WEBVTT 00:00:02.439 --> 00:00:06.559 Twenty years ago this week, a young and popular 00:00:06.559 --> 00:00:09.160 president of the United States was assassinated 00:00:09.160 --> 00:00:15.820 in Dallas. That tragedy seems to have symbolized 00:00:15.820 --> 00:00:23.019 the unreality, the despair of life, the meaninglessness 00:00:23.019 --> 00:00:27.039 of existence that has characterized the world 00:00:27.039 --> 00:00:33.560 in the 60s and 70s. That despair seems somewhat 00:00:33.560 --> 00:00:36.820 to be declining in the minds of this generation. 00:00:37.399 --> 00:00:39.979 And yet there's the question that has been asked 00:00:39.979 --> 00:00:43.640 by the philosophers of the ages. Why am I here? 00:00:43.859 --> 00:00:47.500 What is the meaning of life? What is my purpose? 00:00:49.259 --> 00:00:54.679 Every life has value before God. But the life 00:00:54.679 --> 00:00:59.820 of the believer in Jesus Christ has eternal significance. 00:01:01.609 --> 00:01:06.409 far beyond the few years spent on earth. For 00:01:06.409 --> 00:01:09.769 the believer in Jesus Christ is one who has been 00:01:09.769 --> 00:01:13.489 chosen in eternity past to be a part of God's 00:01:13.489 --> 00:01:17.810 eternal purpose, the church, the body of Jesus 00:01:17.810 --> 00:01:21.870 Christ. And it is that which gives the years 00:01:21.870 --> 00:01:27.189 of life for the believer a value which is beyond, 00:01:27.310 --> 00:01:33.629 really, our comprehending. Romans chapter 12, 00:01:33.810 --> 00:01:37.549 verses 6 through 8, is our text for today and 00:01:37.549 --> 00:01:41.609 speaks to this theme that your life has meaning. 00:01:44.269 --> 00:01:47.010 And since we have gifts that differ according 00:01:47.010 --> 00:01:51.250 to the grace given to us, let us exercise them 00:01:51.250 --> 00:01:55.030 accordingly. If prophecy according to the proportion 00:01:55.030 --> 00:02:01.540 of His faith, if service in His serving. or he 00:02:01.540 --> 00:02:05.299 who teaches in his teaching, or he who exhorts 00:02:05.299 --> 00:02:08.740 in his exhortation, he who gives with liberality, 00:02:08.939 --> 00:02:13.599 he who leads with diligence, he who shows mercy 00:02:13.599 --> 00:02:20.460 with cheerfulness. The context of our text shows 00:02:20.460 --> 00:02:24.659 us that we are to think properly about ourselves 00:02:24.659 --> 00:02:29.750 having the right perspective. The right perspective 00:02:29.750 --> 00:02:35.729 is God's perspective. And what does God say about 00:02:35.729 --> 00:02:40.770 us? God says, number one, that He has given us 00:02:40.770 --> 00:02:47.189 everything we possess. And secondly, as possessors 00:02:47.189 --> 00:02:52.590 of those gifts, He has then made us vital, functioning 00:02:52.590 --> 00:02:57.740 members of the body of Jesus Christ. When you 00:02:57.740 --> 00:03:01.819 and I get that perspective on who we are, it 00:03:01.819 --> 00:03:04.479 changes our thinking about ourselves and we have 00:03:04.479 --> 00:03:08.340 a proper balanced self -esteem so that we don't 00:03:08.340 --> 00:03:11.360 think more highly or more lowly than we ought 00:03:11.360 --> 00:03:16.680 to think regarding ourselves. The Lord Jesus 00:03:16.680 --> 00:03:20.699 Christ has gifted each of us to contribute toward 00:03:20.699 --> 00:03:24.610 the building up of the body of Christ. And my 00:03:24.610 --> 00:03:27.629 friend, the exercise of that gift is not an option. 00:03:28.409 --> 00:03:33.009 It is a command. In 1 Corinthians chapter 12 00:03:33.009 --> 00:03:36.629 and verse 7, we are reminded that we have the 00:03:36.629 --> 00:03:39.990 manifestation of the Spirit, what he says, for 00:03:39.990 --> 00:03:44.530 the common good. That is, for the good of everyone, 00:03:44.770 --> 00:03:49.150 not just ourselves. The gifts we have are for 00:03:49.150 --> 00:03:52.069 the good commonly within the body, the local 00:03:52.069 --> 00:03:59.080 church. where we are. In our text, verse 6, he 00:03:59.080 --> 00:04:02.860 says, we have gifts that differ according to 00:04:02.860 --> 00:04:06.759 the grace given to us. This word gifts is the 00:04:06.759 --> 00:04:11.500 word charismata. It is the word where we get 00:04:11.500 --> 00:04:16.420 charismatic. In a very biblical sense, all believers 00:04:16.420 --> 00:04:21.319 are charismatics because all believers have charismata. 00:04:21.980 --> 00:04:27.819 spiritual gifts. He says we have gifts that differ. 00:04:28.180 --> 00:04:32.019 That is, they are varying in kind. They are diverse. 00:04:33.540 --> 00:04:37.220 God in His manifold wisdom has given a variety 00:04:37.220 --> 00:04:41.759 of gifts to the body. And it is that which makes 00:04:41.759 --> 00:04:46.680 the church interesting and even exciting. And 00:04:46.680 --> 00:04:49.019 He gives these gifts according to that sentence 00:04:49.019 --> 00:04:54.100 in verse 6. according to the grace given to us. 00:04:54.800 --> 00:05:00.339 In other words, these gifts are not earned, nor 00:05:00.339 --> 00:05:03.959 are we to personally and individually seek certain 00:05:03.959 --> 00:05:09.399 gifts, but they are given to us by grace. The 00:05:09.399 --> 00:05:12.800 very word charismata has its root in the Greek 00:05:12.800 --> 00:05:18.060 word grace, charis. Charismata, grace, gifts. 00:05:19.980 --> 00:05:23.720 1 Corinthians 12, 11 says that God gives them 00:05:23.720 --> 00:05:29.860 by His Spirit just as He wills. The very moment 00:05:29.860 --> 00:05:34.519 that you are saved, God chooses to give you certain 00:05:34.519 --> 00:05:38.819 gifts. It is not up to you to say, God, this 00:05:38.819 --> 00:05:42.000 is the gift I want, please give it to me. It 00:05:42.000 --> 00:05:45.220 is as He wills that He gives them. It is up to 00:05:45.220 --> 00:05:47.819 you and to me to say, God, what gifts do I possess? 