Wordfortheweek Week 38 - Gifts (part 4 of 4)

“And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;” Ephesians 4:11-13 NKJV.

For completeness, a church should have these fivefold offices in place. The principle guiding all however is consistency. They are ‘Gifts’, not ‘works’. It is not because you go to theological school to step into any of the offices. Or that you inherit it from your natural father. They are to be received in humility and exercised graciously, in love

 

The purpose of these spiritual offices is to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ. The goal is the maturity of saints for the work of the work:

-       we all come to the unity of the faith, 

-       knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.

The Spiritual Offices

We are going to use the early Church as an example so that we understand the original intent and approach of the Spiritual offices.

 

Apostles: messenger, one sent with a message, a representative of another person.

And when it was day, He called His disciples to Himself; and from them, He chose twelve whom He also named apostles (Luke 6:13). In Mark 3:¹³ And He went up on the mountain and called to Him those He Himself wanted. And they came to Him. ¹⁴ Then He appointed twelve, ^[d]that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, ¹⁵ and to have ^[e]power ^[f]to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons: ^16 [g]Simon, to whom He gave the name Peter; ¹⁷ James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, to whom He gave the name Boanerges, that is, “Sons of Thunder”; ¹⁸ Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Cananite; ¹⁹ and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him. And they went into a house.

 

The twelve became the leadership. Apostles are leaders in the body of Christ. They gave themselves continually prayer and the ministry of the word. They developed, sustained, and set in order.

 

We saw in Acts, the early Apostles act: they would pray for new converts, lay hands on them to receive the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:15), set rules of fellowship, healing and miracles too but this was not limited to Apostles. Other called Apostles: Barnabas and Paul (Acts 14:14). They were sent out by the Holy Spirit from Antioch (Acts 13:2, 3). They went on missionary joining, preaching, evangelising, setting up believers – appointing elders in every church (Acts 14:23), setting order/rules of fellowship (Acts 15) – the dispute about gentile circumcision. 

 

Prophets, 

It is Yeshua who appoints some to be Prophets, not human beings.  The gift of the prophet will speak for them. They will prophesy and it shall come to pass. People are obsessed with knowing the future, especially when they have problems. They will go seeking a prophet to tell them, to reveal things etc. And many are duped. Because of what Yeshua did, we have direct access to the Father. We can come boldly to the throne of grace to receive mercy. We have the Holy Spirit, the spirit of truth in us to reveal the heart of Yeshua. Prophets declare the whole counsel of God (Acts 20:27). They seek Elohim God first through prayer. Yeshua is our number one Prophet

 

Examples of prophets are Noah, Moses, all the Old Testament prophets. When you understand the books of the Prophet, the fear of the Lord will rise in your heart. The heart of Elohim they revealed about His people, is scary, and it is encouraging.

 

In the New Testament, Acts 13 :1 Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. ² As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” ³ Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away.

 

Another example was Agabus in Acts11:²⁷ And in these days prophets came from Jerusalem to Antioch. ²⁸ Then one of them, named Agabus, stood up and showed by the Spirit that there was going to be a great famine throughout all the world, which also happened in the days of Claudius Caesar. ²⁹ Then the disciples, each according to his ability, determined to send relief to the brethren dwelling in Judea. ³⁰ This they also did and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul. And in Acts 21 ¹⁰ And as we stayed many days, a certain prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. ¹¹ When he had come to us, he took Paul’s belt, bound his own hands and feet, and said, “Thus says the Holy Spirit, ‘So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’ 

 

We can understand this office by studying about these people in the Bible:

• They were called by Jehovah 
• The source of their revelation was Jehovah
• They lived their lives consecrated to Jehovah
• Their audiences (Individuals, leaders, whole nation even gentile nations e.g. Jonah to Nineveh) was as instructed by Jehovah.
• They made a prophetic declaration and Jehovah backed them up. 
• They also did signs, miracles and wonders

We see those in these offices spoke the mind of Yeshua by the Holy Spirit

 

Evangelists.

