“Acknowledging
the Gifts of God’s People”
Philippians
1:4-6
Phillippians 1:4-6 says:
4In all my prayers for all of
you, I always pray with joy 5because of your partnership
in the gospel from the first day until now, 6being
confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to
completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
Today’s Focus: Partnership Ministry (Stewardship of Gifts)
Food for Thought: “People of Faith Work Together”
Forward
in Faith . . .
F ocusing
on the needs of others
A
cknowledging the gifts of God’s people
I nvesting
in Kingdom building
T eaching
the Word of Life
H onoring
God through passionate worship
Illustration:
I recently overheard two mothers talking in
the foyer of our church between Sunday School and the morning worship service.
One of the mothers looked a bit frazzled as she unloaded on her friend. “I just
can’t get my kids to do anything around the house, so I end up having to do it
all—the cleaning, the dishes, the laundry, the yard work. I don’t know how much
longer I’m going to hold up. I’m exhausted!”
The other
woman looked her straight in the eye and said a profound thing, “Maybe you
should just stop doing everything and see what happens.”
·
It’s odd that
most of us feel overtired and overworked, yet we cling tenaciously to the tasks
assigned to us, refusing to ask for help or even to accept it when offered.
·
In most
congregations, 20 percent of the people do 80 percent of the work while the
other 80 percent of the people do only 20 percent of the work.
·
One reason
for this may be we simply are not willing or perhaps not aware we need to join
as partners in the gospel with those who are alongside us.
·
God has
designed His church and His mission with a simple concept in mind: a working
partnership.
·
We work
together because we have a big job to do and we need each other to succeed. The
gifts of God’s people are invaluable to the Kingdom.
We Work Together Because God Placed Us Together.
“In all my
prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy.” V. 4
Illustration: You can always
spot the lone rangers. They’re the ones with the arrows in their backs. Even
so, most of us prefer to be lone rangers. That’s not God’s plan. He has
something far more efficient in mind.
·
The world is
full of lone rangers.
·
We admire the
rugged individualist.
·
In business,
most people want to succeed for themselves, to make their mark.
·
Even in the
church we often see the “my way or the highway” attitude.
·
Let’s be
honest, ego is the reason for this. We want to prove we are competent.
·
But from
God’s economy…
1. God is
glorified when we work together.
1
Corinthians 3:7-9 ays:
“So
neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes
things grow. The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and
each will be rewarded according to his own labor. For we are God’s fellow
workers; you are God’s field, God’s building.”
·
God placed
Adam and Eve together because He knew that being alone is not good.
·
He gave Moses
a helper, his brother, Aaron.
Jesus
chose 12 men to be His close associates—apostles.
·
Paul always
chose a coworker in his missionary labors—Silas or Barnabas.
·
It glorifies
God when we work together.
·
Paul reminds
us it is God, not us, who makes the difference.
·
When we set
our egos aside and work together, God is pleased.
Illustration:
“There’s a wonderful story about Jimmy Durante, one of the great entertainers
of a generation ago. He was asked to be part of a show for World War II
veterans. He told them his schedule was very busy and he could afford only a
few minutes, but if they wouldn’t mind his doing one short monologue and
immediately leaving for his next appointment, he would come. Of course, the
show’s director agreed happily. But when Jimmy got on stage, something
interesting happened. He went through the short monologue and then stayed. The
applause grew louder and louder and he kept staying. Pretty soon, he had been
on 15, 20, then 30 minutes. Finally he took a last bow and left the stage.
Backstage someone stopped him and said, ‘I thought you had to go after a few
minutes. What happened?’
“Jimmy
answered, ‘I did have to go, but I can show you the reason I stayed. You can
see for yourself if you’ll look down on the front row.’ In the front row were
two men, each of whom had lost an arm in the war. One had lost his right arm
and the other had lost his left. Together, they were able to clap, and that’s
exactly what they were doing, loudly and cheerfully” (Tim Hansel, Holy Sweat,
1987, pp. 104–105).
2. Working
together requires an attitude of joy.
Philippians
4:4 says:
“Rejoice
in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!”
