THE CHURCH – PART 2:
Ephesians 4:4-8 NKJV
[4] There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; [5] one Lord, one faith, one baptism; [6] one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. [7] But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. [8] Therefore He says: “When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, And gave gifts to men.”
There is one church, one body, one Spirit, one hope of our calling, one Lord, one father, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all, through all, and in us all! There is only one church that is recognized by God, the Father. Not all churches are part of this one, universal church of God. Some are false, some are deceived, and some are lost and yet to discover and walk in divine truth.
To each person in the one church and body of Christ has been given gifts and with these gifts, grace to enable us function well and according to expectation. Every person in the Body of Christ has at least one gift in his or her life to enable them fulfill their purpose in Christ. There are two sets of gifts that all of us have access to.
The first is the gifts of service as listed in:
Romans 12:3-8 NKJV
[3] For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. [4] For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, [5] so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another. [6] Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith; [7] or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; [8] he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.
The second set of gifts, are known as gifts of the Holy Spirit and can be found in:
I Corinthians 12:7-11 NKJV
[7] But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: [8] for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, [9] to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, [10] to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. [11] But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.
Beloved, these gifts are primarily for the use of reaching out to the lost and not limited to be used in church. Our role, my friends, is to be Ambassadors for Christ out there. When we come to church, we come to be trained, equipped, and empowered to minister out there in our worlds. Are you ready and willing to be an Ambassador for Christ? His power is ready to flow through you!