A Creed for Trinity Sunday

A liturgical Creed for Trinity Sunday  (31 May 2015)

I believe in the one and only almighty God:

the Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

The LORD our God, the LORD is one!

I believe in God the Father,

Creator and Sustainer of all things;

And in God the Son,

Jesus Christ, our Saviour and Lord,

who suffered and died for our sins,

rose from the dead,

and is exalted in heaven

for the sake of our eternal victory;

And in God, the Holy Spirit,

who assembles the Church,

makes us one body in Christ,

convicts us of both sin and forgiveness,

and works eternal life in us.     AMEN.

Pentecost Sunday - 24 May 2015

On Pentecost Sunday celebrate:

1. The power of the indwelling Spirit
2. The Church is central to God’s Work in this world, through the power of the indwelling Spirit
3. The multicultural character and mission of the Church is demonstrated on Pentecost
4. The missional ministry of the Church is guaranteed on Pentecost.

Celebrate Jesus through the powerful work of the Holy Spirit!

Pentecost is testimony of the multicultural character of the Church of God.

On the first Pentecost Sunday the Holy Spirit empowered the first disciples to speak of the wonders of the Gospel, and particularly of the resurrected Messiah, in many languages. These languages they did not learn in the way we do. It was a miracle that they could (Act 2: 5 – 13) and this wonder was given to the Church that there never will be any doubt in anyone’s mind that the Church, an instrument in God’s hand, in its purest form is multicultural. This implies that it is linguistically, culturally and racially inclusive.

As we celebrate Pentecost Sunday on 24 May 2015, we have to make a difference in God’s work, by amongst other things, being a community that draws all people that share the grace experience of the salvation of God in Jesus Christ. This shared experience of redemption constitutes a community where no other qualification than being saved by grace ,through faith in the risen Lord, can ever be so important that it divides God’s people.

Love that comes about as a gift of the Spirit amongst those who share the grace experience, is described in 1 Cor 13: 4 – 8: “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.”

All people, from various cultures are drawn together by God’s love in Christ. Paul writes in Galatians 3:28: “There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.”

There are, by the mercy of God, exceptions, but the Church has in general not done particularly well in living out its multicultural mission in the world. Looking at the general church experience around us we do see that to be divided according to language, race, and ethnicity seem to have become an unquestioned norm to many. But we need to prayerfully protect our multicultural testimony of the unity of the Church of Christ, as demonstrated at Pentecost. It remains God’s standard, even in racialist societies that often breed unkind, loveless exclusivity!  It is the church that Jesus prayed for! (John 17).

Pentecost matters as it challenges all of us to continuously examine our own attitudes, to reject and repent of any prejudice that prowls within us, and to continue to open our hearts to all people, even when they do not share our language and culture.

Pentecost demonstrates that multiculturalism in the Church is something that the Spirit of God will help us to make work, if we are available to him.

Today is Ascension Day. It means our Jesus can!

The same Jesus who rose from the dead to ascend to heaven as King and Lord of all, worked as a carpenter and provided for his mother and siblings, ministered to many from town to town and was willing to give his life and become our Passover Lamb.   He, who shared our daily experiences on earth as well as our sufferings and death, assures us of his help and understanding, whatever difficulty may challenge us.

His Ascension to the right hand of God where he received all power and authority in heaven and on earth, assures us that he can help us, and that nothing is impossible with him, seated in heaven with all authority, yet so near to us, always being part of our lives through the Spirit.

Jesus can.  Only Jesus can!!

Have you seen people with faith in the ascended all-powerful Lord tackle their problems? They know that God loves them.   They act in faith. Faith keeps them going and gives them hope. They know that the almighty Christ leads them through life and even through the valley of the shadow of death.

Have you seen people without faith tackle their difficulties?    At best they are without joy or hope, and at worst they are despondent and desperate. “What will be, will be” may rationalise their dilemmas, but it does not heal their wounds or inspire meaning and strength! 

Today we celebrate the ascension of Christ, his enthronement in heaven as King and Lord of all.  Our heavenly King is the same Jesus who ministered, died and has risen.    It is he, Jesus of Nazareth, who is the Son of God, who takes care of us, every day!

Our help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. Our help comes from the Lord who came to us as a man, a Saviour and the Redeemer! He will never forsake us! And he has all power in heaven and earth.

All hail ascended King!

The meaning and message of Ascension Day.

