Spiritual Gifts Were Never Meant to Look the Same
- meetgodattheedgeof
- 5 days ago
- 3 min read
1 Corinthians 12:4-6
There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us.
Man, this is so important for everyone who is serving the church body. I've seen firsthand how ugly it can get when someone starts focusing on how they think others should serve. People will question leadership, question whether others know what they are doing, and even try to sabotage their work. Ugly, ugly stuff.
Service is a commandment for every follower of the Lord. Each of our callings to serve is as unique as we are, and when we are led by the Lord, our service helps us discover and develop our spiritual gifts.
Paul perfectly describes the church as a body: hands, feet, toes, eyes, ears, and even rear ends. The reason this picture is so perfect is because we all know how terrible it is when one part of our body gets hurt or stops working the way it should. As an ex-hockey player, I was hit in the rear end with a puck at high speed, and let me tell you, not being able to sit right threw off my whole body. My back hurt, my shoulders hurt, my neck hurt, and I needed over a month to recover from the damage that one injury caused.
Something we might consider a private area—or in this case, unseen work—is still crucial for the whole body to operate at its best. The only way the body functions the way the Lord designed is when each of us finds our calling and stays in our lane. Of course, that doesn't mean we can't lend a hand when needed, but gossip, criticism, and a lack of support are where the whole body begins to suffer.
The model the Lord established was one of service and building each other up. When someone is struggling, they should be encouraged and prayed for while asking the Lord to lead them. I believe that if we keep the image Paul created for us in mind while serving, it will help us stay focused on the Lord instead of worrying about what everyone else is doing.
If you've ever experienced what it feels like for your body to operate at peak performance, then you understand why every part needs to do its job. It's easy to recognize someone who has found their calling. It often looks effortless. Watching a worship leader who is operating within their spiritual gifts is a beautiful example because their obedience helps lead others into worship.
The benefits of serving are unlimited. Your spiritual growth, prayer life, testimony, faith, and understanding all grow through service. Before you get involved, pray and seek the Lord's direction for where He wants you. Stepping in to fill a gap is a loving act of service, but staying too long can create burnout, drain your emotional and spiritual energy, and even prevent someone else from stepping into the place where God has designed them to use their spiritual gifts.
As always, stay close to the Lord and let Him lead you.
Thank You, Father, for one more day. Amen.
1 Corinthians 12:7-10
A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other. To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice; to another the same Spirit gives a message of special knowledge. The same Spirit gives great faith to another, and to someone else the one Spirit gives the gift of healing. He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages, while another is given the ability to interpret what is being said.
