Make It Do What It Do

Study Notes

 

Re-Set:  Make It Do What It Do

Romans 12:3-8

     On this Martin Luther King weekend, I have thought of his friend, the late and great Ray Charles who sang so often at his rallies.  Ray Charles gave testimony to how his association with Dr. King beginning in 1963 changed him from focusing so much on himself to focusing on how he could bring benefit to others.  This eventually led him to found the Ray Charles Foundation, a foundation that was established to help those who have hearing disabilities.  That’s rather ironic because, as you surely know, Ray Charles could not see.

     This past week, I decided to find out why Ray Charles chose to help those who could not hear. He said that, as a musician, he never felt that blindness was a disability for him.  That does not mean that he did not need help from others to navigate things in this world.  But, he felt that to be hearing impaired would have been far more disabling for him in his calling.  The slogan he chose for his foundation was “make it do what it do.”By that, he meant that he wanted other people’s ears to be able to do what he thought they should do, i.e., to hear.

     As I thought about the Bible passage we come to this weekend, I think that title is a good one for God’s call to have all the parts of the body – which is the way the New Testament often refers to the church – do what they are supposed to do.  You see, each person who enters into “the body of Christ” through faith in Jesus is referred to as a body part.  And, just as Ray Charles knew that both eyes and ears have a role to play in the functioning of our physical bodies, so too each church member has an essential role to play in the body of Christ.  And, the Apostle Paul, whom God inspired to write this part of the Bible, seemed to be convinced that some of the people in the churches in Rome were not exercising the parts God had gifted them to play in the church body – and, it may also have been that some church folks were not letting people utilize the gifts God had given them. 

     So, in our series entitled “Re-set”, I’ve become convinced that we need to listen carefully to this passage in God’s Word and re-set our ministries here at LAC with a view to using all the gifts that God gives to our church body.  This text has played a central role in how I think about the functioning of a church.  The biblical principle is this: God does his work in the church by giving us different gifts, each of which is essential to the life of the body and then telling us to use them to serve one another.

     Based on Rom 12:3-8, I’m going to give us two challenges: 1) To you individually I want you “to make it do what it do”, i.e., to serve here at LAC in keeping with your Spirit-given gifts. 2) To us corporately, I call us all to encourage others to serve as God’s Spirit gifts them; in other words, “to let it do what it do.”  So, first, “make it do what it do,” and, second, “let it do what it do.”

#1:  Make It Do What It Do – If your gift is… then…

     When God freezes water, He makes a snowstorm – every flake unique.When we humans freeze water, we make ice cubes – each one molded into the same cube form.

     This is one fundamental way that God is different from us.  When we want to bring about something unified, we usually try to make everyone alike.  That’s not always bad.  The military has its soldiers cut their hair; wear the same uniform. But… this isn’t the kind of unity God wants in the church body. That’s more like uniformity.

     In the global eternal family God is creating, he creates unity by making everyone different. God makes it so that no one person is complete in and of himself/herself.  So, we all need the rest of the body in our spiritual lives.  We cannot grow fully, i.e., we cannot become all God would have us to be – on our own.  We cannot be the kind of church God would have us to be if we don’t all function in keeping with the gifts God gives us.

     It’s almost as if God called us to himself “while we were yet sinners (Rom 5:8),” rescued us, put us into a local church body, and then said, “There!  They’ll have to love one another and serve one another.  They can’t grow – they can’t even live well – unless they do.”

     What is this like?  As I listened to the Lee Trio

 playing this morning, I thought that what they did musically is a lot like the way a church is to function.  We heard three different instruments – violin, cello and piano -- each playing a part of critical importance to the piece of music.  They often played different musical/melodic lines.  There were different points of entry.  But there was a unity.  Th

ese varying and complex parts all came together to form the beautiful multi-tonal harmonies and lines of the music.  They could have said, “I’m not going to play my part today.  They’ll just have to do it without me.”  Or, they could have said, “I’ll just come in when I feel like it.  Why should I care about whether the others want me to play?”  But they didn’t do that.  And it was beautiful.