All saints are called to do evangelism, but there are those with unique gifts and zeal for evangelism. They are concerned mostly with preaching the gospel, not about religious organisation, administration etc

 

Pastors head or shepherd a church congregation. They are responsible for the spiritual well-being of the saint. Jesus, was the perfect shepherd and pastors are under-shepherds, to feed the saints. Pastors have gifts of caring heart, encouragement, compassion. They feed and tend to the sheep as Jesus instructed Simon. It is interesting to note that in the early church, it was a council of elders that oversee the church, not an individual, From Miletus, he sent to Ephesus and called for the elders of the church… ²⁸ Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church ^[g]of God which He purchased with His own blood. (Acts 20: 17, 28)

 

Teachers receive a deeper revelation of both the Spirit and letter of the Word and use the same to teach others and instruct them in righteousness. Teachers have this deep hunger and thirst to dig deep and wider, to understand what, why, how and when. They will link from genesis to revelation. They see the dots and the connection. They do not stay on the surface but go deep. They take the word precept upon precept. Teachers are important for grounding the saints in the word not just to call for salvation but to grow them into maturity.

 

We can see the manifestation of spiritual gifts in each office. I find it difficult to put the gifts in a box and apply it to specific offices. However, some gifts are very evident in the office. Example

• Apostles – the gift of leadership
• Prophets – the gift of prophecy
• Evangelists – gifts of healings, miracles
• Pastors – the gift of exhortation
• Teachers – gifts of teaching

These gifts are not just limited to the offices. The Holy Spirit gives to everyone as he decides.

 

How do I know which office I am called to?

There are different ways including directly from God, the disciples were selected and made Apostles by Christ, same as Paul. One can be ordained as Apostles under the direction of the Holy Spirit by other Apostles. Your spiritual gifts would also make your office very clear.

 

Can I move from one office to another?

It is possible to operate in more than one office. Apostle Paul is a perfect example. In Acts 13, he was counted among the prophets and teachers. Then after being sent out, he was referred to as an Apostle. From my practical observation, even if you are an Apostle, you will still see some leaning in the gift of other offices e.g. evangelism or teaching. That would not put you in the office of a teacher or an evangelist. This is where the subtle difference between an office and a spiritual gift.  

 

Your gifts and the office will be perfectly aligned. Making a human decision will misalign the two. The pastor office is one of the five offices, not the only one. Some evangelists are wrongly called pastors. Your gift will always speak for you.

 

Conclusion

Did you recognise any of these gifts in you? Your gift has been given to you by grace. You are to use them. If you have not recognised your gift, start praying today for the revelation of the Holy Spirit. However, you must have a relationship with Yeshua Christ Jesus first, this is simple to do: 

Acknowledge: you have sinned and come short of the glory of God

Repent: of your sins and be determined to turn away from them

Confess: and declare Jesus as the Son of God, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead (Romans 10:9)

Accept him as your Lord and Saviour

Declare openly your faith and become a new creature in Christ, old things have passed away

Follow: Jesus in all areas of your life

And start that wonderful journey with Him immediately. I encourage you to search for a bible teaching fellowship near you to support your spiritual growth.

 

PrayerfortheWeek

Almighty Father, thank you for the gift of my life. May we stir up our spiritual gifts and use them for the glory of Yeshua Christ Jesus. Amen

 

If you accept Jesus or turn back to him, please get in touch. I am so excited! You give me hope and joy and are my proud reward and crown when I stand before our Lord Jesus when he returns. Yes, you are our pride and joy (1Thessalonians 2:19-20 NLT).

Inbox me, email me, just get in touch. I want to join you in prayers every day

My email is info@adeolaakintoye.com

 

I pray that this inspires you to reflect on your relationship with Elohim and be determined to be more and do more for Him each day. 

