The Importance of Spiritual Gifts in
The Jesus Connection Process
5/20/02

 Paul wrote in I Corinthians 12: "Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed."  He went on to list a number of qualities of life in Jesus which we have called "spiritual gifts": wisdom, knowledge, miracles, prophecy, discernment of spirits, tongues, interpretation of tongues, and so on.

I don't know how all of that fits with The Jesus Connection Process except to say that the process is one way of helping believers connect with Jesus as a living, loving Lord and responding to Him lovingly and living in His way.  Spiritual gifts are tools by which we respond to Him, meant for building up the church for the glory of God.

Jan Linn once told the people at the congregation which nurtures me, "If you are selected or elected, chances are, you are not doing your work in response to a nudge of the Spirit.  However the Spirit may nudge us, in all likelihood, it is with some action which can be translated into one or another of the gifts listed in various places in scripture.

All spiritual ministry utilizes gifts as are necessary to its accomplishment.  People where I work and witness have found it helpful to know the gifts, to have gone through some kind of study and discernment process which helps identify some gifts which have been given to them as a way in understanding special ways in which we are equipped to do the work of ministry in Jesus' name.  We talk about becoming a gift-evoking congregation.  By that we don't mean that we're generating any gifts.  That is God's work to do.  We do, however, intend to evoke the awareness of and practice of those gifts for the building of the church.  We issue calls to ministries, bring needs to attention, pray for the Spirit to nudge and unsettle, and wait for the right person or persons to step forward.  Whatever gifts that person or those persons bring to the ministry will be used in some way. 

Not having a gift one might think would be necessary for a particular ministry is no hindrance at all.  For example, if one feels called to Witness Ministries in some way but does not have the gift of evangelism that is no problem.  Witness work also needs people of wisdom, knowledge, prophecy, and the like. 

Paul went on to tell the people of Corinth how we are all the body of Christ and individually members of it and how God has appointed various offices and gifts in the church.  We all need each other.  Whatever gifts we believe we may have are to glorify God.  They are gifts.  They do not belong to us.  They are not for our own aggrandizement.  They are means by which we live in Jesus and do His work.

Thanks be to God!


David Digby - 1st Christian Church, Ames, IA