Pentecost and Spiritual Gifts

Well, thank you again, Mr. Scafura. One of the Atama's family traditions for the Holy Days is to buy gifts for our daughters and our grandchildren. And we tend to do that every Holy Day. VJ usually goes out. And they're not highly expensive gifts, but they are just tokens of the love of mom and dad have for their children and for their grandchildren.

I'd like to, on this day of Pentecost, talk about a unique gift that you've been given. And that's the theme of what I would like to talk about in the sermon this morning. You know, it must have, if you'll turn to Acts 2, it must have seemed like any other Pentecost celebration that had occurred for numerous generations in Jerusalem that year in 31 A.D.

The Jewish believers had rightly counted 50 days from the day after the Sabbath during the days of Unleavened Bread that year. They did as they had been instructed in Leviticus 2316 and had indeed counted 50 days to the day after the seventh Sabbath to arrive at the appointed time of Pentecost and that year in 31 A.D. And of course we know that Pentecost is the Greek name for the Jewish feast of weeks, so called because it fell seven weeks after the small first fruit harvest began in that part of the world.

It probably was a warm day in Jerusalem, and 31 A.D. gathered were people of Jewish descent from all over many areas of the then known world along with some visiting Gentile converts to Judaism. They had come to celebrate the feast in Jerusalem, something that was considered very exciting. We even see later on in the book of Acts that Paul oftentimes wanted to be in Jerusalem for the holy days.

It was considered the ultimate way to experience and enjoy God's holy days. Well, they had come to celebrate the feast, and these people who arrived in Jerusalem at that time had no idea what they were about to witness from a small group of believers from Galilee who gathered together in a house, a nearby house, and who probably seemed to them to be keeping to themselves in fellowship. There was something different about these people. It's like they had some type of knowledge or secret, and they kept to themselves in that Pentecost in that house.

And it says in the book of Acts 2, verse 1, And when the day of Pentecost had fully come, it was now daylight, the evening had passed, and it was now the light of day, the day had dawned, it had fully come. They were all with one accord in one place, and suddenly there came a sound from heaven, like a rushing, mighty wind. And those who have been in tornadoes, those who have been in rushing, mighty winds, often say it sounds like a train coming through. It sounds like you're standing next to a train as that mighty wind passes over your head and all around you.

It says, And it filled the whole house as they were sitting. And there appeared to them divided tongues as a fire, and one sat upon each of them, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. Verses 3 and 4 from the New Century version say, And they saw something like flames of fire that were separated and stood over each person there.

They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they began to speak different languages by the power the Holy Spirit was giving them. Brotherness was a fulfillment of the promise that Jesus Christ gave to His disciples on the eve of His death. He told His disciples, He promised them that I will not leave you spiritual orphans. He said, I will send you a helper, a comforter, as a gift so that you can continue your discipleship, so that you can continue to live out the potential that I have for you in your life, to fulfill God's will.

And, brethren, of course, we know this was the establishing of the New Testament Church in 31 A.D. Let's drop down to verse 5. And there were dwelling in Jerusalem, Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together. So, if you're standing nearby and you hear something that sounds like a rumbling train, and you see perhaps flames of fire and something miraculous occur, it naturally gets your attention.

So a crowd developed. They came to that house. They came there. They wanted to see what was going on. It says, the multitude came together, and they were confused because everyone heard them speak his own language. Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, Look, are not all these who speak Galileans? Aren't these simple folk? Aren't these just ordinary people? They're not the educated.

They didn't go to elite academies. How did they acquire the ability to speak so many foreign languages? How is it that we hear each and our own language in which we were born? Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, and Asia, Bergea and Pamphyla, Egypt and other parts of Libya, adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and Prostylites, Cretans and Arabs. We hear them speaking in our own tongues, the wonderful works of God. So you see, the miracle was not just in the speaking, but it was in the hearing. One person would be speaking, and a person from Rome would hear that person speaking in Latin. A person who was from Cyrene would hear that person speaking in his native tongue.

A Mede would hear that same person speaking, and he would understand it in his native language. The wonderful works of God. Verse 12, So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, whatever could this mean? Others began mocking, said, They are full of new wine.

