The Spiritual Gift Hokey Pokey

Message Title: The Spiritual Gift Hokey Pokey
Theme: “Here Is the Church” 1 Corinthians series
Season: Epiphany
Main Text: 1 Corinthians 12:12-31a;
Scripture Reading: Luke 4:14-21
RCL Scripture: Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10; Psalm 19; 1 Corinthians 12:12-31a; Luke 4:14-21
Focus: Paul discusses the value of each person exercising their gifts in their unique role.
Function: To discover where our gifts and passions meet to serve God.
Other Notes:

SCRIPTURE READING: Luke 4:14-21 ¹⁴Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news about him spread throughout the whole countryside. ¹⁵He taught in their synagogues and was praised by everyone. ¹⁶Jesus went to Nazareth, where he had been raised. On the Sabbath he went to the synagogue as he normally did and stood up to read. ¹⁷The synagogue assistant gave him the scroll from the prophet Isaiah. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: ¹⁸The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me. He has sent me to preach good news to the poor, to proclaim release to the prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, to liberate the oppressed, ¹⁹and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.  ²⁰He rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the synagogue assistant, and sat down. Every eye in the synagogue was fixed on him. ²¹He began to explain to them, “Today, this scripture has been fulfilled just as you heard it.”

INTRODUCTION:  Spiritual Gifts PT 2

1. AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT: How do you pick out gifts for a person?(Do you enjoy having lists of their wants or do you shop from instinct?)
2. If I’m honest with you, my preference is instinct. But the older I’ve gotten, the more I’ve directly asked people what they wanted because I want the gift to truly bring joy. Gathering information about the person’s preferences and interests can give me some parameters to work within while still using my gut to shop for something really fun and unique.

TRANSITION:  In our text for today, intentionality and individual value play key roles. We’re continuing the conversation from last week but digging in a little deeper. Shall we?

MAIN TEXT: 1 Corinthians 12:12-31; ¹²Christ is just like the human body—a body is a unit and has many parts; and all the parts of the body are one body, even though there are many. ¹³We were all baptized by one Spirit into one body, whether Jew or Greek, or slave or free, and we all were given one Spirit to drink. ¹⁴Certainly the body isn’t one part but many. ¹⁵If the foot says, “I’m not part of the body because I’m not a hand,” does that mean it’s not part of the body? ¹⁶If the ear says, “I’m not part of the body because I’m not an eye,” does that mean it’s not part of the body? ¹⁷If the whole body were an eye, what would happen to the hearing? And if the whole body were an ear, what would happen to the sense of smell? ¹⁸But as it is, God has placed each one of the parts in the body just like he wanted. ¹⁹If all were one and the same body part, what would happen to the body? ²⁰But as it is, there are many parts but one body. ²¹So the eye can’t say to the hand, “I don’t need you,” or in turn, the head can’t say to the feet, “I don’t need you.” ²²Instead, the parts of the body that people think are the weakest are the most necessary. ²³The parts of the body that we think are less honorable are the ones we honor the most. The private parts of our body that aren’t presentable are the ones that are given the most dignity. ²⁴The parts of our body that are presentable don’t need this. But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the part with less honor ²⁵so that there won’t be division in the body and so the parts might have mutual concern for each other. ²⁶If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it; if one part gets the glory, all the parts celebrate with it. ²⁷You are the body of Christ and parts of each other. ²⁸In the church, God has appointed first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, the ability to help others, leadership skills, different kinds of tongues. ²⁹All aren’t apostles, are they? All aren’t prophets, are they? All aren’t teachers, are they? All don’t perform miracles, do they? ³⁰All don’t have gifts of healing, do they? All don’t speak in different tongues, do they? All don’t interpret, do they? ³¹Use your ambition to try to get the greater gifts. And I’m going to show you an even better way.

EXPLAINATION:

1. Last week we discussed how the One Spirit gives out the gifts and our gifts could be used for many different forms of ministry that all serve one purpose.
2. This week we hear Paul continue that image of unity of the One Spirit by emphasizing how we as believers are ONE body—working together with our gifts in different ways.
3. Paul is extra specific hear to indicate that certain gifts are not more valuable than others. All gifts are needed for the body of Christ to flourish.
4. Paul also adds a few more gifts to the list
   1. Apostle; Prophet; Teacher; Miracles; Kinds of healings; Helps; Administration; Tongues
   2. Last week: Word of wisdom; Word of knowledge; Faith; Gifts of healings; Miracles; Prophecy; Distinguishing between spirits; Tongues; Interpretation of tongues

INTERPRETATION:

1. God is intentional when giving out Gifts. We do not receive the same gifts as our neighbor and that is an deliberate act.
2. Liberty Committee Facts
   1. Officers + Committees = 25
   2. 99 roles within those committees and offices
   3. 16 families fill those roles (25 family trees within our church)
   4. Load bearing: Some families have either 10-16 roles they carry. Some have 0-1.
3. ****This is common across churches across the US – not just Liberty
4. AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT: Can I ask this question without intending shame or guilt but simply reflection? Why do you think involvement & use of gifts is so disproportionate?
   1. Is it because:
      1. There too many roles?
      2. the roles don’t matter? –we never meet or do anything?
      3. I am burned out?
      4. No one has asked? / someone is already in the role?
      5. I’m uncertain that I *could* do it?
   2. What would you be willing to put your time and energy behind? What would get you excited and involved?

APPLICATION:

1. Spiritual Gifts Class—
   1. Feb 6^th and 27^th
      1. We will offer an evening class for spiritual gifts starting at 5 pm. We will go through the basics of the assessments. You’ll receive books and be encouraged to reflect with the tools you’re given.
      2. Class 1 will be about assessments and how to do them.
      3. Class 2 will be about discussing results and where those could fit in the church ministry.
2. If you know your gifts and want to consider how you use those in committees or ministry—talk to Lori H or other Nominating committee members about the committee options.

CONCLUSION: There is no bigger bummer than giving someone a gift and then realizing they didn’t want it, didn’t use it, or it never came out of the box. Imagine what God thinks of the beautiful gifts God has given each of us.

You are valued. You are gifted. You are called.