     So, I want us all – no, we all need us all -- to be a part of God’s work here in our church body.  As Paul said in v. 5: …in Christ, we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others…

     At this point, I think I need to clarify a few things about the use of our spiritual gifts:

1. God gives many kinds of gifts – We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us (12:6).

     The seven gifts Paul mentions in vv. 7-8 are simply representative of the kinds of gifts God gives to a church body.  There are others lists of gifts in the New Testament; none of them is exactly the same.  So, the Bible’s point is not that you should make a list of all the gifts found in the Bible and then go through some kind of testing to see which of these specific gifts you might have.  Instead, God gives to each local church body in each cultural setting, the gifts we need to further his work in one another and in the world.

     And, when the Spirit is at work, you may be surprised at how diverse the Spirit’s gifts are.  Let me show you something from Exo 31:1ff:  The LORD said to Moses, “See, I have chosen Bezalel, son of Uri… and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, ability, and knowledge to….”  To do what?  Bezalel was to “make artistic designs (Ex 31:4)”, i.e., he would build a place of worship that would truly honor God.

     That was exactly what God’s people needed back at that time for their walks with God, a place to worship.  God gave a man his Spirit to be an artist and craftsman.  My point is that God gives each body of believers the gifts we need to further his work in us and in the world.    

     In my many years of being in local churches, I’ve seen how God has raised up people like carpenters and builders, those with financial acumen, those who understand matters related to the law, those who can design and utilize sound systems, etc. etc. He gives each church body exactly what he knows we need.

     Note this:  It’s not that your role in the church will always be the same as your role in your profession.  It’s not that your spiritual gift is always the same as your natural giftedness.  What I mean is that the kind of service Bezalel did, done simply in service to the Lord, can be as spiritual as preaching, teaching or singing. God gives gifts as the world and society change – as he determines that we need them. 

2. Spiritual gifts are gifts – not entitlements – In view of God’s mercy…, do not think of yourself more highly than you ought… We have different gifts according to grace (12:1,3,6).

     Again, Rom 12:3-8 flows directly out of Rom 12:1-2 in which we read, "In view of God’s mercy, offer your bodies as a living sacrifice…" The word “bodies” is plural and the word “sacrifice” is singular.  This is something all Christians are to do in view of God’s mercy, i.e., we all offer our bodies to God – and together we make one living sacrifice.  We do this by living a life of service to God and to one another using the gifts we have been given by God.  We haven’t earned them.  God has given them.

     So, when it comes to things like our careers or our academic work, we are entitled to get what we earn. I think that is just and right.  The story this week of Golden Globe winner, Michelle Williams, making less than 1% of what her male co-star made in the re-shoot of the ironically named “All the Money in the World” – well, that is simply unjust.

     But, today we are talking about gifts given to those who have received mercy.  When our lives are re-set out of gratitude for God’s mercy, then we will thankfully and joyfully use whatever gifts he gives for the building up of the body of Christ!  We should never say, “Well, I think I have the gift of singing solos each week so, if I can’t do it, I’m leaving this body.”  No, “in view of God’s mercy, be ready to serve you as God directs and enables you.  Do so humbly and gratefully.    

3. Then, make it do what it do – “…if it is showing mercy, show mercy cheerfully.”

     If you are a follower of Jesus, I tell you that God has given you his Spirit – and God’s Spirit has given you gifts that he intends for you to use to build up this local church.  In your walk with God, you cannot grow without life in the body.  Like a limb cut off from the body, you die without functioning in your God-gifted place in the church.  So… do you seem to be making no progress in your battle with temptation?  Do you struggle with discouragement?  Do you lack experience of the reality of God?  Well, one thing you may need is the strength that comes from service in your church body.  You need us!

     And we need you!  Our children need you.  Our young people need you. I need you.

