spiritual gifts - 1 Corinthians 12

Watching the pictures and video of the devastation in Haiti this past week has reminded me of some simple truths that we need to keep in mind. The first is that our lives here really are fleeting and it only takes a few seconds for everything to be taken away. Look at Psalm 103:15-16. In an instant our lives can change. Whether it’s a fire downtown or an earthquake 2,000 miles away, these tragic disasters remind us that life in this world is precious and fragile so we need to make the most of it. We need to treasure and value each day and each opportunity that God gives us.

The second truth that the earthquake reminds us of also comes from Psalm 103:15-16, life here is so much more than our possessions. We are not just physical beings and our lives are not just about our homes, clothes, cars, jobs and belongings because if a fire or flood or an earthquake were to take all of that away – we are still here and our lives still have value, worth and significance and God still loves us. Every face we saw this morning has eternal value to God. God really does love and care for each and every one of them. We are more than the sum of all the goods we possess, we are more than all the relationships in our lives, and we are even more than our bodily health and strength. We have a spiritual side. We are spiritual beings as well as physical beings and so we will never be fully complete and satisfied until we develop our spiritual side as much as we develop our physical lives.

This is why Paul says in 1 Corinthians 12:1 about spiritual gifts – or spiritual things – I do not want you to be ignorant. I never noticed it before but the word ignorant is very close to the word ignore. I don’t think Paul’s concern is that we don’t cognitively understand spiritual things; I think what Paul’s saying is that he doesn’t want us to be unaware of them. Maybe a different way of saying this would be, Brothers and sisters, don’t ignore the spiritual side of your lives because we are spiritual beings as much as we are physical beings and we will never be complete, we will never fully experience the life God has for us, until we get in touch with and understand our spiritual side and how God speaks to us and shapes our spirit.
Now the source of this spirit in our lives is not found in the world around us and it doesn’t come from some place deep within our own being, it comes from God. That spiritual part of our lives is the spirit of God breathing life into us and giving our lives shape and meaning. If we think back to the story of Creation, after God formed us out of the dust, after God formed our physical being – we were not complete, so God breathed into us the breath of life. When God breathed into us, we were given a spiritual dimension and so our spirit comes from God and I believe that God wants to continually fill us with his spirit because it is that spirit that brings us life and brings our lives meaning.

So how are we filled with the Holy Spirit? What’s the key to the Holy Spirit guiding us, and speaking us to us, and leading us closer to Jesus and assuring us of salvation – all things that the Bible says the Holy Spirit does in our lives? What’s the key to the Holy Spirit bringing these gifts that Paul talks about into our lives? Well listen up because here’s the key, here’s the secret. The way we get the Holy Spirit to work in our lives, the way we get the Spirit of God to fill us up so that all the fruit of God’s spirit and the gifts of God’s spirit and the power and courage of God’s spirit is working with us is to ASK God for the Holy Spirit. It really is that simple. We ask God to fill us with us his spirit. We can use whatever words we want and we can take any posture we want, the key is to simply ask the Holy Spirit to fill us up because if we ask God will provide..

God says ask and it will be given to you. Seek and you will find. Knock and the door will be opened for you. When we ask God to fill us with his holy spirit – God will fill us up and as we experience God’s spirit working in our lives we will begin to experience more love, joy, peace, patience, kindness goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control. We will not only taste this fruit of God’s spirit but God will guide us to a place where we will not only want to serve him but God himself will gives us the gifts we need to serve him, and if we will use those gifts, we will find ourselves serving God in ways we never thought possible.

That’s really what the rest of this passage from 1 Corinthians is all about. There are a variety of gifts – but they all come from the same spirit. There are a variety of ways we will serve God and each other – but there is one spirit who gives us those gifts to serve. When the spirit of God fills us up, we not only experience the fullness of life, but we are given gifts that help us serve God and help us find a deeper meaning and purpose and joy in life.

As God gives us the gifts of his Holy Spirit so that we can serve him more effectively, there are two important things to remember. The first is that God does not give us these gifts for us. God doesn’t give us his power and these abilities so that we can promote ourselves and get ahead in life – the gifts are given to glorify God and help serve others. 1 Corinthians 12:7, they are given for the common good. The Holy Spirit gives us gifts so that we can build up the work of the church and help those in need around us.

