By Peter Tarantal
Peter is the director of World Evangelization Network of South Africa.

In 1910 a very historic World Mission Conference took place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The conference was dominated by the Student Volunteer Movement with their slogan of “The World Evangelized in our Generation.” So much has happened in the last 100 years that we can be excited about and yet the task of world evangelization is still far from completed.

There are still approximately 28% of the world’s population that has yet to be exposed to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Missions primarily consisted of the church in the West sending workers across the world. Much of what was happening then had to do with “from the West to the rest.”

In 1968, at another World Congress on evangelization in Mexico City, the term “missions on 6 continents” was first coined. There was a recognition that mission ought to be done everywhere and that the church all over the world had to be involved in reaching the nations with the Gospel.

The Global South

The growth of the church in what is known as the Global South has been nothing short of spectacular. The Global South is a term first coined by the United Nations and is now widely accepted in the political/economic world and in mission circles.

For our purposes, the Global South is a missiological term and refers to Africa, Asia and Latin America. The growth of the church has by and large taken place in previous “receiving areas.”

For instance, in 1900 there were reportedly 8 million Christians in Africa, today there are close to 500 million Christians. In China when the missionaries left in 1949, there were approximately 2 million believers, today the conservative estimate is 100 million. The Lord is certainly at work in building His church in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Two Examples of World Mission Vision from the Global South

I would like to illustrate the new enthusiasm for world mission emanating from the Global South by relating to two incidents:

1. In 1997, the Church in Pretoria, South Africa hosted the Global Congress on World Evangelization (GCOWE). Approximately 1200 from Africa met in a network called the Africa National Initiatives. Various missiologists and mission leaders gave input into the group to help them expand their mission vision.

During this time, the Joshua Project shared on the challenge of the groups still needing to be reached. As they shared they were urged to respond to the least reached in their various countries.

Upon their return to Kenya, the Kenyan delegation got together and made a commitment that never again would they go to a congress on world evangelization and hear that there are still at least 22 unreached people groups in their country. They launched an initiative called “Finished the Task.” By last accounts, all the groups have been engaged, with a number of churches already planted in these areas.

2. In 2006 there was a buzz around the Kenya College for Technology when 520 leaders met for a mission consultation (MANI) which was run by Africans, owned by Africans and where all the speakers were Africans.

There was such a sense that Africa’s time had come. An endearing image was the Macedonian Call by our brothers and sisters from Francophone Africa for the rest of Africa to come and help them in their Church planting efforts.

What does the growth of the Church in the Global South and the changing face of missions mean for world mission?

1. We need to celebrate what God is doing around the world in building His Church.
2. There needs to be a new recognition that the Church in the Global South is / has come of age.
3. There needs to be respect for the leadership, however weak it may be in certain places in the Global South.
4. There needs to be equal partnership between the Global North and the Global South. No one ever should dominate the global missions agenda. The Global North, because it has more financial resources should not dominate the agenda and neither should the Global South because they may have more people resources.
5. Another implication is that in mission structures around the world the new reality of the changing face of mission need to be acknowledged.

One of the more exciting developments of late is that continental networks such as MANI (Movement for African National Initiative) and COMIBAM (Cooperacion Misionera Ibero Americana) agreed to partner with one another and to collaborate on certain key strategies.

Two of these are in the area of being involved reaching out to Europe as well as to the Muslim world. Due to its focus on relationships, these networks have also spearheaded initiatives to bring various networks from around the world together to fellowship with one another and to hear what God is saying to His Church.

Conclusion

In conclusion, there is a fresh wind of the Spirit blowing. This calls for a fresh approach to missions. Let’s not put Saul’s armour on David. With the growth of the Church in the Global South and the commitment that still exists by and large in the Church in the Global North, I believe that through key strategic partnerships, we will be able to do more that we have ever been able to accomplish. May this be so for the sake of the Kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ.

By David Oluseyi Ige

Seyi is the director of mobilization for the National Evangelical Missions Association (NEMA) in Nigeria and is the managing editor of Nigeria Missions magazine.

