Because of the kindness that God has shown me, I ask you not to think of yourselves more highly than you should. Instead, your thoughts should lead you to use good judgment based on what God has given each of you as believers.
Our bodies have many parts, but these parts don’t all do the same thing. In the same way, even though we are many individuals, Christ makes us one body and individuals who are connected to each other.
God in his kindness gave each of us different gifts. If your gift is speaking what God has revealed, make sure what you say agrees with the Christian faith. If your gift is serving, then devote yourself to serving.
If it is teaching, devote yourself to teaching. If it is encouraging others, devote yourself to giving encouragement. If it is sharing, be generous. If it is leadership, lead enthusiastically. If it is helping people in need, help them cheerfully. (Romans 12:3-8 (GW)
The mark of a life impacted by God's grace is humility. Jesus is our prime example. We can only comprehend God's grace in its fullness because of Jesus. He is the personification of grace.
Jesus also personifies humility (Matt 11:29; Phil 2:5-8). This is our starting point for considering the gifts of God. The gifts of God are just that—gifts. They are not skills or abilities. They cannot be taught or caught.
These gifts are the extension of God's grace—His undeserved kindness. They are of spiritual origin, not some embedded DNA code in a person.
The primary purpose of these gifts is to strengthen the church, the Body of Christ. They are not the possession of an individual person. These gifts are given by God (through the Holy Spirit) to fulfill God's purposes for His church.
This exhortation reminds us that when God distributes a specific gift to a person, he or she is to exercise this gift in humility for the benefit of others in the church.
Has God gifted you in one of these seven gifts? Then use it well under the Lord's guidance with gracious humility. ©Word-Strong_2016