The Ascension of Jesus Christ is the Christian teaching in the New Testament about the event when Christ was taken up to heaven in his resurrected body, in the presence of eleven of his disciples. It happened 40 days after his resurrection. Jesus ascended to his Father and to the throne of the Father, where he is at God’s right hand and reigns over his Church and has dominion over everything, both visible and invisible.

We believe that his second coming will take place in the same way – he will one day again descend in bodily form.

Ascension Day is therefore celebrated on a Thursday, 40 days after Easter Sunday. (On 14 May in 2015.) This celebration was first observed in the second half of the 4th century. It is still observed by followers of Jesus Christ for longer than 1 600 years.

But, what do we believe is the meaning and message of this day?

1. What does “He ascended into heaven” means?

That Christ, in the sight of his disciples, in his human nature and resurrected body, was taken from the earth to heaven, and is still there today in a position of divine authority and power, until he shall come again to judge the living and the dead.

2. Is Christ then not with us as he has promised?

Christ is true man and true God. According to his human nature he is now not on earth but in heaven, but as our God, Saviour and King he is always with us.

3. What benefits do we have because Jesus Christ ascended into heaven?

Firstly: He is our Advocate in the presence of his Father in heaven, always praying for us.

Secondly: Because he is in heaven as a human being, we know that he as our Head will also take us, his human followers, there.

Thirdly: He sends his Spirit to us, by whose power we seek those things which are above, where Christ sits at the right hand of God, and not the things on the earth. The glorious Christ, enthroned in heaven, pours heavenly gifts on us, defending us against all our enemies and protecting us from evil.

(See Heidelberg Catechism)

The Ascension of Christ proclaims his authority over all.

Ascension Day, this year celebrated on 14 May,  proclaims Christ’s glorious triumph and his complete future dominion over all.  It insists that we live as people who follow the Son of God, the eternal Messiah, and serve him only, in everything we do.

It reminds us that we confess (in the words of the Declaration of the Faith for the Church in Southern Africa of the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa) -  

that:

We believe in Jesus Christ the Son,

who became human and lived

and died and rose in triumph

to reconcile both the individual and the world to God,

to break down every separating barrier

of race, culture or class,

and to unite all God's people into one body.

He is exalted as Lord over all,

the only Lord over every area of life.

He summons both the individual and society,

both the Church and the State,

to seek justice and freedom for all

and reconciliation and unity between all.

And in the Holy Spirit,

the pledge of God's coming reign,

who gives the Church power

to proclaim the good news to all the world,

to love and serve all people,

to strive for justice and peace,

to warn both the individual and the nation of God's judgement

and to summon them both to repent

and trust and obey Jesus Christ as

the King who will come in glory.

I will put my trust in the living God!

According to Paul in Rom 4: 17 our God is “the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not, as though they were.”

I believe in God the Father, almighty Creator of heaven and earth. Everything good that we see and experience, he called out of nothing and they are witnesses of his glorious power and love. He sustains his creation and keeps all of us through his love.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord!
God gave Jesus life and victory and our Lord has all authority in heaven and earth.

I believe in the Holy Spirit who teaches me how great my God is and that the salvation through the Son makes me a child of God.

Therefore I will not be troubled.  I will trust in in the living God. And I will trust in Jesus Christ my Saviour, my King and my Lord.
Because he is alive, I will live through him. And because I love Jesus, God will love me too!

Resurrection is both good, and terrifying news!

Resurrections are great news because they happen so rarely. But because it is so unexpected, the resurrection of Jesus is the greatest and most significant event in the history of mankind.

The Bible records only a mere 10 separate resurrection miracles. It is something rare, something unusual, something marvelous, something exciting and something wonderful.

The resurrection of Jesus was entirely unexpected. It was also entirely different from the other 10 resurrections, because later on all the others died again, but Jesus lives forever. His ascension to heaven testifies that he lives at the Father’s right hand and rules and reigns over everything and that he is the Head of the Church, forever.

The resurrection is great news, because death no longer rules and loss is no longer irreversible.  The sting of death was removed. Death was reversed.  Jesus was crucified. But now "He has risen!" Disciples who were scattered and confused and without hope because of the crucifixion, became enthused and excited about Messiah Jesus again.

But the resurrection is not only good news.  It is also terrifying news.

