Here is this past Sunday's sermon transcript and the two recordings from the different services. There is a link to the spiritual gifts inventory assessment too.
“One Spirit; Different Gifts”
1
Corinthians 12:1-11 (CEB)
January 20, 2019 (2nd
Sunday after Epiphany)
Flintstone UMC, Simpson UMC
1
Corinthians 12:1-11 (CEB)
12 Brothers and sisters, I don’t want you to be
ignorant about spiritual gifts.2 You know that when you
were Gentiles you were often misled by false gods that can’t even speak. 3 So I want to
make it clear to you that no one says, “Jesus is cursed!” when speaking by
God’s Spirit, and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit. 4 There are different spiritual gifts but the
same Spirit;5 and there are different ministries and the
same Lord; 6 and there are
different activities but the same God who produces all of them in everyone. 7 A demonstration of the Spirit is given to
each person for the common good. 8 A
word of wisdom is given by the Spirit to one person, a word of knowledge to
another according to the same Spirit, 9 faith
to still another by the same Spirit, gifts of healing to another in the one
Spirit, 10 performance of
miracles to another, prophecy to another, the ability to tell spirits apart to
another, different kinds of tongues to another, and the interpretation of
the tongues to another. 11 All
these things are produced by the one and same Spirit who gives what he wants to
each person.
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THIS
IS THE WORD OF GOD FOR THE PEOPLE OF GOD.
THANKS BE TO GOD.
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Since
I have served this appointment, we have spoken about spiritual gifts quite a
bit. In fact, when I first came in, you
all were just starting to study about spiritual gifts and we had several sessions
on spiritual gifts, from learning what they are, to learning what ours are by
taking a spiritual gifts inventory, to following up with what we do with our
gifts once we know what they are. We’ve
had several sermons along the way about them too.
Like
many themes in the Scriptures, the gifts given by the Spirit are not something
we can talk too often about. The more we
hear about them, the more we learn. The
more we learn about them, the more we can put them into action.
As
Paul states in today’s passage, he doesn’t want us to be ignorant about
spiritual gifts. (verse 1) In verses
4-6, he explains that there are many gifts, ministries, and activities, but the
same Spirit, Lord, and God: “There are different spiritual gifts but the same Spirit;5 and
there are different ministries and the same Lord; 6 and
there are different activities but the same God who produces all of them in
everyone.”
He explains that the gifts are for the common
good.
He then goes on to list quite a few gifts in
verses 8-10:
*A word of wisdom
*A word of knowledge
*Faith
*Gifts of healing
*Performance of miracles
*Prophecy
*Ability to tell spirits apart
*Different kinds of tongues
*Interpretation of tongues
In verse 11, Paul reminds us once again that the
gifts are produced by the one and same Spirit and given to each person.
Not all of the gifts given by the Spirit are
listed in this passage. To get a fuller
listing of the gifts, we also have to look at other passages, such as Romans
12:6-8, Ephesians 4:11. Notice that I
said “fuller listing” rather than “full listing” because we cannot limit the
Holy Spirit, who is alive and working continually. Jesus reminded the disciples that once he was
gone, the Holy Spirit would be sent on his behalf, to teach them. (John 15:26
is one example of this-- 26 “But I will send you the Advocate--the Spirit of truth. He will come to you
from the Father and will testify all about me.” (NLT))
As you look at different spiritual gifts
inventories, you will notice the difference in spiritual gifts that are noted
and listed for the inventory purpose. And
because we know that the Holy Spirit continues to work in and through us today,
we can be careful to not limit the Holy Spirit, but rather we can be open to
allow the Holy Spirit to speak to us and to work in and through us.
What are we to get from today’s passage?
1. Every person who confesses Jesus as Lord is gifted
by the Holy Spirit in some way.
2. All of the gifts from the Holy Spirit are to
be used for the common good, for the whole community.
3. All gifts are equal and activated by the grace
of God.
(Feasting
on the Word: Year C, Volume 1, Karen Stokes, 256)
This was then, but it is also now. Do we believe it? Do we live it?
Think about the variety of ministries and activities
you participate in. Now think about that
multiplied by each person here.
As we live into the gifts given to us by the Holy
Spirit, participating in various ministries and activities for the common good
of the community, think about what can be accomplished for the kingdom of God.
The potential for kingdom work grows
exponentially as we allow the Holy Spirit to work in us and through us.
Often, it is simply learning what our gift is
that opens the door to using it.
Sometimes our gifts are lying in wait, for us to
take a chance, a risk, a step and use that gift.
If you haven’t thought about your gift, often someone
else can point it out to you as they notice it in you. Has anyone ever told you that you sent a
timely note, made a timely call or that you have the gift of encouragement? Listen to those observations.
As you listen to the observations of others, listen
to the Holy Spirit, take an inventory, then you will be able to discern what
gift is yours to share in the kingdom work for the common good of others.
We learn the purpose of the gifts in Ephesians
4:12-13: “12 His purpose was to equip
God’s people for the work of serving and building up the body of Christ 13 until we all reach the unity of faith
and knowledge of God’s Son. God’s goal is for us to become mature adults—to be
fully grown, measured by the standard of the fullness of Christ.”
The gifts that the Holy Spirit gives each one of
us is meant to serve and build up the body of Christ, helping us grow into
mature believers.
If we are on that path already, then that is great.
If we aren’t, then what can we do differently?
First, make sure we know what our gift is and use
it for the building up of the kingdom.
We can also pray.
We can pray that God molds us and makes us into a more united, a more
mature body of Christ that uses the given gifts for the common good.
If you haven’t done a spiritual gift inventory in
a while, you can take the Spiritual Gifts Assessment offered by the UMC. There are 21 questions. http://www.umc.org/what-we-believe/spiritual-gifts-online-assessment
Once you’ve taken the assessment, share your
findings with one of the pastors, your prayer partner, your Sunday School
class.
If you want/need more information on your
particular spiritual gift, we will help you find it.
Remember that you have been given a gift to be
shared.
As each of us shares the gift given to us by the
Holy Spirit for the common good, the body of Christ will be built up. It will grow in maturity.
This past week, the renown poet Mary Oliver
passed away at age 83. She had a gift of
being able to speak into lives with her words through her poetry. In her poem, “The Summer Day”, a line that
has spoken to many is the final line: “Tell me, what is it you plan to do with
your one wild and precious life?”
We each have something to contribute, a gift
given to us by the Holy Spirit, for the common good of community.
As we contemplate our gifts and how we might use
them for the good of the kingdom and the glory of God, hear this short Mary
Oliver poem entitled “The Gift”.
Be still, my soul, and steadfast.
Earth and heaven both are still watching
though time is draining from the clock
and your walk, that was confident and quick,
has become slow.
So, be slow if you must, but let
the heart still play its true part.
Love still as once you loved, deeply
and without patience. Let God and the world
know you are grateful.
That the gift has been given.
May the Holy Spirit guide us as we seek to know
our gift, to grow as mature believers, sharing the gifts given to us.
May we be disciples of Christ so that we can make
disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.
Amen.
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At Flintstone UMC, we sang "Holy Spirit, Rain Down" by Hillsong.
As I was leaving to head to Simpson UMC, they were singing "Spirit Song", UMH 347.
Recording from Flintstone UMC
Recording from Simpson UMC
May there be something here in the Scripture passage, the transcript, the recordings, and/or the songs that speaks to you.
Adventures in the journey!
Debra
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