This Sunday marks the beginning of the Advent season. It is the time
when we focus on Christ coming to the world. God had a plan to redeem His
people. He declared His plan to His prophets over the centuries and is
fulfilling His Word even now. Advent is a beautiful season of reflection and
anticipation. In our quitter moments, we sometimes are confronted with two
questions: What have I done with my life? and What will I do with the rest of
my life? These questions are not so much in regards to the details of life,
what jobs we had, where we lived or what our college roommate will be like next
year or who will we marry. Rather, we ask them in search of the significant
purpose of our lives.
Advent is a time for asking the big questions of life, though this
season tends to crowd out the quiet spaces, making us tired and worn out, and
leaving us no room for reflection, let’s try to make room for some reflection.
When you do find such time; ask this one big question of your life. What is
God’s plan for me personally? Where do I fit in God’s overall purpose?
Two weeks ago we started talking about finding, “Your Place on God’s
Dream Team.” I shared about how to assess our true potential, in order to know
our true potential we need to employ sober judgment from Romans 12:1-3, Paul
exhorted the Roman believers saying, “As your spiritual teacher I give this
piece of advice to each one of you. Don’t cherish exaggerated ideas of yourself
or your importance, but try to have a sane estimate of your capabilities by the
light of the faith that God has given to you all.” J.B Philips. We learned that
sober judgment means to have a sane estimation of our gifts, capabilities and
weaknesses. Which means not to overestimate or under estimate our gifts,
instead we take a realistic view of ourselves. After exhorting the believers not to have an elevated view of oneself,
he compares human body, to church the body of Christ, whose head is the Lord
Jesus himself.
I. MANY PARTS BUT ONE BODY (Vs 4-5)
“For as in one physical body we have many parts (organs, members) and
all of these parts do not have the same function or use, So we, numerous as we
are, are one body in Christ (the Messiah) and individually we are parts one of
another (mutually dependent on one another) (AMP). The scriptures tell us that
we are fearfully and wonderfully made.
The human body is a complete wonder. Here are a couple of facts about
the human body:
The human body is estimated to have 60,000 miles of blood vessels. To
put that in perspective, the distance around the earth is about 25,000 miles,
making the distance your blood vessels could travel if laid end to end more
than two times around the earth. Nerve impulses to and from the brain travel as
fast as 170 miles per hour. Ever wonder how you can react so fast to things
around you or why that stubbed toe hurts right away? It’s due to the super
speedy movement of nerve impulses from your brain to the rest of your body and
vice versa, bringing reactions at the speed of a high powered luxury sports
car.[1]
In our passage in Romans 12: 4-5, the Apostle Paul uses the graphic
example of the human body. Why human body? There are three points from this
analogy we can observe. First, the body represents completeness, a whole, a
totality but a totality made up of different parts. Similarly, we who make up
the body of Christ have different functions. We are not all the same. We are
gifted in different ways. Just as the physical body needs hands, feet, ears and
eyes to enable it to function properly, so the body of Christ needs those with
different gifts to enable it to function properly. We are to have unity through
diversity. Isn't it wonderful to know that we all don’t have to behave just
alike? It is perfectly OK to be different.
Secondly, we see in this analogy we don’t have to do it all by
ourselves.” We do our part and we will let others do their part. In the end
together we will get the job done. Together we will do the work of the ministry
for the Lord. Thirdly Paul emphasizes
our mutual dependence in the Body of Christ. We really need each other. No
member of Christ’s body can go off on a desert island and be a victorious
Christian all by herself. God has purposefully made us so that we are
incomplete without the ministry of other brothers and sisters in the Body of
Christ.
It is important to recognize that it is God who has arranged all the
body parts as he saw it fit in our physical body. Similarly God has placed
different members in the body of Christ and blessed them with different gifts.
Though we are individually separated from each other spiritually we are all
interconnected and interdependent of one another. Let’s look at what those
various gifts are and how each of those gifts corresponds to a part of the
physical body.
II. DIVERSE GIFTS BUT ONE
GIVER (Vs 6-8)
We have
different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift
is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if
it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage,
then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it
is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully. We see in this passage seven different gifts
mentioned: 1. Prophecy (perceiver) 2.
Server. 3 Teacher. 4. Exhorter (encouragement) 5. Giver 6. Leader
(Administration) 7. Compassion person. Don & Katie Fortune in their book
“Discovering Your God given gifts.” compares these seven gifts to seven part of
human body. Perceiver (the eye of the
body). Server (the hands of the body).Teacher (the
mind of the body). Exhorter (the mouth of the body). Giver (the arms of the
body). Leader/Administration (the shoulders of the body). Compassion person:
(the heart of the body).[2]
Let’s take a moment and identify where your place might be in the body of
Christ; God’s Dream team! Whatever place you might find yourself in that is a
very important place.We can put
all these seven gifts into two broad categories. I Peter 4:10-11 “Each of you
should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful
stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. 11 If anyone speaks, they should
do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do
so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised
through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever.
Amen.
According to this scripture there are two basic categories of gifts: the
speaking gifts and serving gifts.The first
four gifts (Teacher, Perceiver, Exhorter, and Leader) can be placed under
speaking gifts. The other three (Compassion Person, Giver and Server) can be
placed under serving gifts. If we look
around in our church each of us can either fall into one of the two categories.
But it doesn't really matter which category you may fall into, the bottom line of these
gifts is that they were not meant for ourselves but to use them to serve
others. How do we do that? We do it cheerfully and by the strength God gives us
so that in everything God may be praised through Jesus Christ. When we all
faithfully function to our fullest potential; our church body will become
healthier and more productive for God’s glory.
Let’s pause for a while
and reflect on our own lives! Have we recognized the gifts that God has given
us? If so how have we used those gifts, did we use them to serve others? Have we become the
dispensers of God’s grace through our gifts? Have we brought glory to God
through our gifts? Remember; whatever gift you may have received you did not
deserve it; God gave it to you out of His own will; so that none of us can
boast about our gifts. He gave those gifts so that we might work together in
building His Kingdom in Quincy and beyond.
In closing, there are
different members in the body empowered with different gifts by the same God
who freely chose to give those gifts to us. The purpose of gifts has always been
will always meant to be for serving one another and building up of the body of
Christ. God desires that we all grow up, become mature and become men and
women, by attaining the fullness of Christ and the completeness found in Him. Let’s be clear on one thing; none of us can
attain to that stature all by ourselves; we need each other in the body of
Christ. We all are connected to the rest of the Body of Christ; God’s dream
Team.
This morning before you
leave this service, I want you to understand that God has a plan God has a plan
for you and a place for you in His Dream Team. Don’t settle for less than what
God has for you. Do you realize that you are part of a Championship Team? You are
a part of His Body on earth, in other words you represent Him. You actually
become His Hands, His Feet, His voice, His heart, His Eyes and His healing
agent wherever you are, whoever you talk too…. What an awesome responsibility
to know God’s plan and our part on His Dream Team. Amen