When our culture thinks of Easter it thinks of Easter candy, bunnies and colorful eggs. Easter is for many a time for new clothes and holidays and celebrations.

But when we think of the resurrection of Jesus we should be filled with a sense of awe, fear, terror, astonishment, amazement, and reverence. We know we are in the presence of an unexpected event that removes death's sting and takes away death's loss.

So what is so terrifying about the resurrection? Someone said that the only two certain things in life are death and taxes. But now death does not look so certain anymore.  Jesus rose from death and promised us that we too will be raised.

So, to be true to the Gospel means that after the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the church has to speak out with a frightening message and a terrifying call: Your life does not end in death! You now have to consider the eternal consequences and purposes of your life.  

The resurrection story ends only on the day of our own resurrection! The resurrection story will only end when those who died with Christ at the cross are raised to a new life with him and in him.  It ends when we put to death whatever belongs to our earthly nature and instead put on the new self of love, compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.  

The story of the resurrection of Christ is completed in the lives of those who know that the resurrection is more than rare and unexpected:

It removes death's sting and takes away death's loss.

And it urgently calls us to be ready to live the resurrection life of Jesus, here and now, and for all eternity!

Eastertide - from Easter Sunday till Ascension Day!

Eastertide lasts from Easter Sunday which we celebrated on 5 April till Ascension Day that we will celebrate 40 days later, on Thursday 14 May at 19:00. All Christian worship testifies to the resurrection of Christ and we meet every week on the on the first day of the week to express our devotion and awe because we serve a risen Saviour whom was raised on the first day of the week. We worship every Sunday to say testify to the world that we serve a risen Saviour.  Our Sunday worship always speaks of the critical importance of the Resurrection to every Christian and all of humanity.

But as the resurrection of Jesus is the pinnacle of our faith, we also have a Season until Ascension Day that we call Eastertide – a Season of focused learning about the impact on our lives when we say that "Jesus Christ is risen indeed."

Celebrating Eastertide is not duplicating Easter Sunday forty times over. No, it is allocating enough time to reflect upon the impact, the meaning and delight of the truth of serving a living Lord.

Two angels appeared to the women who visited the tomb on that first Easter Sunday. The angels reminded them of Christ's predictions about the cross and the grave, the crucifixion and the resurrection. "Remember?" they asked. Then they remembered the words of Jesus and understood what he had said to them: that he must die and must be raised. Then they believed that Jesus truly is alive. (Luke 24:8)

Only then did they believe and their sorrows were changed into joy.

On Resurrection Sunday the veil was lifted.

Finally people saw the risen Christ and believed his message that (Lk 24:7) the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.

The message that Christ is risen indeed turns sorrow into joy, death into life and defeat into victory. For the disciples of Jesus, the resurrection was a wonderful, beautiful, exciting surprise.

Surprise, death! Surprise, sin! Surprise, mourning disciples!

Surprise, post-modern humanity!

Surprise! He's alive! Christ is risen. He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

(Rom 4:25) He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.

Easter Sunday! Resurrection power displayed!

Resurrection Sunday as the crown of all Christian worship, inspires every Sunday worship service of the year. The Resurrection power of Jesus Christ is displayed. We are equipped to live for the glory of God every day of our lives, until the end and at the end! 

It is the most inspirational Sunday Worship one can celebrate!  Resurrection Sunday, and therefore every Sunday, is a feast of worship and praise, because Jesus triumphed over death and over all our enemies.

The basic truth of Resurrection Sunday summarises the Gospel: Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed!

During Eastertide reflect deeply on the many-sided meaning of our Lord’s resurrection:

•You can meditate on what his resurrection says about who Jesus Christ really is – the all powerful and righteous Son of God - (Psalm 16:10; Acts 2:25-28) and then, in his power,  seek his life and his justice for all.

• Ask what it means that the power and might of the risen Jesus is available to Christians today (Ephesians 1:15-23).

• Try to find the meaning of the truth that “our death has been swallowed up in victory” (1 Corinthians 15:54-56).

• Think of how the resurrection of Jesus assures of our redemption, victory and resurrection (1 Corinthians 15).

Eastertide allows us to think deeply about what the resurrection of Jesus means to me personally, to the Church of Christ, to our nation and to the whole world.

Let’s continue to keep watch with Jesus while the world rages against him and his body on earth!

Let’s learn to live the resurrection life.