#AdeolaAkintoye©

#ajourneytospiritualmaturity2021

Wordfortheweek Week 37 - Gifts (part 3 of 4)

“There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us. A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other. To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice; to another, the same Spirit gives a message of special knowledge. The same Spirit gives great faith to another, and to someone else the one Spirit gives the gift of healing. He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages, while another is given the ability to interpret what is being said. It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.” 1 Corinthians 12:4-11 NLT

 

These next sets of gifts are so powerful they change lives. These gifts impact, change and transforms lives. Unfortunately, as a result, some people seek those with these gifts and make them their demi-gods. These gifts can lead to pride. It can be counterfeited. Some people would do anything to get it.

 

An example was the girl with the spirit of divination; “and from there to Philippi, which is the foremost city of that part of Macedonia, a colony. And we were staying in that city for some days. Now it happened, as we went to prayer, that a certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much profit by fortune-telling. This girl followed Paul and us, and cried out, saying, “These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation.” And this she did for many days. But Paul, greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And he came out that very hour. But when her masters saw that their hope of profit was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to the authorities.” Acts 16:12, 16-19 NKJV

 

And also, Simon the Sorcerer; “But there was a certain man called Simon, who previously practised sorcery in the city and astonished the people of Samaria, claiming that he was someone great, to whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is the great power of God.” And they heeded him because he had astonished them with his sorceries for a long time.”Acts 8:9-11 NKJV

 

The gifts in 1 Corinthians 12:8-10 enable saints to demonstrate the reality of being Ambassadors sent by and representing Yeshua, Jesus to those who encounter them whether in day to day life or in ministry. In a clear sense, a manifestation of the enabling spiritual gifts and indeed all spiritual gifts confirm the principle of Acts 1:8 which is to make the saint a clear witness for Yeshua, Jesus.

 

The following explanation is extracted from the Global School of Ministry Course 113 Spiritual Gifts:

 

WISDOM: This is the supernatural utterance of the mind of Elohim concerning the direction to go on a matter through the saint who has been so gifted. Holy Spirit uses the saint He chooses to reveal what is to happen or provide clear solutions to protracted problems. It is a gift of insight into the mind of Elohim who alone is the wellspring of wisdom. Word of wisdom can come forth within the context of a church service, in a business meeting, in government and everyday life, including the home, at school or indeed everywhere. This implies the gift is not the property of the saint.

 

WORD OF KNOWLEDGE: this is the revelation of present realities that are hidden from natural minds. The mind of man is limited in understanding and often clouded from various degrees of reality. Holy Spirit however chooses some saints, of His own volition, as channels for revealing what is hidden. If a brother or sister seeks counsel from a Pastor concerning a complicated matter but receives a simple word that cuts through the mass to reveal the way forward which resonates in the heart and causes joy to break forth, a word of wisdom has been experienced. If in a business or government meeting there is a complex problem and everyone is at a loss of what is the best way forward or when best to initiate a project and a saint comes forth with a clear and precise solution either orally or in writing without any burning of midnight candles or tossing about with many ideas, the word of wisdom has been manifested

 

FAITH: The gift of faith is the supernatural ability to know what Elohim can do, what He will do and to stand and declare the same with all confidence. This gift is sorely needed in demonstrating the reality of the Kingdom in all spheres of endeavour. Elijah exhibited the dual gifts of the word of wisdom and faith when he declared with certainty to the woman of Zarephath that Elohim will supply all her needs in 1 Kings 17: 8 – 16. The gift of Faith is beyond the normal grace of faith every saint is called to have in Elohim.

 

HEALINGS: Yeshua, Jesus and the early disciples demonstrated the use of this gift mix at various times in ministry. There were some people He healed from a distance such as the servant of the Centurion. There are those He healed by merely touching them such as the lepers who were cleansed. Others received healing by touching and drawing the virtue in Him to touch and take away their infirmities such as the woman with the issue of blood. In yet another instance, Yeshua, Jesus used His spittle and soil as points of contact. This gift is are the prompting of the Holy Spirit not that of the believer’s will or mindset 

 

WORKING OF MIRACLES:  It is the supernatural ability to be used by Holy Spirit to cause the supernatural to manifest in the natural. Miracles can occur in various forms and ways. In the case of Joshua, the gift caused a major shift in weather conditions when the Sun and Moon stood still while he completed the divine assignment. In the case of Yeshua, Jesus, Elisha and Paul, the dead were raised. Extraordinary promotions and financial breakthroughs also qualify as miracles. Miracles are also manifested in gifts of healing and can encompass every area of life. 

