Christ Reveals Abilities For Them

and all nations had agreed to stop fighting while the terms of peace were negotiated. On June 28, 1919, Germany and the Allied Nations (including Britain, France, Italy and Russia) signed the Treaty of Versailles, formally ending the war.

On June 28, 1919, Germany and the Allied Nations (including Britain, France, Italy and Russia) signed the Treaty of Versailles, formally ending the war.

Veterans Day originated as “Armistice Day” on Nov. 11, 1919, the first anniversary of the end of World War I

Congress passed a resolution in 1926 for an annual observance, and Nov. 11 became a national holiday beginning in 1938.

Unlike Memorial Day, Veterans Day pays tribute to all American veterans—living or dead—but especially gives thanks to living veterans who served their country honorably

Let us give honor and a minute of silence to pray for all our veterans

The Armed Forces of America is the greatest army in the world

We feel secured and we exercise freedom because of the man and woman willingly wearing those boots to serve and protect our great nation

The church is not just a “Family”, it is not just a“Company”, but also it is an “Army”

1 Chronicles 12:22 NIV

22 Day after day men came to help David, until he had a great army, like the army of God.

The church is a “family”, not just a “family”, but “everlasting family”

1 Chronicles 12z

The moment you accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior you become part of the “universal church”

It is not sufficient for you to just be part of “the” church, but you must also belong to a “local church”

1 Timothy 3:15 NIV

15 if I am delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God’s household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth.

Ephesians 2:19 GW

19 That is why you are no longer foreigners and outsiders but citizens together with God’s people and members of God’s family.

The church is a “company” because the Bible tells us to be responsible stewards and to maintain order

The corporate aspect of being a church is the element needed to properly conduct church affairs with utmost integrity and professionalism

That is why we have our Board of Elders to provide not just spiritual guidance, but also leadership and administration

Take a listen to what Paul said in…

Romans 13:1 NIV

1 Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.

In the Bible said that all authority, in other words government

Clearly, our church is subjected to the rules, laws and regulations of this land, and so the corporate side of our church sees to it that we are compliant with those governing rules

And also the church is an “Army”

1 Chronicles 12:22 The Living Bible

22 More men joined David almost every day until he had a tremendous army—the army of God.

The basic process in an army is recruitment, training, stationing (being assigned on a particular base), and eventually “deployment”

The biblical language for these are… recruitment is evangelism.... training is discipleship… stationing is fellowship and deployment is ministry…

You will earn enormous amount of crafts and skills being in the military

Soft skills are the abilities you gained by working in a formally structured, disciplined environment

Being in an army, you also acquire communication skills.

When I say communication here, I mean it in the plainest, non-technical sense. This doesn’t have anything to do with being able to work a radio.

These communication skills are the kind you develop from just being able to effectively talk to the variety of people you encountered in the service

Being in an army also teaches you the ability to “plan”

Being skilled at planning doesn’t just mean knowing how to make a plan and sticking with it. It also means knowing how to adjust the plan to unforeseen circumstances.

The ability to plan well means recognizing when a plan isn’t working, not panicking when a plan has to be discarded and being able to think of a new, effective one on the spot. Planning under pressure!

In an army you also learn “problem solving” skills

Problem solving skills can be used to do many different types of things.

I’m not talking about the ability to solve a word problem in math class.

I’m referring to the ability to identify the central conflict in a situation and calmly assess and implement a variety of solutions

There are many abilities that you could master being in an army/military

You can master the art of flexibility, teamwork and integrity

Speaking of Abilities

Christ Reveals Abilities Form Them (us)

CRAFT - Christ Reveals Abilities For Them

OUR ABILITIES ARE FROM GOD

Exodus 31:1–5 NIV

1 Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 “See, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, 3 and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills—4 to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, 5 to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of crafts.

Chosen

Filled

Skills

Craft

In the book of Matthew, particularly in Chapter 13 you can find several parables

Jesus loved to use parables when teaching

Are simple stories used to illustrate a moral or spiritual lesson, as told by Jesus in the Gospels.

They are earthly stories with heavenly meaning

After telling them these parables, Jesus went back to His hometown

TEXT: | A Prophet Without Honor

Matthew 13:53–58 NIV

53 When Jesus had finished these parables, he moved on from there. 54 Coming to his hometown, he began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were amazed. “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked. 55 “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? 56 Aren’t all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” 57 And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own home.” 58 And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith.

To hear the message of God you have to approach the Bible without your personal biases

You must come on a clean slate ready to receive God’s Word (Logos-something said) and absorb the “Rhema” (utterance) from the Holy Spirit

Briefly let me tell you something about “Logos” and “Rhema”

If you’ve been a christian for a while now, it is most likely that you’ve heard these words before…

I did study on these words and I’d like to share with you my conclusion, I hope I had enough time to show how this conclusion was derived, but you may go ahead and be like the Bereans, study for yourself to cross examine if what I’ve been teaching you are true

From the way how the greek words “logos” and “rhema” was used in the Bible, it is my conclusion that Logos is a word (spoken/written) given generally, while Rhema <rhema> is a word (spoken/written) given specifically.