Good Friday

Good Friday is a solemn day of remembrance of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, because both the sins of the world and our personal sin caused the punishment, death and suffering of our Lord. 

Yet, although Good Friday is a somber commemoration, it is not without its own joy, for while we want to contrast the joy of Resurrection to the solemn sadness of Good Friday, the gravity of Good Friday is a prophecy of the hope of Resurrection Sunday.

We always observe Good Friday, well knowing that Resurrection Sunday is coming soon!

Traditionally we remember the words of Jesus on the cross on Good Friday...

May our Lord richly bless us as we remember, as we believe and as we commit anew to serve him, when we see, hear and experience God’s divine love this holy week.
Let’s keep watch with Jesus....

Sermon Recordings English and Afrikaans.

Click on this link to download sermons in English:

http://www.centurionwest.co.za/sermons.htm 

Kliek op hierdie link om preke in Afrikaans af te laai:

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Willing to pay the price for being in ministry?

Ministry is another word for service. It means that we allow God to use us for his purpose. To make a difference in people’s lives, we need to be passionate about this service. We must know that to be used by God, we must be willing to pay the price to minister, to serve.

Paul says: (Colossians 1:24-25)  I rejoice in what (I- Paul) suffered for you... for the sake of the body of Christ, which is the church. I have become its servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness.

To minister involves sacrifices. If we are going to follow Jesus in suffering for the sake of the Church, then we, like Jesus, must be willing to pay the price required for our choice, and the price may even include  to be ill-treated and to never hear a word of thanks or praise.

If the work we do for the Lord is worth suffering for, we rejoice that the sacrifices we make produce outcomes that matter.  The church of the Lord makes sacrifices for what is worth suffering for:   the cause of Christ on earth.

If we desire a life that counts and makes a difference, we report for duty. We step out in faith. We dedicate our lives to serve God and serve others. We make a difference in this world for the Kingdom God.  

Ministry means our lives count for a lot: It touches others. It brings glory to God!

Emotionally involved with Jesus Christ.

An article written by a school psychologist who did his masters thesis on the stress experienced by teenagers participating in sports, concluded that teenage sports is often experienced like a religion. It is true that the passion for these games with cheerleaders stirring the crowd to an emotional frenzy seems like something so important that it involves matters of life and death!

Some of us continue to be emotionally involved with sports.  Others become emotionally involved with their profession, or politics or other causes in the same way.

And we rarely criticize emotional involvement, except when there is emotion with and about God and about our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Getting excited about sports is considered natural, but being emotionally involved with Jesus Christ is often considered unhealthy and fanatical.

Sports, business and politics need not be evil. But they are no gods nor are their happenings religious services. Rugby, soccer and cricket matches are no church services and cannot save your soul!

Better that you should engage in passionate worship of the God of the Bible. Better that you should become emotionally involved with Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ suffered and died to pay the penalty for sin due to people like you and me.   When we see his love on the painful cross on Golgotha and hear his passion for us when he cried out “it is finished” and experienced his divine affection when we found ourselves saved from the power of sin and the daunting danger of judgment, we cannot do anything else but becoming emotionally involved with our Redeemer.

True faith is a matter of the heart. It involves your mind, your will and your emotions. It involves a total commitment to the Saviour and his Body, his people. We should turn to the unity, and common gratefulness for all he has done, sharing this commitment with other saved sinners – now called believers or called the church!

True worship of the true God involves our emotions. It makes us passionate and fuels the flame of love for the Lord in our lives.

Celebrate being part of God’s salvation banquet!

The doors of the kingdom community, of living in the Body of Christ, are thrown wide open, and the invitation extends to all.

But once you come in, there are standards. You can never act like you are not exquisitely blessed by being part of such an extraordinary celebration.

The problem with church goers is not so much that we do not take the work of God seriously! No, our biggest sin is a failure to celebrate the privilege of being included in this wedding feast of the Lamb of God.  

Living in the kingdom of heaven is like being invited to an extraordinary banquet. But simply accepting the invitation is not enough.

When the kingdom music is playing, it is time to start singing! To start celebrating!

When we find our undeserving selves to be God’s guests, celebrating God’s Son, the least we can do is to show joy, participation, praise, thanksgiving, excitement, faithfulness, love!

God’s invitation is to a feast! The person who does not come in to celebrate the Son accordingly, in other words festively, declines and spurns the invitation no less than those who are unwilling to appear at the banquet at all.