They have been sucking on the till a little too long. That's how all of this happened. Verse 14, But Peter, standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you and hear, or heed my words. For these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day, which would equate in our modern culture to nine AM in the morning. He said, They are not drunk. It's only nine o'clock in the morning. That's not it.

Verse 16, But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel. And this, of course, was a partial fulfillment of what was spoken by the prophet Joel that day. And we'll read it, because Peter quoted it as part of his sermon. And it shall come to pass in the last day, said God, that I will pour out my spirit on all flesh.

And in this partial fulfillment, everyone who had been gathered in that house, the spirit was poured out on everyone who was gathered there that day and had accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Christ and Messiah. Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy. Your young men shall see visions. Your old men shall dream dreams. And on my men servants and my maid servants, both men and women, simple people, common people, on men servants and my maid servants, I will pour out my spirit in those days and they shall prophesy.

And verse 19, of course, is a prophecy yet to come. And I will show wonders in heaven above and signs in the earth beneath, blood and fire and vapor of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord.

And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. And of course, we know that as God and as the Father calls us, those of us who repent and call on the name of the Lord and respond to that calling are given the Holy Spirit and saved.

So Peter intervenes when the mocking begins and he explains that this event is the fulfilling of the first part of Joel's prophecy. This spirit had indeed been poured out on all of those who had gathered in the name of Jesus Christ that morning. Peter begins his sermonette to explain to this large audience now, gathering into the thousands, what had happened and why this happened on this very Pentecost.

Let's pick it up in verse 36. Near the end of his sermonette, therefore, let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus whom you crucified both Lord and Christ. So he's not just a king, he's also a Savior. Verse 37, now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said to them, Repent and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

For the promise is to you and to your children and to all those who are afar off as many as the Lord our God will call. You know, that you're mentioned in this verse, in the precept of time, you and I are those who were called afar off. It's been almost 2,000 years since this event occurred in Jerusalem, and God is still calling people to repentance. God is still giving his Holy Spirit to those whom the Father has called. Well, this event was one of the most exciting days in human history, and we're here today because Jesus Christ kept his promise to his disciples.

That was fulfilled on that day of Pentecost. But did you know that something else began in this day that directly relates to you as an individual, as a person today? What began here on this day of Pentecost and was demonstrated on this day was an example of something that we don't talk about very much in the church, but I'd like to talk about today. It was an example of through God's Spirit being demonstrated were spiritual gifts. So today I would like to talk about spiritual gifts, what they are, and the promises that God has given to us.

In the Church of God, we don't tend to talk much about spiritual gifts. And I think personally that the reason is because in the 1930s and 40s the Church was struggling with a Pentecostal movement that was going on. And whenever you got into the discussion of spiritual gifts, naturally defenses went up and people were concerned about people speaking in tongues. And when I say that, I don't mean a known language. There was a concern about people doing as the old song when I was a boy, Papa Umau Mau, doing the Papa Umau Mau. And because of that concern, I don't think the Church has often talked about spiritual gifts. These gifts are supernatural rather than natural endowments. You see, we all have abilities and skills that are natural endowments. They're part of the DNA mixture that came together when we were formed. And we all have those. You know, I come from a lineage of Welsh singers, so it comes naturally to me to be able to sing. I don't even have to work hard at it. My children have very good voices. They never had a singing lesson. It's just something that they're naturally born with. It's a natural endowment. I enjoy working with my hands early in my career. I was an electrician. I love working on computer hardware. Again, it is just a natural endowment. And we all have those natural gifts and endowments that are just, again, part of that mixture of DNA that came together when we were created. But the Holy Spirit provides each Christian with at least one spiritual gift as God wills. And this spiritual gift is usually contrary to our natural endowments. It oftentimes is contrary to the way that we are normally wired.

And that is the way that it brings out the glory of God. The purpose of gifts, these gifts include serving the common good. It includes building up, edifying the church as a witness to the world, and confirmation of the preaching and the promises that God has given his people. Paul mentions about 20 different spiritual gifts in his writings. We have a couple of areas where Paul discussed spiritual gifts and also Peter. Again, I want to emphasize that these are God-empowered gifts given only to believers who have received the Holy Spirit. We don't deserve them. We can't earn them. They don't come naturally. That is why they are gifts. Gifts from God.

