A Gifted Community
In the second of our series on Community, Rob talks about the gifts God has graced us with for use in the church and beyond the church into the community.
Gifts as Channels of Grace
Let’s start with a simple truth: grace and gifts go hand in hand. The word for grace in Greek is charis, and the word for gift is charisma. As John Wimber used to say, our gifts are the Spirit’s gracelets, manifestations of His grace. Undeserved favour.
When we talk about using spiritual gifts, we’re talking about the active flow of God’s grace through us. How amazing, the very grace of God flows through us every time we use a gift.
In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly. Romans 12:6-8 (NLT):
Paul tells us that by God’s grace, we all have different gifts, and these gifts are given in different proportions/measures of grace. Proportion means we don’t all have the same grace or faith to do things as some other people have. But we can ask God for his grace.
Grace is stretchy stuff and there is always more of it and Paul tells us we must earnestly desire the best gifts! That can often mean the best gift for the right moment, as and when we need them or need to be them.
Serving others
Peter tells us how we’re called to be faithful stewards of these gifts, using them to serve others. (1 Peter 4:10)
This is what a gifted community looks like. A church that is rich in grace, where everyone gets to play their part, and the church is built up and strengthened as a result.
But it’s important also to recognize that this grace isn’t just for inside these walls. It’s meant to flow out.
A Safe Space for Growth
The church is a safe space to learn, to practise, to experiment with the gifts we have. How will you know what gifts you have unless you try them out?
This is where we get to grow in our gifts. Here, we have the opportunity to exercise our gifts, to make mistakes, to get feedback, and to grow stronger. A spiritual gift in many ways is just like any other gift: training and practice grows our abilities.
Growth requires grace – both grace for one another and grace from God. As we learn to use our gifts, we are going to make mistakes and you never stop learning, so you are always going to make some mistakes.
Paul pictured a gifted community in 1 Corinthians 14:26, when we gather, each one of us has something to bring – a word of instruction, a prophecy, a song – and all of it is for the strengthening of the church.
That’s what it is meant to look like; the gifts bubbling up whenever we come together, running over towards one another, trickling out as we go out.
Expanding Beyond the Church Walls
It’s not enough for us to use our gifts only in the safety of the church. God calls us to carry these gifts out into our communities.
Think of your gift as a channel of life, flowing into the places where God has positioned you – a demonstration of grace flowing into your workplace, your family, your neighbourhood. Every act of mercy, every word of encouragement, every moment of leadership is a way to bring God’s life to dry and barren places.
And the further out the river goes, the wider and deeper it goes…
Gifts in Action
Maybe you have the gift of encouragement. What would it look like if you became the source of encouragement in your workplace? Not just to your Christian friends but to those who might never step inside a church.
Or maybe you have a gift of leadership. How could you lead with integrity in a way that brings blessing to your colleagues or your community? Gifts of wisdom? (people asking advice)
Even the gift of hospitality can be a powerful way to create channels of God’s grace. Opening your home, inviting your neighbours in, showing them the love of God through simple acts of kindness—these are all ways the river flows out.
Spiritual Gifts
Do you know which gifts you have? Do you know that you can ask God for other gifts?
Read through 1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12, and Ephesians 4 to find the various gifts that are available. Which ones have you got and which ones are you asking for?
