Sunday, November 27th, 2011
Rom 12:3-13a; 1 Cor. 14:1-12; Eph 4:11-16
Power Walk – 1: Growing
Bible Memory Verse for the Week: Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.— 1 Peter 4:10
The question to be answered is . . . What gifts does God provide to help the church grow to become like Christ?
Answer: Lots! But, today we will concentrate on prophets, servants and teachers. Unless we are willing to submit to the gifts God gives us and realize that we need to have the attitude of “one for all and all for one” then we will never enjoy the fullness God desires to bring to our lives.
In the corporate manifestation of God’s Spirit, we see Him doing the work of unifying believers with Christ and each other (1 Cor 12:12-13; Eph 4:1-6); transforming them (2 Cor 3:18; Gal 5:16-25); granting gifts that build up the church, the body of Christ (1 Cor 12; Eph 4:7-16); giving the church wise plans (Acts 8:29; 13:2; 15:28); empowering the church in an effective witness (Acts 8:29); 1 Cor. 2:4-5; Eph 6:18-20); giving Scripture and prophecy (2 Tm 3:16-17; Jl 2:28-32); molding the church and individual believers to holiness and sanctification (2 Cor 3:18; Gal 5:16-25; Eph 5:26-27 [implied]); and always pointing to Christ, the Head of the church (Jn 15:26-27; Eph 3:2-6). (Steve Brown, Follow the Wind–Our Lord, The Holy Spirit, 24)
Gifts are not for selfish enjoyment, but for the upbuilding of the community. When he discussed this same issue with his Corinthian converts, Paul made it very clear that he had no sympathy with a spectacular exhibition of religious gifts which left the hearers puzzled and uninstructed. A man who could not speak to the profit of others had better remain silent (cf. 1 Cor 14). It is worth remembering that to “edify” the church is to build it up (cf. Eph 4:16). This is most likely to happen when each person accepts his distinctive task as a ministry and is faithful in his allotted sphere. (Abingdon Press, The Interpreter’s Bible, Vol. IX, 585)
The Word for the Day is . . . Grow
God asks us to grow and God provides for us to grow in our walk: (Ps 68:35; 1 Cor 14:12, 26; 2 Cor 12:19; Eph 3:16; 1 Tm 1:12; Rv 3:2)
Paul went around strengthening the churches (Acts 14:22; 15:32, 41; 16:5; 18:23; 12 Thes 3:2; 2 Thes 3:3)
What does God provide to assist us to grow into the image and likeness of His Son?:
I. God gifts His Body the Church with prophets so it can grow (Rom 12:6; 1 Cor 14:1-5, 24-25, 31-39; 2 Tm 4:2; 1 Pt 4:11)
Some think that this is a subjective restriction, namely that the prophet should speak only so long as he is sure of his inspiration; he must not add any words of his own. But it is more likely to be an objective restriction. In this case we should note that “faith” has the definite article, and we should translate the phrase “in agreement with the faith.” That is, “the prophet is to make sure that his message does not in any way contradict the Christian faith.” (John Stott, Romans, God’s Good News for the World, 327)
The prophet is to use his gift “in proportion to his faith.” “Proportion” translates analogia, a word drawn from the world of mathematics and logic, where it denoted the correct proportion or right relationship. (Clinton E. Arnold, Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary, Vol. 3, 74)
The gift of prophecy is the gift of being God’s public spokesman, primarily to God’s own people–to instruct, admonish, warn, rebuke, correct, challenge, comfort, and encourage. God also uses His prophets to reach unbelievers. (John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Romans 9-16, 170)
Prophets should say no more and no less than what God has given them. (Clinton E. Arnold, Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary, Vol. 3, 75)
“Throwing himself down” (mitnappēl, a Hithpael participle) implies that Ezra kept on “throwing himself down” on the ground. The prophets and other leaders used object lessons, even bizarre actions, to attract people’s attention (Is 7:3; 8:1-4; 18; Jer 19; 27). Note that women and children are mentioned. Entire families were involved. (Expositor’s Bible Commentary by Frank E. Gæbelein, 668)
As we move from modernity to postmodernity, the church must focus on saints, not celebrities. Poets and prophets must replace the pulpiteers. The spiritual superficiality that has characterized so much church leadership in recent decades has resulted in spiritually shallow churches. Congregational members seldom rise above the level of their leaders. (Eddie Gibbs, Church Next, 122)
