But here Paul warns of the opposite—we must not have too high an estimation of ourselves. The foundation for mere human thinking is that which is seen or that which appears to be. Our text from Romans 12 begins with the famous words of Paul to “present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service.” Thus Paul begins his discussion of spiritual gifts with the contention that using our particular gift is an act of worship. First, we may believe we deserve the credit for what God has given us and what He is doing in and through us. We must therefore think and act as members of this body. 12:6 We have different gifts…NIV We must be humble and recognize our partnership in the body of Christ. he who shows mercy — with cheerfulness. Robert L. (Bob)Deffinbaugh graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary with his Th.M. The results of the ministry of spiritual gifts are spiritual. 2. if prophecy — according to the proportion of his faith; 3:10; 15:10; Gal. Having been prevented from being physically present with these saints for the time being did not keep Paul from exercising his gift “by mail.” This he did not only to the profit of the Roman saints, but to all those who have been blessed by this Epistle down through history. SPIRITUAL GIFTS are one way God equips us to carry out the unique calling and special ministry He created us for. This is the starting place Paul specifies in Romans 12:1-2. The spiritual gift of leadership is found in Romans 12:8 sandwiched between the gifts of giving and of mercy. For by it the men of old gained approval. point of view with certain spiritual assumptions. This is a short chapter on spiritual gifts. You will find twenty different Greek words used for the gifts listed in the key passages on spiritual gifting. Given these different allocations of grace and faith, each of us must exercise our gifts in a certain way if we are to please God and be consistent with His purposes. Spiritual gifts have nothing to do with ambition. Or do you, out of gratitude, wish to offer up your body to God in sacrificial service to others? Fourth, how closely are you linked to a local church and to the broader body of Christ, so that your gift may benefit others and so that you may draw from the strengths and gifts of others? Paul seems to be saying the same thing to the Corinthians when he writes. Giving, as with the exercise of all other spiritual gifts, is to be a self-sacrificing act of worship and service (see 12:1). Ask God to open your eyes as to how He wants you to obey in each vital area. The idea as has been expressed; that Paul is rebuking the church, is not right. Faith is the basis of sound thinking. He who descended is Himself also He who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things.) To practice this kind of worship, we must cease being shaped by the world around us, and have our minds renewed and transformed so that we look at all things from a divine perspective. Whenever our ego is involved in our thinking, our thinking becomes distorted. There is individuality within the body, because there are many members, all with a different role to play. If we gave him a new shirt for Christmas, he was as likely to give it away as to keep it. (Romans 12:4-6a) Although opinions differ on the actual number of spiritual gifts, God's Word clearly indicates a variety of gifts. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part; but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away. Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Third, have you discovered the special abilities God has given to you and the place of service where these can be employed for His glory? When we belittle the gift we have been given, we quibble and question the sovereign will of God which determined the gift given to us, along with the place of ministry and measure of success (see 1 Corinthians 12:4-6). The one who has the gift of giving is encouraged to give “generously” or, as the marginal note in the NASB indicates, with “simplicity.” I think it is this second sense which is prominent in Paul’s words. Spiritual gifts are those endowments of power which enable us to carry out the vital functions of our body life in Christ as members of His body. Knowing our Romans 12 spiritual gifts, also called motivational gifts, clue us in. Is this not their natural tendency? When we passed out our presents, we often were not able to take them home with us. When our service does not appear to be successful and when our ministry is not self-serving, our tendency is to resign. 3. Spiritual gifts mean that I am both weak and strong. Only then can our gifts be used effectively, and only then can we appreciate others' gifts. You don’t want to make your primary way of serving God something for which you are not gifted. Spiritual gifts are one of the means by which the body of Christ is sustained and through which the life of our Lord is manifested. This same distinction is found in 1 Peter 4: As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. (Romans 12:3, 6–8) I will only draw your attention to two things. His teaching is not addressed to any one individual, nor to some small group, but rather “to every man among you.” These principles apply to every believer. Ananias and Sapphira (see Acts 5:1-11) seem to have given with multiple motives and thus became deceptive and dishonest. Spiritual gifts are to be given away, in service. I am strong in the area of my gift; I am weak in the areas where others have been gifted. One member can’t say, “This is my Spiritual Gift & I am going to do my Thing.” But the various parts works together! We should first agree that the subject of spiritual gifts is relevant and vitally important to Christians today. or he who teaches — in his teaching; Bob was born and raised in a Christian home i... More, Happy New Year: Past, Present, and Future Perspectives, 4. He thinks too highly of himself. As frequently mentioned in the Bible, especially Proverbs, “humility” leads us to see and to accept the truth. How can this be so? Again it’s easy to run into problems. Paul’s teaching here is universal. Spiritual Gifts listed in Romans 12:6-8. Develop this particular ability further, and seek different ways to implement this gift. At first I was inclined to think that the “foot” and the “ear” did not regard themselves highly enough, but this is not what Paul is saying. This the Christian believes by faith. It may not take long for the one showing mercy to be tempted to have a cynical, sour grapes attitude. Yet they faithfully persevered with no evidence of success. 