Variety of Gifts

Text

"For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body...." — Romans 12:4-5

Bible Reading

ROMANS 12:3-8

Devotional

The exalted Lord Jesus has given many gifts to his church. In a few Bible passages we find lists of these gifts: prophecy, speaking in tongues, healing, serving, teaching, and so on. These lists are not identical, and they are not exhaustive. They are not intended to be a complete inventory of the spiritual possessions of the early Christians.

The gifts differ considerably. To our mind they also differ in nature: "speaking in tongues" makes us think of a sudden overpowering by the Spirit, but when the gift of administration is mentioned, we tend to think of a natural ability. And when Paul includes even church officers in the list (Eph. 4), we are more apt to think of human appointment than of heavenly equipment. But the Scriptures want us to know that all these gifts are endowments of Christ. They come from heaven because they come from the Lord. They are heavenly graces or charismata that the Lord, or the Spirit, freely gives.

All these gifts, as varied as the functions of a human body, have but one purpose—building the body of Christ. They have no value in themselves. They become valuable when they are used. And the most valuable gifts are the ones that are most suitable for building the church of God.

We may not be proud of our gift or jealous of the grace given to another (v. 3). Certainly we may never make our special gift a standard for being a Christian. Nobody may say: "Since I speak in tongues and you don't, you are not a Christian." Or, "Since I am a teacher and you are not, you do not belong to the body." These special gifts of the Holy Spirit are given by the Lord according to the need of the hour, according to the prayers of Christians, and according to his sovereign pleasure. A measure of discussion is required so that we may know how to ask. Yet Christ's gifts must not be discussed too much. They must be used.

REFLECTIONS

What special gifts has Christ given you? How are you using his gifts to build up the body of Christ?

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This is a tricky subject. One that I am not very well versed in and need to learn more about. I do remember in high school, a few of us were given a test to look into what our Spiritual Gifts were and I do remember that my gifts were in areas of music, compassion & exhortation. Now these tests are not at all 100% correct, obviously because they were made by humans and God is the only One who can truly show us what are gifts are.

I can say for sure, I've been given a gift in worship and song. Singing is one of the most wonderful things that I am able to do, enjoy and use to bring glory to the Lord. God has allowed me to use my voice on more than one occasion to encourage the body of Christ. Its one of my most favorite things to do. Also, I believe that with the area of compassion and encouragement, I've been given a weird ability to feel where people are at and almost feel what they feel. I guess thats called empathy. When a friend is hurting, when a stranger is hurting, my heart goes out to them on a strangely high level and that can only be attributed to God, so that I can meet people where they are and be used by God, to HELP usher them into an understanding of God or what He is doing or why He's allowing things to happen. As far as exhortation, I always try to keep an optimistic mindset and encourage those around me to do the same. I am always trying to lift spirits and bring joy to people's lives because I've been given great joy from our Father in Heaven.

What gifts do you think that God has given you? What areas in your life do you see God using to bring Him glory and to encourage the body of Christ. Lets get some discussion going on this. If you are able, please provide scripture for what you believe, so we can dive deep into the word of God together on these things! Agape.

Christ and The Spirit

Text

"And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness." —Romans 8:9-10

Bible Reading

ROMANS 8:9-11

Devotional

The New Testament teaches that anyone who is in Christ has the Holy Spirit. Those Christians err who think that they first have to believe in Christ and later will receive the Holy Spirit as a higher rung on the ladder.

It's true that some Christians are closer to Christ than others, and some are more yielded to the Spirit than others. "Having the Spirit" is not the same as "being filled with the Spirit." If we are made alive by the Spirit we haven't necessarily learned to walk by the Spirit.

But nobody can be in Christ unless he or she has the Holy Spirit. In fact, the only sure way of finding out whether people have the Spirit is to ask them what they think of Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 12:3; 1 John 4:2).

Sometimes the Bible uses the names of Christ and the Holy Spirit interchangeably. That happens in the part of Romans 8 we just read. "The Spirit of God in you" or "Christ in you" stands for the same reality. It means that we have gone over from a state of death to a state of life. To be sure, our "bodies" are still subject to death. Our present form of existence is not yet beyond the reach of sin and misery. At the same time we are alive. That new life comes to us from Christ, who died and rose again. The new life is in us through the Holy Spirit.