3. God has
placed us together so that we can succeed in accomplishing His mission
(Philippians
Philippians
“Convinced
of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for
your progress and joy in the faith.”
ILLUSTRATION:
Henry Ford
said, “Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, and
working together is success.” God placed us together so we could succeed in His
mission. Who are the people God has placed near you? A family member? A friend?
A coworker? Someone at church? Can you think of one person with whom you can
form a partnership to advance the gospel?
We Work Together Because We Accomplish More
Philippians
1:5 says:
“Because
of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.”
1. Every
child of God is unique.
1 Peter 2:9 says:
“But you are a chosen people,
a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may
declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful
light.”
Illustration:
There are more than 6 billion people on earth, and no two have the same
fingerprints.
·
Your genetic
code (DNA) is unique. No one has the same genetic makeup as you.
·
God created
you with unique traits, temperament, abilities, gifts, and characteristics.
·
The same is
true for every other person! We’re each unique.
THOUGHTFUL
QUESTION: IF YOU ARE BUSY TRYING TO BE SOMEBODY ELSE, THEN WHO IS GOING TO BE
UNIQUELY YOU?
·
WHEN YOU TRY
TO BE SOMBODY YOU ARE NOT, YOU ARE INSULTING GOD WHO CREATED YOU TO BE YOU - BE
THE BEST YOU, YOU CAN BE, BUT BE YOU!
2. God
uses our unique character to benefit His Kingdom.
Ephesians
4:11-12 says:
“It was he
who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and
some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service,
so that the body of Christ may be built up.”
·
By God’s
design, every person has something to contribute to the mission.
·
Paul gives us
the blueprint for teamwork in Ephesians 4:11–12: “It was he who gave some to be
apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors
and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of
Christ may be built up.”
·
Spiritual
gifts are listed in 1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12, and Ephesians 4, but the lists
are not exhaustive.
·
Paul is
giving examples of the many ways persons can serve God.
1
Corinthians 12:12-27 says:
12The body is a unit, though it
is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one
body. So it is with Christ. 13For we were all baptized
by[c] one Spirit into one
body—whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit
to drink.
14Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. 15If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do
not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of
the body. 16And if the ear should say, "Because I
am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason
cease to be part of the body. 17If the whole body were
an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear,
where would the sense of smell be? 18But in fact God has
arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to
be. 19If they were all one part, where would the body
be? 20As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
21The eye cannot say to the hand, "I don't need
you!" And the head cannot say to the feet, "I don't need you!" 22On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be
weaker are indispensable, 23and the parts that we think
are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are
unpresentable are treated with special modesty, 24while
our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the
members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, 25so that there should be no division in the body, but that
its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26If
one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every
part rejoices with it. 27Now you are the body of Christ,
and each one of you is a part of it.
What are
your unique skills?
·
Have you
identified your spiritual gifts?
·
To identify
your gifts, pray, and seek counsel of other Christians.
·
Are you using
your unique abilities for the Kingdom?
·
What are the
unique gifts of others?
·
Look at those
God has placed near you. What are their gifts?
·
How might you
encourage another person to develop his or her gifts.
·
Think of
someone who is using his or her gifts. How might you affirm that person?
·
In what ways
can you team up with someone who has complementary gifts?
Basketball
great Ervin “Magic” Johnson said, “Everybody on a championship team doesn’t get
publicity, but everyone can say he’s a champion.” In the church, we each
contribute something to the cause.
We Work Together Because the Job Is Too Big to Do Alone.
Philippians
1:6 says:
“Being
confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to
completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”
Illustration:
Legendary
1. The
greatest mission we have in the world is the salvation of souls.
John
“For God
did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world
through him.”
Illustration:
Think of all the big things God has done in the past.
·
God parted
the Red Sea, and the Israelites walked on dry ground to safety.
·
Joshua
marched around the walls of Jericho, and they tumbled down.
·
Gideon and
his loyal 300 men routed the Midianite army.
·
Elijah faced
down the prophets of Baal on
·
God has done
some pretty incredible things in the world!
He still does big things today!
