Sharing Order in the Body

Expectations

Building clean up / conference help

Realize not every claim of being “in the Spirit” is fully reflective of the Spirit

Realize that order is not something that can be externally applied

Realize there’s different times and places for different things

Realize it’s not about my preferences

Pay attention to what God is doing through others

Pay attention to what God is doing with you individually

Big Idea: In order to benefit the body regardless of our gift, we should expect Jesus to ask us to do 3 things at various times.

Value weakness over strength to magnify His grace

2 Corinthians 12:7–10 ESV

7 So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

We live in a world full of people struggling to be, or at least to appear, strong in order not to be weak; and we follow a gospel which says that when I am weak, then I am strong. And this gospel is the only thing that brings healing.

Source:

N.T. Wright in For All God's Worth. Christianity Today, Vol. 41, no. 12.

In her book Tramp for the Lord, Corrie ten Boom tells the story of an old woman she met in Russia in the time of the Communist persecution of Christians during the Cold War:

The old woman was lying on a small sofa propped up by pillows. Her body was bent and twisted almost beyond recognition by the dread disease of multiple sclerosis. Her aged husband spent all his time caring for her since she was unable to move off the sofa … [The only part of her body she could control was her right hand. And with the index finger of that hand she had for many years glorified God by typing on a vintage typewriter beside her.] All day and far into the night, she would type. [She translated Christian books into Russian.] Always using just that one finger—peck … peck … peck—she typed out the pages. Portions of the Bible, the books of Billy Graham … and Corrie ten Boom …

"Not only does she translate books," her husband said as he hovered close by during our conversation, "but she prays for these [people] every day while she types. Sometimes it takes a long time for her finger to hit the key, or for her to get the paper in the machine, but all the time she's praying for those whose books she's working on."

[Corrie ten Boom writes]: I looked at her wasted form on the sofa, her head pulled down and her feet curled under her body. "Oh Lord, why don't you heal her?" I cried inwardly.

Her husband, sensing my anguish of soul, gave the answer. "God has a purpose in her sickness. Every other Christian in the city is watched by the secret police. But because she has been sick so long, no one ever looks in on her. They leave us alone and she is the only person in all the city who can type quietly undetected by the police."

Value people over resources to magnify love

2 Corinthians 12:14 (ESV)

14 Here for the third time I am ready to come to you. And I will not be a burden, for I seek not what is yours but you.

Most athletes believe that god/fate is on their side …. Indeed, when they win a championship, talk of "destiny" fills the postgame locker room. What must be confusing to these highly trained, well-paid professionals is when they lose the game. Does it mean that God doesn't like them, that he wasn't for them, that they weren't as special as they thought? Indeed, would any of them have the guts to admit they were destined to lose? I'm sure many have noticed that we never hear athletes during the postgame interviews thank God for their loss. It seems the god of athletics only shows up when players win. But … [the apostle] Paul believed that the God of Israel delights in showing up in the midst of loss—the resurrection of Christ proves it. God turns losing into gain, death into life, sorrow into joy, weakness into strength, futility into glory …. So I can imagine Paul throwing his arm around the athlete who's just lost the World Series [or the Super Bowl] and saying … "Son of Adam, life is a game and we're all destined to lose. Let's go celebrate the good news."

Source:

Rodney Reeves, Spirituality According to Paul (Intervarsity Academic, 2011), pp. 188-189

Value integrity over reputation to magnify joy

2 Corinthians 13:5–9 ESV

5 Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test! 6 I hope you will find out that we have not failed the test. 7 But we pray to God that you may not do wrong—not that we may appear to have met the test, but that you may do what is right, though we may seem to have failed. 8 For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth. 9 For we are glad when we are weak and you are strong. Your restoration is what we pray for.

Hebrews 12:1–3 ESV

1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.

Coaching

This is better than the world because it values everyone (no one is left out). It challenges everyone (to not focus on only what they want). It focuses everyone on the joy set before them (everyone is looking for happiness).

Vision : To be a Scripture-loving family that disciples in grace and truth in order to impact the community for the Gospel of Christ.

Others May, You Cannot - G.D. Watson

If God has called you to be really like Jesus, he will draw you into a life of crucifixion and humility and put upon you such demands of obedience that you will not be able to follow other people. In many ways he will seem to let other people do things he will not let you do.

Others in the ministry who seem very devoted and successful may promote themselves, pull strings, and work schemes to carry out their plans, but you cannot do it. And if you try, you will reap such failure and rebuke from the Lord that it will make you ashamed and sorely penitent.

The Holy Spirit will put a strict watch over you with a jealous love and rebuke you for little words or feelings or for wasting your time, which other Christians never seem to feel distressed over. So make up your mind that God is an infinite sovereign and that he has a right to deal with his own as he pleases. He may not explain to you a thousand things that puzzle your mind in his dealings with you, but if you give yourself completely over to him to be his servant, he will wrap you in a jealous love and bestow upon you many blessings which come only to those who are truly his intimates.

Settle it forever then. You are to deal directly with the Holy Spirit, and he is to have the privilege of tying your tongue or of chaining your hands or of closing your eyes in ways that he does not seem to do with others.

Now when you are so possessed with the living God that you are in your secret heart pleased and delighted over this peculiar, personal, private, jealous guardianship and management of the Holy Spirit over your life, then you will have received the strangest gift—the ministry of weakness.