Openly acknowledge Christ before others

Think for a moment that you are in a court of law. You were summoned to appear before a judge and you are accused of being a Christ believer and follower. How will you answer to the accusation? Will you affirm or deny your faith? Will you acknowledge or disown Jesus?

In Matt. 10: 32 we hear Jesus saying:  “Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven.”

To acknowledge Jesus publicly is to openly and unashamedly in all circumstances declare that Christ Jesus is indeed the Son of God. It means to profess him openly as your Saviour and proclaim him as the Lord of your life.

This means that you not only acknowledge him with your creeds, your theology and with your words. It means that you imitate Christ. You honour only Jesus in attitude, values, thoughts, choices, life style and world view. You actively seek his justice, unity and peace in the world. You worship him in Spirit and in truth!

To acknowledge Jesus is to declare before others that you live for him who died for you. You trust him both in life and in death, him, who gave his life on the cross that you may find life in abundance. He gave his blood that you may be redeemed and may inherit heaven!

Jesus says that if we acknowledge him before others, he “will also acknowledge us before his Father in heaven.” It means that Jesus is saying to God:

“I died for this person. With my blood I have redeemed him/her from evil, judgment and from sin-slavery. He/she is forgiven, because I (Jesus) was judged and condemned in his/her place.

Does your love for the Lord lead to a relationship where you every day acknowledge, honour and serve Christ openly and publicly and Jesus acknowledges you before God, our Father?

May the sacrificial love of Jesus make it possible for me to always be his witness, his worker, his follower and his friend!

To follow Christ Jesus makes it worth denying ourselves.

The self denial of Jesus asked from him to be exactly the person that God sent him to be for our sake.  The cross and the suffering was his calling - and he did it for the sake of the Father and for the sake of his disciples!

This is what Jesus taught us in Mark 8: 34 – 35:  “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.  For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it.”

But our human nature is to save “our lives”.  We want to be prosperous, strong, successful and influential.  Jesus has other priorities. He, on the other hand, came to serve, not to be served and he invites us to follow him and his ways.

In its return to the Bible, the Reformation rejected a “theology of glory” in favour of a “theology of the cross.”  To follow Jesus is to live lives of service to others, to serve rather than to be served and honoured.   It is the opposite of being proud of your class and status, especially at the expense of others.

The “theology of the cross” or “to deny oneself” does not mean an unnatural kind of humility.  We do not follow Jesus by demeaning ourselves.  We are called upon to do the very best we can with all the talents and abilities God has given us.

But to “deny oneself” means to keep one’s priorities in harmony with what Jesus told us in the two “great commandments” -- love God and love your neighbour (Mark 12:28-31) and seek first of all, the Kingdom of God!

There is indeed a great hope in what Jesus said that day. “Those who lose their lives for Jesus’ sake and the sake of the gospel will indeed save it” (Mark 8:35). To surrender our lives fully to Christ, means that I can and may serve him as the person he created me to be and also find the true purpose of why I am who I am,   and why I live where I live my life.

We are called to follow Jesus in this life.  In your life! 

Wherever your life takes you.

And we follow Jesus not only to be redeemed and one day go to heaven. No, we follow Jesus because it’s worth it.   It is worth to lay down our lives because we share in the benefits of the Gospel.

It is worth so much, that some are willing to die for their relationship with each other, with the Body of Christ, and for their personal relationship with Christ!

What are we willing to do!

Lent is a Season of penitence and preparation.

There are two important aspects to Lent:

Penitence: We realise our own brokenness and our need for Christ.

Preparation: We strive to open our hearts wider for the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus at the Easter Communion.

During Lent Christians add more prayer, learning and meditating to their daily lives. Contemplating the costly price of the suffering and death of Jesus and the powerful victory of his resurrection, strengthen their walk with the Lord and through repentant hearts they find amongst other benefits:  peace, forgiveness, passion for the Lord and a new joy in serving Christ.

Some also subtract from their daily lives by “giving up something for Lent” as a constant reminder of the suffering and sacrifice of Jesus and to create good habits that will help them in their quest for a closer walk with the Lord.

Lent is a focused spiritual journey of individuals and congregations, from Ash Wednesday till Resurrection Sunday, which produces the joy of a lifelong celebration of the living Lord.

When Jesus becomes more...