 

PROPHECY: A prophecy takes place whenever Elohim communicates to His people through a chosen vessel. According to 1 Corinthians 14:3, the purpose of Prophecy is to Edify, Exhort and Encourage the saints. This gift is manifested so that the saints will have the peace and comfort which Yeshua promised them even in the face of adverse conditions created by the world and its human governments or systems. 

 

DISCERNING OF SPIRITS: This is the supernatural ability to rightly identify the nature, source and capacity of the spirits at work in the life of people. It is also the ability to discern the motive behind what someone is saying, even if the words appear nice and sound right. Paul the Apostle demonstrated this gift to great effect at Ephesus when he identified the spirit of divination at work in the life of the young slave girl who correctly called him and his team as servants of Elohim. Her description of Paul and his companions was true. However, Paul rightly discerned the demon which possessed and used her vessel to speak. Acts 16:16-18(KJV)This gift will help local congregations to identify infiltrators who, like the Gibeonites in the days of Joshua, will sneak into the fold having all outward forms of conformity but with clear agendas to destroy fellowship for selfish purposes.

 

TONGUES: This gift should be properly called communicating messages with Elohim in other tongues that are not known by the vessel through whom utterance is made. It is different from the general sign of the infilling in the Holy Spirit which is accompanied by utterance in other tongues as in Acts 2: 1- 6. Here in 1 Corinthians 12:10, speaks of the ability to receive and communicate to saints in any setting, a message from the Lord but in an ‘unknown’ tongue. Not every saint is blessed with this gift as 1 Corinthians 12:28-30 shows. Those who try to pretend that they have it are guilty of lying and passing off under false pretence! 

 

INTERPRETATION OF TONGUES: This is the supernatural ability to interpret messages that are conveyed through the gift of tongues. This is not the same as the translation of languages which is an academic/intellectual activity. Those who translate are skilled to interpret words for accurate meaning. The gift of interpreting tongues simply conveys in understandable language with clarity, the message uttered in tongues. 1 Corinthians 14: 6-13 reveal that Elohim does not want His people to be in the dark concerning what He says to them. 

 

These gifts were manifested in the early Church. Apostle Paul: wisdom, faith, word of knowledge (the books he wrote) miracles, tongues, healings, visions, discerning of spirits. Apostle Peter demonstrated wisdom, faith, word of knowledge (Ananias and sapphire), miracles, healings, visions, discerning of spirits. Other examples are not written down explicitly but you can discern from the stories e.g. Phillip, the evangelist, “Therefore those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word. Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria and preached Christ to them. And the multitudes with one accord heeded the things spoken by Philip, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. For unclean spirits, crying with a loud voice, came out of many who were possessed; and many who were paralyzed, and lame were healed. And there was great joy in that city.” Acts 8:4-8 NKJV

 

 

To be continued.

 

Did you recognise any of these gifts in you?  Your gift has been given to you by grace. You are to use them. If not, start praying today for the revelation of the Holy Spirit. However, you must have a relationship with Yeshua Christ Jesus first,

 

This is simple to do: 

Acknowledge: you have sinned and come short of the glory of God.

Repent: of your sins and be determined to turn away from them.

Confess: and declare Jesus as the Son of God, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead (Romans 10:9).

Accept him as your Lord and Saviour.

Declare openly your faith and become a new creature in Christ, old things have passed away.

Follow Jesus in all areas of your life.

 

And start that wonderful journey with Him immediately. I encourage you to search for a bible teaching fellowship near you to support your spiritual growth.

 

PrayerfortheWeek

Almighty Father, thank you for the gift of my life. May we stir up our spiritual gifts and use them for the glory of Yeshua Christ Jesus. Amen

 

If you accept Jesus or turn back to him, please get in touch. I am so excited! You give me hope and joy and are my proud reward and crown when I stand before our Lord Jesus when he returns. Yes, you are our pride and joy (1Thessalonians 2:19-20 NLT).

