Sunday,
August 4, 2013
INTRODUCING THE
GIFTS
I Pet. 4:7-11
Praise God for the opportunity last
Sunday to hear from Tim Dunham, our brother from Chiang Mai, Thailand. What a privilege to be personally acquainted
with another brother and sister whom the Lord is using on the other side of the
world. Not only are we vitally connected
with Tracy and Lindsay and their family and with Rianna, but we can now say
that we know Tim and his wife.
You have probably figured out by now
that regardless of what we talk about, it is not difficult to connect that
subject with the Holy Spirit. It is the
Holy Spirit who has sent the Dunham family and now the Tyson family to
Thailand, and the precedent for that practice is found clearly in the 13th
chapter of Acts, where the Holy Spirit told the leaders of the church at
Antioch to set apart Barnabas and Saul (Paul) for a special work. And if the missionaries in Chiang Mai do not
depend upon the Holy Spirit, they will accomplish little, for it is the Holy
Spirit who lives in them to guide them and empower them to the do the will of God.
Yes, over the past year we have
looked at the Holy Spirit from many different angles. The thing most noted by the gospel writers
about John the Baptist was his promise that Jesus would baptize in the Holy
Spirit. Jesus Himself told His apostles
that when He departed, He would then send the Comforter, the Helper, the One
called alongside, to be with them. When
Jesus promised His hearers of the possibility of rivers of living water flowing
out of them, He was talking about the Spirit.
At that time, the Spirit had not come to dwell with them because Jesus
had not yet been glorified, but the time came when He was glorified through His
crucifixion and resurrection. As He
promised, Jesus (together with the Father) did indeed send the Spirit.
Most recently we have spent a couple
of Sunday mornings talking about revival.
Though there are many definitions of revival, I called your attention to
a very simple one: Revival is an extraordinary
movement of the Holy Spirit producing extraordinary results. In short, it is a great outpouring of the
Holy Spirit upon God's people. And
throughout Christian history, when God has poured out His Spirit upon His
people in an extraordinary way, the society in which His people live has been
greatly impacted.
When it comes to true revival, two
great ingredients have always been present -- a sense of need and a willingness
to pray. As we looked at the revival in
the Hebrides Islands off the coast of Scotland in 1949, we noted that it began
with prayer, even the prayer of two ladies who were in their 80's. Whether or not revival came to the church of
Laodicea described in Rev. 3 we don't know, but one thing is certain -- revival
could never come there until the people recognized their need.
Please allow me to repeat what I
said Wednesday evening. If we expect God
to pour out His Spirit upon us as a people, we must recognize our deep
need. I want to speak with love, but I
want to speak firmly and without wavering.
We are a needy people. Praise God
for all He has done among us, but it's only the tip of the iceberg in
comparison to what is available. I am
simply saying that we have barely tasted of the goodness of God. There is more, so much more. That shouldn't discourage us; it should
encourage us. What treasure we have in
Christ, but the treasure chest has not been sufficiently explored. The Spirit of God who dwells among the people
of God is able to glorify God in and through us in ways that we have only
tasted. As the hymn writer puts it: "Mercy drops 'round us are falling, but
for the showers we plead." May the
Spirit open our eyes to our great need and then lead us to true prayer before
the throne of God.
There is one area concerning the
Spirit that we have not yet considered, though we have alluded to it a couple
of times. How many of you are familiar
with the term "gifts of the Spirit"?
Almost all of us have heard the term, and most of us have some idea of
what it means. Whether the exact
emphasis is upon the gifts belonging to the Spirit or the gifts supplied by the
Spirit, we understand that these gifts are closely associated with the Holy
Spirit. The time has come for us to
prayerfully look at this subject as we find it in the Word of God.
Please turn to I Peter. Some of you may be a bit surprised that we
are going to begin to look at the gifts of the Spirit by turning to I Peter,
but I believe this is the proper starting point for us. Let's read I Pet. 4:7-11...
But the
end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers.
8 And above all things have fervent love for one another, for "love will
cover a multitude of sins." 9 Be hospitable to one another without
grumbling. 10 As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as
good stewards of the manifold grace of God. 11 If anyone speaks, let him speak
as the oracles of God. If anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability
which God supplies, that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus
Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
From this passage I want us to
consider three simple truths concerning spiritual gifts...
I.
Thank God that We Are Gifted People
Let's begin right in the middle of
the passage. Then we will come back to
the first part. Notice in verse
10, "As each one has received a gift, minister to one
another..." Think about those words
-- "as each one has received a gift." To whom is Peter speaking? Let's go back and read I Pet. 1:1-3...
Peter,
an apostle of Jesus Christ, To the pilgrims of the Dispersion in Pontus,
Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 elect according to the foreknowledge
of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and
sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace be multiplied.
