The Gift

1 Timothy 4: 14 Do not neglect the spiritual gift that is in you, which was given to you when the prophets spoke and the elders laid their hands on you. 15 Practice these things and devote yourself to them, in order that your progress may be seen by all. 16 Watch yourself and watch your teaching. Keep on doing these things, because if you do, you will save both yourself and those who hear you.

Romans 12: 1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies (lives) as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. 2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. 3 For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you. 4 Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is…, let him use it...

Gift

1: a noticeable capacity, talent, ability

2: something voluntarily transferred by one person to another without compensation

3: the act, right, or power of giving

• One of the greatest tragedies today is to see the body of Christ all doing the same thing, (in some circles this is called unity) but so few doing what God created them to do.
• The loss of creativity…these members don’t all have the same function.
• WHAT? Yes, we have created identical copies of a super Christian and thereby limited the expressions of the many gifts in the body of Christ.
• Conformed vs. Transformed
• Conformed has the meaning of being pressed into something that we do not fit in. Becoming something that we are not.
• Transformed has the meaning of evolving into what we are supposed to be.
• Renewing: a renewal, renovation, complete change for the better

Prophecy: a rumbling in the deep

Proverbs 18: 16 A man’s gift (gifting) makes room for him, and brings him before great men.

The famous in the world because of their gifts run in the circles of great men. Whether it is spiritual gifts (David, Daniel, Billy Graham, TD Jakes, Reinhardt Bonnke)  or Soulish gifts (people with great minds or musical talents…Bill Gates, Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Michael Jackson…) or great Physical gifts (Olympic stars, world record holders…)

Your gift will make room for you. A Gifting from God will open doors that nothing else will. (What are you great at, comes easily, and fulfills you?)

In other words you gifting will take you into the room the will of God for your life!

• Secondly have we Christianized “the pattern of this world”?
• Pattern: “How everyone else does it” can not only limit the discovery of your gift, but also place limitations on its use.
• Taken the way the world does things and added a little Christ to it? Careful… God hasn’t run out of ideas, creativity or ability.
• Compartmentalization, big word! Do we live a whole life or do we chop our lives up into little boxes and live different lives in each?
• The world is crying out for the genuine, the real thing, and all the time.

• We have different gifts…

o   According to the grace given us.

o   Though the laying on of hands. (impartation, mostly spiritual)

o   Placed in your spirit at natural birth. Desires of your heart.

§  Some stay hidden because of spiritual blindness.

§  Renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

o   Good, pleasing and perfect will

§  It will not only be good, pleasing and perfect for God, but also for you!

• If a man’s gift is… able to test…v:2

Prove:= (test and approve) translates as “prove” 10 times, “try” four times, “approve” three times, “discern” twice, “allow” twice, “like” once, and “examine” once.  1 to test, examine, prove, scrutinize (to see whether a thing is genuine or not), as metals. 2 to recognize as genuine after examination, to approve, deem worthy.

• Identify it
• 1 Timothy 4: 14 Do not neglect the spiritual gift that is in you, which was given to you…
• It’s in you! - The kingdom of God is in you.
• It was given to you…
• James 1: 17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.
• All gifts that come from God MUST be developed WITH God or it will eventually be perverted.
• God’s purposes, help, love, strength, etc…
• Learned talents and skills CAN be tools. Sometimes they are distractions.
• Worship with a computer? Yes…

• Because we can doesn't mean we should. i.e. Some of us were good at sinning...should we take that as a talent or gifting? Sometimes we develop our tools according to our gifts and sometimes according to the gifting of OTHERS*.
• Do the gifts that we recognize take us closer to God or further away?

1. It begins with a desire.
1. Psalm 37: 4 Seek your happiness in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desire.(The Living Translation) #. All desires are not gifts.

                                          i.    Some are expectations of others

                                        ii.    Some are learned

                                       iii.    Some are within the limitations of a faithless generation

1. It will probably seem impossible for you.
1. Because, you won’t have what it takes from the beginning.
2. Don’t be afraid to try new things or experiment.

1. Don’t get stuck in one thing if you have more than one gift. (better than doing nothing though)
2. Pray and Plan
• Pray for the doors to open
• Prayer will filter out the junk we are hearing.
• Will open the channel for the plan to come.

• Plan what to do when it does. (If there were no limitations what would you do?)
• There are always people who can see what is wrong with something, but do we have a solution? If not maybe it is just criticism!
• If the vision is from God in time we will begin to receive the steps (smaller visions that are leading us to the big finale) * What if the door opened and you are not prepared?
• Don’t expect others to have the same desires that you do. You must be convinced that this is what you are supposed to do, or you will not get help.

o   Let him use it... Use it this is your spiritual act of worship

• Offer you bodies… Often we are willing to offer our minds and emotions to dream about doing something, but in the end we have to offer our bodies and be involved, participate, pay the price… * You may not be able to do it all, but you can do something now!
• Books, internet, meet people who do it already, assist someone else that is doing it.
• 1 Tim. 4:15
• Practice these things
• Any gift has to be developed and practiced ( I was given a guitar when I turned 13, I loved music, but the first sounds that came from my guitar was discouraging)
• devote yourself to them
• don’t become distracted
• That your progress may be seen by all.
• People are watching, they are looking for an Idol, someone to look up to.
• V:16 Watch yourself
• Don’t disqualify yourself by bad habits (Bad company, drugs, sin, laziness, bad influences…)
• Watch your teaching.
• We are teaching something all the time.
• Keep on doing these things
• Persevere, keep doing them. No one becomes a success overnight.

Some things that can stop your gift.

1. Pride – v:3 People get puffed up, thinking they are better than others, because of the type of gift or their skills. #. Never developing the gift. ..think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you
1. think of yourself with sober judgment

                                          i.    2 Corinthians 10: 12 Oh, don’t worry; I wouldn’t dare say that I am as wonderful as these other men who tell you how important they are! But they are only comparing themselves with each other, and measuring themselves by themselves. What foolishness!

1. in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you
2. It will take faith – believe in God and yourself

                                          i.    Why?

1. Criticism – people with gifts be criticized  
2. Fear of failure – failure will happen 100% get used to the idea, it is part of the process to get there.
1. Bid me come - Oh you of little faith. You can walk in the impossible with little faith.

                                          i.    Looking at natural things can stop you.

                                        ii.    i.e. Peter looked...Abraham didn't look...

1. Fear of rejection – living for the approval of people will hurt you. Know that you are in your vision.
2. Loneliness – If you are running, many will not run with you.
3. Not reconnecting - So in Christ we who are many form one body v:5
4. Not becoming a teacher of others - each member belongs to all the others. v:5