It is this daily living and daily dying that makes the Christian life so intense and sometimes so difficult. We must never be satisfied with what we have, spiritually, for as long as we are in this body we have not yet arrived. There is always more to unlearn and to learn. We must lose more of the old self so that we may gain more from God.

However, let's not confuse each other by separating the work of Christ from the work of the Spirit. Growing up in Christ and living by the Spirit is the same thing. And it's worth everything.

REFLECTIONS

"We must never be satisfied with what we have, spiritually." What does this mean for you personally?

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First let me apologize for not posting yesterday. I had an amazing evening with some new friends from our church and got home and had to go pretty much straight to bed. Now onto the good stuff!

"Having the Spirit" is not the same as "being filled with the Spirit." I think this is a good statement to remember as we go to church and meet Christians during our lives. Its essential when doing as Paul encouraged us to do, to live as peaceably as possible with our church family, to remember that every person is at a different area in their life. We cannot put every Christian in the same boat as another. That is not to say we cannot hold them to the same level of righteousness - but it will help us in how we go about discussing such things as personal holiness and daily disciplines. It will help us to show love and discernment. We were shown grace when Christ stood in our place and bore the full unadulterated wrath of God. We too should bestow grace to those brothers and sisters around us. "If we are made alive by the Spirit we haven't necessarily learned to walk by the Spirit."

Let me make sure to explain this a little bit further as best I can. I don't want you to misunderstand when I say each is at their own place in life and their walk with Christ. If a fellow Christian is doing something that is detrimental to their walk with Christ, is in complete contradiction with the word of God or is even bordering sinful behavior - it is our job as a family to point these things out. Not necessarily in a "jam this down your throat" sort of way - but by showing love and discernment, and by the work of the Holy Spirit, I believe God will show you how to handle each situation. I know that I've screwed up talking to people about holiness and such, but I hope to learn from my mistakes and when presented with situations of that nature in the future, that I will remember this devotional!!

What we're talking about is Regeneration and Sanctification. Regeneration is when our heart has been taken from its former state of stone and made into a heart of flesh. Its when God gave us saving faith and by His power, we believed in Christ and the sacrifice He made. Sanctification is the process that we go through from that day forward. We are to grow in Christ, grow in our faith and knowledge of the Lord and by the help of the Spirit, we are able to do that.

We cannot be made alive by the Spirit without first having the saving faith in Christ, which is a gift, nothing we can conjure up on our own. Unfortunately, some churches lead people to believe that once you're a Christian, life will be all full of gumdrops and rainbows the rest of your life. The truth of the matter is - we are still human, we still will have to deal with the blows of life and those things which want us to become weary. But - we are blessed with a hope. There's that word hope again that we've been discussing the past few days. With hope of Glory and with the Staying power of the Holy Spirit, we can have peace in all these drab situations. Peace is contentment, its joy in the hope of Glory at the end of this earthly life, its joy in the Lord that we have been given new life and are able to bring Glory to God while still here. Its a peace that passes all understanding!

"We must never be satisfied with what we have, spiritually." Personally this means that I cannot settle for where I'm at. I need to persevere and walk in the Spirit, to grasp for more knowledge of God, to desire the things that God desires for me and to grieve over the things that grieve God. I need to decrease and let Christ increase in His role in my life. I don't want people to see me - I want them to see Christ. Thats what it means to never be satisfied with what we have, spiritually. There is always more of God that we can learn and grow in. Sanctification never stops, its an ongoing process. Lets press forward and not settle with where we're at now. Grace&Peace.

Between Two Comings

Text

"For the grace of God has appeared . . . training us ... to live sober, upright, and godly lives in this world, awaiting our blessed hope...." —Titus 2:11-13, RSV

Bible Reading

TITUS 2

Devotional

We live between Christ's coming in grace and his coming in glory. These two great events, one past and the other future, determine the way in which we live "in this world."