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His
abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection
of Jesus Christ from the dead...
It
is obvious that Peter is speaking to believers, to those who have been chosen
and made alive through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. So if you been made alive in Christ, then you
are included in the "each one" of I Pet. 4:10. To all my brothers and sisters, I can say
upon the authority of God's Word, "You have received a gift."
The word that is translated
"gift" is charisma. It is from charis,
which is the Greek word that is most commonly translated
"grace." Yes, it is that word
"grace" which occurs so often in the New Testament. "For by grace are you saved through
faith" (Eph. 2:8). "Grow
in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ" (II Pet. 3:18). Jesus said to Paul, "My grace is
sufficient for you" (II Cor. 12:9). Because of the close connection between the
words "gift" (carisma) and "grace" (cariV), some people
refer to this as "grace-gift."
Each of you has received a grace gift.
It isn't because you have done anything to earn it; it is yours because
of the grace of God in Christ.
So where do we get the idea of the
gifts of the Spirit? The Spirit isn't
even mentioned in this passage. That is
true, but in the New Testament passage most often associated with gifts, we
find a close link with the Holy Spirit.
Let's turn to I Cor. 12 for a minute.
I Cor. 12:4, "There are diversities of gifts, but the same
Spirit. Then verse 7, "But the
manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of
all." And then verse 11, "But one
and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually
as He wills." That fits perfectly
with what we have in I Peter. To each
one is distributed a gift or gifts by the Spirit.
We find this same idea of giftedness
within the body of Christ in Romans 12.
While you are turning there, let me remind you that in I Cor. 12 the
section about gifts of the Spirit is immediately followed by that long
sustained metaphor of the body of Christ.
So it is here in Rom. 12:6, "Having then gifts
differing according to the grace that is given to us..." When we go back to the verses preceding verse
6, we see that this giftedness is again in the context of the body of
Christ. Verses 4-5, "For as
we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same
function, so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members
of one another." Later on, we will
give much more attention to how the gifts are related to the functioning of the
body.
So I Cor. 12 and Rom. 12 confirm
Peter's assertion that each one, each believer in the body of Christ, has
received a gift. A Christian may have
received more than one gift, but make sure you understand that every true
believer has received at least one gift.
There are no exceptions. This
truth is foundational to all three of these passages. They all break down if there are believers
who have not received a gift. So take
this personally. Child of God, you have
received a gift from the Spirit. Also understand
it in the context of the body -- every other believer has also received a
gift. Don't take this lightly. Thank God that by His Spirit He has given
gifts to His people, and every single believer has a gift.
II.
Exercise Your Gift for the Glory of God
Now we come to a second principle
which is emphasized in this passage:
Exercise your gift for the glory of God.
Come back to I Pet. 4:10-11...
As each
one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the
manifold grace of God. If anyone speaks,
let him speak as the oracles of God. If
anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability which God supplies, that in
all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory
and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Since you have received a gift, use
it. Listen to verse 10 from the English
Standard Version, "As each has received a gift, use it to serve one
another." The word translated
"minister" in the KJV and the NKJV simply means "to
serve." Let me read again Rom.
12:6 from the New King James, "Having then gifts differing
according to the grace that is given to us, let
us use them." If you are
reading the New King James, you will notice that the words "let us use them" are in italics. The same is true in the ESV. The reason these words are in italics is
because they are not in the text; these translations have supplied them. But why?
Because it is so obvious that this is the idea. Paul goes on to spell it out by referring to
specific gifts which are to be used, but the overall idea is very simple: "As you have a gift, use it."
Let's suppose your grandfather is
getting feebler all the time. When he
walks, he has trouble maintaining his balance.
One day you are at a store in Cloudcroft, when you run across a beautiful
hand-carved walking stick. This is not
just any walking stick. Someone put a
lot of work into it. Everything about it
says: "This is the walking stick
for Grandpa." The hours of labor
invested in it result in a pretty hefty price, but you decide it's worth
it. So you purchase it for Grandpa. A few days later you head over to his house,
eager to give him this special gift. No,
it's not his birthday or anything like that; you just want him to have this
special treasure. When you present it to
him, you can tell that he is very appreciative.
He thanks you sincerely. You
leave with a thankful heart, genuinely glad that you could do this for a man
you love deeply. However, the weeks that
follow bring disappointment. You notice
that Grandpa never uses the walking stick.
It isn't that he doesn't think he needs it. The problem is that he can't bring himself to
use such a beautiful walking stick. He
displays it proudly, but he has never used it once. What good is the walking stick, if he doesn't
use it to help him walk? You gave him
the gift, with the idea that it is to be used.
So it is with the gifts of the Spirit.
"As you have received a gift, use it to serve one
another." It's that simple.
