Good Monday to you my “Walking with Jesus” friends,
Weekends, in most parts of the world include sporting events and especially in America the fall season of each year is sports on overload, would you agree? Several different College sports are in full swing while professional baseball is about to enter the World Series and the NFL football season is beginning. Most sports are team sports requiring teamwork and often it’s not the team with the super hero, it’s the team which works together really well which wins, right?
We’re with the apostle Paul these days as he’s writing his first letter to encourage and challenge the Christians in the big city of Corinth, Greece in the mid first century. As we’ve seen in the past few days, Paul in 1 Corinthians 12, Paul was describing the miraculous work of the Holy Spirit, distributing to each and all Christians ‘spiritual gifts’, which enable Christians, anywhere in the world, to accomplish God’s purposes where they live in every generation!
Paul concludes chapter 12 with these powerful words: “Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. And God has placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, of helping, of guidance and of different kinds of tongues.” (1 Cor. 12:27,28)
What a fascinating statement, would you agree? Do you see that Paul was in some ways describing a team? What type of team and what is their team purpose? A Spiritual Team, purchased and purposed by Jesus, to accomplish God’s work in their world in their generation!
This is really both exciting and important for us to grasp my friends. Paul is describing how Jesus assembles together a local team of His people and Paul used both the word CHURCH and the phrase ‘the body of Christ‘ to describe this Corinthian Jesus team. Do you see that? Would you agree that the word CHURCH is a strange word?
Just look at the letters, do you see what’s in the middle of this word? “UR”! You Are! Do you see yourself in that word? God’s design for ‘the church’ is people, but not just any people, God’s people!
Jesus promised He would build His church with people HE has rescued from our slavery to sin and our sin condemnation. (Matt.16:18) Then Jesus fills us with His resident Holy Spirit who transforms each of us into a spiritually new person, a son or daughter of God! (2 Cor. 5:17,18)
While different from each other we are united together by our personal relationship with Jesus Christ! Jesus is our Savior, our Lord and as Head of His Church, (Col. 1:18) Jesus unifies us together as a team of God’s people! And because each of us has spiritual gifts entrusted to us by the Holy Spirit, we are now a spiritually gifted and empowered team of God’s people ready to be guided by Jesus for world impact!
Using the sports metaphor, as the Holy Spirit nurtures and grows the spiritual gifts He has given to each of us, we each find our special role on the team and develop our effectiveness in the team, do you see that, my friends?
Paul lists a few of the key roles in this church team: apostles, prophets and teachers; and Paul lists some of the ways gifted people use their Spirit gifts to impact their world: “gifts of healing, helping and guidance.” Pause.
Was Paul only describing the Corinthian church or was Paul describing Jesus’ design for His healthy, vibrant, dynamic, reproducing, community impacting Church anywhere in the world, in any generation?
When we look at all of Paul’s letters and what we know about the churches Paul and others started in the first century, it seems clear Paul was speaking TO the Corinthian church, Paul was describing what God was doing all over the Roman empire in those days, and hopefully where you live today!
In the truest sense of the word, ‘apostles’ were only those selected, trained and sent by Jesus. But their role of planting churches in places where there was no church, was and is a role Holy Spirit gifted, guided and empowered men and women have been doing ever since, all over the world. Any God honoring church in your city was probably started by someone who had an apostolic spiritual gift and a calling of Jesus.
‘Prophets’, then and now, are men and women who have a very special relationship with God and can discern when God gives them a clear message of holy truth which God compels them to communicate usually, but not always exclusively, to God’s people.
Almost always this prophetic message is calling back to God, people who are drifting spiritually and are in danger of falling under God’s discipline or judgment. Prophets are used by the Holy Spirit to awaken a revival of God’s people through repentance.
‘Teachers’, then as now, are those spiritually gifted people who can communicate and explain God’s truth in such an understandable and convincing way that people grasp, understand and greatly value God’s truth, applying it to their lives with action and enthusiasm, not simply agreement. Do you see how important these key roles are in every vibrant church Jesus is growing and leading my friends?
But there’s more, please notice Paul calls us to recognize the genius work of Jesus in putting a team of His people together: “Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret…” (1 Cor. 12:29,30)
Oh, isn’t that beautiful? A healthy team has lots of healthy, unique players all working well together. They complement each other, they serve each other, they encourage and support each other, that’s spiritual synergy, especially as they all follow ONE leader, Jesus! Oh, how dysfunctional it would be if they didn’t!
Do you see that’s the way Jesus has designed HIS body, the Church? People who all share the common experience of their salvation by Jesus and their gifting by the Holy Spirit. His church is a team of individual, unique people, different from each other, yet all united to Jesus, all focusd on honoring Jesus with their lives, and all committed to following the leading of Jesus, both individually and as a team, a church. With that type of team, Jesus always does amazing things in any place in our world.
With that type of team, Jesus always does amazing things in any place in our world. Pause… Are you part of that type of church team right now? What is your role in the team and is the Holy Spirit gifting you, guiding you, empowering you to fulfill your role to the fullest?
Are you a great encouragement to the rest of your team? Is your church team experiencing a great blessing of God as Jesus leads your church to accomplish HIS purposes at this time in your city? Is your city being changed because of the impact of your church?
Oh, we have lots to think about today don’t we, my friends, and the lessons learned notes, at the link below will be very helpful to you as will the wonderful worship song, and let’s meet here tomorrow for what Paul wrote next… one of the most wonderful chapters in the Bible, 1 Corinthians 13.
Today’s Scripture: 1 Cor. 12:27-30
Choose below to read or listen.
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Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.
Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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