Your Sr. Pastor’s Recommendation

    How do you know how God has gifted you?  It starts by being so grateful to God that you are willing to serve anywhere in his church body.  Then, find out where the greatest apparent needs are in the church – and begin to serve there.  You and those who serve with you will begin to recognize whether he has gifted you to serve in that way.

    Right now, it may be that the biggest place that anyone could make a difference here at LAC is in the discipleship of our children and students.  There is no place in the work of God that has more potential for lasting impact than serving in the discipling of younger people.  Right now, this local church body has great need and opportunity in this specific area.  In fact, we will have people from the Family Ministries Division in the lobby today who will be ready simply to talk with you about this.  We are ready to train you – and even work within your schedule.  I urge you to go and talk with them.  Take that step and see what God will do.  “Make your gift do what it do!”

#2:  Let It Do What It Do -- …if God has given people gifts, let them… let them… let them.  (12:6b-8)

     Verses 6-8 are written in an interesting way.  On one side, the verses clearly say that you should use your gifts.  But, the way the Apostle Paul wrote this indicates that each church body should let all church members use the gifts God has given them. 

     As I read Paul’s letter to the Romans, I imagine that there was a problem for some of the Jewish believers in Rome to really accept that the Gentile believers should be allowed to do things like “prophesying” (12:6, a word that means to deliver a message from God) or leading (12:7).  I can understand the way the Jewish believers might have been thinking.  After all, the Gentile believers had not had the long heritage in the Scriptures that Paul’s Jewish relatives had been blessed with. Why should they preach and lead? 

     However, the New Testament is clear that, with the coming of God’s Spirit to dwell in all believers, that God will give such callings and gifts to whom he will.  As the Bible says in 1 Cor 12:18: “God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be.”  I am convicted about the fact that I as your Sr. Pastor in my calling must give care to facilitating the use of the gifts God gives us here at LAC.

    One text that has been particularly convicting to me is Acts 2:17-18, the passage that reports what happened when God first gave his Spirit to the church at Pentecost. The Apostle Peter, quoting the prophecy of Joel 2, declared, “In these last days,” God says, “I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy…  Even on the servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.”

    Here at LAC, you have vested the authority to determine who will deliver the Word of God to your Sr. Pastor – in collaboration with the Ministry Council, of course. I have become more and more convinced, based on passages like Acts 2 and Rom 12, that God gives whatever gifts he chooses to whomever he will and that I am told, “Let them use their gifts.”  It’s also clear in Acts 2:18 that the Word of God is to be delivered by both men and women. So, I plan to obey the Scriptures’ call to let both men and women use their gifts within this church body in all venues.

     But, be sure of this: Because I am committed to the fact that our practice in matters like these also must be directed by passages like 1 Tim 2:9-15, in which Paul told Pastor Timothy what he was permitting and not permitting in his churches with regard to how men and women serve.  In the next few weeks, I plan to put some of our considerations about those passages on our website for you to work through as well. I’ll let you know when it’s up.

     And let me say this too. Sometimes, we facilitate the use of the Spirit’s gifts through words of counsel and encouragement.  When I was in high school and wanted to study law, several church members came to me and told me they recognized that God had given me pastoral gifts.  The people there knew me well.  They had watched me for years as I served in church.  And, God used them to direct me in the use of the gifts they perceived God had given me.  Their words still rang in my ears as I left the university presidency to return to the pastorate.

     Here’s how I see this happening in a church body.  Each one of us should take the initiative to find a place where we can begin serving in keeping with the needs of the body.  Then, we need to talk with and listen to one another.  We have to encourage people when we see God using them.  And, sometimes, we might say, “I see a different area in which I think God might use you” – as my church did for me.  Paul says again and again, “If God has given particular gifts, let them, let them….”  So, you need to get involved in some way so others can see how God works through you.  And we all have to have the love and courage to tell others in our church body what we see and experience when God works through them.

     And, sometimes, we will need to say, “This area of service is not the best for you.” This was applied to me in the first church I served.  Chris and I were living in a church-owned home and I had tried to fix the plumbing.  The chair of the trustees came to my house and had to spend hours undoing what I had done.  As he left he said, “Pastor Greg, let me apply your sermon today.  You preach the sermons.  I’ll do the plumbing.”