·
Jesus came
for nothing less than this: “That the world through him might be saved”
(John
·
He chose 12
apostles and commissioned them, “But you will receive power when the Holy
Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in
·
We are
involved in the greatest mission ever—the salvation of the world!
2. The
greatest need in the church is for workers).
Matthew
“Ask the
Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
·
Will you be a
part of a ministry team at
·
Will you
partner with others to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ?
·
Will you form
a team to feed the hungry in our community?
·
Will you join
together to comfort those suffering from AIDS or cancer?
·
Will you
gather a coalition to teach others how to read, how to manage their finances,
how to preserve their marriages?
QUOTE: Vince
Lombardi, legendary head coach of the
ILLUSTRATION:
In what the news called “The Miracle at Quecreek,” nine miners trapped in a
water-filled mine shaft for three days, 240 feet underground decided early on
they were either going to live or die as a group.
The
55-degree water threatened to kill them slowly by hypothermia. According to one
report, when one would get cold, the other eight would huddle around the person
and warm him, and when another person got cold, the favor was returned.
“Everybody
had strong moments,” miner Harry B. Mayhugh told reporters after being released
from the hospital. “But any certain time one guy got down, the rest pulled together. And then that guy
would get back up, and maybe someone else would feel a little weaker, but it
was a team effort. That’s the only way it could have been.” They faced
incredibly hostile conditions together — and they all came out alive together
(CNN).
Conclusion:
We have a great challenge before us. And if we’re ever to see it accomplished,
we’ll need each other. People of faith work together.
QUESTION: Who
are the people God has placed near you?
QUESTION: What can you contribute, and what
can they contribute because they are near you?
QUESTION: What great thing is God calling you
to accomplish?
Will you
do it?
“Alone we
can do so little; together we can do so much” (Helen Keller).
CLOSING:
·
God has you
here in the
·
God has
placed you in this church body so you can use your gifts, talents and abilities
to advance the kingdom.
ILLUSTRATION:
Judy Feringa knit hats
for the children of
My hope is that we would
be able to send a missions team over to Guatemala this summer to distribute
these blankets and do other missions work there like building houses, VBS etc.
The point of this
illustration is…do not try to be somebody else…do not try to knit caps if that
is not your gift…knit blankets if that is what you do.
·
King Saul
gave young David his armor to wear before he faced Goliath. After putting on
the armor, David was secure enough to tell the king, “This armor does not fit
me, it is too big. He took off the armor, picked up his slingshot and killed
Goliath.
1 Samuel 17:38-49 says:
8 Then Saul dressed David in his own tunic. He put a
coat of armor on him and a bronze helmet on his head. 39
David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he
was not used to them.
"I cannot go in these," he said
to Saul, "because I am not used to them." So he took them off. 40 Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth
stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd's bag and, with
his sling in his hand approached the Philistine.
41
Meanwhile, the Philistine, with his shield bearer in front of him, kept coming
closer to David. 42 He looked David over and saw that he
was only a boy, ruddy and handsome, and he despised him. 43
He said to David, "Am I a dog, that you come at me with sticks?" And
the Philistine cursed David by his gods. 44 "Come
here," he said, "and I'll give your flesh to the birds of the air and
the beasts of the field!"
45 David
said to the Philistine, "You come against me with sword and spear and javelin,
but I come against you in the name of the LORD Almighty, the God of the armies
of
48 As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David
ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him. 49
Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the
Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell
facedown on the ground.
·
Do not try to
walk in somebody else’s armor no matter how much you respect and admire them.
Pick up you slingshot (whatever that represents for you.
ILLUSTRATION:
As you know we have been
having problems with our flat roof over the fellowship Hall. We had an insurance
inspector check out the roof after a hailstorm. There was not enough damage to
warrant roof repair, but several of our air-conditioning units were nailed with
hail and the insurance company gave us a check for $1500 to have them repaired.
John Alberg has experience with air-conditioning units and approached me and
said, “Pastor Mike I can fix those units myself and we can take the $1500 and
apply it towards fixing the roof.
Recently Ernie Moen
approached me and told me that he has a contact person that sells a solution to
patch roofs that we can buy at cost. THAT IS THE BODY OF CHRIST WORKING
TOGETHER AS A TEAM!!!