Getting the Most Out of Your Life
- Rev. Jerry Lepasana
- Sep 14, 2008
- Series: Uniquely You In Christ
Uniquely You in Christ Part 1
GETTING THE MOST OUT OF YOUR LIFE
Ephesians 2:10 :
10 For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
1 Peter 4:10-11:
10 Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms.
11 If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.
Each one of us has been uniquely created by God. Contrary to the theory of Darwin, we are not a product of a big accident. God has carefully designed and crafted all of us. The Bible confirms:
Psalms 139:14:
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
Let’s not miss the phrase “fearfully and wonderfully made.” King David even without the benefit of knowing the science of anatomy had a deep sense of wonder and awe for all the complexities of man. Looking at himself, he cannot help but praise God for the way he has been created. Saint Augustine once said:
Men go abroad to wonder at the height of mountain, at the huge waves of the sea, at the long courses of the rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean, at the circular motion of the stars; and they pass by themselves without wondering.
Yes, each one of us is special! Interestingly, we can see in Ephesians 2:10 that the apostle Paul shared the same perspective. He saw himself together with other believers as God’s masterpieces. The Greek word literally suggests a beautiful work of art. As a masterpiece, everyone is crafted differently and uniquely. While all are created in the image of God, no two persons are the same. In view of God’s great redemptive plan, He gave each of us unique personalities and abilities fit for the role and responsibility we need to play on earth. This I believe is how you can understand the second half of the verse - created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
The truth of the matter is: God has created us for service. He has created us to play a special role on earth. This goes with saying that if we fail to understand and accept this, we can miss out on getting the most out of our lives.
Michael Jordan perfectly illustrates this truth. After winning three consecutive NBA titles, In October of ‘93, he announced his retirement, citing the loss of desire to play the game. Instead, he opted to play baseball. However, even with enormous self-discipline and hard work, he never achieved the same productivity he had when he was playing basketball. So eventually, he went back to playing what delivered his full potential, which was basketball.
The same can be said of every believer, we need to find out where our competence in the work of the kingdom lies because this is where we can get the most out of our lives. As John Piper has continually reminded us in our Care Groups, we should not “waste our life.” This is what we want to cover in our new series, Uniquely You in Christ. This is going to be a special study on Spiritual Gifts. I hope to help each one of us discover what spiritual gifts are present in our lives and encourage us to faithfully use it for the furtherance of the kingdom. I want to establish some foundational concepts this morning, and then we will move to some specific gifts in the coming Sundays. Let’s begin by understanding the following:
B. “Service” (Different Ministries) – Opportunities of Christian service which are open to us for the exercise of our basic motivation.
Ephesians 4:11-12 (NIV):
11 It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers,
12 to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up
Now, kindly notice that these words are nouns or roles, which may be occupied and exercised by any person called to exercise their particular Motivation through that Ministry
C. “Working” (Different Manifestations) – The actual result in the lives of those ministered to, as determined by the Holy Spirit.
1 Corinthians 12:7-11 (NIV):
7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.
8 To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit,
9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit,
10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues.
11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.
Allow me to remind you that the recurrence of the “Spirit” administering these “just as He determines,” NOT as the believer is Motivated or as the Ministry role dictates.
In relation to these representations, there are two things I want to help everyone understand:
· When we exercise our Motivation through our ministry, the Holy Spirit determines what manifestations benefit the recipients most.
· We are not to focus on Manifestations but to concentrate on our God-given Motivation and the most effective ministry of expressing it.
I hope and pray that we are already using our gifts. According to the nationwide survey done by the Barna Research Group, out of 88% of born-again Christians who have heard of spiritual gifts, only 39% can identify the spiritual gift they possess, and a smaller proportion are actively seeking to minister in ways that the church will be edified, and God glorified. Let’s not neglect using our spiritual gifts because this is God’s way of us getting the most out of our lives.
I THE RECIPIENTS OF SPIRITUAL GIFTS:
It is quite clear in Ephesians 2:10 that when God called us to salvation, He has also called us to service. He has called no one to a life of idleness. When you consider the statement of Peter in verse 10, he clearly said, “Each one.” Every believer is included, no one is exempted. We are saved to serve:
Hebrews 9:14 (NIV):
14 How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!
With this expectation, God has given us the privilege to receive the “gift” of the Holy Spirit. Notice it is singular because I am referring to the person of the Holy Spirit, not the performance through the Holy Spirit.
At the moment of salvation, the Holy Spirit came into our lives to indwell us so He can empower us to serve the Lord. It is through Him that we receive the different spiritual gifts or abilities so we can serve others and therefore build the body of Christ. I trust that you will see that the priority is not so much on the abilities but on the person of the Holy Spirit. Paul himself declared:
1 Corinthians 12:4-6:
4 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit.
5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord.
6 There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men.
Indeed, there are different abilities, but all are produced by the same Holy Spirit. Now, this is really very critical. Perhaps, we all need to be reminded that the way we relate to the Holy Spirit affect the efficiency of our spiritual gifts. Paul reminded the Ephesian believers:
Ephesians 4:30 (NIV):
30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
The Holy Spirit is a person who can be offended or can suffer pain because of our actions or attitudes. Knowing He empowers us, we have to be sensitive of His presence. Let’s be committed in pleasing Him, instead of grieving Him.
II THE REASONS FOR SPIRITUAL GIFTS:
Going back to our text, we can identify three specific reasons for the gifts we have received:
A. Personally:
Once we discover and faithfully use our spiritual abilities, we would experience a greater sense of fulfillment in life, especially when we see how our ordinary lives make a difference in the lives of others. Rick Warren echoed this idea in his book, The Purpose Driven Life:
“Service is the pathway to real significance. It is through ministry that we discover the meaning of our lives.”
B. Corporately:
The apostle Peter explicitly said that we need to use our gifts “to serve others.” To be more specific, compare this with the words of Paul in Ephesians 4: 11-12. You will understand that God wants to use these abilities so the body of Christ will be strong and fully developed.
Ephesians 4:11-12 (NIV):
11 It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers,
12 to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up .
Evidently, when we are not using our gifts to serve others, this betrays our immaturity as a believer. Remember, self-centeredness is a common trait for children. They think the world revolves for them, to serve them and cater to their needs. Do you sometimes think of the church in this way? It exists for you. Absolutely not! It exists for God’s agenda – to reach people For Jesus Christ.
C. God’s Glory:
The last part of verse 11 should be the ultimate goal – “so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.” In other words, when you and I exercise our spiritual gifts, the result would be that people will be drawn closer to Jesus Christ, that they would be more motivated to obey and follow Him.
There were some Christians who misunderstood the purpose of these gifts, and so the apostle Paul had to firmly rebuke them:
1 Corinthians 4:7 (NIV):
7 For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?
Our gifts are never meant to put us to the spotlight. They’re for Christ to be on the spotlight. We have to careful with pride, lest we rob the Lord of the spotlight He deserves.
III THE REPRESENTATION OF SPIRITUAL GIFTS:
The “Gift” who is the Holy Spirit is represented in different abilities or functions for the body of Christ. There are three major sections in the New Testament where some of these gifts are mentioned: Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12, and Ephesians 4. However, the key text that will give us the distinctions is 1 Corinthians 12:4-6 - There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men.
If you notice the italicized words, the apostle Paul uses three different words that can guide us in our understanding:
A. “Gifts” (Different Motivations) – These are basic inward drives which God places in Christians to express His love.
Romans 12:6-8 (NIV):
6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith.
7 If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.