No one receives all of them, and no single gift has been given to everyone.

There's a classic example in what we just read of a man who was given a spiritual gift. That classic example we just read about was the Apostle Peter. Do you realize that on this day, Peter was given a spiritual gift, something that was not natural for Peter? On that day, Peter, the impetuous hothead who cut off the ear of the high priest-servant, Peter, the coward who said he would never deny Christ and who denied him, on that day, Peter, the impetuous hotheaded coward, was transformed into a stable, reasoned, and confident preacher who spoke boldly to the audience that was gathered there that day. Let's read more about these spiritual gifts. 1 Corinthians 12, beginning in verse 1. If you'll turn there with me, 1 Corinthians 12, beginning in verse 1.

1 Corinthians 12, verse 1. Paul wrote to a church that, by the way, was blessed with a lot of spiritual gifts. That's why Paul discussed it so much here. He says, Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren. This word, spiritual gifts, is from a Greek word, pneumaticos. It comes in English. We are familiar with the term pneumatic, means driven by air. Well, these spiritual gifts are a result of what occurred beginning in 31 A.D. when there was a rushing, mighty wind, the power of the Holy Spirit. And that's why that Greek word is used. Pneumaticos, it means a gift that is non-carnal, not of the flesh, not of the material, and divinely supernatural. So he says, Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant. You know that you were Gentiles carried away to these dumb idols. However, you were led. Therefore, I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus a cursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit. So here they were in a completely, totally pagan culture. And Paul knew that no one would accept Jesus Christ as the Lord in that pagan culture unless they were being led by the Holy Spirit. Verse 4, These are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences in ministries, but the same Lord. Let's begin by looking at the word gifts here. There are diversities of gifts. The Greek word for gifts is something we would be familiar with. It is the word charisma. Have you ever heard of the word charisma? Well, in our modern Western world today, we define charisma as a rare personal quality attributed to leaders who arouse fervent popular enthusiasm. Some of our politicians are said to have charisma. Some of our business leaders are said to have charisma. We view it as a personal magnetism or charm. But what Paul meant was an extraordinary power or ability, a divine ability granted to a Christian by the Holy Spirit. In Greek, the word charisma means a divine gratuity or a spiritual endowment. If you go to a restaurant and somebody provides you with good service, what do you do? You give them a gratuity. You give them a tip, kind of a bonus for providing you good service. And in a spiritual way, what Paul is saying here is that we are given something very special from God. The word charisma comes from the root word carris, which means favor. So we are given these gifts as a favor, as the kindness, as the love of God given towards us as individuals. Now let's take a look at another word here in verse 5. It says, there are differences in ministries but the same Lord. When I talk about ministries today, I would like you not to think of ministerial offices because I'm not sure that's what Paul usually meant.

This is the word in which we get deacon. The word is translated ministries. It's deaconia, and it means a serving assistant, someone who assists you, someone who serves you.

And sometimes, as we'll see here, that this is a gift, a spiritual gift that God gives his people.

What I'd like to do today is interpret these gifts that Paul discusses, not from the perspective of what was going on in 60 AD, but from the perspective of our time, the 21st century. So let's begin. Let's go to verse 5 again. There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. This is translated from the New Century version. There are different ways to serve, but the same Lord to serve. So, brethren, some spiritual gifts include different ways to serve others. It may be as a caregiver. It may be as an encourager, as a listener, as a spiritual mentor, as a teacher. It may be the gift of music or organization or hospitality and the beauty of a spiritual gift, as you may have never even been trained in any of those areas. You may have been trained in those areas. You may not naturally be wired to serve in those ways, but you can.