Notice that Peter continues,
"Minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of
God." We see again that these gifts
are closely associated with God's grace.
As we minister the gifts on behalf of one another, we are serving as
faithful managers of the varied grace of God (Thayer: "of diverse colors"). God's grace comes in many forms and is thus
expressed through various gifts within the body of Christ. We must not view these gifts as our own possessions,
but as expressions of God's grace. As
Paul puts it in 1 Cor. 4:7, "For who makes you differ from another? And
what do you have that you did not receive? Now if you did indeed receive it,
why do you boast as if you had not received it?"
Peter does not give us a list of
gifts, such as we would find in Paul's letters to the Romans and the
Corinthians (Rom. 12; I Cor. 12).
Rather, he seems to divide the gifts into two basic categories. 4:11, "If anyone speaks, let
him speak as the oracles of God. If
anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability which God
supplies..." While the word
translated "ministers" (serves) is the same word Peter uses in verse
10 to speak of the exercise of all gifts, here it is best understood to refer
to those gifts which are distinguished from the speaking gifts. Last week Tim spoke of the ministry of word
and deed, and that seems to be Peter's focus here. While there are gifts which enable one to
preach and teach, there are other gifts of practical service. As Paul will emphasize in I Corinthians 12,
it is the same Spirit who distributes all of these gifts. We see an example of this division in Acts 6,
where the church selected seven men to perform a very practical and physical
ministry so that the apostles could give themselves to prayer and the ministry
of the Word, which was primarily a speaking ministry.
So if a person is exercising one of
the speaking gifts, let him speak as the oracles of God. In other words, he is not free to offer up
his own ideas and opinions; rather he is to share what God gives him. It is the message from God that will
accomplish the will of God in the people of God. On the other hand, if one exercises a gift of
practical ministry, let him do it not in his own strength but in the power
which God supplies.
Now notice the end of verse 11,
"that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom
belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever." The exercise of God's grace-gifts is not an
end in itself, but it is for the glory of God through Jesus Christ. We must constantly keep this in mind. The goal of everyone and everything is always
the glory of God through Jesus Christ.
Though the gifts are exercised for the building up of the body, as Paul
emphasizes, that is never the ultimate goal.
We must always look beyond to God's glory.
So let's sum up this second truth of
the passage like this: "As you have
received a gift, use it for the glory of God." That is so simple that we might assume that
it could never be forgotten. This truth
was forgotten in the first century and it is forgotten today. May God give us grace to keep it ever before
us.
III.
Gifts Must Be Exercised in Their Proper Context
Here in I Peter 4 we read verses
7-11, but we actually began our detailed look in verse 10. But now we must go back to verse 7 and look
at the larger context. In what context
does Peter tell us we are a gifted people who must exercise our gifts for the
glory of God? Let's read again verses
7-9, "But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious
and watchful in your prayers. 8 And
above all things have fervent love for one another, for 'love will cover a
multitude of sins.' 9 Be hospitable to
one another without grumbling."
Then Peter goes on to say, "As each one has received a gift,
minister it to one another..." (10).
The end of all things is at
hand. That is, it won't be long before
we stand before our Creator. Christ will
soon appear and we will be called to account.
"Therefore, be serious and watchful in your prayers." The end of all things doesn't call for crazy,
unbridled excitement as much as it calls for prayer. "Be serious" is the NKJV
translation of a word that literally speaks of having a sound mind, or
exercising self-control. Since the end
is upon us, we must curb our passions and exercise discipline in prayer. Yes, we must be watchful. We must be alert, as we pray. If the end is near, then a life of prayer is
indispensable. Other things must be set
aside that we might effectively pray to Him who will bring about the end of all
things. So our gifts are to be exercised
in a context of serious prayer.
Peter follows this with the words of
verse
8, "And above all things have fervent love for one another, for
'love will cover a multitude of sins.'"
Peter has already told them this once:
"Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through
the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a
pure heart..." (1:22). Yes, the love is
there, but Peter exhorts them to love fervently, deeply. Why does he preface the command with the
words "above all things"? Is
it not because Jesus Himself placed this commandment at the top of the list,
stating that all the law and the prophets hang on love for God and love for
neighbor? On another occasion our Lord
said, "A new command I give to you, that you love one another; as I have
loved you, that you also love one another" (John 13:34). That is fervent love.
What about the added note that love
will cover a multitude of sins? Peter
may have had in mind Prov. 10:12, "Hatred stirs up
strife, but love covers all sins."
Perhaps he was recalling the words of Jesus to the sinful woman who came
into the home of the Pharisee and anointed His feet: "Therefore I say to you, her sins, which
are many, are forgiven, for she loved much" (Luke 7:47). Peter's words may be taken in one of two
ways. He may be saying, "As you
love others fervently, your own sins will be covered." There is certainly truth in that concept, for
if we love others, we will fulfill the commands of the law. On the other hand, Peter may be saying that
our fervent love for others will cover their sins, as we point them to the One
through whom all sins are forgiven.