00:05:48.600 --> 00:05:51.439 that I may develop them and exercise them within 00:05:51.439 --> 00:05:56.160 the body. My theme this morning is that God has 00:05:56.160 --> 00:06:00.620 given your life meaning by entrusting you with 00:06:00.620 --> 00:06:08.480 these spiritual gifts. What are the gifts? Let's 00:06:08.480 --> 00:06:13.360 define the word, first of all. The gifts are 00:06:13.360 --> 00:06:18.709 special spirit -given abilities. to serve Jesus 00:06:18.709 --> 00:06:25.170 Christ in His body, the church. Now, by that 00:06:25.170 --> 00:06:27.569 definition, we are saying the gifts are not certain 00:06:27.569 --> 00:06:30.329 things. First of all, they are not natural abilities. 00:06:30.689 --> 00:06:33.449 Even non -Christians have natural abilities. 00:06:35.970 --> 00:06:38.670 Spiritual gifts are given to us as believers 00:06:38.670 --> 00:06:41.370 the moment that we're saved, the time of our 00:06:41.370 --> 00:06:44.629 second birth. They are not natural abilities, 00:06:44.629 --> 00:06:47.120 though the two of them... may complement each 00:06:47.120 --> 00:06:52.300 other. Furthermore, we are not saying that spiritual 00:06:52.300 --> 00:06:57.519 gifts are the same as spirituality. Just because 00:06:57.519 --> 00:06:59.939 one has a spiritual gift does not automatically 00:06:59.939 --> 00:07:04.879 mean he's spiritual. Spiritual gifts can be exercised 00:07:04.879 --> 00:07:09.259 in the energy of the flesh, leading to waste 00:07:09.259 --> 00:07:14.259 and failure, but nonetheless it's true. So spiritual 00:07:14.259 --> 00:07:17.019 gifts do not automatically equal spirituality. 00:07:17.839 --> 00:07:20.019 And thirdly, we are not saying that spiritual 00:07:20.019 --> 00:07:25.160 gifts are the same as spiritual maturity. The 00:07:25.160 --> 00:07:28.060 Corinthian church is an example of this. For 00:07:28.060 --> 00:07:30.699 though they had all the gifts and exercised all 00:07:30.699 --> 00:07:33.339 of them, even to the point of abuse in some cases, 00:07:33.839 --> 00:07:38.139 Paul says that they were babes in Christ. They 00:07:38.139 --> 00:07:40.800 ought not to have been, but they were. They were 00:07:40.800 --> 00:07:44.610 infants spiritually. And so the possession of 00:07:44.610 --> 00:07:47.009 spiritual gifts does not mean that one is automatically 00:07:47.009 --> 00:07:49.990 spiritually mature. Maturity comes over the process 00:07:49.990 --> 00:07:53.329 of time. It is not attained instantaneously. 00:07:54.230 --> 00:07:57.370 It comes through experience and through growth. 00:08:00.189 --> 00:08:03.050 Another way to define spiritual gifts and one 00:08:03.050 --> 00:08:08.980 that intrigues me is this. It is a channel. through 00:08:08.980 --> 00:08:12.220 which the Holy Spirit ministers to Jesus Christ. 00:08:13.860 --> 00:08:18.379 A spiritual gift is a channel through which the 00:08:18.379 --> 00:08:21.259 Holy Spirit ministers to Jesus Christ. And here's 00:08:21.259 --> 00:08:25.060 what I mean. We are the body of Jesus Christ. 00:08:26.339 --> 00:08:29.920 We are so identified with Him that when God sees 00:08:29.920 --> 00:08:33.220 us, He does not see where we end and Christ begins. 00:08:34.980 --> 00:08:39.559 We are one with Him. So that when the Holy Spirit 00:08:39.559 --> 00:08:44.240 ministers to you through this person's spiritual 00:08:44.240 --> 00:08:48.460 gift, he is actually ministering to Jesus Christ. 00:08:49.419 --> 00:08:53.759 And so spiritual gifts are the channels through 00:08:53.759 --> 00:08:57.679 which the Holy Spirit ministers to Christ himself. 00:08:58.919 --> 00:09:04.039 In Romans chapter 12, we have a list. It is a 00:09:04.039 --> 00:09:07.620 partial list. Only seven of the gifts are listed 00:09:07.620 --> 00:09:10.200 here. Others are listed elsewhere in the New 00:09:10.200 --> 00:09:13.039 Testament. But let's look at these seven since 00:09:13.039 --> 00:09:16.899 they are in the context of our message this morning. 00:09:18.840 --> 00:09:21.539 The first one on the list is the gift of prophecy. 00:09:22.340 --> 00:09:25.840 That very word is sometimes misunderstood as 00:09:25.840 --> 00:09:30.860 being foretelling the future. But the idea biblically 00:09:30.860 --> 00:09:35.389 in prophecy is actually foretelling. It is proclamation. 00:09:35.850 --> 00:09:39.070 The gift of prophecy is the gift of preaching, 00:09:39.269 --> 00:09:45.309 to edify, to reprove, to comfort, to exhort the 00:09:45.309 --> 00:09:50.070 people of God. Now there was the office of a 00:09:50.070 --> 00:09:53.929 prophet in the Old Testament and then again in 00:09:53.929 --> 00:10:00.129 the New Testament. Those prophets used their 00:10:00.129 --> 00:10:03.840 gift of prophecy. to deliver direct revelation 00:10:03.840 --> 00:10:08.179 from God. Before the New Testament was completed, 00:10:08.320 --> 00:10:12.320 that is how God delivered His will to the assemblies 00:10:12.320 --> 00:10:15.120 scattered throughout the Roman Empire. He used 00:10:15.120 --> 00:10:17.820 the office of prophet to speak to His people. 00:10:18.860 --> 00:10:22.779 But in a biblical, more general sense, the gift 00:10:22.779 --> 00:10:25.519 of prophecy is the gift of preaching. And it 00:10:25.519 --> 00:10:28.929 says here, The one who exercises this gift is 00:10:28.929 --> 00:10:32.049 to do so according to the proportion of his faith. 00:10:33.629 --> 00:10:36.470 I believe the meaning of that is that he is to 00:10:36.470 --> 00:10:40.990 say what God wants him to say, nothing more and 00:10:40.990 --> 00:10:47.129 nothing less. Secondly, we have the gift of service. 