Self is a great let to divine things; therefore the prophets and apostles were usually carried out of themselves, when they had the clearest, choicest, highest, and most glorious visions. Self-seeking blinds the soul that it cannot see a beauty in Christ, nor an excellency in holiness; it distempers the palate, that a man cannot taste sweetness in the word of God, nor in the ways of God, nor in the society of the people of God. It shuts the hand against all the soul-enriching offers of Christ; it hardens the heart against all the knocks and entreaties of Christ; it makes the soul as an empty vine, and as a barren wilderness: “Israel is an empty vine, he bringeth forth fruit to himself” (Hos 10:1). There is nothing that speaks a man to be more empty and void of God, Christ, and grace, than self-seeking. (Thomas Brooks, Precious Remedies Against Satan’s Devices, 189)
“A prophet is defined by truth, not by his goodness.” – Steve Brown
Does the truth come at you? Does God’s Word argue with you? Does the truth comfort you? Jesus is the final prophet. Jesus is the truth in a person. (Tim Keller, sermon on Acts 3)
“Sackcloth, the coarsest of cloth, often made of goat’s hair, was the normal dress of the poor, prisoners, and slaves; it was worn by those who mourned (Ezek 7:18). Prophets wore it (2 Kg 1:8; Zec 13:4; Mk 1:6), partly to associate themselves with the poor, partly perhaps as a sign of mourning for the sins of the people. When used in mourning, it covered no more of the body than was demanded by decency. When used by the Ninevites, it expressed their complete inability to contend with the divine decree and that they were the slaves of the supreme God.” (H. L. Ellison, Expositors Vol. 7, 382)
Where consumption is the law and the prophets, self-discipline is heresy. More is always better. Since maturity places limits on the desire for more, maturity is out. Adolescence comes into its own. The best consumers are perpetual teenagers, people for whom personal desires are fresh and irresistible, and who therefore find it hard to accept having any limits placed upon them. They are always wanting and needing what the market has to offer. (Alan Keyes, Our Character, Our Future, 25)
It is the job of the prophet to comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable.
If you have only the Word, you dry up. If you have only the Spirit, you blow up. But if you have both, you grow up. (Jim Cymbala, Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire, 152)
Perhaps the most blatant example of this perverse bias toward compromise was the World Council of Churches’ dictum in 1966, “The world must set the agenda for the Church.” Three decades later, it is hard to believe that such an advance warning of preemptive capitulation could have been trumpeted as a lofty and self-evident principle. But it is also worth checking to see whether there are similar inanities in the church-growth movement today. (Os Guinness, No God But God, 167)
In short, through these weaknesses and above all through its uncritical use of the “new ground” of modernity, the church-growth movement has the potential to unleash a deadly form of idolatry and practical atheism in the churches. The result would be one more contemporary testament to the extraordinary power of religion that has no need for God. (Os Guinness; No God but God, 157)
Many parents seek only happiness for their children. Character becomes secondary. We measure too often the growth of our children by whether or not they have a good time. Character could go to pot while our youth is having a good time. -Richard Leviton
The most satisfactory explanation is that “faith” retains the subjective force it has in v. 3 and that the whole phrase has the same thrust as “measure of faith” there. A prophet is not to be governed by his emotions (1 Cor 14:32) or by his love of speaking (1 Cor 14:30) but by entire dependence on the Spirit of God. (Frank E. Gæbelein, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Vol. 10, 130)
We must recognize that the world does not owe the Church’s prophets a hearing and might not listen. Only as we become a Christian community with a truly biblical life-style can our prophetic words carry the credibility of a demonstrated alternative to the society around us. (Marva J. Dawn, Truly the Community: Romans 12, 107)
One practical aspect of the Church’s life that needs immensely the gift of prophecy is the stewardship of possessions. Indeed, in many ways the Church has succumbed severely to the temptations of money and power. (Marva J. Dawn, Truly the Community: Romans 12, 107)