           

    You see, God does his work in the church by making us different – and giving us different gifts, each of which is essential to the life of the body. What a brilliant idea!  He’s made us so we need one another. So, use your gift to serve: “Make it do what it do.”  Facilitate and encourage the gifts of others in the body: “Let it do what it do.”

In Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.  We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us (12:5-6).”  Use your gift – to God’s glory alone.

Chinese Study Notes

 

重新啟動：行那當行之事

羅馬書12:3-8

           

            這個周末是紀念馬丁·路德·金的紀念日，我想到了他的朋友，那個經常在他的聚會上唱歌的已故歌手雷·查爾斯。雷·查爾斯在1963年初時做見證時，講述了他與金博士的交往如何將他從一個只關註自己的人轉變為更多地為他人帶來益處的人。這最終帶領他成立了雷·查爾斯基金會，那是一個專門幫助聽力殘障者的基金會。這有一點諷刺的意味，因為眾所周知，雷·查爾斯是一個雙目失明的人。

            在過去的一周裏，我努力找出為什麽雷·查爾斯要幫助那些聽力殘障者的原因。他說，作為一名音樂家，他從不覺得失明是一種殘疾。這並不意味著他不需要別人的幫助來定位周圍的事物。然而他認為，聽力的障礙對他來說會更加殘酷。他為自己的基金會選擇的座右銘是：“行那當行之事”。。 他的意思是，他盼望他人的耳朵能夠行使當有的功用，也就是傾聽。

            當我想到我們這個周末要看的聖經經文時，我認為這個口號很貼切地表達了神呼召身體各部都各盡其職的意思，這也是新約說到教會時的方式 ——做他們當做的事。你看，每個藉著信心在耶穌裏進入“基督身體”的人，都被視為是身體的一部分。正如雷·查爾斯所知的，在我們身體的運作中，雙眼與雙耳都各司其職，同樣的，每一個教會成員在基督的身體中也都有著至關重要的角色。神啟示使徒保羅書寫了聖經的這部分內容，他似乎也承認，在羅馬教會中的一些人並沒有按照神所給他們的恩賜，在基督的身體中行他們所當行的事，另外，教會中也可能會有一些人阻擋人們使用神所賜給他們的恩賜。

            因此，在我們這個“重新啟動”的系列講道中，我相信，我們需要仔細傾聽這段經文，並且重新啟動我們在教會的事奉，以便使用神所賜給我們教會肢體的所有恩賜。這段經文在我對教會運作的理解方面起了核心作用。聖經的原則是這樣的：神藉著賜給我們不同的恩賜來做祂的工，每一樣恩賜對肢體的生命都是至關重要的，都告訴我們，要使用它們來彼此服事。

            根據羅馬書12：3-8，我對大家提出兩個挑戰：第一，對於你們每個人，我希望你都能“行那當行的事。”也就是說，你要在教會中服事，來保持你屬靈的恩賜。第二，對於我們之間彼此的合作來說，我盼望大家都將彼此的鼓勵當作神的恩賜，換句話說，要“鼓勵他人按照神原本對他的定規行事。”

一、要行那當行之事 – 如果你在…..上有恩賜，那麽……

            當神凍結了水的時候，祂就造了暴風雪----每一片雪花都是獨特的。。當人類凍結了水，我們就做了冰塊 -- 每一個都模制成相同的立方體。。

            這就是神與我們不同的根本。當我們想要實現統一的時候，我們通常都希望每個人都相同，這並非總是不好的。軍隊的士兵都剪短發，穿一樣的制服。但是，這並不是神在教會肢體之中所想要的，說這是一致性還更貼切些。