The grace of God in Christ has appeared already. God's grace did not "appear" only to "disappear" again; it continues to instruct or train us in living. And the glory, although it has not yet appeared, is already attracting us. That's why it is called "our blessed hope."

The grace of God teaches us how to live in the present. It is "training us ... to live sober, upright, and godly lives in this world." The words sober, upright, and godly describe three aspects of our Christian behavior. Sober is a description of our personal ethics. Upright says how we behave in relation to our neighbors. And godly is a form of life that results from fellowship with God. None of these virtues is acquired by self-development. It is the "grace of God" that "trains" us to live in a sober, righteous, and godly manner in this present world.

Let's pay special attention to the word sober. The word recurs in this chapter (vv. 2, 4, 6, 12) and throughout the New Testament. Sober is the opposite of drunk or intoxicated. In this present world, everyone is in danger of becoming intoxicated by the things of this world. When we are sixteen, we are under the influence of different things and powers than when we are sixty. But the effect of the powers is equally intoxicating. Love, popularity, and possessions can make a person drunk.

We are trained, by the grace of God, to remain sober, that is, to retain a sense of direction in the midst of all the attractions, diversities, and adversities of the present world. The Spirit of Christ won't let us forget that we live our lives between the coming of grace and the coming of glory.

REFLECTIONS

What does "sober" (in the sense used in this reading) look like in your life?

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The words of this devotional echoed in my mind like a clanging cymbal. When the Scriptures read to live lives Sober, Upright and Godly - I never looked at it this specifically. I glanced over it and just assuming that I truly understood what those words meant. I guess in the long run I did, but I didn't purposefully read into this part of scripture. Let me tell you what I've learned from this devotional and the sermon our pastor preached this Sunday at my church, here in Maryland.

Sober. In the past, when I'd read this part of scripture - the first thing I assumed it was speaking of was staying away from getting drunk on strong drinks. After reading this devotional and reading it in the true context of the scriptures, I see its so much more than that. Yes, we are obviously to be sober and staying away from drunkenness. But we are also to refrain from becoming "intoxicated by the things of this world." The things in this world are looking to steal away from our personal journey with the Lord, looking to distract and fill us up with things that are meaningless drivel. For example: a few years back I was so overly obsessed with Football. I'd miss church, go to the bar at 10am and not leave until way past 6 or 7pm - just because I wanted to watch football and get rowdy with the other football fans. Now, don't get me wrong. There is nothing inherently evil with watching and enjoying football. In fact thats true for many of the extra-curricular activities one can participate in. But its when it becomes a distraction, a deterrent from your walk with the Lord, when it hinders your growth and desire to see things as Christ see's them, then its a problem. So whilst we're remaining sober from hard drink, we need to remain sober with the things that we become involved with in this world.

Upright. How we behave with our neighbors is so important. Our neighbors are not just fellow believers but also the unbelieving world as well. As Christians, we are to stand firm in the Lord and allow His way be the driving point in our lives and this should definitely spill over into how we interact with the world around us, with our neighbors. Our lives need to reflect Christ, our words should be seasoned with salt and prepared to speak the Gospel in and out of season. When working with the unbelieving neighbor, we should show the same kindness and love that Christ has shown us. We, who have the hope of Glory, should remember that although we have been given new life, we did nothing to deserve such hope. We should extend grace to our neighbors. Grace leaves no room for pride and arrogance. "Grace humbles pride" as our pastor said so eloquently this past Sunday. So while we show grace, the same grace that was bestowed upon us, we are living uprightly. When living uprightly with our believing neighbors, sometimes it can be even more trying to do so with them. But we are called to have brotherly love with one another as Paul called us to have in Philippians 4:1-4. That brotherly love should drive us to agree in the Lord - on the essentials of our faith. There is far greater reasons for Joy in Him then there will ever be for discord with one another.