The most difficult problem in being a prophet is making sure that one is forth-telling God’s message in God’s way. Some people glibly declare what they think is God’s Word without the constant check of the community to discern the spirits (1 Jn 4:1-6). Others who think they are prophets and lambaste others with “the Word of the Lord” are actually suffering from an acute case of tactlessness. (Marva J. Dawn, Truly the Community: Romans 12, 108-09)
A lifetime task of studying the Scriptures is necessary to learn what God would say to the Christian community in our world. By studying the prophets we learn God’s values. By studying the world we learn how to apply God’s truth to the reality of contemporary life situations. Our prophetic work requires a careful balance of intense study of the Bible and a deep relationship with the Lord, with ourselves, with the Church, and with our world in order to forthtell accurately God’s messages for the situations of our times. (Marva J. Dawn, Truly the Community: Romans 12, 109)
II. God gifts His Body the Church with servants (helps) so it can grow (Rom 12:7; Mk 10:42-45; Jn 13:1-20; 1 Cor 12:28; Eph 4:12; Phil 2:1-11)
Many versions translate the Greek word for the gift of service as “ministry,” which is literally correct. But because “minister” is a rather technical word in our contemporary religious language here in the United States, I think it is less confusing to call it “service.”
…Actually the Greek diakonos (minister or servant) is our word for deacon. In some churches, the job description of deacons requires gifts other than just the gift of service. Originally, however, a deacon was simply one who served others. . ..The gift of service is not a one-on-one, person-centered gift as are the gifts of mercy and helps. It is more task-oriented. The service is usually directed more to an institution and its goals than to a particular person. …It is another quiet gift, one that does not usually make headlines.
…1 Cor. 12:22 says, “Those members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary.” (C. Peter Wagner, Your Spiritual Gifts, 197-98)
Genuine service controls pride. (Bruce B. Barton, Life Application Bible Commentary: Romans, 236)
How interesting that this gift would precede the prestigious gift of teaching. It is not often that table waiters are ranked above theology professors! This undoubtedly is due to the remembrance of Jesus himself who exalted service of others over self; “the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mk 10:42-45; also Jn 13:1-20). From the beginning Jesus’ example of humility challenged the church to “consider others better than yourselves” (Phil 2:1-11). The gospel thus consists of an indivisible unity of word and deed, faith and life, a unity which finds expression in the first two gifts, prophecy and serving. (James R. Edwards, New International Biblical Commentary: Romans, 288)
We all like to be called servants until we are treated like one. (Mark Devers, 5 Keys to Spiritual Growth – Ligioner Ministries tape)
If you put any conditions on your service to Christ (“I will serve you if”) then you are not really serving Christ at all but it is yourself you are serving. — Tim Keller
When they’re willing to serve without regard for the response, then I know they’re beginning to move in the love of God. (Steve Sjogren, Conspiracy of Kindness, 115)
“Servant” in our English NT usually represents the Greek doulos (bondslave). Sometimes it means diakonos (deacon or minister); this is strictly accurate, for doulos and diakonos are synonyms. Both words denote a man who is not at his own disposal, but is his master’s purchased property. Bought to serve his master’s needs, to be at his beck and call every moment, the slave’s sole business is to do as he is told. Christian service therefore means, first and foremost, living out a slave relationship to one’s Savior (1 Cor 6:19-20).
What work does Christ set his servants to do? The way that they serve him, he tells them, is by becoming the slaves of their fellow-servants and being willing to do literally anything, however costly, irksome, or undignified, in order to help them. This is what love means, as he himself showed at the Last supper when he played the slave’s part and washed the disciples’ feet.
When the NT speaks of ministering to the saints, it means not primarily preaching to them but devoting time, trouble, and substance to giving them all the practical help possible. The essence of Christian service is loyalty to the king expressing itself in care for his servants (Mt 25: 31-46).