00:10:48.490 --> 00:10:51.129 One who has the gift of service gives practical 00:10:51.129 --> 00:10:57.159 support to the ministry of God's people. in unseen 00:10:57.159 --> 00:11:00.740 ways, but it is always with faithfulness and 00:11:00.740 --> 00:11:04.879 genuine inner delight. The Greek word is the 00:11:04.879 --> 00:11:08.700 word deacon. It means to minister to, to wait 00:11:08.700 --> 00:11:13.399 upon, to care for another's needs. There's a 00:11:13.399 --> 00:11:16.259 woman in the book of Romans who exemplifies the 00:11:16.259 --> 00:11:21.120 gift of service. Her name is Phoebe in Romans 00:11:21.120 --> 00:11:28.379 chapter 16. a servant, a deaconess is the literal 00:11:28.379 --> 00:11:32.639 word of the church, and served the Lord's people. 00:11:33.720 --> 00:11:38.000 This is the gift which is perhaps most common 00:11:38.000 --> 00:11:43.100 in the body of Christ. And though it is unheralded, 00:11:43.100 --> 00:11:47.399 it is the one that is probably the most needed. 00:11:48.700 --> 00:11:52.120 I thank God for those who are ministering in 00:11:52.120 --> 00:11:56.440 this body. often in unseen ways, but who do it 00:11:56.440 --> 00:12:00.240 with diligence and faithfulness and an inner 00:12:00.240 --> 00:12:04.159 joy and delight. And then there's the gift of 00:12:04.159 --> 00:12:06.940 teaching. One who has the gift of teaching is 00:12:06.940 --> 00:12:10.919 one who instructs with the Word of God. He declares, 00:12:10.919 --> 00:12:16.940 explains, breaks down, and clarifies the Word. 00:12:18.740 --> 00:12:22.799 This is perhaps the most frequently listed. of 00:12:22.799 --> 00:12:26.120 the gifts in the New Testament, but not the most 00:12:26.120 --> 00:12:30.460 frequently given. In fact, the Holy Spirit says 00:12:30.460 --> 00:12:33.059 through James that we ought not, many of us, 00:12:33.059 --> 00:12:36.259 to seek to be teachers because those who have 00:12:36.259 --> 00:12:38.799 the gift of teaching will have the greater accounting 00:12:38.799 --> 00:12:42.940 at the judgment seat of Christ. It is a solemn 00:12:42.940 --> 00:12:46.919 responsibility to be a teacher, for one who teaches 00:12:46.919 --> 00:12:51.840 instructs God's people in the Word. And then 00:12:51.840 --> 00:12:56.179 there's the gift of exhortation. The literal 00:12:56.179 --> 00:12:59.580 word means one who's called alongside. It is 00:12:59.580 --> 00:13:01.980 the word paraclete, which is used of the Holy 00:13:01.980 --> 00:13:06.159 Spirit in the Gospel of John. So here is the 00:13:06.159 --> 00:13:09.019 gift that most closely aligns with what the Holy 00:13:09.019 --> 00:13:12.299 Spirit is doing today to believers. It is the 00:13:12.299 --> 00:13:16.179 gift of exhortation. It is a gift of motivation. 00:13:17.740 --> 00:13:20.799 It is the person who is able to drive home to 00:13:20.799 --> 00:13:25.799 the heart certain truths. It's one who is a counselor. 00:13:27.360 --> 00:13:32.100 Swindoll says, the teacher tells what, the exhorter 00:13:32.100 --> 00:13:38.220 tells how. The exhorter says, get moving. Here's 00:13:38.220 --> 00:13:42.019 how it's applied. And probably Dr. Swindoll is 00:13:42.019 --> 00:13:45.139 an excellent example of one who has the gift 00:13:45.139 --> 00:13:49.250 of exhortation. I think Priscilla and Aquila 00:13:49.250 --> 00:13:52.610 in the New Testament would exemplify this gift. 00:13:53.049 --> 00:13:56.850 But we see them sitting down with Apollos, for 00:13:56.850 --> 00:13:59.850 example, and explaining to him more fully the 00:13:59.850 --> 00:14:02.470 Word of God and exhorting him, motivating him, 00:14:02.629 --> 00:14:07.389 and with Paul as well. And then there's the gift 00:14:07.389 --> 00:14:10.870 of giving. One who has the gift of giving is 00:14:10.870 --> 00:14:15.009 able to sense needs even before they are expressed. 00:14:17.039 --> 00:14:21.659 And he delights in being able to provide for 00:14:21.659 --> 00:14:26.059 those needs. He does it with joy, generosity, 00:14:26.100 --> 00:14:29.860 and frankly, the one who has the gift of giving 00:14:29.860 --> 00:14:33.580 does not necessarily have a lot of money. We 00:14:33.580 --> 00:14:36.620 had a testimony of that a couple of weeks ago 00:14:36.620 --> 00:14:40.379 as one of the missionaries spoke about his wife 00:14:40.379 --> 00:14:43.080 who has the gift of giving and gives away everything 00:14:43.080 --> 00:14:49.200 they have. One who has the gift of giving is 00:14:49.200 --> 00:14:51.639 exemplified, I think, collectively in the church 00:14:51.639 --> 00:14:55.659 at Philippi, where even out of their own time 00:14:55.659 --> 00:14:59.240 of need, they gave once and then again to the 00:14:59.240 --> 00:15:04.899 Apostle Paul to provide for him. Often we think 00:15:04.899 --> 00:15:06.600 that those who have the gift of giving are the 00:15:06.600 --> 00:15:09.500 ones responsible for the support of God's ministry, 00:15:09.659 --> 00:15:13.830 and that is not true. It may be that those who 00:15:13.830 --> 00:15:16.429 have the gift of giving will contribute, but 00:15:16.429 --> 00:15:18.870 God's plan is not that a certain group within 00:15:18.870 --> 00:15:23.009 the church financially support the church. According 00:15:23.009 --> 00:15:26.190 to 2 Corinthians 8 and 9, all of us are to share 00:15:26.190 --> 00:15:30.210 in a fair and equal manner, proportionally according 00:15:30.210 --> 00:15:34.250 to how God blesses us. It should not fall upon 00:15:34.250 --> 00:15:36.710 the shoulders of a few who have the gift of giving. 