You have the ability. God has given you a special gift. Verse 6, and there are diversities of activities, but the same God who works all in all. Again, I'm going to translate this from the New Century version. There are different ways that God works through people, but the same God. God works in all of us, in everything that we do. So we all have different gifts. We don't have the same gifts. We don't have the same abilities. The spiritual gift God has given you, and He's given you at least one, is unique for you. And I don't have those gifts that you have. They're unique. They're something God has given specifically to you. Verse 7, but the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all. So each one of us is given this Spirit as individuals so that we can all benefit from it. The thing with spiritual gifts is it isn't for us to enjoy alone. That would be selfish. We are given that spiritual gift for the profit, for the benefit of the entire congregation of the Church of God. Verse 8, for one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit to another, the word of knowledge through the same Spirit. So Paul says that wisdom and knowledge can be spiritual gifts. Whereas knowledge is the understanding of truth and right principles, wisdom is the insight and godly sense to take that knowledge and make right, mature, reasonable decisions. The kind of decisions that conform to God's will. Knowledge usually comes quicker than wisdom, and wisdom matures with time and experience. Verse 9, he says, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the same Spirit. Some of us have the potential of having the spiritual gift of faith, and that's the absolute assurance that something is true or will occur, even though there is no physical evidence. Faith doesn't rely on the five senses to confirm what it knows and what it believes. Some people have that kind of faith. And some individuals have such great faith that when they get in their prayer closet and when they get on their knees, they quietly pray for individuals who are ill, or they quietly pray for needs that are going on in the church, and people are healed. Those needs are fulfilled. Verse 10, it says to another, the working of miracles. A miracle is an event of divine origin. Now, we don't see many miracles in the church today. It's usually something that occurs that defies physical laws that govern our world. It just defies everything that we know physically that governs our world and our universe. It's often a rare and unexpected event because it transcends nature and human limitations. What Paul said, that the working of miracles is a spiritual gift. Verse 10, to another prophecy.

Now, because of our heritage and history in the church, unfortunately, we have limited the role of prophecy in what prophets did. We tend, in the 21st century, to think of a prophet as someone who predicted the future, and that is true. But, brethren, prophets primarily were messengers who inspired believers to honor God and encouraged righteous living. That's what they did most of the time. They motivated others by proclaiming God's goodness and grace and encouraged people to live righteously. That's what prophets did most of the time. And their messages also warned the disobedient that decisions have consequences. And then, as part of their role, they also occasionally received revelations and could foretell in advance something that God was going to do.

And Paul said that prophecy is a spiritual gift, but the whole complete package of what a prophet was. Verse 10, to another, the discerning of spirits. Some people have the gift of quickly discerning the genuineness and true intent of other people. I have known people that had this spiritual gift. They are quick to sense that someone has selfish motives and is led by the wrong spirit. It's almost like a spiritual intuition. They meet someone, they talk to someone for a few minutes, and they have the gift of discerning spirits. And they say, this person, because of the words that came out of their mouth, because of their attitude, because of their motive, has the wrong kind of spirit. And Paul says that that, too, is a spiritual gift. Verse 11, to another, different kinds of tongues, to another interpretation of tongues. Some people are gifted to learn and speak foreign languages. And that, again, that's a gift. That's something, I mean, I still struggle with English. So I'm not about to learn a foreign language, but there are brethren whom I have known who could speak 20 or more languages. Not only could speak it, but the latter part of this verse says, to another, the interpretation of tongues. So they could not only speak it, which is one skill set, but they could read foreign languages, understand it, and translate it. And that is, according to Paul here, a spiritual gift.

So again, some people are gifted to learn, to speak foreign languages. Others have the gift of reading and writing in foreign languages. Did you know there are over 6,000 languages spoken on Earth?

So that we get closer to the end time, this hopefully will be a gift that manifests itself more among God's people as we need to reach the nations of this world.

Continuing in verse 11, it says, but one and the same spirit works all these things. You see, these are all gifts, and it's the same spirit that gives these unique gifts to each and every one of us. Distributing to each one individually as he wills, as God's will. So you say to yourself, well, I'm not sure I have a spiritual gift. Paul says here, distributing to each one individually as he or God wills. So on that very day that pictures the Father giving his Holy Spirit to the church in 31 A.D., let me ask you, if you've opened your spiritual gift, have you opened it?

Do you know that an unopened gift is useless? Doesn't it benefit anyone? Doesn't benefit anybody? Verse 12, For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body being many are one body, so also is Christ. For by one spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and all have been made to drink into one spirit.