Only the Holy Spirit can create in us the kind of love toward our Savior that will overflow in imaginative sympathy and practical helpfulness towards his people. Unless the spirit is training us in love, we are not fit persons to go to college or a training class to learn the know-how or particular branches of Christian work. Gifted leaders who are self-centered and loveless are a blight to the church rather than a blessing. (James Packer, Your Father Loves You)
The kingdom of God always appears upside down to the human perspective. We think it’s strange to die in order to live, or to give in order to receive, or to serve in order to lead. Solomon captures the perpetual enigma of our looking-glass values just as Jesus describes them in the Sermon on the Mount. He insists we should embrace sorrow over laughter, rebukes over praise, the long way instead of the short, and today instead of yesterday.
The truth is that it’s not the kingdom of God that is upside down–it’s the world. It’s not the Word of God that turns life inside out–it’s the world that has reversed all the equations that God designed for our lives. (David Jeremiah, Searching for Heaven on Earth, 189)
In the typical church, the members handle the maintenance (administration) of the church and the pastor is supposed to do all the ministry. No wonder the church can’t grow! The pastor becomes a bottleneck. There is no way one man can minister to all the needs in a church. He will eventually burn out or have to move to another church for relief. (Rick Warren, The Purpose Driven Church, 377)
III. God gifts His Body the Church with teachers so it can grow (Rom 12:7; Mt 28:19-20; Acts 2:42; 15:35; 18:24-25; 1 Tm 3:2; 2 Tm 2:2; Jas 3:1)
Great truth grows in the soil of great need
Typically, spiritual growth also occurs steadily and unobtrusively. It is part of the daily flow of your life, so that while you are conscious of certain experiences and their influence, you do not normally think of them in the context of your overall spiritual growth. When you consider an overview of your life pilgrimage, however, you can often see evidences of change and growth in your spiritual life, just as photos reveal physical change and growth.
For a generation always in a hurry, used to instant results, and demanding speed at all costs, slow growth is a misfit. When people want quick, sure solutions and ten swift steps to success, the Lord’s deliberate pace is frustrating. (Luter Whitlock; Spiritual Quest, 167)
“In the end, we will conserve what we love, we will love what we understand, and we will understand what we have been taught.” -Baba Dioun; African environmentalist
The worth and value of our soul is measured by what we love. If we love corrupt and wicked things we become corrupt and wicked. But the person who loves God spiritually grows and matures until he becomes like the One he loves. What a person loves is constantly on his mind. And what we think about has a power to transform our soul. We become like what we behold. (Henry Scougal and Robert Leighton, God’s Abundant Life, 39)
“Repentance means turning from as much as you know of your sin to give as much as you know of yourself to as much as you know of your God, and as our knowledge grows at these three points so our practice of repentance has to be enlarged.” (J. I. Packer, Keep in Step with the Spirit, 104)
Teachers may only teach that which is found in and is in harmony with the Old and New Testaments. As James would say, “Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we shall incur a stricter judgment.” Too many are exercising this function today, all the while transgressing biblical orthodoxy and bringing dishonor to Christ. These false teachers were never really gifted for teaching, and actually usurp this role from those who ought to teach. (RC Sproul, The Gospel of God: Romans, 200)
There is teaching. The message of Christ needs not only to be proclaimed; it needs also to be explained. (William Barclay, The Daily Study Bible Series: Romans, 161)
CONCLUSION/APPLICATION: What needs to take place for us to grow and make effective use of these gifts from God?:
A- The members of the Body must look at all of life in view of God’s mercy. (Rom 12:1; 1:17-11:36)
The first thing that we need to come to terms with, in order for us to be saved, in order for us to grow in Christ, in order for us to mature, in order for us to be effective in the Kingdom of God, is for us to understand that WE ARE THE PROBLEM! And if we are the problem, we are not going to be the solution. We must forget about “doing” or “being” something on our own to solve our own problems and to save us from our sins. It is our sinful nature, our deceitfully wicked hearts that trick us into believing we are OK and that everything will be OK if we simply do our best. That is where we go wrong. And it is only when we come to repent of our sinful self, that we will ever have a chance of becoming all that God desires for us to be. Likewise, the church must come to a point of corporate repenting of her sinful nature if she is ever going to grow and mature in Christ. Therefore, we desperately are in need of God’s grace, forgiveness and mercy if we are to be saved and mature as Christians. — Pastor Keith
Christians know that it is our love for God, and, even more basically, His unconditional love for us, that motivates faithful, healthy service and growth. (Donald J. MacNair, The Practices of a Healthy Church, 80)
Some think they can’t do it; others refuse to change or grow. They simply lack the faith to step out and do something. “Where is your faith?” I wish to admonish them (and many times I do). “Don’t you believe that God will enable you to obey Him?”