00:15:38.149 --> 00:15:43.919 We did a survey recently. of our giving by envelopes 00:15:43.919 --> 00:15:50.919 here in our church. And we found that 20 % of 00:15:50.919 --> 00:15:54.980 those who give using envelopes give 80 % of the 00:15:54.980 --> 00:15:59.940 total money in our ministry. Just 20 % give 80 00:15:59.940 --> 00:16:03.399 % of the money. Do you think that matches what 00:16:03.399 --> 00:16:11.590 Paul says in 2 Corinthians 8 and 9? That is, 00:16:11.629 --> 00:16:15.429 by the way, the average of four churches across 00:16:15.429 --> 00:16:18.129 America. But it certainly is not the norm of 00:16:18.129 --> 00:16:21.710 the New Testament. The gift of giving has nothing 00:16:21.710 --> 00:16:25.169 to do with how much money one has. Rather, it's 00:16:25.169 --> 00:16:27.909 with the ability to sense a need and then in 00:16:27.909 --> 00:16:29.710 some way to be able to provide for that need, 00:16:29.870 --> 00:16:32.490 whether it be in money or food or clothing or 00:16:32.490 --> 00:16:35.730 in some kind deed. And then the gift of leading. 00:16:35.909 --> 00:16:39.850 Literally, the word means to stand before. It's 00:16:39.850 --> 00:16:45.889 the ability to preside. It incorporates the idea 00:16:45.889 --> 00:16:50.289 of giving vision and direction. One who has the 00:16:50.289 --> 00:16:53.570 gift of leading has creative ideas. He's a problem 00:16:53.570 --> 00:16:57.649 solver. I think a great example of this is James, 00:16:57.750 --> 00:17:00.389 who was the head honcho of the church in Jerusalem. 00:17:01.710 --> 00:17:04.490 And when their problem came up in Acts chapter 00:17:04.490 --> 00:17:08.539 15, that could have divided. the church between 00:17:08.539 --> 00:17:13.640 Jews and Gentiles. It was James who stood up 00:17:13.640 --> 00:17:17.680 and drew upon the report from Peter and from 00:17:17.680 --> 00:17:22.680 Paul and Barnabas and solved the problem by giving 00:17:22.680 --> 00:17:26.900 a solution. James had the gift of leading. By 00:17:26.900 --> 00:17:30.660 the way, this is a gift that elders need. And 00:17:30.660 --> 00:17:33.019 he says that those who exercise this gift are 00:17:33.019 --> 00:17:36.680 to do so with diligence. In other words, with 00:17:36.680 --> 00:17:42.579 zeal, earnestly, without sloth. And then he mentions 00:17:42.579 --> 00:17:46.240 in number seven, the gift of showing mercy. This 00:17:46.240 --> 00:17:49.819 is the ability to feel with others their sorrows 00:17:49.819 --> 00:17:53.420 and to minister cheer and consolation to them. 00:17:54.640 --> 00:17:58.779 It involves deeds of love and kindness, and probably 00:17:58.779 --> 00:18:01.779 a biblical example of this would be Epaphroditus. 00:18:02.569 --> 00:18:05.509 who, according to Philippians chapter 2, ministered 00:18:05.509 --> 00:18:09.369 to Paul in a very wonderful way in his time of 00:18:09.369 --> 00:18:14.470 need. You will notice that after each of these 00:18:14.470 --> 00:18:18.130 gifts, there is a refrain. Regarding mercy, he 00:18:18.130 --> 00:18:22.289 says, is to be shown with cheerfulness. Regarding 00:18:22.289 --> 00:18:25.009 leading, with diligence. Regarding giving, with 00:18:25.009 --> 00:18:28.170 liberality. Exhortation, he's to do it in his 00:18:28.170 --> 00:18:30.930 exhortation. Regarding teaching, he's to be... 00:18:31.369 --> 00:18:33.750 faithful in his teaching regarding service in 00:18:33.750 --> 00:18:36.769 his serving, and one who prophesies is to do 00:18:36.769 --> 00:18:40.710 it according to what God tells him to say. Each 00:18:40.710 --> 00:18:46.650 of these refrains seems to suggest this, that 00:18:46.650 --> 00:18:49.890 we are to be absorbed with the ministry and the 00:18:49.890 --> 00:18:53.589 gifts that God has called us to exercise. We 00:18:53.589 --> 00:18:55.890 are not to be concerned about others and whether 00:18:55.890 --> 00:19:00.240 they are using their gifts properly or not. But 00:19:00.240 --> 00:19:02.579 he says God has given to each of us different 00:19:02.579 --> 00:19:07.160 gifts according to his grace. Now, according 00:19:07.160 --> 00:19:10.180 to your gift, be involved in exercising that 00:19:10.180 --> 00:19:12.799 gift. Don't be concerned about the other guy 00:19:12.799 --> 00:19:15.720 and judging him. You just take care of what God's 00:19:15.720 --> 00:19:19.420 called you to do. That seems to be the thrust 00:19:19.420 --> 00:19:24.980 of that refrain. Now, why are the gifts given? 00:19:25.680 --> 00:19:29.839 Let's ask that question. To me, this is exceedingly 00:19:29.839 --> 00:19:33.140 interesting. Why is it that God has given us 00:19:33.140 --> 00:19:38.859 gifts? The answer, briefly, is that each believer 00:19:38.859 --> 00:19:43.819 may be completed in Jesus Christ and be like 00:19:43.819 --> 00:19:49.079 Him. That each believer may be matured, may grow 00:19:49.079 --> 00:19:54.920 up in Jesus Christ to be like Him. Dr. John MacArthur, 00:19:55.019 --> 00:19:58.140 in his book, The Body of Christ, says, This means 00:19:58.140 --> 00:20:01.880 that the only way an individual Christian will 00:20:01.880 --> 00:20:07.200 ever be a man of full stature in Christ is when 00:20:07.200 --> 00:20:11.220 he has all those gifts being ministered to him. 00:20:11.599 --> 00:20:15.119 A Christian can never be completely like Jesus 00:20:15.119 --> 00:20:19.720 Christ until he has been built up in all the 00:20:19.720 --> 00:20:25.339 areas represented by the spiritual gifts. Now 00:20:25.339 --> 00:20:27.339 let's talk about that statement because I believe 00:20:27.339 --> 00:20:30.440 he hits on something that is fresh and vital. 00:20:31.299 --> 00:20:37.299 The variety of gifts is needed so that the characteristics 00:20:37.299 --> 00:20:42.279 of Jesus Christ may be fully realized in his 00:20:42.279 --> 00:20:49.400 body. In other words, as our church matures and 00:20:49.400 --> 00:20:54.319 as each of us exercises his gifts, We will take 00:20:54.319 --> 00:21:00.140 on as a church a composite likeness of Jesus 00:21:00.140 --> 00:21:05.539 Christ. That's why it is so very important that 00:21:05.539 --> 00:21:09.180 every one of us exercise his own spiritual gifts. 00:21:11.200 --> 00:21:14.240 Every gift is a characteristic of Christ himself. 