So, brethren, even though we all have different backgrounds, we're here with different races, we have different levels of education, we have different careers, we have different interests, and we have different abilities and skills. But we are all part of one spiritual body. We all share the same spirit that came from Jesus Christ and dwells in us. Let's now go to Romans chapter 12 and see another area, another place that Paul discusses spiritual gifts. Romans chapter 12 and verse 3. Romans chapter 12 and verse 3. Paul writes to the congregation in Rome, 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. For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, so we, being many, are one body in Christ and individually members of one another.

Now, verse 6. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them. So you see the difference we see in Romans. We're going to see, in contrast, what we just read about to Paul's letter to Corinth, is that Paul not only acknowledged spiritual gifts and expects them in the book of Romans, but he emphasizes that they must be used to be beneficial and helpful to the church of God. Verse 6. He says, if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith. This is the same gift that Paul mentions in 1 Corinthians 12. I'd like to read this from the translation, the New Century Version. It says, the person who has the gift of prophecy should use that gift in agreement with the faith. So you see, any prophecy should be rooted in Scripture, and it shouldn't be distorted or twisted by someone's personal agenda or their desire to promote themselves. Paul said this is a wonderful gift here. It needs to be in agreement with the faith, in agreement with what we know to be true from Scripture. Verse 7, or ministry, better translated service, again that Greek word, it's often used for a deacon, or ministry in service, let us use it in serving or in ministering. Verse 7. He who teaches in teaching, this is the gift of educating others, and it's a spiritual gift. It may be educating or training our youth, or teen instruction. It may be a camp setting. It may be Bible studies. It may be a woman's club. It may be a sermonette. There are many ways to teach that don't require an office or a title, because it is a spiritual gift. And we may have never even been trained to be a teacher or an educator before. It just happens, and we have that gift and the ability to teach others.

And Paul said, that's a good thing. That is a spiritual gift. Verse 8. He who exhorts in exhortation, not really a good translation, I'll read again from the New Century version. Verse 8. Whoever has the gift of encouraging others should encourage. That's a gift to be able to encourage other people. It's a tremendous gift to be able to lift someone's countenance who is going through a trial, someone who's confused, someone who's distracted by the cares of this world. A person who has this gift tends to be like a heat-seeking missile, looking for a target for someone to encourage. And you can't stop them. It's a personal ministry. It's a personal service they have to encourage people. They say, you can't stop me. I'm on a mission from God. I'm going to go around and encourage everyone today. I'm going to make them feel good about Jesus Christ being part of their lives. I'm going to make them feel fulfilled that Jesus Christ is working through them and His church today. I am on a mission to encourage other people. Paul again says that this kind of attitude, this kind of approach, is a gift. Verse 8, He who gives, give liberally, as it says in the new century version, whoever has the gift of giving to others should give freely. Now oftentimes we make the mistake of thinking, oh, this is just talking about money, but that's just a small part of it. There are many ways that we can give, and this is a spiritual gift, you can give of your time.

In some ways that's even more valuable and precious than money. You can always make more money.

You can't make more time as a physical human being once it's gone, once that hour is gone, it's gone forever, isn't it? So when we give our time, that is a wonderful way to give to others. You can give of your wisdom or knowledge. You can give, of course, of your money, but you can also give by being patient and merciful to someone. And maybe they don't deserve it. Maybe they're coming across as arrogant and selfish, and you can give them the gift of being patient and merciful in spite of the way that they're acting. You can give by being forgiving to others, even if they've offended you, even if they've said something that bothered you, you can forgive them. That's another way that we can give. Verse 9, he who leads with diligence, I like the way this is translated from God's word for today. It says, if it is leadership, lead enthusiastically. There are a lot of joys, and there's a great amount of fulfillment that comes in leadership and being a leader of an organization or a leader in the church. But brethren, I think we all realize, or we should realize and appreciate, that leadership is a gift that comes with great responsibilities and consequences. Jesus said in Luke 12 and verse 48, for everyone to whom much is given from Him, much will be required, and to whom much has been committed, they will even ask the more. So it can be a tough job. Sometimes leadership is lonely, sometimes you grieve and you pain over things that aren't working out the way that you prayed about, the way that you hoped for. But Paul reminds us that being a leader, that one is being called to lead others, and they should do it with passion and enthusiasm. It's a gift. Verse 9, he who shows mercy with cheerfulness, as it says in the New Century version, verse 9, whoever has the gift of showing mercy to others should do so with joy. So this is another spiritual gift, mercy. It means that you give mercy not out of obligation or regret. You're not merciful to people because God commands it of me. You don't do it because you have to. You don't do it out of obligation. When you have the gift, you kindly show compassion to others with cheerfulness.

