Pastor’s Corner May 2012

The following was published in our monthly newsletter, the Redeemer Report.

On Sunday, May 20, Redeemer will have it’s second “ministry fair” in the gym during the Sunday School hour. This is a time when the various ministries of the church will have tables set up for you to check out and consider joining for service and edification. Connected with the ministry fair is a special sermon I will be preaching on May 13 about using your spiritual gifts in the life of Redeemer.

There have been many discussions among Christians about spiritual gifts and what exactly they are. There are several New Testament passages that mention these special, Holy Spirit-provided abilities given to God’s people for the edification of the body of Christ and furtherance of the gospel. A common definition for a spiritual gift is the God-given capacity of every Christian to carry out his or her function in the body of Christ.

The subject of spiritual gifts is a important, we find gifts addressed specifically in four key passages of Scripture: 1 Corinthians chapters 12-14; Romans chapter 12; 1 Peter chapter 4; and Ephesians 4, which captures the purpose of the so-called “spiritual” gifts-

But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore it says, “When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men.” (In saying, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower regions, the earth? He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.) And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love. – Ephesians 4:7-16

In a recent article about spiritual gifts, Bob Deffinbaugh made an apt observation-

“Far too few Christians are involved in any kind of ministry. They conceive of themselves as spectators rather than participants. None of these ‘spectators’ have the joy of being actively involved in ministry and of seeing God work through them in the exercise of their spiritual gifts”.

I am asking every member of the Redeemer family to prayerfully consider how God wants them to use their spiritual gifts in the life of our church. When our members are serving, God is wonderfully glorified and absolutely everyone benefits.

Pray for my sermon on May 13 and our ministry fair on May 20.

In the Lamb,
Pastor Tony Felich