00:21:14.480 --> 00:21:18.119 Was he a teacher? Yes. Did he show mercy? Yes. 00:21:18.180 --> 00:21:21.079 Did he proclaim the word of God? Yes. Did he 00:21:21.079 --> 00:21:24.279 give? Yes. Did he exhort? Yes. Did he lead? Of 00:21:24.279 --> 00:21:29.720 course. And so you see the spiritual gifts are 00:21:29.720 --> 00:21:35.880 but various aspects of what Jesus is like. And 00:21:35.880 --> 00:21:40.339 as you exercise your particular aspect of what 00:21:40.339 --> 00:21:43.220 he's like, and this person and that person, the 00:21:43.220 --> 00:21:47.720 other person, exercises their gifts, then together... 00:21:48.079 --> 00:21:53.680 We are a composite likeness of Christ. Let's 00:21:53.680 --> 00:21:58.359 put it a different way. The church as Christ's 00:21:58.359 --> 00:22:03.279 body is to do what his physical body did when 00:22:03.279 --> 00:22:08.279 he was present on earth. We are to manifest who 00:22:08.279 --> 00:22:13.119 he is and what he is like. We are to show his 00:22:13.119 --> 00:22:17.160 nature and his likeness. just as His physical 00:22:17.160 --> 00:22:20.700 body did during those years He lived here in 00:22:20.700 --> 00:22:24.140 this world, in that body. For we are now His 00:22:24.140 --> 00:22:29.339 body. As each one ministers his gift to the others, 00:22:29.539 --> 00:22:35.279 they are built up in that area. Let me give an 00:22:35.279 --> 00:22:41.299 example of this or two. Teaching. As one ministers 00:22:41.299 --> 00:22:47.089 the gift of teaching to the body, He instructs 00:22:47.089 --> 00:22:50.490 us in doctrine so that we grow in our understanding 00:22:50.490 --> 00:22:54.750 of the Word of God. As a result of that, not 00:22:54.750 --> 00:22:58.009 only are we strengthened personally, but we learn 00:22:58.009 --> 00:23:01.349 how to communicate God's truth to others as well. 00:23:02.069 --> 00:23:05.849 For that gift of teaching builds us up that we 00:23:05.849 --> 00:23:12.529 might teach others. As one ministers to you who 00:23:12.529 --> 00:23:17.049 has the gift of mercy, You are consoled and comforted. 00:23:18.269 --> 00:23:21.289 But as a result of that, you then know how to 00:23:21.289 --> 00:23:25.089 comfort others too. 2 Corinthians 1 explains 00:23:25.089 --> 00:23:30.950 that. As you have a gift of giving and you minister 00:23:30.950 --> 00:23:34.150 to another, the needs of that other person are 00:23:34.150 --> 00:23:37.809 supplied. But more than that, that other person 00:23:37.809 --> 00:23:43.769 learns generosity in giving himself. And so while 00:23:43.769 --> 00:23:48.589 not all of us have all the spiritual gifts, yet 00:23:48.589 --> 00:23:51.630 all of us should be characterized by each of 00:23:51.630 --> 00:23:56.250 these characteristics. I will have an area of 00:23:56.250 --> 00:24:00.170 specialty that God has given to me, as you will 00:24:00.170 --> 00:24:04.690 for yourself. But nonetheless, I am to be characterized 00:24:04.690 --> 00:24:08.150 by the other areas as well, as I grow up and 00:24:08.150 --> 00:24:13.890 mature and as others minister to me. That's why 00:24:13.890 --> 00:24:17.569 as one who has the gift of prophecy or preaching 00:24:17.569 --> 00:24:20.849 and who sees things in black and white, which 00:24:20.849 --> 00:24:24.849 I do, I need somebody who's got the gift of mercy 00:24:24.849 --> 00:24:28.789 to cool me down and temper me and to shave off 00:24:28.789 --> 00:24:32.990 the sharp edges a little bit. I need that ministry 00:24:32.990 --> 00:24:37.710 to me. On the other hand, if you have the gift 00:24:37.710 --> 00:24:39.890 of mercy, you may need somebody like me around 00:24:39.890 --> 00:24:43.019 to give you some backbone to stick up. for what's 00:24:43.019 --> 00:24:46.480 right and wrong occasionally, see? That's how 00:24:46.480 --> 00:24:50.299 we need each other, and as all of us do our thing 00:24:50.299 --> 00:24:53.960 that the Holy Spirit has gifted us and called 00:24:53.960 --> 00:24:58.700 us to do, we as a body are healthy, and we reflect 00:24:58.700 --> 00:25:04.079 a balanced picture of Jesus Christ. There's another 00:25:04.079 --> 00:25:07.400 key passage that we must take time to look at. 00:25:10.410 --> 00:25:16.750 And that is in Ephesians chapter 4. I'm going 00:25:16.750 --> 00:25:19.450 to read verse 7 and then verse 11 through verse 00:25:19.450 --> 00:25:24.849 16. But to each one of us, grace was given according 00:25:24.849 --> 00:25:28.930 to the measure of Christ's gift. And he gave 00:25:28.930 --> 00:25:32.049 some as apostles and some as prophets and some 00:25:32.049 --> 00:25:34.690 as evangelists and some as pastors and teachers 00:25:34.690 --> 00:25:39.670 for the equipping of the saints. for the work 00:25:39.670 --> 00:25:43.309 of service, to the building up of the body of 00:25:43.309 --> 00:25:47.309 Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the 00:25:47.309 --> 00:25:49.549 faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God 00:25:49.549 --> 00:25:53.529 to a mature man, to the measure of the stature 00:25:53.529 --> 00:25:56.849 which belongs to the fullness of Christ. As a 00:25:56.849 --> 00:26:00.309 result, we are no longer to be children tossed 00:26:00.309 --> 00:26:03.509 here and there by waves and carried about with 00:26:03.509 --> 00:26:07.130 every wind of doctrine by the trickery of men. 00:26:07.799 --> 00:26:11.640 by craftiness and deceitful scheming. But speaking 00:26:11.640 --> 00:26:15.920 the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects 00:26:15.920 --> 00:26:21.420 into him who is the head, even Christ, from whom 00:26:21.420 --> 00:26:23.880 the whole body, being fitted and held together 00:26:23.880 --> 00:26:27.759 by that which every joint supplies, according 00:26:27.759 --> 00:26:31.380 to the proper working of each individual part, 00:26:32.359 --> 00:26:34.980 causes the growth of the body for the building 00:26:34.980 --> 00:26:40.559 up of itself in love. Now there are four important 00:26:40.559 --> 00:26:43.140 truths that I want us to see regarding the building 00:26:43.140 --> 00:26:47.359 up or the maturing of the local church in this 00:26:47.359 --> 00:26:51.599 passage. Number one, the source of this maturity. 