3:7, NKJV, Abide Bible, Red Letter Edition, Comfort Print: Holy Bible, New King James Version, NKJV, Vines Expository Bible, Comfort Print: A Guided Journey Through the Scriptures with Pastor Jerry Vines, NKJV, Chronological Study Bible: Holy Bible, New King James Version. Often, such people are not pleasant to be around. When I was a child, I used to speak as a child, think as a child, reason as a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things. So too the vital members of the body of Christ may be the least visible. Second, the most visible and prominent gifts are not necessarily the most important gifts (see 1 Corinthians 12:22-24). Neither are they a barometer of our worth. 47 When I speak of the church here, I am referring not only to the local church, but to the broader body of Christ of which the local church is but a small part. The Purpose of Spiritual Gifts Romans 12:1-5 (& Selected Texts) The church is the body of Christ and the earthly extension of his heavenly kingdom. Herein you will find definitions for those possibilities. The prophets of old faithfully ministered, and yet most of them appeared to fail in their own lifetime. The solution, we are told, is to believe that within us (not apart from ourselves, enabled by the Holy Spirit) there is unlimited potential for success and achievement. The first is in not devoting ourselves to doing that which we are gifted to do.51 The second is exercising our gifts in a way inconsistent with the grace of God which is to motivate them and be manifested by them. Teaching and exhorting both fall under the category of spoken gifts (or prophecy). What is our spiritual DNA? You have the wiring to reflect 1/7 of God's nature! The new mind relates to others out of the obligations required by true Christian love (13:8-14), realizing that strength is given by God to minister to those who are weak (14:1–15:6). We have at this time a large number of troops in the Middle East. The structure of verses 6-8 seems to be indicated by Paul. They did not see many repent and turn to the Lord. Showing mercy is acting graciously toward those who need mercy. Those with gifts of service have already been urged, as a group, to diligently devote themselves to their areas of service (verse 7a). He has already informed us that we must not be “conformed to this age”; we must instead “be transformed by the renewing of our minds.” Paul warns of the danger of “overthinking” (Greek) or “thinking too highly of ourselves.” Our day regards low self-esteem as the great evil, the cause of all sorts of maladies. Romans 12:3 New King James Version (NKJV) Serve God with Spiritual Gifts. Paul is speaking to believers about the spiritual gifts God has bestowed upon each of those who have become His children, by faith. It is a reasoned worship, not at all like the frenzied, sensual, self-indulgent worship of the heathen. Gifts are given and received in various ways. In order to understand how these specific seven gifts are relevant to our lives, it is necessary to examine the other gifts in the Bible. It should also be our starting place. 2:9; Eph. Paul illustrates Christian thinking in verses 6-8 by focusing on the attitudes and actions appropriate to specific spiritual gifts. Faith enables us to understand this proper functioning of the body of Christ. This Epistle to the Romans is an illustration and evidence of the gifts God gave to Paul for our edification. Use a spiritual gifts test inventory to identify gifting given by the Holy Spirit, an assessment based on what some call 7 motivational gifts in Romans 12:6-8. It is placed there intentionally to show that it is a gift associated with caring for others. And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fulness of Christ. This is what God had done to enable Abraham and Sarah to have a child, even though they were “as good as dead” with regard to child-bearing (see Romans 4:16-21; Hebrews 11:17-19). God’s ways are far from man’s ways. Paul’s expressions, “according to the grace given to us” in verse 6 and “as God has allotted to each a measure of faith” in verse 3, point to an important truth to consider before pressing on in our study. The Christian is expected to respond, motivated by the mercies of God. The results were not immediately evident. Paul calls for sound thinking and judgment. Gifts are given and received in various ways. There is no sacrificial service of worship here but only self-seeking ambition. Even the prophecies they gave concerning the Messiah were perplexing to them (see 1 Peter 1:10-12). The one with the gift of exhortation, to exhortation.50. USING SPIRITUAL GIFTS IN HARMONY — Romans 12:6-8 Paul gives a list of spiritual gifts he would like to see better exercised in the local church at Rome. And we are to do so in a manner pleasing to Him and consistent with the goal of the task in the overall plan and purpose of God. The book of Acts records what the Holy Spirit did through the apostles after the resurrection of Jesus. In verses 9-21, Paul describes the Christian’s relationship with others as the outworking of love. We conclude that thinking on the basis of faith must therefore be unreasonable—that thinking by faith must involve the setting aside of the rational mind and acting apart from rationality, apart from sound judgment. We must rely on other members of the body just as they must rely on us. In verses 7b and 8a, Paul urges those who have the speaking gifts to likewise devote themselves to doing that which they have been gifted to do. He might very well turn to a relative beside him and ask, “Do you like this shirt? Spiritual gifts must be understood and practiced in the context of the body of Christ. Discover your manifestation and ministry gifts here. Grace should lead to humility, and thus we find in our