Godly. Fellowship with our Lord is sweeter than the sweetest of honey and is the ONLY way we can live godly lives. In Philippians 4, Paul calls us to stand firm in the Lord. This is to live Godly and the only way to do that is by having true fellowship with the Lord! We need to meet the Lord in His word, specifically in the Gospels - Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. We can learn so much from the life of Christ. Also, when reading through the book of Acts, we can learn more about the Holy Spirit and its role in our lives as well, enlightening us and helping us to live Godly lives. We've been talking about the role of the Holy Spirit in our lives. How we need its staying power in our life. We need that every day so that we can live godly lives, a life pleasing to the Lord. To do that we must spend time with God and to have fellowship with our brothers and sisters in the faith. Paul urges us, the Church, to edify one another in the faith. Living a godly life is a long distance marathon that we are running - with the hope of Glory at the end. When we do this, it pleases the Lord.

What does Sober mean to me, in the sense used in this reading? I guess I already touched on that. To live a sober life for me is to live a life that is pleasing to the Lord. To live a life as peaceably as I can with my brothers and sisters in the Lord. To live a life that brings glory to God in the presence of unbeliever's and mine enemies. To live each day longing to sing praises to His name and spend time with Him each day. This should be the focus of my time each day. These things I need to be more diligent in. The extra stuff is okay, as we do have Christian Liberty, but having the proper balance is so important. Let us not put things in the place that Christ should be. I'm not trying to be legalistic, but take a good look at your life and see where we spend most of our time. I know my time is not spent as it should be. Lord, help me to live a life of sobriety in your eyes. Not only from physical drunkenness from strong drink, but to be diligent in following You and not allowing "things" in life to take your place. Amen.

The Spirit As Guarantee

Text

"Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come." — 2 Corinthians 5:5

Bible Reading

2 CORINTHIANS 5:1-5

Devotional

The Spirit here is called a "deposit." In everyday language we would call it a down payment. By making a down payment, we mean to say that we are going to complete the transaction. So when we put money down on, say, a house, we are telling the seller that we are a serious buyer. The down payment is a kind of guarantee that we'll live up to all future obligations.

The Holy Spirit is God's initial fulfillment of all his promises. God is going to give us a new and better life in a new and better body on a new and better earth. That's the extent of his promise. Most of it is still in the future. But one installment has already been paid: the Holy Spirit has come. This down payment is God's guarantee that all the rest is coming.

The Holy Spirit is the connection between this life and the life to come. It is the one gift in the present world that has come from the future world. That's why the Spirit cannot possibly feel at home in the present world. He is "otherworldly." He is constantly at war with the present lords and the present powers. Restlessly the Spirit strives to bring all thoughts and words and actions under the dominion of the Lord of lords, the King of kings.

By the Spirit we have the beginning of the future, and through the Spirit God prepares us for the future. When we finally come to God's new world, it will be a new kind of existence, an existence quite different from what we have now. But whatever we have already received from the Spirit of God goes with us.

For the present we have the treasure of the Spirit in an earthen vessel. That is to say, our whole environment and our whole persons have not yet adopted the tone and color of the kingdom. In fact, sometimes we almost despair of seeing the kingdom become real. But the Spirit himself is the guarantee. God does not stop with the first installment.

REFLECTIONS

How is the Spirit preparing you for the future, when you finally come to God's new world?

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Knowing that the Spirit is my guarantee is amazing. I know that life can become intense at times, I know that it can feel sometimes when it rains it pours, with regards to trials in our lives. But we have a hope that the unbelieving world does not. The hope of Jesus Christ's triumphant return and the hope that He will bring us home to Heaven where we can eternally live glorifying the Lord of lords and King of kings. Have you ever found yourself longing for a quick return of the Lord, desiring that He come because life is just so difficult that you'd rather just be in Heaven with Him? I know I have been there. I know that I've prayed that God would just take me home as I feel at times that my burdens are heavy, that my trial is to hard - but I need to remember what the scriptures say. "He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. " - 2 Corinthians 5:5.

We have the Holy Spirit to get us through the rest of our life as we long and press forward to our eternal goal. The Spirit is our comfort, our guide and our friend. To have that is to be apart of Christ's body, to be apart of the Church, to have communion with the saints, both alive and already departed. Wow! We have been given a down payment! Economically - down payments are kind of a scary thing. It holds so much stock with what you're purchasing and is a physical promise that you will continue to make payments until paid in full. Christ's blood on the cross was shed and our souls are already paid in full. But the down payment of the Holy Spirit is the promise of Heaven. The Holy Spirit will help us to live life as we wait for that promised day!