That is why you hear believers say very often that, they read exact same scripture (logos) several times, and gets different message (rhema) each time they read it

What can we notice from our text for today?

When studying the word (logos) and hearing the message (rhema), you must learn how to ask the right questions… what, when, where, why, who and how?

What: Jesus’ encounter with his town mates

Where: Jesus was in His hometown - Nazareth

Who: His town mates and very likely his own family

When: After his teaching in parables, when he receives the terrible news that John the Baptist has been executed

Why: To preach the gospel and save his own people

Why:

How: Jesus was teaching the people in their synagogue

What can we notice from our text for today?

There was a lot of questions

Jesus receives honor wherever He goes, except when he comes home

His town mates and some members of His own family rejected His message and claims

Miracles are equated to faith

While I was digging deep into these passage, my “rhema” from the Holy Spirit are the “Abilities” of the Lord

Christ Reveals Abilities For Them (us)

The synoptic gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, gave us strong reasons to believe that Jesus was a carpenter

It takes a whole lot of skill sets to be a carpenter

Matthew 13:55 NIV

55 “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas?

Mark 6:3 NIV

3 Isn’t this the carpenter? Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him.

Luke 4:22 NIV

22 All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips. “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?” they asked.

Jesus, the Son of God could have come on earth as a king… but He chose to come as a carpenter, why? Because...

Christ Reveals Abilities For Them

It takes a whole lot of skill sets to be a carpenter

Jesus showed them, and He is showing us, that we have God-given abilities that we must use in the ministry

When Jesus picked His disciples, each one of them had their own God-given abilities, their own skills, their own crafts, before they were called into the ministry

Most of them were fishermen

Matthew 4:19-19

Matthew 4:18–19 NIV

18 As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 19 “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.”

Luke was a doctor (), some were tax collectors…

Colossians 4:14 NIV

14 Our dear friend Luke, the doctor, and Demas send greetings.

The Bible was not clear of what was the abilities of Judas, but he was entrusted to handle the finances of their ministry… He must have been astute on numbers, otherwise other disciples won’t entrust their money to him

Paul was a “Tentmaker”

Acts 18:3 NIV

3 and because he was a tentmaker as they were, he stayed and worked with them.

God gave them those “Abilities”, and Jesus picked His disciples to use their abilities into ministry. What about you?

What

What are your God-given Abilities that you can use for ministry?

Ask the person next to you. What are your Skills?

Let me share with you the five (5) misconception about Abilities.

MYTH #1 People aren’t born with skills. All skills must be learned by experience - This is simply not true. There are a number of skills which seem to be inborn and develop very early in infancy. When people say, "He just seems to have a natural talent for it", it's probably true.

inborn and develop very early in infancy. When people say, "He just seems to have a

natural talent for it", it's probably true.

MYTH #2 Those skills which must be learned, are earned primarily in the classroom - Actually some of your most basic skills were learned at home, "in the street", or somewhere outside the classroom.

MYTH #3 If you have certain abilities, you will be very aware that you have them - Again that is not true. You're probably using a number of talents or skills that you are not even aware of. You need some process of skill identification.

MYTH #4 Skills that I use at work are only usable in that environment. I couldn't use them in ministry. - That’s a total fallacy. If you are creative, you can use your skills at your work and apply them to ministry

3. MYTH:

classroom. Actually some of your most basic skills were learned at home, "in the

MYTH #5 Most people only have a few abilities - The truth is that many national studies have proven that the average person possesses from five hundred to seven hundred different skills.

use them in ministry. Hopefully, by the end of this class, you'll see the fallacy of that

If you have certain abilities, you will be very aware that you have them - Again that is not true. You're probably using a number of talents or skills that you are not even aware of. You need some process of skill identification.

idea. Be creative.

hundred different skills.

Now let me give you some 26 known “Specialized Abilities”

26 SPECIALIZED ABILITIES

Entertaining ability - to perform, act, dance, speak, magic

Entertaining ability: to perform, act, dance, speak, magic

Recruiting ability - to enlist and motive people to get involved

Recruiting ability: to enlist and motive people to get involved

Interview ability - to discover what others are really like

Interview ability: to discover what others are really like

Researching ability - to read, gather information, collect data

Researching ability: to read, gather information, collect data

Artistic ability - to conceptualize, picture, draw, paint, photograph, or make renderings

Artistic ability: to conceptualize, picture, draw, paint, photograph, or make renderings

Graphics ability - to lay out, design, create visual displays or banners

Graphics ability: to lay out, design, create visual displays or banners

Evaluating ability - to analyze data and draw conclusions

Evaluating ability: to analyze data and draw conclusions

Planning ability - to strategize, design and organize programs and events

Planning ability: to strategize, design and organize programs and events

Managing ability - to supervise people to accomplish a task or event and coordinate the details involved