            在神所創造的永恒家庭中，祂藉著每個人的各不相同而創造了統一。神如此的創造，以至於沒有一個人是藉著自己就得以完整的。因此，我們在屬靈的生命中都需要其他的肢體。我們無法成為一個完整的整體，也就是說，我們自己不能成為神想要我們成為的一切。如果我們不能使用神所賜給我們的恩賜，我們就不能成為神所喜悅的教會。

            就好像神在我們“還是罪人的時候（羅5：8）”就呼召了我們，拯救了我們，把我們放到一個教會之中，然後告訴我們說：“你們要彼此相愛、彼此服事。否則，你們無法成長，也不能很好地生活。”

            這好像什麽呢？當我早晨聽到李氏三姐妹的演奏時，我想，她們在音樂上所做的，很像一個教會的運作方式。我們聽到三種不用的樂器----小提琴、大提琴和鋼琴，每個人所演奏的對那首樂曲都起著至關重要的作用。她們經常演奏不同的旋律，都有不用的切入點，但卻是非常和諧。這些變化多樣復雜的部分，都匯集起來，形成了美妙、多音調的和諧樂曲與旋律。她們可以說：“我今天不想演奏，你們自己彈吧。”或者，她們也可以說：“等我喜歡的時候再來彈。我為什麽要在意其他人是不是想讓我彈奏呢？”但是她們沒有這樣做，所以彈奏出的音樂美妙無比。

            因此，我希望我們所有人 ---- 不，我們都需要自己在教會的肢體中成為神事工的一部分。正如保羅在第五節中所說的：……我們這許多人，在基督裏成為一身，互相聯絡作肢體。在關於使用屬靈恩賜的事上，我需要澄清幾件事：

第一，神賜下許多恩賜----按我們所得的恩賜，各有不同。（12:6）

            保羅在第7-8節所提到的七個恩賜，只代表了神賜給整個教會的恩賜。他在新約中也列出了其他的許多恩賜，其中沒有一樣是相同的。因此，聖經的要點不是讓你列出所有聖經中提到的恩賜，然後再經過某種恩賜測試，看看你有哪些特定的恩賜。相反，神將每個教會放在每種不同的文化背景之中，使我們得以運用這些恩賜來拓展祂在我們彼此生命中、與在世上的事工。

            而且，當聖靈在作工時，你可能會驚訝於聖靈恩賜的多樣性。請大家一起看看出埃及記31：1：“神曉喻摩西說，‘看哪， 猶大支派中，戶珥的孫子，烏利的兒子比撒列，我已經提他的名召他。我也以我的靈充滿了他，使他有智慧，有聰明，有知識，能做各樣的工…’”作什麽工呢？神要使他“能想出巧工（出31：4），也就是說，他要建造一個敬拜之地，能使神的名得榮耀。

            那正是當時神的子民與神同行之時所需要的，就是一個敬拜的地方。神將祂的靈賜給一個人，使他成為能工巧匠。我的重點是，神將所需的恩賜賞給每個相信祂的人，以拓展祂在我們裏面以及祂在世上的工作。

            我在當地教會服事的多年之間，見到過神如何興起木匠與建造者、精於財務的人、懂得法律的人、精通設計與運用音響系統的人等等、等等。祂知道每個教會所需要的恩賜，並將這恩賜賞賜給他們。

            請留意一點：你在教會中的角色並非總是與你在職場之中的角色相同。你的屬靈恩賜並非總是與你的天賦一樣。我的意思是說，比撒列的事奉也是服事主，與講道、教導和敬拜一樣屬靈。神所賜下的恩賜，是隨著世界與社會的發展而改變的，祂會決定我們需要何樣的恩賜。

第二，屬靈的恩賜是恩賜，而非特權 --- 我以神的慈悲勸你們……不要看自己過於所當看的……按我們所得的恩賜，各有不同（12：1，3，6）

            再次強調，羅馬書12：3-8 直接來自與羅馬書的12：1-2：“我以神的慈悲勸你們，要將身體獻上，當作活祭……”這裏所使用的“身體”一詞是復數，而“祭”一詞則用的是單數。這是所有的基督徒在神的慈悲中所當行的，也就是說，我們都將身體獻上給神，一起成為一個活祭。我們得以如此行，是靠著使用神所賜予的恩賜活出事奉神與彼此服事的生命。我們並沒有賺取那些恩賜，那些都是神所賜予我們的。

