08/18/2018
Spiritual gifts, they are so misunderstood. Are you one of those who believes that you have no spiritual gifts? Do you watch as others exercise the gifts they have been given, and become despondent because you think that you have been passed over? Well I pose this question to you... what have you prayed for? Have you asked God to show you His will for you, and then after receiving that answer, asked for the ability to accomplish it?
“If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"”
Luke 11:13 ESV
The Holy Spirit, this is the second major gift we will be given by the Lord, the first being our faith, Himself, Living Water. But both our belief and the Holy Spirit are foundational and teach us that to receive we must ask. Have you asked, and what are you asking for?
“Jesus answered her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, 'Give me a drink,' you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water."”
John 4:10 ESV
We read another verse of scripture and immediately begin to ask for things... children ask for a puppy, the lonely ask for a friend, the homeless ask for a place to live... and the list is endless. Sure, God will give us various things we ask for through prayer. He will heal us, feed us, give us shelter, and many other things, but none of those personal things holds a candle to the gifts he gives us when it comes to accomplishing His calling... His will for us. Nothing is more incredible than the spiritual gifts we receive in response to a prayer for His will to be revealed and accomplished by us. Listen to this verse...
“Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.”
John 14:13-14 ESV
What has God asked you to do for Him that you need a tool to accomplish? Have you asked Him in prayer for this thing that will advance His will? Using some skill that you have had all your life is just the use of a talent, but asking God for the ability to use that talent in His service, and in a way you could not have done before, transforms it into a gift. Asking God for the ability to do something beyond ourselves in order to accomplish His will brings us gifts; sometimes they manifest themselves as extensions of basic skills we already have, while at other times they are totally new and amazing abilities. What has God tasked you to do, and have you prayed for the gifts that would aid you in doing it?
“As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace:”
1 Peter 4:10 ESV
Once we have learned to ask, we need to learn what to ask for... always ask in accordance to God’s will for you... never judge God’s desire for you based on your desires, or Judge the gifts He gives based on your view of them. Sometimes we are handed a gift and then refuse to see it because it doesn’t appear grand enough for us. Perhaps we are a prosperous and mighty man who is asked to don the cloak of a servant in the home of an elderly person in need. Is servitude not a gift? What measure of humility would this wealthy man need to be given so that he could overcome his pride? Humility thus becomes a spiritual gift of God... and what gift is the old person receiving when they must face their inability to fend for themselves? These gifts might seem contrary and lowly to these two people who are struggling with their prides, but they are the very things that God alone can give them... and will save their souls in the process.
We look at all the souls that Billy Graham led to the Lord, or the ark that Noah built, or the strength of Goliath, but none of these was any more amazing than the humble person who quietly went about mowing the lawn of a single sick and dying man, or the impact on that elderly man’s salvation of accepting a handout of obedience and service from a stranger. What we are gifted to do is to accomplish God’s will, to glorify Him, and no man can do that and still say “Look at me!” Not the rich man dressed in dirty jeans, and not the old man who allows himself to be serviced after a lifetime of self-sufficiency.
So what is your spiritual gift? It is what God gives you when you pray for help in doing His will in your life. What is the value of the gifts He gives you? All gifts have the same value... the salvation of the person’s soul who receives it... all the other souls, those who filed the stadium to hear Billy Graham, or the old man who watched out the window as his lawn was being mowed, have their own stories unfolding, and their own spiritual gifts being experienced. As for Graham or the old man, their gifts became their own redemption.
Prayer:
Father, thank you for the revelation of your will in my life, and thank you for showing me the value of the spiritual gifts you have given me as they go about saving my soul for an eternity with you. Thank you Lord for leading me to understand that as much as I might think my gifts are impacting others, they are not of my doing, but always of you. Thank you for demonstrating your amazing plan to me as I step back and see the beautiful tapestry of my salvation that you have woven by pulling a single thread at a time... giving a single gift, teaching a single lesson, and bestowing a single blessing. Thank you Holy Father for stripping away my view of your gifts, and showing me that they aren’t given to save the world, but to save me... all the others who I obediently served have their own threads, lessons, and blessings, and if I am so used, perhaps the color of my gift will be made evident in their tapestry. Holy, Holy, Holy are you the God of gifts, and the architect of our salvation. Great are you who speaks into my life, and who I obey in the many gifts you have provided. Praised be your name now and for evermore.
Rich Forbes