There is a thin line between the time invested and the time wasted, both of them have to do with spending of time. How do we differentiate?

A time wasted is when you spend your time on something that the value of the return is less than the value of the time spent. But a time invested is when the value of the return is higher than the value of the time spent.

We the emerging generation are facing a major challenge regarding the use of time. We are living in what is described as the worst and best of time.

Worst because of the hostility sponsored from the pit of hell. The enemy of the cross is employing the best of his tactics to encumber this generation; his singular purpose is to stagnate the kingdom frontiers.

Yet we are witnessing the best of time, God is passionately making His name great amongst the nations as more youths are abandoning their lives for the cause of the cross. Doors of witnessing are being opened for professionals to serve God’s purpose in their generation. The globalization and the technological breakthrough is also opening closed countries to the gospel.

Jesus said “All of us must quickly carry out the tasks assigned us by the one who sent me, because there is little time left before the night falls and all work comes to an end.” John 9:4( NLT)

There is a task assigned to you in this dispensation and failure to recognise it will make a man exist on earth without living God’s purpose. There is a clarion call to discover who you are in the light of God’s assignment.

The night is coming. Six months after Jesus uttered this statement the hour of darkness came and He was crucified. Many are actually living in perpetual darkness because they have not known the Light of the world.

The challenge before us is to voluntarily reach the unreached people as we take the Light of life to them. One of the hymns of old employs us to hark the voice of Jesus crying who will go and work today. The last verse of that hymn has always being a challenge to me. There is no excuse not to live a life of abandoned devotion to Jesus.

Let none hear you idly saying, there is nothing I can do
While the souls of men are dying, and the Master calls for you
Take the task He gives you gladly, let His work your pleasure be
Answer quickly when He calleth, Here am I send me send me!

God is meticulous about time. He granted TIME to credit us every morning with 86,400 seconds. Every night it writes off, as lost, whatever of this we have failed to invest to good or God’s  purpose. It carries over no balance. It allows no overdraft.

Each day it opens a new account for us. Each night, it burns the remains of the day. If we fail to use the day’s deposits, the loss are ours. There is no going back. There is no drawing against the “tomorrow.” You must live in the present on today’s deposits.

Invest it so as to get from it the utmost for your life and His kingdom advancement.

How do we achieve this? He is calling us to walk our talk about Him every time. He wants us to evaluate our lives frequently. As time ticks and waits for no man, likewise our lives evaporate.

When you carry out a labour of love to others, He will justly reward it, because that is not a waste of time. When you are involved in sacrificial service which rewards cannot be measured with earthly standard or currency, it may look as if you are wasting away, never mind God knows and keeps records.

Your intercessory tears for the unsaved, words of encouragement to others are never a waste. It is an investment, at the right time He will open the heavens and you will be welcomed to receive your reward as he says, “welcome thou faithful servant.”

Beloved, as we glean from His daily grace of 24hours, let’s prioritize our lives in order of profitability to God’s kingdom. That is what matters the most. The clock is running. Make the most of your one hour now.

By David Oluseyi Ige

Seyi is the director of mobilization for the National Evangelical Missions Association (NEMA) in Nigeria and is the managing editor of Nigeria Missions magazine.

Recently the biggest transfer in the history of football, the World Footballer of the year 08 Cristiano Ronaldo, moved to Real Madrid from Manchester United for a record of 80m Pounds.

In essence, this deal will see Ronaldo earn £9,000,000 per annum this excludes other emoluments and bonuses. This translate to £750,000 in a month, £187,000 a week, £26,786 a day and £1,116 per hour. This in Nigeria Naira (a Pound for N250) 2.25 Billion. This shows that his hourly cost is N279,000.

I learned a great lesson from one of my pastors in the Redeemed Christian Church of God when I was the Choir leader. He knew I could play the Rhythm Guitar very well, though I never placed much value on it. He went ahead to introduce me to his colleague at work who desired to learn how to play.