            因此，當涉及到我們的事業與學術的時候，我們有權獲得我們所賺取的一切。我認為這是公平與正確的。這周的金球獎得主米雪兒·威廉姆斯在重新拍攝“金錢世界”時，她所得到的片酬只是與她合作的男明星的1%，這非常不公平。

            但是今天，我們所談論的，是那些蒙受憐憫的人所得到的恩賜。當我們的生命因著神的憐憫而經歷了重新的啟動與調整，我們就會充滿感恩與喜樂地使用祂所賜給我們的任何恩賜，來建立基督的身體！我們永遠都不應當這樣說：“我覺得我有每周獨唱的恩賜，因此如果我不能獨唱的話，那我就要離開了。”不是這樣的，從神的憐憫來看，當神引導帶領的時候，我們要預備好服事，而且要謙卑與心存感恩地服事。

第三，行那當行之事 --- “憐憫人的，就當甘心。”

如果你是耶穌的跟隨者，那麽讓我告訴你，神已經把祂的聖靈賜給了你，並且神的靈所賜下的恩賜，是為要讓你使用它來建立教會。在你與神同行的過程中，你的身體裏若沒有生命，你就無法成長。如果你在神所賜予你的恩賜上毫無功用，你就會像一個被切割下來的肢體，那麽，你是否在與試探作鬥爭時沒有進展？ 你是否掙紮在沮喪之中？ 你是否缺乏在現實生活中與神同在的經驗？ 如果是這樣，你可能需要從服事教會中得到力量，你需要我們！

我們也需要你！我們的孩子需要你。 我們的年輕人需要你。我需要你。

來自主任牧師的建議

你如何能知道神怎樣將恩賜賞賜給你？ 一開始，你要因著對神的感恩，而願意在教會的任何一個角落事奉。然後，你要找出教會最需要服事的地方，接著就開始在那裏事奉。 你與那些和你一起事奉的人將會認識到，在事奉中祂是否給了你們各自服事的恩賜。

現在，在我們的教會中，對於任何人來說，最能夠有所作為的事奉之所，就是我們的孩子和學生的門徒訓練事工。在屬神的工作中，沒有任何其它的事奉比服侍年輕人更能發揮出最長久的影響力。目前，在我們教會的事工中，這個領域裏有很大的需求和機會。事實上，今天我們將有來自“家庭事工部”的同工們在外面大廳等候大家，準備和你們談這件事。 我們已準備好培訓你們，甚至根據你們的時間來商討此事。我鼓勵大家去和他們交談。 邁出這一步，看看神會做什麽。“使你的恩賜行它當行之事！”

二、鼓勵他人行他當行之事 --- 若神賜給他們恩賜，就當讓他們……讓他們……讓他們。（12：6-8）

            第6-8節的寫法很有趣。一方面，經文清楚地說明，你當使用自己的恩賜。然而，使徒保羅這樣的寫法指出，教會的每個肢體都應當讓全教會的成員去使用神所賜給他們各自的恩賜。

            當我閱讀保羅寫給羅馬人的書信時，我認為在羅馬的一些猶太信徒很難接受大家允許外邦信徒傳講“預言”（12：6，這意味著傳遞神的信息）或做執事（12：7）。我可以理解猶太信徒的想法，畢竟，外邦信徒在聖經中沒有太久的傳承，不像保羅以及與他一樣具有猶太血統的人在聖經中所得到的祝福。他們為什麽要做宣教和執事的工作呢？

然而新約很清楚表明，隨著神的靈降臨到所有的信徒身上，神會把這樣的呼召和恩賜給予祂想要賜予的人。 正如“聖經”林前12：18節所說：“但如今神隨自己的意思把肢體俱各安排在身上了。”我相信，在我們 教會裏，我作為主任牧師，蒙了神的呼召去敦促大家使用神所賜予我們的恩賜。