How is the Spirit preparing me? Well - I can see in my day to day life that the things I'm doing now will eventually lead me on to life of ministry in another country. I'm seeing that the more I study His word and lean on the guidance of the Spirit, the struggles of every day will come and go but I have the hope that its not the end of the road. I am in Christ and my future is with Him. I pray the Holy Spirit will help me to live life in brotherly love with my fellow church family and that when the day comes where I'm called to be with Him in heaven for eternity, I can see my life as a life poured out like a drink offering, a life that brought glory and honor to His name.

The Sealing of the Spirit

Text

"He ... set his seal of ownership on us.... —2 Corinthians 1:21-22

Bible Reading

2 CORINTHIANS 1:18-22

Devotional

We must not grieve the Holy Spirit, for in him we are "sealed for the day of redemption" (Eph. 4:30). God has sealed us by giving us the Spirit (2 Cor. 1:22). We have received the Spirit as God's seal.

A seal is a mark of ownership. Today people are still finding ancient jars and vessels with the seal of an owner who lived long ago. In a similar way we place our name or stamp in a book to mark it as our property. Not only the sealing of things but also the sealing of persons is common in the Bible. The best example is the sealing of the 144,000 in Revelation 7. It means that God puts his mark of ownership on them. He writes his name on them. They are his. Therefore they may not be hurt in the last judgment.

Also, baptism "in the name of" the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit is a kind of marking of a person as the property of God.

When God redeems a person, that is, when he buys that person back, he pays with the price of his Son. We were redeemed not with gold or silver "but with the precious blood of Christ" (1 Pet. 1:18-19). After paying so dearly, God does not want that person to get lost again. He seals that child not by a visible mark but by giving the Holy Spirit as a constant companion. In that way we are "sealed for the day of redemption."

Maybe it takes more power to keep a person with Christ than to bring him to Christ. At least, that's the way it often looks to us. At first there are so many good intentions, but we fail to fulfill them. There are so many brand-new feelings, but they evaporate.

Where is the staying power, the strength to hold on and stick it out? The Holy Spirit is that power. The Spirit makes the lordship of Christ real in our lives and establishes us in an everlasting relationship to our heavenly Father. He cannot and will not disown us. He marks us as God's own—now and in the last day.

REFLECTIONS

Where in your life, right now, do you especially need the staying power of the Holy Spirit, the "strength to hold on and stick it out"?

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As a child of God, as an heir to His kingdom, as a chosen people, we are sealed in His hand. When we have been bought at the price of Christ's death, there is none that can remove us from His grip. What a great God we serve. We need to remember who we belong to each day. We may not have a physical stamp on our foreheads or visible name tags that say "chosen by Christ" but we should also be living like we do. We have a precious gift now that we've been bought by the blood of Jesus. The Holy Spirit, our Companion, our insight into the ways of the Lord. We need not feel lost when times get tough, we need only remain in the Lord, press on in His word and in the Holy Sacraments. Remember that we are eternally His child and that we can find joy in every circumstance, no matter what it is. Because as we are His children, as we live a life that is pleasing in His sight, as we grow more into the person He has called us to be - as we hang on tight to the enlightening of the Holy Spirit - we will be reminded to whom we belong. We can stand firm. And know that we have Perseverance of the Saints.

The reflection question asked: "Where in your life, right now, do you especially need the staying power of the Holy Spirit, the "strength to hold on and stick it out"?" Let me get a bit personal with you. For me, I have a bit of temper lately. I'm incredibly frustrated with certain areas of my life and instead of truly handing it over to the Lord and doing what I know I should do, I just let things build up inside of me and then eventually I have a meltdown and explode. Sadly - my husband is usually the bearer of my explosion. I need the "staying power of the Holy Spirit" in these areas of my life that I'm frustrated with. I also need to "stick it out" with situations that I am not in control of. If you don't already know, Bud and I are hoping to have a baby. We're trying is what everyone calls it. I have a certain condition that adds difficulty to that and this past month - I got 1 positive test and about 4 negative. Eventually it became obvious that I was indeed NOT pregnant and I think I've been rather depressed without actually talking about it to many people. I need to remember that God is in control. I need the staying power of the Holy Spirit to comfort me when no words have truly brought about real comfort. Not that my friends and husbands words aren't helpful. But in the end, I need to let go, give up my expectations and trust that God knows what He is doing.

