Precept Austin

Spiritual Gifts Resources

Updated: Mon, 01/15/2024 - 13:05 By admin

(See Explanation Below)

RESOURCES RELATED TO
SPIRITUAL GIFTS

THOUGHT TO PONDER - Are you a faithful steward of the spiritual gift God has so graciously entrusted to your care to use for His glory? Paul's words apply to all saints when he says "Now, a person who is put in charge as a manager (oikonomos) must be faithful (pistos)." (1Cor 4:2NLT+) As our Lord Jesus said "I'm talking to any faithful (pistos), sensible servant (oikonomos) to whom the master gives the responsibility of managing his household and feeding his family. If the master returns and finds that the servant (doulos) has done a good job, there will be a reward. I assure you, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns." (Lk 12:42-44NLT+ - original version of NLT) And in Luke 16:10-11NLT+ Jesus said "Unless you are faithful in small matters, you won't be faithful in large ones. If you cheat even a little, you won't be honest with greater responsibilities. And if you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven?" And again Jesus said "The master was full of praise. 'Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let's celebrate together!'" (Mt 25:21NLT). Paul made it very clear that we "must (not optional) all appear before the judgment seat (bema) of Christ, so that each one (individually) may be recompensed (komizo) for his deeds in the body (AND HOW ONE HAS USED HIS OR HER SPIRITUAL GIFT OR GIFTS), according to what he has done, whether good (agathos - see good deeds) or bad (phaulos- worthless, accomplished in our energy, not in the power of the Spirit and ultimately not for God's glory).  (2Cor 5:10+)

May God's Spirit so move in each of our hearts and give us the desire and the power (Php 2:13NLT+) to "have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him," by using the spiritual gift(s) He has given to each of us. (2Cor 5:9+) In Jesus' Name. Amen

In light of the gracious privilege every saint has to store up for themselves treasures in heaven (Mt 6:19-21+) by redeeming the time (Eph 5:16+) and wisely using their spiritual gifts, take a moment to ponder your stewardship of God's gifts as you listen to Robin Mark’s powerful (convicting) song…

When It’s All Been Said and Done

When it's all been said and done
There is just one thing that matters
Did I do my best to live for truth
Did I live my life for you

When it's all been said and done
All my treasures will mean nothing
Only what I've done for love's reward
Will stand the test of time

Lord your mercy is so great
That you look beyond our weakness
And find purest gold in miry clay
Making sinners into saints

I will always sing your praise
Here on earth and ever after
For you've shown me Heaven's my true home
When it's all been said and done
You're my life when life is gone

When it's all been said and done
There is just one thing that matters
Did I do my best to live for truth
Did I live my life for you
Lord I'll live my life for you

Spiritual Gifts - Devotionals, Quotations, Illustrations (Including Multiple Devotionals from Our Daily Bread)

From the preface of Mirror, mirror on the wall- "When you find your true gifted identity in Christ, you will discover why you are here and how to please your Creator. This discovery brings a lasting and healthy self-image."

COMMENT: I would add it not only will this "discovery" (and the Spirit enabled use of your gift) impact your life during your short stay on earth (Jas 4:14+, Ps 144:4, Job 7:6, 7, Job 9:25, 26  pray Ps 90:12), but it will radically impact and enrich your experience throughout eternity (2Co 5:9,10+, 1Ti 4:7-8+, etc). 

Our Daily Bread devotionals

From Gotquestions.org:

Wayne Barber sermons related to spiritual gifts

Bible.org on Spiritual Gifts

Kenneth Boa

J Hampton Keathley, III

William MacDonald - 

In his conclusion MacDonald writes "

Thus, though much blessing has often flowed from the ministry of men representing the clerical system, we believe that it is not only not God’s best but that it is seriously detrimental to the best interests of the Church. God’s way is for the gifts to minister to the saints, then for the saints in turn to go forth to do the work of the ministry. The local assembly should recognize this important principle, and do nothing to hinder its free development. As the saints thus minister, unbelievers will be saved, saints will be edified, and new assemblies will be brought into being.