使徒行傳2：17-18是一段令人信服的經文，這段經文報告了神在五旬節第一次將自己的靈賜給教會時所發生的事情。使徒彼得引用約珥書第2章的預言說：“在末後的日子裏，”神說：“我要將我的靈澆灌凡有血氣的。你們的兒女要說預言；你們的少年人要見異象；老年人要做異夢。在那些日子，我要將我的靈澆灌我的仆人和使女，他們就要說預言。”

在我們的教會裏，你們與教牧部門共同被授予權力去決定誰將把神的話語傳給你們的主任牧師。根據使徒行傳2章和羅馬書12章的經文，我越來越確信，神會將祂所選擇的任何恩賜給予任何祂所願意賜予的人，並且告訴我“讓他們使用他們的恩賜”。使徒行傳2：18清楚地告訴我們：男人和女人都要去傳遞神的話語。因此，我打算順服聖經的呼召，讓所有的男士和女士們在這教會的肢體內、在任何的場合中都可以去使用他們的恩賜。

因此，請了解這一點：就是我承諾我們在這些事情上的做法，必須按照提摩太後書2：9-15的經文去做，在這段經文中，保羅告訴了提摩太牧師，在他的教會裏，關於男人和女人事奉的問題上，哪些是他在教會中允許和哪些是不允許的內容。在接下來的幾周裏，我打算將我們對這些經文的一些思考放在我們教會的網站上，以供你們參考。當完成時，我會告知大家。

請允許我和大家分享這件事：有時候，我們通過勸勉和鼓勵的話語來促進聖靈的運作。我在讀高中的時候，曾想去學習法律。有幾位教會的會友來找我，告訴我說，他們察覺到神給了我牧養的恩賜。那裏的人很了解我，因為我在教堂裏服事的那幾年裏，他們一直在觀察我。而且，神用他們來引導我去使用神所賜給我的恩賜。當我離開大學校長的職位回到牧養的崗位之時，他們的話語還一直在我耳邊響起。

這就是我看到的在一個教會肢體裏發生的情況。我們每個人都應該主動找到一個可以滿足教會肢體需要的地方去開始我們的事奉。那麽，我們需要互相交談和傾聽。當我們看到神使用他們時，我們必須要鼓勵他們。有時，我們可能要說：“我認為神可能會在我看到的另一個領域裏使用你”， 正如當年我的教會為我所做的那樣。保羅一次又一次地說：“如果神賜下了特別的恩賜，就當讓他們……讓他們......”那麽，你也需要以某種方式參與進來，讓其他人看到神如何在你身上工作。 我們都必須有愛心和勇氣，告訴我們教會的其他人，當神借著他們做工時，我們所看到和經歷到的一切。

有時候，我們需要說，“這個事奉的領域並不是最適合你的。”在我事奉的第一個教會裏就是如此。克裏斯和我住在一間屬於教會的房子裏，我曾嘗試過修理房子裏的管道，房子的受托主管來到我家，不得不花了幾個小時的時間，把我做糟的事情重新整理好。當他離開時，他說：“Greg牧師，讓我應用一下你講道的信息：你還是繼續傳講布道信息，而我繼續做我的水管工。”

你看，神藉著使我們各不相同而在教會裏完成祂的工作， 並且賜給我們不同的恩賜，每一種恩賜對肢體的生命都是至關重要的。這是極高超的智慧！祂創造我們，使我們彼此需要。所以，用你的恩賜來事奉：“行你所當行之事。” 在教會之中，協助和鼓勵其他人去使用他們的恩賜：“鼓勵他人行他當行之事”。

“在基督裏成為一身，互相聯絡作肢體，也是如此。按我們所得的恩賜，各有不同。(12:5-6)”要使用你的恩賜，單單榮耀神。

榮耀歸給神，

Greg Waybright 博士

主任牧師