No Audio File This Week.
Recap of 8/22/10:
1. As with the Corinthian problem (1 Corinthians 12-14), spiritual gifts are open to misuse if a believer is immature, or doesn’t recognize the essential purpose of spiritual gifts as given for the common good of the church, not individual edification. The “Assessment Inventory for Ministry” (A.I.M.) identifies three potential misuses of spiritual gifts.
-Gift exaltation: Raising one gift over another beyond biblical teaching and using them as status symbols.
-Comparing with one another: feeling inferior and/or evaluating or judging based on another as the “norm.”
-Competing with one another: conditioned by home, school, and life we fight to be “number one” usually at the expense of others. Gifts are to be used in concert with, not in competition with other gifts, and should produce unity amidst the diversity of use.
2. Bible teachers such as Dr. Charles Ryrie and others have identified a process by which to identify our spiritual gift(s).
-be informed about what the Bible says about spiritual gifts
-be willing to serve the Lord in whatever way He opens up
-be active in serving the Lord
-ask ourselves: “What are our interests and desires as growing, maturing Christians?” and “What do others say that we are effective at?”