Spiritual Gifts are discussed in the following on site Verse by Verse Commentaries by Bruce Hurt:

  • ROMANS - Ro 12:6+, Ro 12:7+, Ro 12:8+,
  • EPHESIANS - Eph 4:11+, Eph 4:12+, Eph 4:13+, Eph 4:14+,
  • 1 PETER - 1 Pe 4:10+, 1 Pe 4:11+

Messages by Steven Cole

Messages by S Lewis Johnson

Messages by John Piper - continuationist

Messages by John MacArthur - cessationist

Cessationism...is the view that the miraculous gifts of the Spirit, such as healing, tongues, and prophetic revelation, pertained to the apostolic era only, served a purpose that was unique to establishing the early church, and passed away before the canon of Scripture was closed (comp. 1 Cor. 13:8-12 with Heb. 2:3-4). It is contrasted with continuationism, which is the view that the miraculous gifts are normative, have not ceased, and are available for the believer today. (Source:Theopedia)

Ray Pritchard (Includes discussion of seven spiritual gifts)

Grant Richison (abstracts from devotionals on Spiritual Gifts - click link for full article)

1 Peter 4:10 We exercise our (spiritual) gift in grace because we received our gift by grace. God does not want us to be ambivalent about the gifts He gives us. In fact, He warns us not to neglect our gifts...If someone were to give us a gift at Christmas and we threw it in the attic without opening it, it would be an insult to the giver. If Christians receive special supernatural endowments to do the work of God and leave them latent, this is an insult to God who gave the gift. God gave every Christian a special endowment to do His work without exception. Will you stand at the judgment seat of Christ empty-handed with no representation of using our gift responsibly? It will do no good to say, "Well, I'm not talented. I really do not have anything to offer the church. I am a speckled bird that does not fit in. I can't do anything. All I can do is sit. All I can do is be a religious spectator all my life. I watch others serve. All I can do is pity myself." Neglecting our gift indicates our lack of appreciation for the grace of God. Very few Christians seize their gifts and use them for God's glory to the benefit of the body of Christ. Never did so many owe so much to so few.

1 Peter 4:10b Spiritual Gifts serve no purpose except to serve. Each gift is a pipe that relays the blessing for which God designed the gift. We are a pipe, not a reservoir. We are a channel of God's blessing to others. We are the channel through which God's blessing flows to others.

1 Peter 4:10c Christians are managers of God's grace through their spiritual gift. God wants us to be faithful, not famous. He does not even want us to be successful but faithful....Stewards serve others by distributing their gift to meet the needs of others. A good steward manages God's provisions well. As a minister of Christ, God entrusts us with the treasures of the gospel. The first requirement is trustworthiness. What kind of steward have you been with God's gifts to you? Have you opened your gift? Have you neglected your gift? Do you use your gifts to serve others? There is room for everyone in the service of the King.

1 Peter 4:10d God's gifts of grace come in all sizes and shapes. The grace of God comes in all colors, shapes and sizes. It takes a great variety of gifts to produce a healthy, growing church. Our computer has outward functions but below the surface are many little parts that make it work. You may be one of those small parts. Without you there would be no effective church of God. That is the way God works. The church needs big parts and little parts, big roles and little roles without which the church would not be the church. Will you make yourself available to be used of God in the local church? Without you, the work of the Lord will suffer loss. We ultimately do not serve the church but we serve the Lord. Say to the Lord, "Here I am. Harness me. Put a saddle on me and I will do my best." All He expects is our best, nothing more. All He wants from us is to do what we can with what we have.

1 Peter 4:11 God gives us the gift of dispensing revelation....The message is not our own. We are just messengers who deliver the telegraph of good news. We do not say a messenger is great because of the good news in the telegram. The glory is in the content of the telegram. Men are simply mouth-pieces for communicating God's truth. We do not trust in our own powers but live under a power not our own.

1 Peter 4:11b To speak as an oracle of God is to speak with authority....Do you speak God's Word or are you a purveyor of your own notions? In speaking gifts, God designs that we transmit His truth. We simply chime the truth and the Holy Spirit does the work of applying truth to experience.

1 Peter 4:11c A characteristic of Christianity is to serve others....Few of us minister to saints. Most of us cater to our own needs. We love to minister to ourselves.

1 Peter 4:11d God will give us the ability to minister. God will enlarge our capacity to serve Him. He first gives us the capability to minister by giving us a gift. Then as we cultivate the gift, He makes us more potent. If we are faithful to our gift, God will enlarge our area of responsibility. He will push back horizons for greater ministry. Are you dying of spiritual dry rot? If God opens an opportunity for you, seize the day no matter how insignificant it may seem. If you are faithful in the small thing He will give you something greater

1 Peter 4:11e God supplies any provision we need to minister for Him. We do not invent our gift. God both gives the gift and produces the ability to use the gift. God is both the source of our gift and the sustaining of it. We often act as if it is our great gift that produces the results. We forget that God both gave us the gift and gives us the ability to use the gift (1 Corinthians 4:7). There is no room for pride because from beginning to end it is God that supplies.

