The passage for today is 1 Corinthians, chapter 12.
In this chapter, Paul wrote about spiritual gifts. He taught that their origin was from God alone to be used for His purposes. Before coming to Christ, the Corinthian society was influenced by idols and pagan thinking. Now that they had put their faith and trust in Jesus, they were under the influence and power of the Holy Spirit and were given gifts to use in the church. Paul cited some of the spiritual gifts that were manifested in these new believers, and reminded them that all of them came from God. Not everyone was given the same gift/s and so everyone was needed so that the work of the church could be accomplished. They were distributed for the benefit of the church, to edify the body and spread and advance the gospel.
Some of the gifts listed here were: wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, miraculous powers, prophecy, distinguishing between spirits, speaking in tongues, and interpretation of tongues. There are others not listed here, in various chapters of the Bible. God distributes these gifts to each one as He determines. All come from the same Lord, and we are to serve and work in God’s Kingdom using these gifts to the best of our ability. If you don’t know what your spiritual gifts are, you can do a search for a spiritual gifts assessment online and find out your primary spiritual gifts. (Note that spiritual gifts are only given to believers once they have made a commitment to Christ!) It is worth the time and effort to see if you are operating in the area of your giftedness. When you are doing what God has gifted you to do, there is passion and excitement for the tasks set before you. If you are helping out, but don’t really feel gifted to do a specific job, it will be evident by the lack of energy you have for doing it.
Paul likened the body of Christ to the human body, with many parts working together to form one fully functioning person. Each part is vital to the whole body. It is the same in the body of Christ. We all need to do our part, using the gifts God has given to us, so that the church can be most effective in bringing people to Christ and helping them learn and grow in their faith. We are all a necessary part of the whole. Don’t think you are not important! We are all needed, and play different roles in our congregations. We might be the one to connect with someone and be a new friend. We might be gifted to teach the children in our church, or encourage a young mom. We might be gifted in helping people understand Scripture or lend practical help by preparing a meal for someone who is ill. Whatever your gift, we are called to use our abilities for the glory of God and His church. We should be aware of our gifts, and develop them so that we are ready to serve the body and work together for the good of the whole.
Overflowing Hope 