Epiphany 2 (2)

Paul Vander Galien

ILCWC2 • Sermon • Submitted 6 years ago

1 Corinthians 12:1–11

Gifts of the Spirit

Body of Christ

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Second Lesson:

Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2You know that when you were pagans, you were deceived and somehow led away to mute idols. 3Therefore I am informing you that no one speaking by God’s Spirit says, “A curse be upon Jesus,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.

4There are various kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5There are different kinds of ministries, and yet the same Lord. 6There are various kinds of activity, but the same God, who produces all of them in everyone.

7Each person is given a manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8To one person a message of wisdom is given by the Spirit; to another, a message of knowledge, as the same Spirit provides it; 9by the same Spirit, faith is given to someone else; and to another, the same Spirit gives healing gifts. 10Another is given powers to do miracles; another, the gift of prophecy; another, the evaluating of spirits; someone else, different kinds of tongues; and another, the interpretation of tongues. 11One and the same Spirit produces all of these, distributing them to each one individually as he desires.

Verses 4-6 Reference to the three persons of the Trinity working together to give different kinds of gifts, ministries, and activities.

Over the past 30 years I have been privileged to serve as a vicar or a pastor in nine different congregations. The first church was very large with a calendar full of programs and activities and about 25 shut in members. (That was vicar year at St. John’s in Wauwatosa.) The next was my first call to an outreach exploratory mission in Spokane, WA. The next two were dual parishes a lot like St. Paul and Grace. And the one previous to this was a small town congregation which was aging rapidly. Different congregations but also many similarities. Of course, the approach to Scripture, the importance of worship and Christian education, the belief system, the order of worship, the organization of the congregations, and so many things were similar because they are all WELS churches with a united approach as we “walk together” (That is what “Synod” means. And within those congregations I experienced exactly what was true in the early Christian congregations as described by St. Paul here in Corinthians. There were various kinds of gifts, ministries, and activities but the same God who leads us.

Is this not also true here in our congregation? We all share certain things in common as we read in

(NIV)

4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. 7 But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. 8 This is why it says: “When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people.”

St. Paul says this here that we can know that we have the same God because we all confess that Jesus is Lord and we would not be able to do that in faith unless the same Spirit had brought us to faith. We worship the same God and unite in praising him and living for him.

But we are not carbon copies or clones of each other. We are unique. Each of us have areas we are gifted in and areas that we may indeed struggle with. The goal as a congregation is to identify, nurture, and use our gifts in the areas we best fit.

For example: Music is an important part of our worship. We are encouraged to praise the Lord in song. We are accustomed to have musical accompaniment with a piano or organ. . . or their sounds with Hymnsoft. But not everyone is musically gifted or have trained to be adept on the keyboard whether it is a piano or organ keyboard or a computer keyboard. We value the public reading of Scripture but not everyone reads fluently. We have a business end to our congregation recording offerings and paying bills but some people are not “number friendly”. We are to preach the gospel to all nations but not all are comfortable verbalizing that “Jesus is Lord” with strangers.

St. Paul gives a list of spiritual gifts that were present in the early Christian church. Not just in Corinth as we read from other books of the New Testament but in other congregations as well. What was that list?

One of the similarities I have noticed is that in every congregation I have served both large and small, city or rural, there was been a distribution of the spiritual gifts needed in that congregation. There was the dedicated organist, the lead singer in the congregation, the faithful Sunday school teachers, the generous givers, the lovers of missions, the compassionate Ladies Aid members, the handy man, the encourager, etc. I don’t think I ever had a “Renaissance Man” who could do all things equally well—the “Jack of all trades and master of none” although I did have one member who served on the council as recording secretary, played the organ, and was the inside janitor.” (But he could not carry a tune in a bucket). Most of the members were like most of us who are gifted in one area but would struggle in another. But isn’t that the way St. Paul describes the church?

Another point that he makes is that thes abilities come from none other than God himself.

The big debate in Psychology is whether we are the way we are because of nature or nurture. Are we genetically predisposed to certain abilities or are we only a product of our environment and how we were raised. One way of trying to test that is to observe how identical twins who were raised separately have developed. In a recent novel I read (fiction), the Swedish government intentionally separated twins in child hood and put them into radically different home environment in order to study this.

Well, the general consensus is that in many ways we are the way we are as a combination of both natural abilities and how we nurture them. St. Paul, writing by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, adds another component that we accept on faith. The same God who created all people from one source couple (Adam and Eve) also gifted them to be unique and to have particular gifts that they may share with others but not everyone has exactly the same abilities. This is recorded as far back as Genesis.

(NIV)

19 Lamech married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah. 20 Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. 21 His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all who play stringed instruments and pipes. 22 Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forged all kinds of tools out of bronze and iron. Tubal-Cain’s sister was Naamah.

But there is more to having these spiritual gifts (talents and abilities) than just possessing them.

1.We do well to become expert at them. There are benefits to practicing so that we may improve.

1 Timothy 5:3–4 NIV

3 Give proper recognition to those widows who are really in need. 4 But if a widow has children or grandchildren, these should learn first of all to put their religion into practice by caring for their own family and so repaying their parents and grandparents, for this is pleasing to God.

(NIV)

12 So it is with you. Since you are eager for gifts of the Spirit, try to excel in those that build up the church. 2.We are to use them.

2.We are to use them.

Ephesians 4:11–16 NIV

11 So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, 12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. 14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. 15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. 16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

3. We are to use them for the common good.

1 Corinthians 12:7 NIV

7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.

1 Peter 4:10 NIV

10 Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.

1 Peter 4:10–11 NIV

10 Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. 11 If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.

This is certainly the approach that Jesus had when he came into the world. We see this in his first miracle. John tells us that Jesus did miracles to reveal that he was the Christ and that they would be a testimony at to who he is. In the process of doing miracles, he also helped people. Although the devil tempted him to use miracles to meet his own needs (turning stones into bread), he refused. In our Gospel lesson, he turned water into wine to help out a wedding couple. We are not told that he enjoyed a glass himself. Peter summarized Jesus’ ministry by saying that (NIV)

37 You know what has happened throughout the province of Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached—38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.

The greatest good that Jesus did was to give his life on the cross for our sins.

We are told that our response is to be (NIV)

14 For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.

Christ’s love is what drives us to do this. The Holy Spirit has enabled us with the abilities to do this in a combined effort through our local congregation regardless of when it is, where it is, or how big or small it is.

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