Managing ability: to supervise people to accomplish a task or event and coordinate

the details involved

Counseling ability - to listen, encourage and guide with sensitivity

Counseling ability: to listen, encourage and guide with sensitivity

Teaching ability - to explain, train, demonstrate, tutor

Teaching ability: to explain, train, demonstrate, tutor

Writing ability - to write articles, letters, books

Writing ability: to write articles, letters, books

Editing ability - to proofread or rewrite

Editing ability: to proofread or rewrite

Promoting ability - to advertise or promote events and activities

Promoting ability: to advertise or promote events and activities

Repairing ability - to fix, restore, maintain

Repairing ability: to fix, restore, maintain

Feeding ability - to create meals for large or small groups

Feeding ability: to create meals for large or small groups

Recall ability - to remember or recall names and faces

Recall ability: to remember or recall names and faces

Mechanical operating ability - to operate equipment, tools or machinery

Mechanical operating ability: to operate equipment, tools or machinery

Resourceful ability - to search out and find inexpensive materials or resources needed

Resourceful ability: to search out and find inexpensive materials or resources needed

Counting ability - to work with numbers, data or money

Counting ability: to work with numbers, data or money

Classifying ability - to systematize and file books, data, records and materials so they can be retrieved easily

Classifying ability: to systematize and file books, data, records and materials so they

can be retrieved easily

Public Relations ability - to handle complaints and unhappy customers with care and courtesy

Public Relations ability: to handle complaints and unhappy customers with care and

Welcoming ability - to convey warmth, develop rapport, making others feel comfortable

courtesy

Welcoming ability: to convey warmth, develop rapport, making others feel comfortable

Composing ability - to write music or lyrics

Composing ability: to write music or lyrics

Landscaping ability - to do gardening and work with plants

Landscaping ability: to do gardening and work with plants

Decorating ability - to beautify a setting for a special event

Decorating ability: to beautify a setting for a special event

street", or somewhere outside the classroom.

Again, that is not true. You're probably using a number of talents or skills that you are

These are just some of the known “Specialized Abilities” that you might not know that you actually have

not even aware of. You need some process of skill identification.

We touched on this the other Sunday when we talked about Spiritual Gifts

Paul talked about different kinds of gifts distributed by the same Holy Spirit

He mentioned about the gifts of wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, miraculous powers, prophecy, discernment, speaking in tongues and interpretation of tongues

Gifts are different from Abilities

and in that part of his letter particularly on verse 4 & 6 he said these…

1 Corinthians 12:4 TEV

4 There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit gives them.

1 Corinthians 12:6 TEV

6 There are different abilities to perform service, but the same God gives ability to all for their particular service.

When He could have easily came as a “king”, Jesus came taking the position of a carpenter

It is Christ’s way to reveal abilities

Jesus is God in human form, and when He chose to be a carpenter, I believe He did it on purpose

He did it because…

CHRIST REVEALS ABILITIES FOR THEM

I HAVE DIFFERENT ABILITIES

1 CXo

1 Corinthians 12:6 TEV

6 There are different abilities to perform service, but the same God gives ability to all for their particular service.

Question: What are your abilities that you can consider as your top three (3)? Why did you say so?

GOD GAVE ME THOSE ABILITIES

1 Corinthians 12:6 TEV

6 There are different abilities to perform service, but the same God gives ability to all for their particular service.

Question: If you recognized that it was God who gave you your Abilities, how does your abilities brings honor and glory to Him?

I SHALL USE THOSE ABILITIES FOR HIS SERVICE

1 Corinthians 12:6 TEV

6 There are different abilities to perform service, but the same God gives ability to all for their particular service.

Your abilities could turn into Incredible ministries

Question: Using your creative imagination, how can you use your top three (3) Abilities in ministries.

Tell the person next to you… “You have a lot of Abilities”

And to other person… “Use your Abilities in the ministry”

Your driving ability can be used for ministry - let’s pray for a big van that we can use to fetch the elderly to attend our Sunday Services

Your singing ability can be used for ministry

Your researching ability can be used for ministry

Your feeding ability can be used for ministry

Your carpentry can be used for ministry

Or just being a daddy can be used for ministry

Tell the person next to you… “You have a lot of skills”

And to other person… “Use your skills in the ministry”

CLOSING:

Alvin Gray is a Program Director at The Other Way Ministries

The have a Wednesday Evening Father Program that provides parenting to the fatherless in their neighborhood

They were intentional about creating cohesion, accountability, and insistence on engaging responsibly in the community

Their approach begins with recognizing that they should, in all their dealings, seek “Father” (God) first, as a way of honoring God’s ability to provide them with a permanent solution to our temporary condition

They use scripture as their foundation. Then, they focus on problems that are within their ability to solve, especially as it relates to parenting and family.

use scripture as our foundation. Then, we focus on problems that are within our ability to solve, especially as it relates to parenting and family.

Church family… As we transition to our new place of worship comes January 2020… let us recognize that:

We have different abilities

God gave us those abilities

Let us use those abilities for His service

Christ Reveals Abilities For Them

OPENING

​

OUR ABILITIES ARE FROM GOD

TEXT: | A Prophet Without Honor

Christ Reveals Abilities For Them

CHRIST REVEALS ABILITIES FOR THEM

I HAVE DIFFERENT ABILITIES

GOD GAVE ME THOSE ABILITIES

I SHALL USE THOSE ABILITIES FOR HIS SERVICE

Your abilities could turn into Incredible ministries

CLOSING: