Organized and Operating

Organize The Gifts

1 Peter 4:10 breaks gifts into two large categories: those used in speaking and those used in serving. However, this isn’t the only way to organize the gifts. For our purposes, we’re going to explore first the chronological order, because it is theologically significant in our understanding of how gifts operate, and second, a head, heart, hand order that helps us understand how the gifts impact the church.

Chronologically

1 Corinthians 12:28 ESV

And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues.

This is a chronological ordering of gifts, and I point this out because it does help us to understand a little about spiritual gifts and how they operated in the early church and what we might see as a correlation today. Hear me when I say this…upfront…so there’s no confusion: I believe that all gifts are in operation. Again, if Scripture mentions a gift, I believe it still exists. However, I believe that the way in which the gift operates may be slightly different than the first church. The chronology of gifts here by Paul really helps us understand this. Notice what he says:

First apostles — remember that apostles were commissioned by Jesus, and they were given first because they established the gospel and the church in the first century. So, what about today? Today I think the apostle gift fleshes itself out in those who have a strong desire to see the gospel taken into the mission field, particularly places where there is little to no gospel witness. Does LABC need a first century apostle? No, not really. The church here has been established for 75 years now. But, those with some type of apostolic gifting are going to be passionate about mission work. And, the church absolutely needs this gift to spearhead and spark mission engagement in our community and around the world.

Second — prophets. After the foundation was laid by the apostolic witness, the prophets came and boldly proclaimed the truth of God, setting a doctrinal foundation for the church to continue to grow toward maturity. (Some would even say that prophets had a universal function, that is, their message went out to the entire church.) Today, the canon is closed, but the church is still in need of constant nourishment on the Word of God. Which is why prophet is followed closely by…

Teachers, those who impart knowledge and skill that leads to maturity in the Christian life. Combined, these two gifts strengthen and guide the church. I was reminded Monday in my quiet time, reading through Ephesians in preparation for our next series, just how important it is to know God’s word. Paul says (Ephesians 5:10 “and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.”) That led me to think, well how do we discern what is pleasing to the Lord? That led me straight back to Romans 12:2 “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Throughout his writing, Paul is letting the church know how necessary it is to be nourished on God’s word.

Those three gifts? Paul draws special attention to them, separating them chronologically in the life of the church. With the last five, he lumps them into a “then the rest” category. Notice that the last is “various kinds of tongues.” I believe that’s intentional, so hold on to it.

First, why does Paul order the gifts this way? And, why are we focused on this “chronological” ordering. I think there is purpose in what Paul is teaching us.

It seems that there are gifts that may have functioned initially in one way, but the means by which the gift expresses itself today may have shifted. Some might make the distinction between the “office” and the “gift,” and for good reason. For example, the offices of teacher as the shepherd of a congregation carries with it a moral responsibility, and not everyone should aspire to the office of shepherd, even though it is a noble thing to desire. The same goes with deacon. And, the office of the apostle, many scholars believe it carried with it the requirement of being an eye-witness to Jesus Himself. Before you say, “Well, what about Paul?” He saw Jesus, as one untimely born. However, can you have the gift of apostle or teacher and not be called to the office of apostle or shepherd? Absolutely.

Further, this ordering says something about their foundational function in the church as a whole. Paul teaches that God Himself appoints both gifted people and spiritual gifts within the church for its establishment and growth. Apostles, prophets, and teachers are listed first because their ministries were foundational — all three of these are set apart by numerical ordering…first, second, and third. Apostles established the church through apostolic witness, prophets brought Spirit-guided insight to the church’s needs, and teachers explain and apply apostolic truth to believers’ lives.

Other gifts such as miracles, healing, helping, and leadership, demonstrate God’s power and provide practical support and wise guidance within the body. By placing tongues last, Paul subtly corrects the Corinthians’ values and shows that the most important gifts are those that most effectively build up the church, preparing the way for his climactic teaching that love is the essential virtue that makes every gift truly beneficial.

Head, Hand, and Heart

With all of that said, it only captures eight gifts. There are 11 more, 19 in all! So, how might we think about these gifts? We’ve maintained all along that spiritual gifts are Spirit-empowered acts of love designed to build up the church, engaging the emotional, intellectual, and physical aspects of the church, all for the glory of God. In other words, they engage the head, hands, and heart. Sneaky reveal — last week when we listed the gifts, we listed them in a head, hands, heart ordering.

Gifts that are focused on the head, and bear in mind these are…our ordering. We didn’t search this out in a commentary. We just wanted a simple way to categorize the gifts and give a general thrust to them. Gifts that are focused on the head or mind include apostle, prophet, teacher, wisdom, knowledge, discernment, evangelist, shepherd, and to some degree, tongues and their interpretation. The goal, aim, and emphasis of these gifts, in some form or fashion, is to effectively communicate, proclaim, clarify, guard, and apply theological truth. If we come to know the will of God through renewed minds, then the gifts focused on delivering truth are the servants of that renewal.