00:26:52.480 --> 00:26:55.519 Would you notice that the building up, the maturing 00:26:55.519 --> 00:26:58.160 of the body is the work of no one else other 00:26:58.160 --> 00:27:03.609 than Jesus Christ? He said, I will build my church. 00:27:05.349 --> 00:27:10.289 But how does he do it? In verse 7 he says that 00:27:10.289 --> 00:27:15.849 all believers have been given grace according 00:27:15.849 --> 00:27:20.970 to Christ's measure. We've talked about that 00:27:20.970 --> 00:27:25.230 already. But in addition to that, in verse 11, 00:27:25.470 --> 00:27:31.880 he says that the Lord gives to the church gifted 00:27:31.880 --> 00:27:37.180 people. And he mentions apostles, prophets, evangelists, 00:27:37.180 --> 00:27:40.539 and pastor -teachers. Those two should be read 00:27:40.539 --> 00:27:45.619 together like teaching shepherds would be a good 00:27:45.619 --> 00:27:49.299 way to put it. Now in verse 11, he gives us a 00:27:49.299 --> 00:27:53.000 chronological development of the offices. It 00:27:53.000 --> 00:27:56.660 began with apostles, and then prophets came shortly 00:27:56.660 --> 00:27:59.400 after that. And according to Ephesians chapter 00:27:59.400 --> 00:28:01.980 2 and other places, they are a part of the foundation 00:28:01.980 --> 00:28:08.160 of the church. And therefore, as the church age 00:28:08.160 --> 00:28:12.279 developed, the apostles and prophets ceased because 00:28:12.279 --> 00:28:15.660 their function ceased. We don't have time to 00:28:15.660 --> 00:28:19.440 go into all of that. But then he mentions evangelists. 00:28:20.380 --> 00:28:23.259 Evangelists are still with us today because evangelists, 00:28:23.259 --> 00:28:27.279 very simply, are church planters. There are people 00:28:27.279 --> 00:28:29.539 who go into new areas where the gospel has not 00:28:29.539 --> 00:28:32.640 been clearly preached. They declare the gospel. 00:28:32.680 --> 00:28:34.759 People are won to Christ. They start churches. 00:28:36.140 --> 00:28:39.160 And then following the evangelist comes the one 00:28:39.160 --> 00:28:42.339 who is the teaching shepherd, the one who stays 00:28:42.339 --> 00:28:45.740 with the body for a period of time, who's called 00:28:45.740 --> 00:28:48.759 of the Lord Jesus Christ to shepherd that church 00:28:48.759 --> 00:28:53.440 and to teach them the doctrines, to build them 00:28:53.440 --> 00:28:59.200 up in the faith. And so the source of maturity 00:28:59.200 --> 00:29:02.559 is Jesus Christ as He functions in the way that 00:29:02.559 --> 00:29:06.980 He tells us He will in verses 7 and 11. Now regarding 00:29:06.980 --> 00:29:11.740 those who are pastor -teachers, he says, they 00:29:11.740 --> 00:29:15.500 are for the equipping of the saints for the work 00:29:15.500 --> 00:29:20.980 of ministry. In that very critical sentence, 00:29:21.259 --> 00:29:25.660 we have the steps to maturity. There are two 00:29:25.660 --> 00:29:29.599 of them. Number one, those who are leaders, those 00:29:29.599 --> 00:29:32.720 who are the teaching shepherds, are to equip 00:29:32.720 --> 00:29:35.720 the saints. And that is a very rich Greek word. 00:29:36.359 --> 00:29:39.079 It's used in the Gospels of mending the fishing 00:29:39.079 --> 00:29:42.960 nets. It's used in Galatians 6, verse 1, of the 00:29:42.960 --> 00:29:46.880 restoration of one who has fallen. It was used 00:29:46.880 --> 00:29:50.420 by Dr. Galen, the Greek physician, who some people 00:29:50.420 --> 00:29:52.599 said was crazy, but whom I say was ahead of his 00:29:52.599 --> 00:29:57.210 time. Dr. Galen talked about... this word in 00:29:57.210 --> 00:30:01.750 the sense of furnishing a house. A surgeon would 00:30:01.750 --> 00:30:05.549 use it in the sense of repairing, mending, setting 00:30:05.549 --> 00:30:10.450 a broken bone. But I think probably the best 00:30:10.450 --> 00:30:13.150 way to understand it in this context is that 00:30:13.150 --> 00:30:17.089 it means to complete. It's used that way in 1 00:30:17.089 --> 00:30:20.609 Thessalonians 3 .10, and the idea is this. It 00:30:20.609 --> 00:30:22.970 means that something is okay as far as it goes, 00:30:23.009 --> 00:30:26.420 but it needs to be finished. You ladies preparing 00:30:26.420 --> 00:30:29.039 for your Sunday dinner will get out the ingredients 00:30:29.039 --> 00:30:32.980 for a pie perhaps. Doesn't that sound delicious? 00:30:35.680 --> 00:30:37.859 And so you get all the ingredients out in the 00:30:37.859 --> 00:30:40.880 cabinet, all that you need, but you're not finished. 00:30:41.960 --> 00:30:45.980 It's okay as far as it goes, but you've got to 00:30:45.980 --> 00:30:48.220 go on from there and mix the ingredients and 00:30:48.220 --> 00:30:50.539 put them in the oven and then serve the pie. 00:30:50.779 --> 00:30:55.180 That's its purpose, right? And so what he's saying 00:30:55.180 --> 00:30:57.519 here is that pastor -teachers are to take the 00:30:57.519 --> 00:31:02.079 church where it's at on to maturity, on so that 00:31:02.079 --> 00:31:05.200 it accomplishes its full purpose. It's to complete 00:31:05.200 --> 00:31:11.079 the saints, to mature them, to equip them. The 00:31:11.079 --> 00:31:13.420 job of the pastor is not to fill the building. 00:31:14.839 --> 00:31:17.359 The job of the pastor is not to visit everyone 00:31:17.359 --> 00:31:20.440 in the church. The job of the pastor -teacher 00:31:20.440 --> 00:31:24.140 is not to print the bulletin. The job of the 00:31:24.140 --> 00:31:28.019 pastor is not to do the custodial work. Not that 00:31:28.019 --> 00:31:30.599 the pastor teacher is above any of those things. 