The Fairborn Paper

And there’s not one pastor in the group.  No worship leaders or anyone employed by the church, and yet you should hear the powerful stories of ministry that takes place through these people.
By the way, this Bible study is through our local congregation, so don’t think this is some renegade group we started.  We are not trying to be our own church, but we are trying to be fully engaged members of the church.

When that happens, the ministry of the church expands exponentially.  So many more people are reached, so many more lives touched, as each member gets involved.

So the question is, what are you doing?

“Well Doug, I’m just not qualified.  I’m not a preacher.  I don’t sing.  I’ve never been to Bible college, and I’m certainly no evangelist.”

Okay, you just described most people in the church.  Does that mean most people don’t really have a role to play?

Let’s open our Bibles to First Corinthians chapter 12.  Verse seven says something very powerful.  It says, “Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.”

That means, as a Christian, a certain manifestation of the Spirit of God is given to you!

The Scripture goes on to describe us as parts of a body.  Verse 12 says, “The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body.  So it is with Christ.”

Many times in the Bible we Christians are referred to as the body of Christ.  He is the head, and we are the body.  You are a part of the body, and I am a part of the body.  There is just one body, and there is one Holy Spirit that works through each of us.

That is very important.  There is one Holy Spirit, just one, and He is in you and in me and in all true Christians.  It’s the same Spirit, but He manifests Himself in different ways through each of us.  

First Corinthians 12 lists some of these manifestations, then verse 11 says, “All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and He gives them to each one, just as He determines.”

Verse 18 says something similar, and uses the body analogy.  It says, “But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as He wanted them to be.”

You are a part of the body.  You have a manifestation of the Spirit, and it’s just what God has chosen for you.

Verse 27 says, “Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.”

So the million dollar question is, which part are you?

“I don’t know, Doug, and I don’t even know how to know.”

Well, guess what?  It’s not rocket science.  The Holy Spirit inside you will reveal it to you.  Just ask God to show you your part in the body.

Now here is a helpful tip.  The Bible talks about grace, and it talks about gifts.

Ephesians four says that “…to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it.”  And verse 8 says that He gave us gifts.  

Grace and gifts show up again in Romans 12:6.  “We have different gifts, according to the grace given us.”

That word “gifts” can sound very mysterious, and some spiritual gifts are mysterious, but when you are unsure about your part in the body of Christ, one thing you can ask yourself is, “What am I gifted at?”

Think of things you can do that just not everyone can.  It’s a gift you have, something that was just there, by the grace of God.

If you are gifted at something, then you do have a gift.  So how can you use it for the body of Christ, or as First Corinthians 12:7 says, “for the common good”?

We are all members of the body, and we need to become fully engaged members.  Then the body will be healthy.  Then the body will grow.

The ministry of the church will expand exponentially as we each do our part in the body of Christ.
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