text a consistent emphasis upon that which God has sovereignly given to us as a gift of His grace. Now Paul turns to those in the category of serving gifts to encourage them to exercise their gifts and ministries with spiritual attitudes and motivations which are befitting and edifying. The emphasis of “giving in order to get” appears to be in contradiction to Paul’s teaching here. The 7 Gifts of the Holy Spirit Prophecy Service (ministry) Teaching Encouragement (exhortation) Giving Leadership Kindness (mercy) Different kinds of gifts but the same spirit. The one with the gift of teaching should devote himself to teaching. These gifts are given by the Holy Spirit to individuals, but their purpose is to build up the entire Church. Thinking too highly of ourselves may be illustrated in the matter of spiritual gifts. This statement needs further consideration, because most of us do not really believe it. 1. When we passed out our presents, we often were not able to take them home with us. The seven motivational gifts found in Romans 12—(a) perceiving, (b) serving, (c) teaching, (d) encouraging, (e) giving, (f) ruling, and (g) mercy—when viewed as a profile provide a base for person-job fit suitable for use with all people regardless of faith tradition. What an opportunity if you have the gift of teaching. We, like Elijah and Jonah, want to turn in our badge and give up. 4 For just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, 5 so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. There is a very distinct relationship between knowing the will of God (Romans 12:1-2) and understanding your spiritual gift (Romans 12:3-8). Paul sees two great dangers in the exercise of spiritual gifts. And here in Romans 12, Paul uses this image of being parts of the body of Christ alongside another image – that of the Holy Spirit giving spiritual gifts. (4) Look for needs, and seek to meet them. We need but the eyes to see them and the obedience to respond to them by God’s grace and power. The foundation for Christian thinking is the Word of God—that which is revealed and which is believed by faith. Because of this, the Romans 12 gifts are sometimes referred to as the motivational gifts, functional gifts, or ministry gifts. 4 For. I am convinced that the matter of spiritual gifts is not as mysterious as some suggest and as it might seem at first. Servants are tempted to critique and correct their fellow servants when their God-given calling is to perform their own service (Romans 14:4). Sound thinking is based upon those truths which God has revealed to us, which are unseen, but true. The hand cannot function alone nor can any other member of the body. 1 Peter 4 also touches on the spiritual gifts. Our lives are What are you doing in obedience to this passage to fulfill your responsibilities to the body of Christ? We can therefore outline the structure of our text: (1) A call to straight thinking about spiritual gifts — verse 3, (2) A call to corporate thinking about spiritual gifts — verses 4-5, (3) A call for practice consistent with spiritual gifts — verses 6-8. To the Christian, faith is believing what is not seen but is true nonetheless: Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. We hate ourselves for failing to live up to that which our self-love desires and demands. NKJV, Ancient-Modern Bible, Comfort Print: One faith. The winning governor-elect in a recent state election boasted that people could live without government looking over their shoulder, restricting or condemning individual freedom and choices, choices which clearly included abortion and homosexuality. The world looks inward to what is within man and finds unlimited potential. Let us consider this matter further. If so, then you have received, along with the gift of eternal life, a special enablement to serve God through His body, the church. Paul warns us not to “overthink” and not to “think of [ourselves] more highly than we ought to think.” The world tells us we do not have a good enough estimate of our own worth. The work of God is carried out through the body of Christ, the church. Those who fall under the speaking gifts category have been urged to stick with it, as those who serve have also been exhorted. The world believes we cannot think too much of ourselves; Paul warns that thinking too much of ourselves is our natural, sinful, inclination, and that this must be put aside. Paul outlines in verses 3-8 the Christian way of thinking concerning spiritual gifts. Thus, I must minister to the body of Christ and others out of my strength, and I am dependent upon the ministry of the rest of the body in my areas of weakness. There are several reasons. Each army member has a vital role. Amen (1 Peter 4:10-11). The world tells us that faith is unreasonable; Paul tells us that faith enables us to think soberly and soundly in a world where our perception of reality is distorted by sin. When my grandmother died a number of years ago… This is good stewardship (see again 1 Peter 4:10-11). These endowments are a supernatural enablement so that supernatural results are produced. Most often the ministry of spiritual gifts is described in terms of the function of the human body. We must see ourselves as a member of the body of Christ, with certain gifts or special enablements which equip us to carry out functions necessary to the equipping and ministry of the body. The “foot” thinks he is better than the gift he has been given. If not, then the subject of spiritual gifts is but an academic exercise, a purely hypothetical question. The list in 1 Corinthians 12:4–11 includes the word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, faith, healing, miraculous powers, prophecy, distinguishing between spirits, speaking in tongues and interpretation of tongues. If verses 3-5 emphasize proper thinking about spiritual gifts, verses 6-8 stress those attitudes and actions vital to the proper exercise of these gifts. This is certainly consistent with Paul’s words in verse 3, but why should Paul need to repeat this again? Consider these words of Paul recorded in 1 Corinthians: For the body is not one member, but many. 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