00:31:31.180 --> 00:31:33.480 And he may be involved in some of them, but his 00:31:33.480 --> 00:31:36.960 primary focus must be the study of God's Word 00:31:36.960 --> 00:31:39.640 and the feeding of God's people so they are equipped. 00:31:40.900 --> 00:31:43.220 One of the reasons I'm delighted to serve in 00:31:43.220 --> 00:31:47.980 Grace Church is because our church body as a 00:31:47.980 --> 00:31:50.940 whole and our elders in particular have this 00:31:50.940 --> 00:31:53.460 vision of what the pastor -teacher is to do. 00:31:54.960 --> 00:31:58.319 And therefore, I am freed from some of the things 00:31:58.319 --> 00:32:00.960 that some pastors are involved in in order to 00:32:00.960 --> 00:32:04.720 spend time and study and the teaching, the proclamation 00:32:04.720 --> 00:32:08.839 of the Word of God. I thank God for that vision. 00:32:08.900 --> 00:32:10.839 I believe it's consistent with what is said here. 00:32:12.019 --> 00:32:14.279 But then who is to do all of the other things 00:32:14.279 --> 00:32:17.119 that need to be done in ministry? Well, the answer 00:32:17.119 --> 00:32:21.450 is the saints. Often we have the idea that we 00:32:21.450 --> 00:32:23.849 hire a professional staff to do the ministry, 00:32:23.990 --> 00:32:30.450 and that is not biblical. Those who are brought 00:32:30.450 --> 00:32:32.849 on to the full -time staff of the church are 00:32:32.849 --> 00:32:36.009 brought on for one purpose primarily, and that 00:32:36.009 --> 00:32:39.309 is to equip the saints and to free them so that 00:32:39.309 --> 00:32:41.589 they can be doing the work of ministering to 00:32:41.589 --> 00:32:47.490 the body. What are the works of service? By the 00:32:47.490 --> 00:32:50.269 way, that is step number two. The saints do the 00:32:50.269 --> 00:32:52.269 work of service. In other words, they use their 00:32:52.269 --> 00:32:56.390 gifts. What are the works of service? Well, it 00:32:56.390 --> 00:32:58.890 includes visiting the ill and the shut -ins. 00:32:59.470 --> 00:33:03.849 All of us are involved in that. Discipling people, 00:33:04.170 --> 00:33:09.190 giving of clothing or food or money to needy 00:33:09.190 --> 00:33:11.509 people, that's a work of ministry to the body. 00:33:12.529 --> 00:33:17.410 Evangelism, counseling. All of these are works 00:33:17.410 --> 00:33:19.710 of ministry. May I say frankly that there are 00:33:19.710 --> 00:33:23.309 some necessary activities which are not actually 00:33:23.309 --> 00:33:27.309 works of ministry. For example, it's important 00:33:27.309 --> 00:33:29.369 that somebody comes and makes the coffee here 00:33:29.369 --> 00:33:32.930 on Sunday mornings. I mean, this is Scandinavian 00:33:32.930 --> 00:33:36.230 territory. And so somebody comes and prepares 00:33:36.230 --> 00:33:39.049 that. That's important work. It's necessary. 00:33:39.670 --> 00:33:42.690 Somebody has to clean up after us. That's pretty 00:33:42.690 --> 00:33:46.319 necessary too. And then somebody needs to direct 00:33:46.319 --> 00:33:49.059 traffic and, you know, a variety of other things 00:33:49.059 --> 00:33:52.279 that need to be done, but technically they are 00:33:52.279 --> 00:33:54.640 not works of ministry because a work of ministry 00:33:54.640 --> 00:34:01.180 involves my direct input into another life. We 00:34:01.180 --> 00:34:04.140 are, all of us, to be involved in the work of 00:34:04.140 --> 00:34:09.079 service of ministry. That's how the body is matured. 00:34:10.760 --> 00:34:13.559 The leaders equip and the saints do the work 00:34:13.559 --> 00:34:16.280 of the ministry so that the whole body is built 00:34:16.280 --> 00:34:19.960 up of itself. And then in verse 13, we see how 00:34:19.960 --> 00:34:22.980 to measure maturity. How do you know when a church 00:34:22.980 --> 00:34:27.699 is maturing? He talks in verse 13 about attaining 00:34:27.699 --> 00:34:32.159 to a mature man. There are three measurements 00:34:32.159 --> 00:34:34.920 for maturity. They are not how much money is 00:34:34.920 --> 00:34:38.849 given. or how large the church is, or how many 00:34:38.849 --> 00:34:40.730 are in Sunday school, or how many are baptized. 00:34:41.690 --> 00:34:44.690 Those do not measure the maturity of a church. 00:34:44.750 --> 00:34:49.210 They measure some things, but not maturity. According 00:34:49.210 --> 00:34:52.010 to Ephesians 4, maturity is measured, number 00:34:52.010 --> 00:34:56.389 one, by the unity of the church. Till we all 00:34:56.389 --> 00:35:00.449 attain to the unity of the faith. Unity within 00:35:00.449 --> 00:35:04.659 the fellowship. Secondly, The deep knowledge 00:35:04.659 --> 00:35:09.219 of Jesus Christ. A full knowledge of the Son 00:35:09.219 --> 00:35:15.340 of God. How well do we know Him? And thirdly, 00:35:15.360 --> 00:35:19.480 by how Christ -like we are. How much we measure 00:35:19.480 --> 00:35:22.739 up to the fullness of the stature of Christ. 00:35:24.059 --> 00:35:28.440 How adult we are in being like Him. Of course, 00:35:28.440 --> 00:35:30.800 that comes from the deep knowledge of Christ 00:35:30.800 --> 00:35:35.289 and the... performing of our ministry. That's 00:35:35.289 --> 00:35:37.269 how you measure maturity. And what's the result 00:35:37.269 --> 00:35:40.929 of maturity? We must rush on. Verses 14 through 00:35:40.929 --> 00:35:44.530 16 give us three results of a maturing church. 00:35:44.750 --> 00:35:50.190 Number one, doctrinal stability. A maturing church 00:35:50.190 --> 00:35:54.590 will not be susceptible to religious fads. And 00:35:54.590 --> 00:35:57.130 of course, neither will maturing individual believers. 