The churches that mature in health and effect lasting change are the ones that come to God in brokenness and humility and beg Him to produce the obedience of faith in them. (Donald J. MacNair, The Practices of a Healthy Church, 231)
“Sorrow for sin and gratitude for the amazing mercy of God replace self-assertion, vision of God and the soul’s fallen motives. Optimum spiritual health simply involves remaining in the focused light of truth concerning our needs and their fulfillment in Jesus’ redemptive work (1 Jn 1:5-7). An honest assessment of our spiritual state and a deepening trust in the Messiah are qualities which guarantee our continued spiritual growth.” (Richard Lovelace, Renewal as a Way of Life,134)
For everything that inwardly stirs in you, or outwardly happens to you, becomes really good to you if it finds or excites in you this humble state of mind. For nothing is in vain, or without profit to the humble soul. It stands away in a state of divine growth; everything that falls upon it is like a dew of heaven to it. (Ken Gire, The Reflective Life, 51)
Before spring becomes beautiful, it is ugly, nothing but mud and muck. I love the fact that the word humus—the decayed vegetable matter that feeds plants—comes from the same root that gives rise to the word humility. It helps me understand that the humiliating events of life, the events that leave “mud on my face” or that “make my name mud” may create the fertile soil in which something new can grow. -Parker J. Palmer (Readers Digest 3/2000, 83)
We creatures, we jolly beggars, give glory to God by our dependence. Our wounds and defects are the very fissures through which grace might pass. It is our human destiny on earth to be imperfect, incomplete, weak, and mortal, and only by accepting that destiny can we escape the force of gravity and receive grace. Only then can we grow close to God.
Strangely, God is closer to sinners than to “saints.” (By saints I mean those people renowned for their piety—true saints never lose sight of their sinfulness.) As one lecturer in spirituality explains it, “God in heaven holds each person by a string. When you sin, you cut the string. Then God ties it up again, making a knot—and thereby bringing you a little closer to him. Again and again your sins cut the string—and with each further knot God keeps drawing you closer and closer.” (Philip Yancey, What’s so Amazing About Grace?, 273)
B- The members of the Body must not think more highly of themselves than they ought to think. (Rom 12:3; Phil 2:1-11)
Christians, we might say, grow greater by getting smaller. (J. I. Packer, Rediscovering Holiness, 120)
Thomas A Kempis’s classic work, The Imitation of Christ, emphasizes a purposeful Christianity that strives for continued growth. He wrote, “Who hath a greater combat than he that laboreth to overcome himself? This ought to be our endeavor, to conquer ourselves, and daily to wax stronger and to make a further growth in holiness.” (Thomas A Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, I:3:3)
Asked how he succeeded so long as the president of the University of Michigan, Dr. James R. Angell advised, “Grow antennae, not horns.” (Leadership…with a Human Touch)
You either grow in grace or groan in disgrace – John Debrine
C- The members of the Body must be like the Musketeers: “One for all and all for one”. (Rom 12:4-5; Jn 17:20-26; 1 Cor 12:26)
Individual and corporate spiritual vitality are coinherent; it is impossible to grow to full stature as an individual while separated from smaller and larger groups in the church, nor can the body grow without the renewing of its members. (Richard F. Lovelace; Dynamics Of Spiritual Life — An Evangelical Theology of Renewal, 19)
The most significant church ministry manifests itself as changed lives in the context of a small community of believers who use their gifts to serve their group and their world. (Carl F. George; Prepare Your Church for the Future, 60)
D- The members of the Body must honor others ABOVE themselves. (Rom 12:10; Mt 19:19; 22:39; Mk 12:31-33; Lk 10:27; Rom 13:9; Gal 5:14; Phil 2:1-11; Jas 2:8)
