess and not intimidated by these mighty men of God. She was confident, yet respectful in approaching them with an invitation to her home. We can surmise that Lydia was experienced in how to approach people and how to present herself because of her ability as a seller of purple, a much sought after item in those times. But, she did not see herself as inferior to these mighty men of God. Nor did she “get in their face”. She was humble in their presence and wanted to be used by God to do what she could to help them. She started with what she had.

    Start with what you have. Don’t wait for something to come along that you perceive to be necessary before you can serve God or His people. He gave you gifts and talents and knowledge that only you have. Let Him use you – just as you are!

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