You show them mercy in spite of their flaws and in spite of their weaknesses.

Well, Paul wasn't the only writer in the New Testament to talk about spiritual gifts.

Someone else did, and that someone else, of course, was the Apostle Peter. Let's take a look at what he had to say about spiritual gifts in 1 Peter chapter 4 and verse 7. Again, 1 Peter chapter 4 and verse 7 if you'll turn there with me.

Peter wrote, But the end of all things is at hand. Therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers, and above all things have fervent love for one another. For love will cover a multitude of sins.

Be hospitable to one another without grumbling. Verse 10, As each one has received a gift, minister or serve it to one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. So we see here that Peter also emphasizes that we have each received at least one spiritual gift. The reason? To use it to serve one another. That's the reason. We have been given our personal gift as a steward. God says, I'm giving this to you. Use it as a steward to benefit others, to be a blessing to other people, to edify and build the church of God, to be a witness to your brethren and a witness to the world. Verse 11, If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God.

Peter states here that we have been blessed with spiritual teaching as a gift and we're speakers.

Let us use it with dignity. Let us use this gift with wisdom as it comes directly from God. And like prophecy, it should not be of a personal interpretation or an agenda to manipulate or to use people. That's a very important concept, of course, that Peter is drawing out here.

Verse 11, If anyone ministers or serves, let him do it with the ability which God supplies, that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. So Peter, of course, understands these gifts are of divine origin. He says that God supplies these. Again, we can't earn them. We don't have a right to them. It's something that God gives us. He supplies it. That's why they are called a gift.

And they should be supplied to us and used by us for His glory, for His honor, to benefit the Church of God rather than our own ego or to receive attention. And again, that was a problem that Paul was struggling with in the Church of Corinth. They were very gifted, spiritually gifted congregation, and unfortunately it went to many of their heads. Now, if you're saying to yourself, Mr. Thomas, I don't even see some of these gifts in the Church today. And if they are present, they don't seem to have very much of an impact in the Church. My reply to that statement, if you thought that, is that Paul and Peter just stated that each one of us has at least one spiritual gift, and we have different gifts. But brethren, again, a gift unopened is useless.

Our spiritual gifts were not given for our benefit. They were given for the benefit of others.

And likewise, your brothers and your sisters in Jesus Christ were given spiritual gifts for our benefit so that we can all share these spiritual gifts together to strengthen the Church.

If you don't make your unique contribution to the Church, your spiritual gift, it won't be made.

Have you taken the time to discover your spiritual gifts? When we do, and use them, we all benefit. The Church is stronger. And when we leave our gift unopened, we are all denied a blessing because of that. Brethren, we are a small group of believers, and our natural talents are limited. And trust me, they are stretched very thin on the part of a number of us.

More than ever, we need to use our spiritual gifts to help the Church to grow and to prepare for the return of our Lord. So on this day of Pentecost, I have a simple message and statement. Since it all began the giving of spiritual gifts through the Holy Spirit on that day of Pentecost in 31 A.D., I want to ask if you have taken the time to discover, to open your unique spiritual gift. In conclusion, I'd like to mention a quality that needs to be part of our spiritual gifts as we discover them, as we open them, as we begin to use them to be a blessing to the entire Church.

There's something that needs to be added to our spiritual gifts. There is a quality that makes these gifts effective. As a matter of fact, without this quality, these gifts tend to be selfish.