1 Peter 4:11f Our purpose in life is to manifest God's glory. Use of our gifts is a combination of self-possession and self- abandonment. We should exercise our gift with a sense of excellence and yet the gift should not call attention to ourselves. The focus should be upon the Lord Jesus...Do you live a life of doxology? All doxologies ascribe glory to God. Do you ascribe to God what God truly is? There is always the temptation to ascribe glory to ourselves

1 Peter 4:11g God's purpose for us is to be God-centered. What is your motive for ministry? Do you do what you do for self? Are you self-centered or God-centered? The message here is that God wants us to be God-centered. Everything we do we do to the glory of God.

1 Peter 4:11h God wants us to recognize His sovereign rule for our lives.

1 Peter 4:11i We need to put our gifts in the perspective of eternity. Our master motive should revolve around the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31). If we live for the glory of God, our gifts will be used for eternal purpose. What we do in time counts for eternity. The phrase "forever and ever" puts our ministry and gifts in eternal perspective. We need to keep eternal values in view. We look at time from the viewpoint of eternity.

Ron Ritchie series on Spiritual Gifts

Ray Stedman from his book "Body Life"

Ray Stedman messages on Spiritual Gifts

Topic - The Holy Spirit

Bible Dictionaries, Theological Articles

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A "KEY" PLAYER
FAILS TO FULFILL THEIR FUNCTION?

The following story by an unknown author gives an interesting illustration of how one believer not exercising their gift in the Body can affect the message produced by the entire Body.

A Brokxn Kxy

Evxn though my typxwritxr is an old modxl, it works quitx wxll xxcxpt for onx of the kxys.

I havx many timxs wishxd that is workxd pxrfxctly.

It is trux that thxrx arx forty-onx kxys that function wxll xnough, but just onx kxy not working makxs thx diffxrxncx.

Somxtimxs it sxxms to mx that our church is somxthing likx my typxwritxr -- not all thx kxy pxoplx arx working propxrly.

As onx of thxm, you may say to yoursxlf, "Wxll, I am only onx pxrson, I don't makx or brxak thx church."

But it doxs makx a big diffxrxncx, bxcasx a church, to bx xffxctivx, nxxds thx activx participation of xvxry pxrson.

So, thx nxxt timx your xfforts arx not nxxdxd vxry much, rxmxmbxr my typxwritxr and say to yoursxlf, "I am a kxy pxrson in thx congrxgation and I am nxxdxd vxry much."

This is what happxns to thx wholx church, and multiply this by many timxs -- thx whole thing just doxs not makx sxnsx!

"Belovxd don't bx like a broken kxy."
You must utilize your spiritual gift.
The local body of Christ where you worship needs you
and cannot be the same without you!
Do you really believe that?

MISCELLANEOUS NOTES ON
SPIRITUAL GIFTS

Wayne Barber has an interesting illustration of unity among diversity in the realm of spiritual gifts - "Remember in chapter 2 (sermon series on Ephesians) we are told we are of God’s household and also His Temple. We are living stones being fitted into His Temple, each one of us with different sizes, shapes, gifts, personalities and individualities, but every one of us under the control of the Spirit of God. If someone played a middle C on the piano for a while, it is a pretty note. If he played it for a long time, you would say, "Will you quit? You are driving me crazy!" Isn’t it great that unity doesn’t mean uniformity? It doesn’t mean we are all alike. Wouldn’t that make church the most boring place you have ever been in your life? If that fellow added an E and a G and a high C, all of a sudden you would say, "Whew, that sounds good! Now that blends." You’ve got more than just one. You’ve got other diversified notes. But when you put them together played by the same hand, you have unity amongst the diversity. That is what Paul wants you to see. This is the body. This is how it functions. When we are each functioning under the Spirit’s power, letting His ability be ours, then our gifts begin to function. Even though our gifts are different, we are still preserving the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. We are different. Folks, you need to grasp that and stop coveting somebody else’s gift and somebody else’s ministry and simply say, "God, anything short of hell is grace. I accept what you have given to me. I receive what you have given to me. Let me just be who I am in your power. When you do that, the unity of the body is being preserved....The word for grace, charis, means that which you don’t deserve. It is Christ who is the source of every bit of it. Again, unity is not uniformity. We are all diversified in our gifts as to the amount and as to the gifts themselves. " (bolding added)

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