Inbox me, email me, just get in touch. I want to join you in prayers every day

My email is info@adeolaakintoye.com

 

I pray that this inspires you to reflect on your relationship with Elohim and be determined to be more and do more for Him each day. 

#AdeolaAkintoye©

#ajourneytospiritualmaturity2021

 

Wordfortheweek Week 36 - Gifts (part 2 of 4)

 But to each one of us, grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. ⁸ Therefore He says: “When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, And gave gifts to men.” Ephesians 4:7,8 (NKJV)

The Bible cannot be read a chapter in isolation to have a complete picture. The gospels, for example, gave us a complete picture of Christ than just reading each one in isolation. Studying the spiritual gifts must be taken in their full context to get a complete picture.

The key chapters are Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12 and Ephesians 4. However, the whole scripture is littered with the manifestation of spiritual gifts. Our salvation is a gift. Grace is a gift. Life is a gift.

In the Old Testament, the most prominent was the office of the Prophets and the gift of prophecy. There were others as well, like visions, dreams, leadership etc. We learnt about the diversity of gifts more explicitly in the New Testament. Yeshua manifested all the spiritual gifts, and we learned from him. Everything Elohim does has a reason. Therefore, knowing what He did during the Old Testament helps us understand the New Testament and our times.

The purpose of spiritual gifts for this dispensation is to edify the Ekklesia (body of Christ) and equip the saints for the work on ministry (Ephesians 4:12,13). And what is the work of ministry? The ministry of reconciliation. To preach the gospel and make disciples of nations, then the end will come.

In context: 2 Corinthians 5: ¹⁷ This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!¹⁸ And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. ¹⁹ For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. ²⁰ So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” 

Anything we do that is not preaching the gospel to make disciples of nations is self-aggrandisement, and an insult to the grace we have been given.

Gifts are also for the functioning of the body of Yeshua; Romans 12: 4 - 8 

“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. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith; or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.” Romans 12:4-8 NKJV

These gifts are essential for the functioning of the body/church/ekklesia. To manifest these gifts, we need a measure of faith. We all have a measure of this grace. No one is left without a gift.

The spiritual gifts 

The Seal Measure is when the root/primary spiritual gift is imparted to define the new believer’s spiritual identity! On the day the sinner is sealed into or joined to the Body of Yeshua, Jesus, His root spiritual gift is also imparted. This gift – which may be evident or dormant – defines their spiritual identity. It is also known as basic or general service gifts, used as a primary ministry, without struggle (Global School of Ministry teaching).

Prophecy – This is the ability to prophesy and, in the process, be used by Holy Spirit to edify, exhort and comfort the saints. This is the spiritual capacity to be a vessel through which Elohim brings forth His counsel to His people, just when He wants. This is not the office of a prophet, but a gift needed by that office and calling. The best examples are old testament prophets, and prophets in the new testament –they reveal the mind of Yeshua for the work of the Kingdom, not for personal divination.

God can use any child of His to release a word of prophecy. Anyone can prophesy. It is Elohim who will bring it to pass or not. “Then, after doing all those things, I will pour out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your old men will dream dreams, and your young men will see visions.²⁹ In those days I will pour out my Spirit, even on servants—men and women alike. (Joel 2:28,29 NKJV)

This is also confirmed in Acts 2:15,16 – ‘These people are not drunk, as some of you are assuming. Nine o’clock in the morning is much too early for that.¹⁶ No, what you see was predicted long ago by the prophet Joel.’

Ministry/Service – This is the ability to serve others joyfully with the right Spirit. This gift is the root of successful ministry as a deacon/deaconess, usher, hospitality, and most activities in the local congregation that require a commitment to service. Other areas of service could be using skills, experiences to serve, e.g. technology, singing, writing, researching etc., for the work of the Kingdom. No one can say there is no place they can serve. If you are not yet sure what your specific gift area for ministry is, start in this ministry of service. Whatever abilities you know you have, use them for the work of the Kingdom. For example, if you like writing, help with the church bulletin or newsletter. If you like cooking, help in hospitality or protocol. Your specific spiritual gifts will show when you serve.

