Seeking First God's Kingdom with our Spiritual Gifts
Dr. David M. Hughes, Pastor First Baptist Church, Winston Salem, NC, and CBF Coordinating Council Alumni
January 21, 2007
SEEKING FIRST GOD’S KINGDOM WITH OUR SPIRITUAL GIFTS
Romans 12:1-8
Our congregation suffered a terrible loss this week when a member named Jim Cook died. Jim had been participating at FBC almost 25 years, and was a good friend to many of us, myself included.
Jim was one of those people who deliberately shied away from the limelight. His style was to serve quietly behind the scenes rather than show his stuff on stage. He served in a variety of ways at FBC. For example, he used his accounting skills when he served for years as our church treasurer.
But that’s not the service that impressed me most. What impressed me most was the way Jim would attend to the needs of his father-in-law, O.G. Allen. Years before he died, O.G. suffered a debilitating stroke. The stroke affected the way O.G. did everything—talk, walk, even think. As the years went by, O.G. became more childlike, and consequently, more of a challenge to deal with.
Jim had every reason to ignore O.G. He was a busy man with a thriving CPA practice. And he had a wife and two kids to attend to. O.G. wasn’t even a blood relative—he was a father-in-law. And Jim was a gifted golfer who deserved time of his own to play the links.
Even so, Jim carved out time to be with his father-in-law. He even took him to the golf course. O.G. struggled to walk, much less play golf. That didn’t faze Jim. Jim spent hours helping O.G. set up every shot down to the last putt on the 18th green. And Jim didn’t do this to earn brownie points with his wife, Marty. He did it because he loved O.G. And because he had the heart of a servant.
One reason among many I loved Jim Cook is because he was a vivid reminder that we were created to be servants. We’re gifted by God to do many things, but none more important than minister to others in the name of Christ.
This week, we continue our series of stewardship sermons focused around the theme, “Seek First God’s Kingdom.” So far we’ve established that Jesus charges us to seek first the kingdom of God in every area of our lives, including our physical bodies and our financial resources. Today we take matters a step further, because today we establish that we are called not only to honor God with our bodies and billfolds. We are to honor God with our time and spiritual gifts. If we do, Jesus says in his Sermon on the Mount, we’ll have every talent and gift we need to make this body of Christ more productive for the kingdom of God.
God gives us an unmistakable clue about the importance of serving when he sends his son Jesus to this earth. Why did Jesus come to live among the human family for 33 years? Jesus tells us himself in Mark 10:45 when he says, The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. If we claim to be Christ followers, we will also prefer to serve over being served.
In fact, says the Apostle Paul, serving is what we are wired to do. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:10).
The problem, of course, is that our wiring often gets short-circuited, and we don’t live like servants. In fact, thanks to sin, my first impulse is not to serve you. My first impulse is to find a way to get you to serve me. That’s because in my natural state I am a selfish person. And you are too, by the way. And serving goes against our selfish grain.
That’s why Paul is quite clear in Romans 12 that sustained servanthood always requires a renewed mind. Anybody can get fired up for a moment and become a temporary servant. But sustained servanthood requires a changed heart and mind.
Paul urges his listeners to be done with dead animal sacrifices to appease God. Instead, he says, you are to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God. But Paul is no idealist. He knows his readers are naturally selfish people who live in a culture that glorifies selfish pleasure. So he adds this directive: Do not be conformed to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind.
Think with me for a moment about the mind you think with. Your brain probably weighs all of three pounds, and yet it is far superior to the most sophisticated computer in the world. If you can see and describe something in a single sentence, you are using 20 billion brain cells in a very complicated way.
But as remarkable as your brain is, it’s also messed up by sin. Like a thirsty sponge, your mind soaks up all the sensuality and greed and hatred of this world without your knowing it. If you are offended by that notion, let me ask you this question—if we could turn your stream of consciousness into a sound track, how willing would you be to allow others to listen in on your private thoughts for even one hour?
You can’t live like Christ until you think like Christ. And you can’t think like Christ until you commit yourself to that goal. And begin to screen the garbage all about you out of your mind. And replace that garbage with the Word of God. If you let your mind marinate in the Word, God will do the rest.
By the way, notice Paul’s explanation for why we serve God. It’s tucked away in the opening words of Romans 12: I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice.
Why do we serve God? Before I offer Paul’s answer to that question, I want you to notice what Paul doesn’t say. He doesn’t say we serve to impress other people. How many times do we use our spiritual gifts and talents at church or anywhere else to impress others? If we’re honest, we’ll answer more times than we care to admit.
Paul knows that sin can even infect your service. That’s why he says, Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment. What’s so impressive about Jim Cook is that he served his impaired father-in-law on the back nine where nobody could see his servanthood. When your soul is privately screaming to be noticed for your service, you can be sure you have missed the point.
