Our Partnership with God 1 CORINTHIANS 12:4-11

I don’t know how some in today’s church got the false idea that the preacher is a servant and the folks in the pews are just members. No one is a bystander in God’s kingdom! All believers are in partnership with the Lord (2 Cor. 6:1). He chose to work through mankind to accomplish the gospel mission on earth. To borrow a biblical metaphor, we are the workers cultivating and harvesting His fields (Matt. 9:37-38).

God gave one or more spiritual gifts to every single believer to aid in the work for His kingdom. We each need this special “wiring” to carry out our unique role in His plan. He knits that spiritual gift into our personality and inborn talents to create a useful and effective servant. And just to be clear, there is no such thing as a non-gifted believer.

Believers are the Lord’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for the purpose of good works (Eph. 2:10). Spiritual gifts are not our own abilities. The Holy Spirit manifests them through us. Remember, it is the sap running from the vine into the branches that produces fruit (John 15:5). In the same way, the Spirit lives and works through God’s followers to bring forth acts of service. The Lord’s power is behind it all. Think of that when you are tempted to shy away from God-given opportunities.

God’s awesome power is present in and available to every believer. The Holy Spirit equips us to obey the Lord in whatever He calls us to do. Don’t waste your life sitting in a pew! Get busy using that spiritual gift. The fields of this world are ripe for harvest (John 4:35).

Groaning for Redemption

We ourselves . . . Groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.

Romans 8:23

This groaning is common among God’s people: To a greater or lesser extent we all feel it. It is not the groan of murmuring or complaint: It is a note of desire rather than of distress. Having received a deposit, we desire the rest of our portion; we are sighing that our entire manhood, in its trinity of spirit, soul, and body, may be set free from the last trace of the Fall; we long to discard the rags of corruption, weakness, and dishonor and to be clothed with incorruption, immortality, glory—the spiritual body that the Lord Jesus will bestow upon His people.

We long for the manifestation of our adoption as the children of God. “We . . . groan,” but it is “inwardly.” It is not the hypocrite’s groan, by which he would make men believe that he is a saint because he is wretched. Our sighs are sacred things, too holy and too personal for us to broadcast. We keep our longings for our Lord to ourselves. Then the apostle says we “wait,” by which we learn that we are not to be petulant, like Jonah or Elijah when they said, “Let me die”; nor are we to whimper and sigh for the end of life because we are tired of work or wish to escape from our present sufferings till the will of the Lord is done. We are to groan for glorification, but we are to wait patiently for it, knowing that what the Lord appoints is best.

Waiting implies being ready. We are to stand at the door expecting the Beloved to open it and take us away to Himself. This groaning is a test. You can learn a lot about a man by what he groans after. Some men groan after wealth—they worship money; some groan continually under the troubles of life—they are merely impatient. But the man who sighs after God, who is uneasy until he is made like Christ—that is the blessed man. May God help us to groan for the coming of the Lord and the resurrection that He will bring to us.

The Power Within ACTS 1:8

God’s Spirit works in every believer. He does not limit Himself to pastors and missionaries. If you’ve received Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, then residing within you is the same great power that raised Christ from the dead (Rom 8:11) The Holy Spirit pours His energy into creating godly character in all who follow the Lord.

The fruit of the Spirit is so named because it is the character and conduct that the Holy Spirit produces in believers. These are qualities that we can’t generate consistently on our own. The most powerful message we can give isn’t a testimony or sermon; it is the life we live when the pressure is on, temptation is tremendous, or we are buried under an avalanche of problems.

What the world most needs to see in this modern culture is godly families loving one another, business people working with integrity and frugality, and young men and women who choose moral purity. In a word, the world needs to be exposed to believers who are obedient.

By showing peace instead of anxiety or practicing patience rather than speaking a sharp word, a Christian bears witness to the beauty of the gospel. We attract unbelievers to Christ through our words and deeds. They may turn down a doctrine, but they cannot ignore a righteous life.

The strongest gospel message does not come from a pulpit. The most powerful witness for Jesus Christ where you work, where you live, and where you relax is you. Submit to the Holy Spirit’s work, and He will produce a great harvest of spiritual fruit in your life.

For Them, In Them, By Them

The Lord, mighty in battle!

Psalms 24:8

God is glorious in the eyes of His people, since He has worked such wonders for them, in them, and by them. For them, the Lord Jesus upon Calvary defeated every foe, breaking all the weapons of the enemy in pieces by His finished work of satisfactory obedience; by His triumphant resurrection and ascension He completely overturned the hopes of hell, leading captivity captive, making a show of our enemies openly, triumphing over them by His cross. Every arrow of guilt that Satan might have shot at us is broken, for who can lay anything to the charge of God’s elect? Vain are the sharp swords of infernal malice and the perpetual battles of the serpent’s seed, for among God’s people the lame take the prey, and the feeblest warriors are crowned.

Believers will also worship the Lord Jesus for His conquests in them, since the arrows of their natural hatred are snapped, and the weapons of their rebellion are broken. What victories grace has won in our evil hearts! How glorious is Jesus when the will is subdued and sin dethroned! As for our remaining corruptions, they will sustain an equally sure defeat, and every temptation and doubt and fear will be completely destroyed. In the sanctuary of our peaceful hearts, the name of Jesus is great beyond compare: He has won our love, and He shall wear it. In equal measure we may look for victories by us.

We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. We will cast down the powers of darkness that are in the world by our faith and zeal and holiness; we will win sinners to Jesus; we will overturn false systems; we will convert nations. For God is with us, and none shall stand against us. This evening let the Christian warrior sing the war song and prepare for tomorrow’s fight. Greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world.