Gifted for Service
Each of us as followers of Christ are given spiritual gifts to accomplish the mission God has for us. Spiritual gifts were vital in the life of the early Christian church and fired the missionary zeal of the new believers. The apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthian believers and told them that he did not want them to be ignorant about spiritual gifts (1 Cor. 12:1). The Greek word Paul uses for gifts, charismata, emphasizes that these are gifts of grace—totally unearned by us.
The fifth fundamental belief of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, which focuses on the work of the Holy Spirit, says: "He extends spiritual gifts to the church." This is an important concept. Although the gifts are given through the believer, they are really gifts for the church.
Spiritual gifts are never given merely for the benefit and edification of individual believers. They are always given in the context of mission and service. Spiritual gifts are given to believers in the context of the wider church community, so they can benefit the church in its mission to the world.
The account of Philip's experience in Samaria (Acts 8:4-8) is not detailed. At some stage God gave him extra spiritual gifts, and he changed from Philip the deacon to Philip the evangelist. It must have been a significant step for Philip to go from administering the church in Jerusalem to casting out demons and healing the sick in Samaria.
The two main biblical sources for our understanding of spiritual gifts come from Romans 12:6-8 and 1 Corinthians 12:1-11, 27-31. Read these passages and compare with Acts 8:4-8. What spiritual gifts did Philip display, and how did he use them?
| "When the crowds heard Philip and saw the miraclulous signs he did, they all paid close attention to what he said" (Acts 8:6, NIV). Even if we are not able to perform miracles, as did Philip, what principle is seen here? What is it about us, our lives, our teachings, that would cause anyone to pay close attention to what we say? |
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