00:35:58.230 --> 00:36:01.510 These days there are many schisms, isms, and 00:36:01.510 --> 00:36:05.010 spasms around, and they are catching up all kinds 00:36:05.010 --> 00:36:11.650 of believers who are not maturing. Maturing believers 00:36:11.650 --> 00:36:15.630 have a stability in doctrine. There is not a 00:36:15.630 --> 00:36:18.510 tendency to follow after new things that come 00:36:18.510 --> 00:36:23.829 down the pike. Secondly, the result of maturity 00:36:23.829 --> 00:36:29.000 is truth speaking in love. What that means is 00:36:29.000 --> 00:36:33.400 that a mature church proclaims the truth of God 00:36:33.400 --> 00:36:38.380 with compassion. In other words, it is a fundamentalist 00:36:38.380 --> 00:36:43.559 church with love, with the right spirit. It truth 00:36:43.559 --> 00:36:48.860 speaks in love, literally. And thirdly, a mature 00:36:48.860 --> 00:36:51.019 church is one in which each member is doing its 00:36:51.019 --> 00:36:55.300 part. Verse 16. According to the proper working 00:36:55.300 --> 00:36:58.719 of each individual part, that causes the growth 00:36:58.719 --> 00:37:00.880 of the body for the building up of itself in 00:37:00.880 --> 00:37:05.380 love. So a mature church is one in which there 00:37:05.380 --> 00:37:09.039 is not a hired staff doing all the work, but 00:37:09.039 --> 00:37:13.420 in which the staff is conservative, it is small, 00:37:13.500 --> 00:37:16.480 what is needed only to equip the saints and to 00:37:16.480 --> 00:37:20.219 free the saints so that the church and each member 00:37:20.219 --> 00:37:24.039 of it is involved in the building up of the body. 00:37:24.800 --> 00:37:28.440 And as that is done, then God is going to raise 00:37:28.440 --> 00:37:31.639 up, as the church grows, gifted people within 00:37:31.639 --> 00:37:35.340 the church who will work themselves on to staff 00:37:35.340 --> 00:37:38.900 full time because their ministry will be so necessary 00:37:38.900 --> 00:37:41.300 that others may be equipped and the church may 00:37:41.300 --> 00:37:44.940 function. That's the way it works. That's where 00:37:44.940 --> 00:37:47.579 we are as a church anyway. That's our theology 00:37:47.579 --> 00:37:52.000 of what a local church is all about. And could 00:37:52.000 --> 00:37:54.440 I boldly say and frankly say that if this is 00:37:54.440 --> 00:37:57.469 the kind of church you're looking for, if you 00:37:57.469 --> 00:38:00.550 want to be an integral part of a functioning 00:38:00.550 --> 00:38:04.670 body, if you are willing and desirous to be involved, 00:38:04.750 --> 00:38:08.730 to exercise your spiritual gifts, as God has 00:38:08.730 --> 00:38:11.710 called you to, in a local church like this, we 00:38:11.710 --> 00:38:15.150 welcome you. We want you to be a part of Grace 00:38:15.150 --> 00:38:19.090 Church. We also recognize that not everyone will 00:38:19.090 --> 00:38:22.210 want this level of commitment. Yet that does 00:38:22.210 --> 00:38:25.260 not change God's plan. or the biblical teaching 00:38:25.260 --> 00:38:28.119 that it is the norm that that commitment should 00:38:28.119 --> 00:38:32.900 be made. Is your life on target with God's purpose? 00:38:33.559 --> 00:38:37.219 Your life has meaning and has significance if 00:38:37.219 --> 00:38:42.139 you're a believer in an eternal sense. But are 00:38:42.139 --> 00:38:45.900 you doing what God wants you to do? Is your life 00:38:45.900 --> 00:38:49.300 having the impact and the significance that it 00:38:49.300 --> 00:38:53.190 should within a local church? This one... or 00:38:53.190 --> 00:38:57.550 another one where you do belong. What are you 00:38:57.550 --> 00:39:01.730 doing with your spiritual gifts? There are two 00:39:01.730 --> 00:39:03.570 things we have to be aware of. One of them is 00:39:03.570 --> 00:39:08.570 carnality. We must be aware of living for the 00:39:08.570 --> 00:39:11.590 flesh and in the energy of the flesh, because 00:39:11.590 --> 00:39:16.030 when we do that, it completely destroys the impact 00:39:16.030 --> 00:39:19.980 of whatever spiritual gifts we possess. But we 00:39:19.980 --> 00:39:24.300 also must beware of carelessness, that we just 00:39:24.300 --> 00:39:26.599 don't float along through life without making 00:39:26.599 --> 00:39:29.219 the commitments that Jesus Christ tells us we 00:39:29.219 --> 00:39:33.719 should in the church. For when we do that, it 00:39:33.719 --> 00:39:37.519 weakens the church where we ought to be. It robs 00:39:37.519 --> 00:39:40.260 us of eternal reward that we should receive if 00:39:40.260 --> 00:39:44.579 we were serving faithfully. And it also dishonors 00:39:44.579 --> 00:39:48.719 the head of our body, Jesus Christ. Because somewhere 00:39:48.719 --> 00:39:51.380 down there is a member that's not functioning, 00:39:51.539 --> 00:39:56.519 and that's not normal. That's not his plan. You're 00:39:56.519 --> 00:40:00.599 a member of the body if you're a believer. Are 00:40:00.599 --> 00:40:03.340 you a functioning, vital member of somebody, 00:40:03.659 --> 00:40:09.739 some church? Heavenly Father, I pray that you 00:40:09.739 --> 00:40:12.099 will lead us to make the decisions and the commitments 00:40:12.099 --> 00:40:14.440 we need to make this morning that we might be 00:40:14.440 --> 00:40:20.730 on target with your purpose. for our lives. And 00:40:20.730 --> 00:40:22.949 Father, if there be some friend here who's not 00:40:22.949 --> 00:40:26.329 even saved, who cannot say for sure his sins 00:40:26.329 --> 00:40:28.889 are forgiven, and he's on his way to heaven, 00:40:29.070 --> 00:40:32.550 I pray that that one today would trust the Lord 00:40:32.550 --> 00:40:35.449 Jesus, that he might be a part of the body of 00:40:35.449 --> 00:40:38.829 Christ, be gifted to serve, even as we've talked 00:40:38.829 --> 00:40:42.630 from your word this morning. In Jesus' name I 00:40:42.630 --> 00:40:43.710 pray, amen.