Teaching – This is the spiritual ability to receive a more profound revelation of both the Spirit and letter of the Word and use the same to teach others and instruct them in righteousness. Teachers have this deep hunger and thirst to dig deep and broader, to understand what, why, how and when. They will link from genesis to revelation. They see the dots and the connection. They do not stay on the surface but go deep. They take the Word precept upon precept. Teachers are essential for grounding the saints in the Word, not just to call for salvation but to grow them into maturity.

Exhortation – This is the spiritual ability to encourage and stir up the Spirit of brethren. The gift cause saints to be the best they can ever be. Unfortunately, the fleshly application of this gift has led to the dominance of motivational speaking, which replaces sound biblical principles with psychological tools of success.

 

Barnabas (son of encouragement) was an exhorter. He was an encourager to Apostle Paul. Barnabas did not judge him for what he did before his conversion, instead, he supported him with the saints in Jerusalem. His heart of easy forgiveness got him and Paul to fight over Mark. Barnabas was also trustworthy, dependable, entrusted with the collections of the saints in Antioch. We might know some people who exhibit this gift; from the first time you meet them, they encourage, support and comfort you.

Giving/Generosity – This is the ability to cheerfully share and distribute finances and materials with other brethren and humans who need the same. Those with this gift are givers. Although they might not even be materially rich, they give whatever they have when they see a need.

Leadership – Ability to lead the people of Elohim to fulfil the purpose of the mission to which all of them are called. Apostle Peter is an example of this gifting. Even when Jesus was alive, we could see that leadership ability – selected by Jesus as the leader, first to act and not afraid of responsibility. Leadership is not necessarily about those with titles or positions. We also read about the leadership of Priscilla and Aquila.

Mercy/ Compassion – Ability to empathise with those who are grieving or suffering pain. It is not about having money or material goods to throw around but rather, a special heart inclination to bear the burdens of those who undergo suffering. Those who have compassion will do well when organised in teams to offer support to bereaved people in the community or engage in hospital visitations and care of the homeless and those on the margins of society. This gift is necessary for application by Christian students who are called to such professions as medicine, nursing and provision of care. 

Those with this gift are humble, compassionate, slow to anger. They are concerned about the needy – widows, orphans, the materially poor. They are the first to offer help, go visiting.

Everyone has a gift they can use for the work of the Kingdom and to serve the Ekklesia. When people are operating in their area of gifts, they are joyful, they do it without being compelled or coerced and they do it excellently. Rather we should pray consistently for the full measure and manifestation of these gifts in the Ekklesia.

Did you recognise any of these gifts that are stirred in you? If not, start praying today for the revelation of the Holy Spirit. However, you must have a relationship first with Yeshua Christ Jesus.

To be continued.

 

PrayerfortheWeek

Almighty Father, thank you for the gift of my life. May we stir up our spiritual gifts and use them for the glory of Yeshua Christ Jesus. Amen

 

If you accept Jesus or turn back to him, please get in touch. I am so excited! You give me hope and joy and are my proud reward and crown when I stand before our Lord Jesus when he returns. Yes, you are our pride and joy (1Thessalonians 2:19-20 NLT).

Inbox me, email me, just get in touch. I want to join you in prayers every day

My email is info@adeolaakintoye.com

 

I pray that this inspires you to reflect on your relationship with Elohim and be determined to be more and do more for Him each day. 

#AdeolaAkintoye©

#ajourneytospiritualmaturity2021

Wordfortheweek Week 35 - Gifts (part 1 of 4)

 But to each one of us, grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8 Therefore He says: “When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, And gave gifts to men.” Ephesians 4:7,8 (NKJV)

A spiritual gift is more than ability. It is fashioned in your DNA. It is part of the material of your body. You can try to get training, copy someone; it just won’t work. You will exert energy and never get to the level of quality that someone who has the gift has.