Lord, help me to remember who I belong to. Let my life be a reflection of You and please let me to persevere in this race laid before me. Please, Holy Spirit, encompass me and let me find my peace in You. We love you, Lord. Let us all be comforted and lead by your Spirit, God. Let us press on. Amen.

Grieving the Spirit

Text

"And do not grieve the Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption."

— Ephesians 4:30

Bible Reading

EPHESIANS 4:25-32

Devotional

We can insult a stranger, but we can only grieve someone who is close to us. To grieve means to cause pain or sorrow. This is the grave responsibility of a love relationship: a son can bring more joy to his mother than any stranger can, but he can also hurt her more than any other boy. Due to their unique and intimate relationship, a husband and his wife can bring more happiness to each other than anybody else this side of heaven—but they can also cause each other more pain than anything or anybody this side of hell.

Closer than a son to his mother and closer than a wife to her husband is the Holy Spirit to the children of God. That's why Paul tells us not to grieve the Spirit.

How do we grieve the Spirit?

We grieve the Holy Spirit whenever we go against his purpose: to devote our lives to the glory of God. He wants to write the glorious name of Jesus throughout our days. And when we do not want that, when we suppress the Spirit and insist on writing our own name and doing our own will, we grieve the Spirit of God.

We grieve the Holy Spirit if we do not want to read the Bible, for it is his book. We hurt the Spirit of God if we do not care about the church and its mission, for the church is his temple and its mission his work. We cause pain to God's Spirit if we do not want to pray, for he came to teach us how to say, "Abba, Father."

Here we sense what sin is for a Christian. It is not merely breaking a rule in the book. It means grieving the Holy Spirit, hurting the heavenly Father.

We, who are so sensitive—perhaps overly sensitive—to the hurt caused by those we love, must be more sensitive to the hurting love of God's Spirit. And we must praise the superhuman patience of God, who has not divorced us from his Spirit.

REFLECTIONS

If you grieved the Spirit in some way that's now obvious to you, bring it to your forgiving Father in prayer. And praise God for being so patient with all of us sinners.

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Reading this convicted me like crazy. It brought me to a reality that I do grieve the Spirit. I know that I put things before God, I have moments when I don't want to read His word or go to church or to pray. Sometimes I get so wrapped up in 'ME' that i neglect that which He has done for me. He sent His Son who bore the wrath of God that was meant for me - He bore that wrath in my place. Why do I allow myself to get wrapped up in this world and focus on me rather than daily falling on my face and realizing the greatness of God's grace and favor. Lord help me to give praise where it is due, help me to press forward in the mission of life that is your work, help me to fulfill the purpose of life - to bring Glory and to praise Your name. God please help me to deny myself, to have less of me and have MORE of YOU. I love you, Lord. I pray that you be with this women's devotional and that it will bring on lots of conversation, lots of edification, lots of communion in the saints, growth for your children and above all else, Glory to Your name. We love you. Amen.

by popular demand!

hey ladies!!! we're back in business. i took a long break and after some time away (which i never really told anyone i was taking the break, i just kind of did. in fact, that is truly bad form, so i apologize!!) i am ready to post some more blogs full of devotions. i'm going to take the devotions i read from the Orthodox Presbyterian Church's website as they are really good, provide Scripture reading and ends with questions or a statement for further reflection. that will help us to think even more about what we just read and maybe even spark some conversation on the blog. so lets get reading, communicating and even praying for one another. love you all so much and miss you heaps, now that i'm on the east coast. you should just move out here! hehe.

grace&peace,

christin joy.