Nor does Paul say we serve to impress God. If you missed Fil Anderson’s recent leadership presentation, you missed a real treat. Fil reminded us that God loves us just as we are, even before we serve him in any way. We know that because before Jesus did anything in his public ministry, God showered him with praise at his baptism, saying “This is my beloved son, in whom I am well-pleased.” We don’t serve to earn God’s favor. We could never earn it in the first place. And in the second place, we don’t have to.
We serve God to thank God for his mercy. He accepts us just as we are, without one plea, without even one act of service. But every time we serve others, we are thanking God for saving us, and giving us abundant, eternal life.
After Paul lays the foundation for servanthood, he gets to the meat of the matter with this startling declaration—all Christ-followers possess a unique set of spiritual gifts to assist them in ministry. We have been given different gifts, Paul says, according to the grace given to each of us.
What is a spiritual gift? Rick Warren defines it this way—a spiritual gift is a special ability given by the Holy Spirit to every believer, to be used to minister to others and build up the body of Christ. In Romans 12, Paul offers a list of seven gifts—prophesying, serving, teaching, encouraging, giving, leading, and showing mercy. This is far from an exhaustive gift list—other gift lists also appear in scripture. But it illustrates the kinds of gifts God distributes to make sure the body of Christ functions as it should.
Notice that no one gift is superior. Personally, I wish Paul had said, “The gift of preaching is by far the most valuable, and the role of preaching is by far the most important.” But that’s not the way it’s written. Besides, there’s no room for my ego trip or yours either in the body of Christ because we didn’t earn our gifts—God gave them to us—and all gifts are equal, anyway. There are no “little people” with minor gifts and insignificant ministries in the church. Some brands of ministry are more visible than others. But take away the behind-the-scenes people, and up-front people like me would fall on our faces.
That’s what Paul is explaining when he writes, In Christ we though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all others. No one person in this church has all the gifts we need. The only way we have all the gifts we need is if we work together as a team. That’s why your failure to exercise your gift not only diminishes you—it hurts us all.
Someone has said, “You are the only person on earth who can use your ability.” If you don’t use it, we all lose it. And friends, Paul is clear that a spiritual gift is a terrible thing to waste!
So God’s challenge to us today is this—every participant at FBC needs to get off the bench and into the game. Every single one of us is called to be in ministry, using his or her God-given gifts for serving others and building up this body of Christ.
If you were with us in our prayer service Friday night, you know this place was full of the Spirit of God. If you needed any proof that God wants to do a good work in and through this church, you got it in spades on Friday as scores of people prayed prayers and wrote scriptures on the floor of our church throughout the night. It was one of the most moving scenes I have ever witnessed.
My challenge to you today is this—if you haven’t already, become a part of what God is doing at FirstBaptistChurch. This is one game where no one should remain on the bench. We need everybody to join the team on the field so we can move the ball toward the goal line God has for us. And yes, that means you!
Like most churches, we still have our share of bench-sitters who are convinced the Christian life is a spectator sport. If you are in that number, listen to this word from James—What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if people claim to have faith but have no deeds?…Faith, by itself, if not accompanied by action, is dead (James 2:14a, 17). In other words, if your faith hasn’t changed your life to the point that you want to serve, then it’s time to reexamine your faith.
But, you say, you don’t understand. I’m too busy to serve. I simply don’t have time. To which I reply, if you’re too busy to serve, you’re too busy. It’s time to eliminate something from your schedule to free up time to serve.
But, you say, I don’t know what my gift is, and I have no idea where I should serve. If you’re in that number, I’ve got good news for you. We have spiritual gifts inventories at the exits today, and I would encourage you to complete one and return it to our church office so that we can help you find your place of service.
Here’s the thing—you’ll be glad you did, because nothing is more fulfilling in this world than serving in the way God wants you to do. Serving in that way is as good as it gets!
I can still remember the first time I stood as a 17 year old to speak in church. Prior to that day, I had made a few public appearances in my home church, some bordering on disaster. Like the day I played in my first piano recital, completely forgot the music I had supposedly memorized, and turned around to look at my mother. Let’s just say that if looks could kill, I would have been dead a long time ago! And then there were the bible sword drills where I got beat by the same girl in the regional tournaments two years in a row because my hands were too sweaty to find the bible verses fast enough.
But then came the day I stood to speak as a 17 year old high school senior in a neighboring church. I stepped into the pulpit with nothing more than a simple outline, and somehow the words just flowed. Afterward, I could barely remember what I said. But the pastor of the church spoke to me and said, “Son, you’ve got the gift of preaching. And I hope one day you’ll use it.”
A few months later, I went to college and practically lost my faith. But eventually, I got it back. And even though I ran from using my gift for a long time, I never forgot that pastor’s comment. And I’ve never regretted giving God a chance to use me in this way. In fact, I’m convinced it’s the reason I’m alive.
If you’re not doing what you’re supposed to do with the gifts and passion God gave you, you’re missing the finest experience life can give. And that would be a tragedy for us all, because a gift and a life are terrible things to waste.