They tend to be ego builders rather than benefiting everyone else. It's a very essential and important quality. Without it, these spiritual gifts lose their meaning and their impact in the Church of God. The reason that I bring this up is I believe in my heart, in my 40 years experience, that I saw many people with these kinds of spiritual gifts that I have discussed. But because they lacked this one essential quality, it did not benefit them or the Church of God because their gifts were shallow. Let's find out what it is. 1 Corinthians 12 and verse 27, going back to 1 Corinthians 12, Paul has been talking about spiritual gifts.

We saw many of them earlier.

Paul says in chapter 12 and verse 27, here's that essential ingredient that needs to be added to these spiritual gifts. They're shallow or they just become distorted and selfish. He says, now you are the body of Christ and members individually and God has appointed these in the Church. He mentions some offices which are spiritual gifts. First apostles, second prophets, teachers. After that miracles, we read about many of these earlier, the gifts of healings, helps, administrations, varieties of tongues. He says in verse 29, he asks the question, are all apostles, are all prophets, are all teachers? Well, of course not. Are all workers of miracles another one of the gifts we discussed? No, because we all have different unique gifts.

Do all have the gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? Of course, the answer to that is no. Verse 31, he says, but earnestly desire the best gifts and yet I am going to show you a more excellent way. Something that you can add to those spiritual gifts that will truly make them profound, powerful, effective within the body of Jesus Christ, that will allow those gifts to be opened and used to benefit the brethren in the Church of God. He says I'm going to tell you what that is. Verse 31 from the new century version, but you should truly want to have the greater gifts and now I show you the best way of all.

Chapter 13 verse 1, he says, though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, that's a spiritual gift. He says, and have not love, I've become a sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. He says, if I were able to speak 50 languages and translate 50 languages and don't have love, when I spoke all I would be is an irritating noise without love.

Verse 2, and though I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith so that I could remove mountains, but have not love.

Those are all gifts that he mentioned earlier. I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, I become a martyr. I willingly give up my physical body for the sake of Jesus Christ, but have not love. It profits me nothing. So we see here that Paul recaps some of the spiritual gifts he mentioned earlier. As wonderful as they are, there's one essential quality that makes them better and profound. And that quality is love. And looking back in my history in the church, there were many individuals that I knew that were given spiritual gifts. Far too many people never opened the gifts, never used the gifts. And sadly, some who did open the gifts did not have the quality of love.

And they used those gifts to abuse and to manipulate other people, instead of being a benefit and a blessing to the entire church of God. Chapter 13, verse 11, he says, when I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, and I thought as a child, but when I became a man, I put away childish things. He's saying, when I was a child, I thought about me. Every instinct, every thought I had as a child was about having fun and me. He says, but you know, a day came when I grew up, and I became an adult, and I began to mature.

Verse 12, he says, for now we see in a mirror dimly. We look into the future, we understand the basics, the superstructure of the kingdom of God and God's calling, but it's still kind of dim. It's through visions. It's through prophecies. He says, for now we see in a mirror dimly, but then, face to face with Jesus Christ, when the kingdom comes, we'll have direct communication face to face. It'll all be made known to us. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I am also known. So I'm physical today, and I only know things in a limited way because I have to see them, teach them, and smell them, and hear them. Through my five senses, he says, but there will come a time when I shall know it all, because I will be there. I will be known in the kingdom of God, and I will be in the kingdom of God. He says, in saying all that in verse 13, and now abide faith, hope, love these three, but the greatest of these, Paul says, is love. That is the essential ingredient that will make those spiritual gifts productive and beneficial to the entire Church of God, that will help us to complete the end time commission that we have been given. We need spiritual gifts, brethren. They've already been given to us. They just need to be opened. They need to be discovered. They need to be used. And if we are willing to do that, we can see miraculous growth in our abilities to serve God and to complete the great commission that He has given us to do.

And it's love that makes possible the fellowship of the Church and guarantees that these gifts will be used unselfishly. Love is the greatest gift given to us by the God who is love, and we should pray for it. So I ask you to think and ponder and meditate on what your spiritual gift or gifts are.

Have a fulfilling Pentecost, and please take the time to discover and open your spiritual gifts to serve the Church of God.