Work and a Place for All

Pray for Your Church: Members (2)

But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills. 1 Corinthians 12.7-11

The work of the Holy Spirit
As we have seen, every true believer in Jesus Christ is indwelled by the Holy Spirit of God. He inhabits the regions of our soul—heart, mind, and conscience—and empowers the members of our bodies that we might be made more like Jesus and be faithful in our calling to bear witness to Him (2 Cor. 3.12-18; Acts 1.8).

The Spirit of God is at work within us, writing the Law of God on our heart, teaching us to obey it as the path Jesus walked, and making us willing and able to do what pleases our heavenly Father (Ezek. 36.26 27; 1 Jn. 2.1-6; Phil. 2.13). Our duty is to work with the Holy Spirit to work out the great salvation God has invested in us (Phil. 2.12). Growing in the grace and knowledge of the Lord, using the resources of His Word and prayer, worship and community, is where our work begins (2 Pet. 3.18). We want more of Jesus to be evident in us, and for this to be so, we must work and pray earnestly for one another.

But the Holy Spirit is given to create a unity and bond of peace between believers, beginning in every local congregation (Eph. 4.3). He does this by carefully assembling an array of spiritual gifts, which He distributes throughout each church to give everyone a place and work to do in Jesus’ project of building His Church. Every believer has spiritual gifts. These are like the talents in the Lord’s parable (Matt. 25.14-30). They must be put to good use for the profit of all our fellow believers. To neglect the gifts given to us is to incur the displeasure of the Lord for negligence of duty. We must pray for and encourage one another, seeking always to stimulate one another to love and good works through the spiritual gifts God gives us by His Spirit (Heb. 10.24).

Spiritual gifts
But what are spiritual gifts? 

Spiritual gifts may include natural abilities or learned skills, but they go beyond these. Spiritual gifts are special endowments of the Spirit of God, abilities and skills designed, tuned, given, and aimed at edifying our fellow believers and building the Lord’s church in unity and maturity as a sign and outpost of the Kingdom of God. Everyone who believes in Jesus has at least one spiritual gift, and likely more (see how Paul encourages us to desire spiritual gifts, 1 Cor. 14.1).

Spiritual gifts are of various kinds, as Paul suggests in the text above. Some are “word” gifts: of wisdom or knowledge. Such gifts might be useful in the church for teaching, counseling, problem-solving, or planning. Others have a gift of “faith”. These are the people you go to when you are down or discouraged. They know how to help you get refocused on the Lord and back into the orbit of His joy. Other people may have more dramatic and physical gifts—healing, miracles, speaking in tongues—but only to the extent these can be useful for edifying others and building the local church. Then there are “theological” gifts, we might say, which require the ability to interpret Scripture or discern the spirit of the times, again, for the strengthening of the whole body of believers.

There are also spiritual gifts of administration, giving, and helping in various ways—every sort of ability which may be necessary in a local church to help it realize its role in the progress of God’s Kingdom. This is not an exhaustive list. Neither is that at the end of 1 Corinthians 12 or in 1 Peter 4 or Ephesians 4. Spiritual gifts are thus given to address spiritual and physical needs in the Body of Christ, so that the local church might be the incarnation of Christ in its community. The Spirit of God Who dwells in us certainly has all the gifts all the time, and He may distribute any of them as He pleases, according to the needs or opportunities with which we are presented.

We must desire spiritual gifts—want them, want to know them, be aware of opportunities to engage and use them, understand how to develop and acquire them, and be faithful day by day, in every opportunity, to be the Spirit’s agent of grace to the people around us.

Pray for spiritual gifts
Seeking spiritual gifts begins in prayer. God has them. The Spirit will give them. Jesus employs them in His agenda. But we must seek them, praying daily for the gifts and manifestations of the Holy Spirit we will need each day to fulfill our calling as Kingdom-seekers devoted to glorifying God in everything we do.

And as we pray for ourselves, that we might have more spiritual gifts and make better use of them, let us not fail to pray for our fellow church members. In a healthy, growing church, all members are seeking, receiving, and putting to good use the gifts and endowments of the Spirit of God, to help one another grow in Jesus and to build His Church as His Body in our community.

Here’s a prayer you can use to pray for your fellow believers concerning spiritual gifts;

Holy Spirit,
Giver of every spiritual gift,
grant that I and my fellow believers
might seek Your gifts earnestly,
receive them gladly,
and use them day by day
to further the rule of King Jesus
in our lives, church, and world.
Fill us, Holy Spirit of God,
and empower us to walk with You
and do the work You have appointed for us
to the praise of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

For reflection
1. What spiritual gifts has the Holy Spirit given to you? How do you use them?

2. Would you say that you are actively desiring and seeking spiritual gifts? Explain.

3. Whom will you encourage today in their use of spiritual gifts?

Next step—Transformation: Make this a day in which you consciously and earnestly seek spiritual gifts and put them to good use in edifying your fellow believers and building Jesus’ church..

T. M. Moore

Give thanks
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).

Other columns of interest this week: Read Moore (from the book, Revived!); from Crosfigell, “He Knows What He’s Doing”, on the work of the Holy Spirit; and “The Bitter and Sweet Word” from our daily Scriptorium series, “Jesus throughout the Scriptures.” And new in our bookstore, Let God Be True and Enjoying God, both free to download and share.

Thank you.
Many of you are faithful and generous in praying for and supporting Crosfigell and The Fellowship of Ailbe. Thank you. I encourage all our readers to seek the Lord about becoming a supporter of The Fellowship of Ailbe. It’s easy to give to The Fellowship of Ailbe, and all gifts are, of course, tax-deductible. You can click here to donate online through credit card or PayPal or Anedot, or send your gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, P. O. Box 8213, Essex, VT 05451.

Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.