Are you a Christian? If you, by faith, have asked Christ to forgive you of your sin and to come into your heart and take over your life — you have been born again and you are a Christian. Something you need to realize by that relationship is that you are a member of our LORD’S church. That is a huge privilege and responsibility.
In order for His church to function the way He envisions, the Holy Spirit who indwells every believer has specially gifted each of us for the benefit of the whole body or church.
‘A spiritual gift’ is a skill or ability that enables a Christian to perform a function in the body of Christ with ease and effectiveness. That part is important – exercising your gift comes with a great measure of ease, and when you use it, good things happen. It is effective. It doesn’t fall flat.” Chuck Swindoll
The gifts that are given to us are spiritual in nature. The purpose or function of a spiritual gift is to build the body of Christ. Another truth is that spiritual gifts are part of who you are in Christ. For example, if you have the gift of mercy and you know of someone who is hurting, you feel absolutely drawn to come alongside that person to give comfort. Perhaps you have the gift of teaching. You can hardly wait to get together with others and explain the truths you have discovered, to them.
I believe that whatever gift you have, you will have a sense of fulfillment as you use it for the good of the body of Christ. A spiritual gift is in reality a manifestation of the Holy Spirit. The Apostle Paul, in 1 Corinthians 12:7 wrote, “A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other.” In Romans 12:8 we read, “If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership abilities, take the responsibility seriously. And, if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.” Do you see how practical and important these gifts are?
Dr. Charles Stanley wrote “Now I want you to think about something. If walking in the Spirit involves sensitivity to the promptings of the Holy Spirit, and if the Spirit manifests Himself through the gifts, is it possible for someone to walk in the Spirit without exercising his/her gift? Absolutely not! The Holy Spirit will reveal Himself in a special way through you, through the exercise of your gift. To refuse to use your gift is to say “no” to the Holy Spirit.”
What do you personally enjoy doing as it relates to the life of the church? There is a strong possibility that what you most enjoy doing is your spiritual gift or related to it. If you have no pleasure in serving, in any way – in the body of Christ, something is really wrong.
As a Christian, you have been gifted to serve, and to serve in the way the Holy Spirit has gifted you. The rest of the body of Christ, the church, is counting on you and needs you. To be hit and miss in your church attendance, or not attending at all, weakens you and the church. You are not receiving from others what you need for your growth and others are not receiving what the Holy Spirit wants to give, through you. I pray that those who are still not attending will really think about this. You are not receiving what you need and others are not receiving what the Holy Spirit wants to give through you.
I close this meditation with 3 absolutes about spiritual gifts:
1. Spiritual gifts are manifestations of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:7)
2. Spiritual gifts are given by the Holy Spirit for the common good of the entire church (1 Corinthians 12:7)
3. Spiritual gifts are given by the Holy Spirit as He wills (1 Corinthians 12:11)
May God bless you as you give of yourself in the way the Holy Spirit has wired, to the benefit of others. And may you be blessed as you receive from others what you need for your maturity in your faith.
In Christ,
Pastor Leonard