“Some visitors to Calcutta asked me to tell them something that would be useful for them to lead their lives in a more profitable way. I answered, ‘Smile at each other. Smile at your wives, at your husbands, at your children, at all. Let mutual love for others grow each day in all of you.'” -Mother Teresa
E- The members of the Body must realize that all growth is painful but necessary. (Bks of Rom, 2 Tim 3:16-17; Bk of 1 Pt; 2 Pt)
God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world. -C.S. Lewis
A schoolmaster, Dr. Allan Heely, was once asked by someone the ideal curriculum for growing boys. He replied, “Any program of worthwhile studies so long as all of it is hard and some of it is unpleasant.” (Jim Townsend, Hebrews: Pilgrim’s Progress or Regress?, 107)
If you always do what you always did; you’re gonna get what you always got. – Lorraine Barnes
Mountaintops are for views and inspiration, but fruit is grown in the valleys. (Billy Graham, The Leadership Secrets of Billy Graham, 176)
“Through the years I have learned to dislike church conflicts and personality clashes with intensity, but I have slowly learned that the kingdom of Christ can only grow through conflicts. In one of his writings Oswald Chambers has said that in discipling, the most difficult pain to bear is that which we must give to others. Causing pain to those we love is, in his view, the greatest cost in discipling. He also makes it clear that such pain is an absolutely necessary ingredient in discipling. If as a pastor-discipler we do not encourage, correct, and exhort, we simply will not see God build His church through us.” (C. John Miller, Outgrowing the Ingrown Church, 114)
Difficulties are meant to rouse, not discourage. The human spirit grows strong by conflict. —Wililam Ellery Channing (1780-1842) (Bits and Pieces for Salespeople 2-22-01, 2)
Unfortunate events, though, potentially a source of anger and despair, have equal potential to be a source of spiritual growth. Whether or not this is the outcome depends on our response. -The Dalai Lama
WARNING: If you are self-sustaining, if you are self-sufficient, if you are self-righteous, if you are self-assured, if you are self-confident; then please, don’t waste our space, our resources and our time by masquerading as someone who is a Christian. For Christians are people who have come to recognize their desperate need for a Savior. Christians are people who realize that God has given them, as a spiritual gift, the Body of Christ in which each part has a gift that Christians need to grow and mature and become who they know in their hearts and minds they were created and designed to be . . . one made in the image of God and who is supposed to conduct their lives, decisions and actions in the character of Jesus. Christians are those who know they need the Body of Christ and make every opportunity to engage with and receive encouragement, correction, rebuke and direction from the gifts God has given to the Body of Christ.
Worship point: When we begin to look at all of life in view of God’s mercy, and think more highly of others than ourselves; then we begin to see just how extensive and comprehensive God’s provision is to us to help us grow. God helps us grow by giving us prophets, servants and teachers so we might be . . . “built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” (Eph 4:13) But, we will never experience this and grow until we open ourselves up to . . . “teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so we may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”(2 Tm 3:16-17)
Spiritual Challenge: Realize that God has provided the Body of Christ with everything we need so we can grow up to become like Jesus: mature, complete, not lacking in anything. Look to Jesus!
In essentials unity. In Non-essentials liberty. In all things charity. – Melanchthon
There should be no direct one-to-one relationships in the body of Christ. All relationships are “in and through” the person of Jesus Christ. The Christian community is like a bicycle wheel. Jesus is the hub, and we are the spokes. The closer we are drawn into the “hub,” losing ourselves in Christ Jesus, the closer we are automatically drawn to one another. (Don Matzat, Christ Esteem, 201)
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