Whichever way you take it (and perhaps there is room for both), it is a
motivation for the deep love that Peter commands.
So we see that our gifts are to be
exercised not only in the context of continual prayer, but also in the context
of fervent love for one another. The
prominence given this command by the words "above all" is echoed by
Paul in I Cor. 12-14. We will look at
this again later, but if you are not aware of the structure of I Cor. 12-14,
wrap your mind around it. In chapters
12-14 there is a great focus on these grace-gifts, but right in the middle of
it we find the love chapter. It is no
accident. As Paul puts it in 1
Cor. 13:1-3...
Though
I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become
sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy,
and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so
that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 And though I
bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned,
but have not love, it profits me nothing.
Gifts
mean nothing, if they are not exercised in the context of love. Tongues and prophecy and knowledge are all
gifts that Paul has listed in chapter 12, but they mean nothing apart from
love. Brothers and sisters, we must
never forget this. It is as applicable
for us as for the believers in Corinth.
And now verse 9, "Be
hospitable to one another without grumbling." The word translated "hospitable" is
a compound word which speaks of "loving strangers." In Rom. 12:13 Paul exhorts us to be given to
hospitality (literally, to pursue hospitality).
In Heb. 13:2 the writer tells us not to forget to entertain
strangers. It is this same word. We must not forget to love strangers, to
exercise hospitality.
It has often been pointed out that
in that culture inns (hotels) were both uncomfortable and unsafe. As a result, travelers depended upon people
to allow them to spend the night. Those
who traveled to preach the gospel were especially in need of a place to stay,
because many rejected their message and would not consider housing them. However, that may not be the emphasis here,
because Peter speaks of being hospitable "to one another," rather
than helping those who were traveling.
If they were going to continue to exhort one another daily, hospitality
would be a necessity. Since they didn't
have church buildings, their homes were the primary vehicle for promoting
fellowship, caring, and ministry. And
because this could at times be uncomfortable and inconvenient, Peter tells them
to exercise hospitality "without grumbling." Of what real value would hospitality be, if
went the guests left, the host said, "Finally, we're rid of them and we
can have the house to ourselves"?
Think about it. A hospitable environment was the perfect
place for the exercise of these grace-gifts.
And it fits perfectly with an environment of prayer and fervent
love. Yes, this is the proper context of
the exercise of spiritual gifts.
Now let me add one other
aspect. Let's go to the end of the
passage we have considered and continue into I Pet. 4:12-13, "Beloved,
do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as
though some strange thing happened to you, but rejoice to the extent that you
partake of Christ's sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also
be glad with exceeding joy." These
verses remind us that I Peter is a letter that deals a great deal with
suffering. It is the constant background
of those who were reading Peter's words.
So what does this tell us? It reminds us that the grace-gifts bestowed
on us by the Spirit are to be exercised in the midst of the trials of
life. We can't wait for a nice, quiet
time when it will be easy to speak the message of God and minister to one
another in His name. Life will never be
calm and peaceful, at least not in the outward sense. There will always be trials and occasions for
suffering. But take heart. Even in midst of great suffering, these early
believers were privileged to exercise the gifts of the Spirit, as they
continually prayed, loved one another deeply, and demon-strated ungrudging
hospitality to one another. Brothers and
sisters, we are called to do the same for the glory of God.
Conclusion
I realize that our brief study this
morning will stir up many questions.
What exactly are these gifts? How
can I be sure that I have one or more?
Are the gifts the same today as they were then? Does it really make any difference whether or
not I exercise my gift? Don't gifts of
the Spirit mainly just stir up trouble?
Why do gifts seem to be so controversial? Obviously, we cannot begin to answer all
those questions this morning. And we
couldn't answer them all to our satisfaction, even if we took months to try to
do so. However, we do want to see what
the Word of God has to say.
What I do want to call to your
attention is the connection between the body of Christ and the gifts of the
Spirit. That connection is spelled out
most clearly in I Cor. 12, but also in Romans 12. I encourage you to explore that connection in
the days ahead.
Above all, I invite you and exhort
you to pray! Don't expect us to be
impacted apart from serious and sacrificial prayer. What I mean is simply this: "If we don't get beyond business as
usual, this will just be another study.
We must ask the Spirit of God to teach us from the Word of God, so that
we the people of God may bring glory to God.
Let other things go in order to come to God about this subject. Pray as you go back through I Pet. 4:7-11 and
as you explore Rom. 12 and I Cor. 12-14."
Praise God that He is able to teach
us and conform us to the image of His Son.
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