That is why I avoid saying things like, ‘I want your anointing’ or ‘let your anointing rub on me’.

You cannot get your spiritual gift from a human. It comes from Elohim God. However, God uses humans to activate it through various means, including laying of hands, spoken words of prophecy, mantle, anointing oil. The Bible is full of examples. Spiritual gifts are special abilities given by God.

In this series on gifts, we shall be identifying spiritual gifts, their purpose, and how we can make them practical in our daily lives and discover and activate them.

We shall not be going deep into each gift. I would recommend a kingdom-focused school of ministry for those who want to go even deeper and maybe sharpen their understanding and gifts. 

I went through a nine-month master class where we went deeper in this and other aspects of the consecrated life. The School is run by saints operating in the fivefold under the leadership of Apostle George and Pastor Grace Akalonu. And you know what; this is a free teach, train, equip, activate, and release ministry. There is no school fee but the grace of freewill giving. I shall be referring to some materials from the School over this series too.

I encourage believers to search and study the scriptures like the Berean Christians. Then, ask the Holy Spirit for revelation according to the gift that is in you.

The purpose of spiritual gifts is revealed in Scripture:

• It gives us the ability to fulfil the mandate to go ye and make disciples of nations (Matthew 28, Mark 18). As a witness to the world, for the Kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power (1 Cor 4:20).
• It gives us the power for the work of ministry (Acts 1:8). We need these spiritual gifts to fulfil the mandate. We are not an empty barrel, but one loaded with power.
• It helps us serve, edify and build each other up to the fullness of Yeshua (Ephesians 4:12). We use it to benefit the body of Christ - Ekklesia, to serve one another, not jealously guarded or limited to one denomination/parish (1 Corinthians 12:7, 1 Peter 4:10). It helps us to equip the saints for the work of their ministry. We are to use them well, not think we are better than we really are (Romans 12:3,6).

Spiritual gifts are not for personal aggrandisement, gain, sale, waste, misuse or unuse

How do we receive, discover, and manifest these gifts?

Every human created by Jehovah has spiritual gifts in them – latent.  It is activated by the Holy Spirit when they get into a relationship with Yeshua Jesus Christ.

Without getting into a theological debate, the word of God says we shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon us. There is a process. The disciples were with Yeshua for three years before his death, then forty days after his resurrection before ascending to heaven. Yet, they waited another ten days before they were baptised with the Holy Spirit. 

We read a slightly different process with Apostle Paul and many others. The important point is that when Yeshua baptise you with the Holy Spirit, your spiritual gift is activated.  The physical manifestation might be immediate or over a period of time, especially if you are not active in the work of the Kingdom. The fastest way to see its manifestation is to start serving in your local assembly and evangelising. And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs (Mark 16:20).

If you are like me, it took me a while after the baptism of the Holy Spirit to see any physical manifestation in a way, except the passion to know God more and to share the gospel through evangelism. I do have the sense that I haven’t even discovered much, because I am still on a journey to deepening my relationship with the Lord.

I think, in a way, to be honest, I am hesitant to, because according to Luke 12:48. More will be demanded to one who has been given much, and to the one entrusted with much, more will be asked. I guess fear is also what makes our gifts latent. 

Unfortunately, some people never discover nor use their gifts before they die—what a shameful loss. 

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To be continued.

PrayerfortheWeek

Almighty Father, thank you for the gift of my life. May we stir up our spiritual gifts and use them for the glory of Yeshua Christ Jesus. Amen

If you accept Jesus or turn back to him, please get in touch. I am so excited! You give me hope and joy and are my proud reward and crown when I stand before our Lord Jesus when he returns. Yes, you are our pride and joy (1Thessalonians‬ ‭2:19-20‬ ‭NLT‬‬)‬‬‬‬‬‬.‬‬‬‬‬‬

Inbox me, email me, just get in touch. I want to join you in prayers every day

My email is info@adeolaakintoye.com

I pray that this inspires you to reflect on your relationship with Elohim and be determined to be more and do more for Him each day. 

#AdeolaAkintoye©

#ajourneytospiritualmaturity2021