Gifts Given

By Pastor Dan Hickling

“There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them.There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work. Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.”—1 Corinthians 12:4–7 (NIV)

Whenever we read anything from the Book of 1 Corinthians, as we do here, it’s important to frame it within the greater context of the book. In context, Paul wrote this book in order to establish order. Things had rapidly unraveled at the church of Corinth in the months following Paul’s departure. All sorts of unspiritual dysfunctions had erupted, and as news of all this reaches Paul, he writes a series of spiritual prescriptions to set their condition straight.

Now, the passage we’re focused on here comes towards the end of these “get rights,” and it involves the exercise of spiritual gifts. This is such an important subject that Paul spends a lot more time writing about it than most of the other problem issues they were dealing with. Essentially, they had been using the spiritual gifts God had given to them, but in selfish and counter-productive ways. Paul goes into great detail describing the right way to go about using their God-given spiritual gifts, which results in these precious words of instruction, not just for the Corinthians but for us, as well: “Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.”

Note the expression, “the common good.” This indicates that when it comes to the use of spiritual gifts, whether it’s teaching, prophesying, encouraging, giving, etc., they’re not intended for personal gratification. Rather, each person’s gift is to be corporately shared with the rest of the church so the entire church body is blessed by the gift. This means that if you’ve been given a gift by God, you’re to exercise it for the sake of others.

And for those who think this might be the case for others, but not for themselves because they feel they aren’t gifted, Paul specifically states that these spiritual gifts are given to “each one.” Translation: If you’re a Christian, a part of Christ’s body, then you’ve been given a gift, and you’re responsible to use it in service of others.

If you’ve placed your faith in what Jesus did on the cross to cancel the debt of judgment for your sin, and you’ve surrendered your life to Him, He’s given you something beyond eternal life. He’s also given you a “supernatural superpower” that comes by the Holy Spirit into your life. You have something heavenly to give, and the God who gave it to you wants you to be incredibly generous with it. Why? So you would be burdened and bummed? No! So the common good of the body of Christ, the family of faith, can be experienced.

A lot of churches aren’t healthy and are struggling due to a lack of generosity. People can get stingy with their spiritual gifts, and they come to resemble the kind of church that Corinth had become. But this is one instance where we really bless ourselves by blessing others. For as we generously expend ourselves in the exercise of our spiritual gifts to the rest of the church, we actually strengthen and build up ourselves as part of the self-same body!

Let’s carry this perspective into our daily lives. May we make it our mission to not only discover and use our spiritual gifts, but to do so with a generous passion, knowing that what we give will be returned to us in full measure anyway!

Pause: What’s God’s desire in blessing His people with spiritual gifts?

Practice: Take some time to think about where you’re at in knowing, practicing, and growing in your spiritual gift(s). Then, think of ways you can be more generous with your gift(s).

Pray: Lord, we’re so very thankful for all You’ve given us. May we be more like You in the way we give away the spiritual gifts You give us. Let us see it as an opportunity to not only bless the rest of the body of Christ, of which we’re a part of already, but also to grow in being more generous, even as You are towards us! Amen.