A retired elderly music professor with a well-trained voice usually sang the major male solo parts in the choir of a large church. A young man named Bob, who had no formal voice training, sometimes took the shorter solos. As the choir director prepared for an important and high profile cantata in that congregation, she felt that Bob’s voice and style made him a natural choice for the lead role. However, she didn’t know how she could give it to him without offending the highly respected, older man.

Her anxiety was unnecessary. The old man had the same thoughts as she did, and he told her that Bob should take the part. The professor continued to sing faithfully in the choir and regularly encouraged Bob which gave him the confidence to become the new lead soloist in the choir.

People who can selflessly set aside personal ambition and genuinely seek the good of others and the best for God’s work, have an attitude that pleases God.

This is how John the Baptist reacted when the crowds left him and began following Jesus. John said, “Jesus must become greater; I must become less.” (John 3:22 – 30NIV).

What did John the Baptist and the music professor have in common? They were happy to see others elevated above themselves with the purpose to serve God in the best possible way.

Humility enables us to bow humble hearts before the Lord and enter his service unselfishly and unconditionally.  It enables us to let Christ be everything while we are his servants! 

Jesus must increase, always! All we have to do is to serve him, obey him, be the church he prayed for and be the Christians he wants us to be!  When we can forget about ourselves, we can do things others will certainly remember.   

When we love ourselves less and Jesus more, we will accomplish things that God will remember for all eternity.

Filled with the Holy Spirit…

When we receive Christ as Saviour, the Holy Spirit gives to every believer one or more gifts. They are God-given abilities for service in his church and kingdom. He gives these gifts as he chooses. 1 Cor. 12:11: “All the gifts are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.”

The gifts of the Holy Spirit are given for worship and for service. Any list of these gifts found in the New Testament demonstrates the diversity of capabilities distributed among believers by God through his Spirit.  All believers receive one or more gifts to honour and serve God and his Church. The list that follows is not complete. It has been put together by studying the following Bible passages, written to reveal to us the various gifts that believers receive: Rom. 12:6-8; 1 Cor. 12:8-10, 28-30; Eph. 4:11; 1 Pet. 4:10,11. 

1. Mission:  Those who are sent by God with the ability to proclaim the gospel and plant churches amongst unbelievers (Eph. 4:11).

2. Prophecy: To receive revelation from God and share it with others. Mostly it is the ability to interpret God’s revelation in the Bible and proclaim its vital and convincing truth. (Eph. 4:11; Rom 12:6).

3. Evangelism: To present the gospel with clarity to the unsaved so that they respond with saving faith (Eph. 4:11; 2 Tim. 4:5).

4.To Pastor: To provide spiritual leadership, nurture, healing and protection for God’s people in the church (Eph. 4:11).

5. Teaching: To explain and apply God’s truths.  (Rom. 12:7; 1 Cor. 12:28,30).

6. Knowledge: To understand and arrange the message which God has revealed in his Word (1 Cor. 12:8).

7. Wisdom: To apply the insights of divine knowledge to specific situations (1 Cor. 12:8).

8. Counselling: To draw close to someone in time of need, with prayer and encouragement, directing change in their lives (Rom. 12:8).

9. Serving: To perform with joy any task in such a way that it encourages and helps the believers. (Rom. 12:7).

10. Helpers: To bring support and assistance to relieve a pressing burden in someone’s life. (1 Cor. 12:28).

11. Showing Mercy: To show practical love to relieve the suffering of the deprived, i.e. the sick and the aged. (Rom. 12:8).

12. Giving: To joyfully and generously share one’s material resources without selfish motives.  (Rom. 12:8).

13. Leadership: To direct a work or church for the Lord (Rom. 12:8).

14. Organization: To give vision and direction toward the accomplishment of goals ( 1 Cor. 12:28).

15. Hospitality: To receive strangers and friends, making them welcome and edified. (Rom. 12:13; Titus 1:8; 1 Tim. 3:2).

16. Faith: To trust God for the supply of needs, even when it seems impossible. (1 Cor. 12:9).

17. Discerning of spirits: To distinguish between truth and error; between God’s Spirit and the works of evil. (1 Cor. 12:9).

The believer who glorifies God and follows Christ with humble submission to the direction given by the Holy Spirit, is “filled by the Sprit” and exercises these gifts with amazing benefits to the body and cause of Christ. The Bible says:  Be filled with the Spirit. (Eph. 5:18)