Who Is It For?

I've been reading 1 Corinthians lately. For those of you who study the Scriptures, you know that the Corinthian church was probably one of Paul's most difficult ministries. They lived in a very "cool" city and were highly influenced by the culture around them. This included the influence of idol worship.

Paul had a lot of correcting to do in regards to their behavior and we should keep that in mind when reading it. One section where I think we get confused is chapters 12-14. On the surface it appears to be about spiritual gifts. I remember as a young Christian really looking intently at this section and wondering what my spiritual gifts were and wanting to have really important ones.

In reality I don't think Paul set out to write a treatise or "how to" manual on spiritual gifts. He was correcting am incorrect perception about the nature and purpose of spiritual gifts.

Just one verse really popped out at me today, 1 Corinthians 12:7 "To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good."

Paul goes on to talk about all the gifts and how they should operate and it struck me that 1) our mission on this earth is not to see who has the most important gift but to see the gospel of Jesus spread as far as possible. 2) The more we can build up our brothers and sisters, encourage them in this work, and encourage others to seek the Lord the more we fulfill that verse.

So instead of seeking gifts as some supernatural goose bumps kind of experience, we should look for God to empower us each and every day so that in all and every way we can assist in the work of bringing his love and the power of his salvation to those around us.

The gifts aren't for us at all, it turns out, and that's okay.

Pastor Tom