The second thing to remember is that while no one person has been given all the gifts, each of us have been given at least one of them. 1 Corinthians 12:8-11. Notice that the gifts are spread out throughout the whole body of Christ. Each person receives something – we all have a gift, but no one has them all. I love how God sets this up because it forces us to be humble and admit that we can’t do it all by ourselves, we need to work together. God sets it up so that we need each other and that we will all have to work together if we are going to get things done.

The relief efforts in Haiti remind us that we each have unique gifts and all of them are needed if we are going to make a difference. There are people who have specific search and rescue gifts, there are trained dogs that are needed in certain areas and at certain times, but once those people are found we need doctors and nurses to treat their wounds. We might also need heavy equipment operators to move debris and help rescuers get to the people, and as we have seen this week and in many other disasters, we need the dedicated men and women of the army to help keep order and peace as people are helped. What we see is that a coordinated effort is needed and none of us can do it by ourselves, we need the gifts that others bring and we need to use those gifts together to glorify God and to serve others.

It’s also important to remember that if we have asked God to fill us with his holy spirit, then God has given us a gift to use and we can’t ignore that gift or think that ours is not valuable. Think about what would happen if all the doctors stayed home, or if the bulldoze operator didn’t think his abilities were useful. Things would fall apart, people would die. God set it up so that everyone was needed, so if all the gifts are going to be working together then all the gifts are needed which means that all the people need to be working together. Don’t sit there today thinking you don’t have a gift to offer, you do. There is some unique way God has gifted you to serve and you need to use that gift for God and for God’s people.

Another reason we can’t ignore the gift God has given us is because we will never be fully complete or satisfied in life until we are using it. Remember, we are spiritual beings not just physical beings, and so our lives will not be complete until we are using the spiritual side of our lives as well as the physical side of life. We have to use these gifts of God, we have to share the wisdom and knowledge God has given us, we have to work to heal people and use the faith God has given us to step out and do those things that God is calling us to do. We need to use the natural gift and abilities God has given us, but we also need to use these spiritual gifts and this is not the full list. Paul talks about other gifts in his letter to the Ephesians and the Romans, there’s the gift of teaching and pastoring, leading and serving. There’s the gift of encouragement and sacrificial giving and showing mercy. There are many gifts but one spirit who gives each and every one of us a gift to use for the glory of God and for the common good.

I hope my now you might be asking yourself how we can discover the gifts God has given us? Well, the first thing we can is take some time to read and learn about the gifts (see: 1 Corinthians 12, Ephesians 4:11-13, Romans 12:1-8), we can also ask others what gifts they might see in us. There are spiritual gift inventories that can be helpful in revealing how God has uniquely put us together, but then there is the one important question we can ask to help us discover the unique gifts God has given us. What are we passionate about? What get’s you excited and energized when you think about serving God? Maybe you watched those pictures this morning and know God is calling you to go to Haiti someday to help rebuild, maybe you get excited when you think about teaching children or leading small groups. Maybe you want to comfort those who are sick in the hospital or living in nursing homes right here. Maybe you are passionate about social justice and helping the poor.

If we want to know how God’s spirit is working within us and what gifts God has given us we need ask ourselves what moves us? What are we passionate about? How is God speaking to us today? What brings us alive when we think about serving God or the people in the world around us? These are important questions because if we are serving God the way God has created us and gifted us to serve – it will bring us incredible joy and a deep sense of purpose in life. If teaching children brings us alive then we need to use that gift in the life of the church. If tending to those who have lost everything in disasters gives us a deep sense of satisfaction and meaning, then maybe we need to find ways to serve God in missions. I believe that when we are serving God with the gifts God has given us we will be experiencing the deepest sense of satisfaction and purpose. Jesus said I have come that you might have life and life abundantly and I believe that abundant life is experienced when we are serving God with the gifts of God’s spirit.

If we aren’t feeling God’s spirit or power working in us or if we are struggling to figure out what gifts God has given us, there is one simple place for us to start, we need to ask God to fill us with his spirit. If that’s what you need, ask God today.