Second, gifts that are focused on the hands are practical in nature, and they can be fleshed out in a multitude of ways by a number of different types of people. Sometimes they serve in the foreground. Oftentimes, they’re behind the scenes. However, all of them are necessary in practically accomplishing ministry. These gifts include service, helping, administration, giving, healing, and miracles. The hand-oriented gifts build the body up through tangible service and stewardship.

Finally, the smallest in number but not in impact are the emotive gifts, the ones that affect the heart. These gifts primarily comfort, strengthen, and stir the affections of others. I think these gifts are exhortation, mercy, and faith. Together, these gifts have a way of caring for the souls of others by instilling and strengthening confidence in God.

Are these broad? Yes. But, I think they give us a framework for interpreting why these gifts are necessary and how they function practically…what’s a “goal” we can attach to them…in everyday use.

Gifts vs. Commands

I want to take just a moment and think about the idea of gift vs. command. You may have noticed, but there is a good deal of overlap between what has been gifted and what has been commanded. Or, maybe you didn’t notice, but there is! At least eleven of the spiritual gifts are also commands given to the church and believers in general.

The head gifts that are also commanded include: evangelism, knowledge, discernment, wisdom, and teaching. The hands gift that are also commanded include helping, serving, and giving. Finally, the heart gifts…all three of them in our ordering are also expected from the church at large: mercy, exhortation, and faith.

Here’s the encouragement I think we can draw from this: don’t get so lost in the discussion on spiritual gifts that you forget that at the end of the day, this entire discussion is simply about the body of Christ being as healthy as it can be, and for that to happen, we all have a part to play. This is why Paul said earlier in 1 Cor.12 — even though there are many parts to the body, all are necessary to make up the whole. Let me quickly give you a practical example of this in motion before we have a final encouragement.

Take a person that has a missional or evangelistic gift. Sometimes, you might find that person operating in the office of a shepherd. Out of his gifting, he’s probably going to be very strong in leading the congregation to be engaged evangelistically. Again, I’m using an illustration, so don’t push it too far, but track with me. A person who feels a heavy burden, a person who is likely wired and gifted the same way, will probably gravitate towards that, probably thinking along the lines of “they’re outside the walls of the church, and that’s what we’re supposed to be doing.” They’re right. We are. And, a person with that type of gifting might find themselves in a church where a shepherd is gifted more as a teacher and discipler of believers. And, they might think to themselves, “they’re just inward focused, and they should be in the community more.”

Here’s the thing: that statement may not be incorrect. However, our tendency is to then go and look for what we’re passionate about instead of realizing that maybe God has placed you in this body with this gift BECAUSE He intends for you to step in the gap and FILL that need in the body. That’s how it all functions together. That’s why all of the gifts are needed. That’s why all parts are necessary. Where we notice gaps or areas that need to be strengthened, it’s not a call to find a place that offers this ministry or that, but it’s an opportunity for the body to function more healthily. So, pick up the ball, scoop and score, for you football guys, and help build up the church for the glory of God.

One last thing: when all else fails…

Remember The Greater Way

Paul says at the end of chapter 12: earnestly desire the most helpful gifts…but let me show you a way of life that is best of all. Again I say, after an entire month of focus on spiritual gifts, don’t get lost in the discussion on spiritual gifts.

When’s the last time you thought about the love chapter in the context of spiritual gifts? But there it is, tucked away right in the middle of the NT’s longest and most thorough discussion on gifts. So Paul says, you can speak all the languages the world has to offer, but if you don’t have love, you’re a noisy gong or cymbal. You can prophecy and decipher the deepest of God’s mysteries, and you could possess all the knowledge there is to know, and you could have that faith the size of a mustard seed that causes mountains to be moved, but if you don’t have love, you’d be nothing. You could sell it all and give it away to the poor, and you could even die as a martyr, but if there’s no love, nothing would have been gained.

So, then, what is the call…this greater way? It’s patience and kindness. It’s being gracious and thankful and humble. It doesn’t demand its own way. It doesn’t get easily irritated, and it doesn’t keep records of wrongs. It rejoices when truth wins, and it doesn’t give up, it doesn’t lose faith, and it endures through every circumstance. In short…love remains committed against all odds. Still not sure about what your gift is, about naming a specific one? Don’t fret, simply remain committed to the church, to loving the people of God, to sticking with her through thick and thin, and know this: you will have served the bride of Christ well. When there’s a need, jump in and serve. Where there’s a hole, be willing to plug it, even if for just a season. Forgive God’s people. Love God’s people. Refuse to have an agenda outside of Christ and His glory. Just…show up, not in the, “I warmed my pew faithfully” way, but in the way a father says to his kid, “I’m not big on show choir, but because that’s your passion, I’m here for it” or “I’m not a gator fan, but that’s your school of choice, so I can put on the orange and green for a couple of years.” That’s what I mean by show up.

Organized and operating, manning the station and showing up, with a great commitment to Christ and one another, this is the church being built up for the glory of God. I’m not going to say we owe it to one another. I’m not going to say we owe it to Christ. However, out of great love for Christ and His bride,

Galatians 5:13 ESV

…through love serve one another.