By Pastor Dale Culbertson
“For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.” – ROMANS 11:29 (NKJV)
The Mirror Bible says “God’s grace gifts and His persuasion of mankind’s original identity are irrevocable.” We’ve learned from the past that the gifts are a portion of God’s grace. They are being administered to us, in us and through us. That was God’s original plan for mankind: He would have sons and daughters who are stewards of His grace.
This is true no matter how many times we’ve screwed up, failed and fallen short, God hasn’t changed His mind and given up on us!
How, then, can we be good stewards? We have an opportunity to be used by God, but a needs to believe God works in them before they will believe God will work through them. We’re able to take the same grace that has been applied to us and minister it to others.
“As each of you has received a gift (a particular spiritual talent, a gracious divine endowment), employ it for one another as befits good trustees of God’s many-sided grace [faithful stewards of the extremely diverse powers and gifts granted to Christians by unmerited favor).” – 1 PETER 4:10 (AMPC)
Gifts are given by grace (God’s eagerness to show all His ability on our behalf). Then He said, “Be a steward of them.” From past blogs, you know that a steward’s role is to cause increase, not just maintain, what they are overseeing. In the same way, God wants us to increase in our gifts.
We don’t want to seek additional gifts or think, “If I do good enough with one gift, I’ll earn another.” (If you earn it, it’s not a gift.) Instead, trust the Holy Spirit at work within you; the gifts you have will become more alive and real to you and pronounced. It’s not that the gift is actually growing, but our awareness of it does.
“His grace gift inspires me to say to you that your thinking must be consistent with everything that is within you according to the measure of faith that God has apportioned to every individual. Let the revelation of redemption shape your thoughts.” – ROMANS 12:3 (MIRROR)
Some Christians try to run semi-close to the Holy Spirit. But God isn’t looking for a semi-close relationship; He’s looking for you and Him to merge together. He wants your thinking in perfect alignment with His. Why? The more you are in alignment, the more familiar you get with Him. It’s like getting familiar with a new car…for a while, it takes time to know how things operate; but in time, it becomes easier.
God has apportioned faith to every person, so let the revelation of redemption shape your thoughts. Do you allow God and His plans for your life to shape your thinking or are you dictating to God? (“Well, You said in Psalm 37 You’d give me the desires of my heart!”) But He’s asking your heart to be His. God’s heart is His Word.
I like to quote Psalm 91:16, “with long life I will satisfy him.” Then God reminded me I needed to lose weight. If you want to get out of debt, quit spending money on things you don’t need. When we ask God in accordance to His Word, He gives us instruction every time because He wants us to be good stewards of the grace He’s ministering to us.
“The parallel is clear. There are many different members in one body, yet not one competes with the other in function. Instead every individual member co-compliments the other. In Christ, the many individuals are all part of the same body and members of one another. Our gifts may differ in function, but His grace is the same. If it is your turn to prophesy, let faith and not a title be your inspiration.” – ROMANS 12:4-6 (MIRROR)
Consider musicians: they have been graced with the ability to play, but they have to work to develop that ability. I can’t play instruments well, but I can preach; I need to develop that gift as well. We have different functions, but we compliment each other.
“The same goes for every aspect of ministry, whether it be serving or to give instruction, or to just be there alongside someone to remind them of their true identity: always let faith set the pace. You are intertwined with your gift, wrapped up in the same parcel. Lead with passion; minister mercy cheerfully.” – ROMANS 12:7-8 (MIRROR)
Your faith sets the pace to how you see God’s grace. Your gift is a portion of God’s grace. You may have 15 gifts, but they’re still a portion of God’s grace; they may have different functions, but the same grace is applied to them.
“Your faith sets the pace to how you see God’s grace.”
It’s important to develop those gifts and use them according to the proportion of your faith.
If you have a gifting, you’re probably going to be more willing to share it when it’s developed. Not only is this true, but most people find not growing in an area to be pretty boring. Believing God to help you develop your gifts is going to keep that development invigorating, and it will end up making you more effective. That, in turn, increases your faith.
Do this and you’ll be able to enter a new realm of ministering as you see yourself differently.
To watch the message associated with this post, click here.