He asked how much I charge for my hour? I was ridiculously on the low side because I had never evaluated the cost of my hour. He said, “Time is money, you must learn to put value on how much your time is worth.”

That day, I sat down and think of my life not as years, not as months, not as weeks, not even as days but as an entrusted accumulated hours. I discovered that the more a man upgrades and packages himself the more he appreciates.

Since that day I place more emphasis on my time, I decided not to waste or spend my time on things or people who will not yield dividend. The dividend can be in physical, financial, social, material or spiritual rewards.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s one hour take home is more than annual take home of an average middle class Nigerian. But if one is not conscious of the fact that time is life, it is very easy to waste or spend two hours on frivolous activity. I made a resolution to always estimate how much knowledge I will gain from spending my time on any thing. If it is something that will not add value to my life I will shun it and go for a profitable venture.

Have you met people who do not attach value to other people’s time? If they ask you to come for an appointment, they will be 30minutes or 1hour late, all what they will say is an apology. If those kinds of people are those I need something from, I will stock myself with my Bible or literature on which I can invest my time before they come.

Some pastors fall into this category, the service they render in their church never starts at the scheduled time, congregants will sit waiting for the minister to come, if you fall into this group re-order your priority, time is very important to life.

Our life is like a vapour it can be wasted, spent or invested. I Sam 14:12-14, Job 7,14. We will always serve what we love and what we love will always demand our time.

“Uncle Jacob spent the next seven years working to pay for Rachel. But his love for her was so strong that it seemed to him but a few days.” Gen 29:20(NLT)

Many times when we spend our time it always seem to us that it is just some few hours. I believed that Jacob never evaluated His services in term of number of months, days, minutes or seconds.

It was after many years that He came to His senses and said “and now when shall I provide for mine own house also? “When” is a function of time, beloved when will you do something that will count for your eternity?

Mission professor Dr. J. Christy Wilson often reflected that one of the key elements in the Student Volunteer Movement of the late 19th, early 20th century was the attitude that every person involved saw themselves as mobilizers. Whether God confirmed a cross-cultural calling, or He directed them to stay in their own culture, every person saw himself or herself as committed to the expansion of God’s kingdom. The main idea was “Come with us and let’s work together to take the Good News to all peoples.”

The idea of serving as a mobilizer resonates with my wife and me, because although we have repeatedly pursued cross-cultural ministry over our thirty years of marriage, God has consistently affirmed our calling as mobilizers – serving as catalysts in our own culture.

We’ve found our calling as stirring the church to prayer and participation in a Great Commission lifestyle.

So with that in mind, what have we learned? Consider if you will, three basic mobilizing attitudes, and then four basic tools to provoke greater effectiveness.

Attitudes in the Effective Mobilizer

1. Lead by Example.

Fervor for bringing the message of the Gospel to those who have never heard is caught more than it is taught. When we desire to mobilize others, the first question they usually ask is “If you’re so excited about this, how does it affect your life?” Our experiences have taught us that if we desire to mobilize others, we need first to be passionate ourselves – about Jesus, about His purposes, and about reaching out to lost people.

Perhaps the best way to communicate our zeal for God’s global purposes is to stay dedicated to living lives that communicate that the Great Commission is a priority. We lead by example when we:

• Demonstrate by our prayers our commitment to a specific unreached people group;

• Spend our money on short-term trips to other cultures to encourage Christian workers – rather than on luxury cruise vacations;

• Look for and reach out to the unreached in our own area – whether they’re a secular neighbor or a Uygur Muslim international student in our area;

• Maintain a simple lifestyle so that we can be more generous and available to serve. (Realistically, our lifestyle is not truly “simple.” It’s just simpler than our culture says is normal, because a simple lifestyle in the Boston area where we live might be staggering affluence to someone in southern Sudan!)

2. Live with a spirit of release.

When we meet people and learn about their skills and abilities, we often find ourselves wanting to play the Holy Spirit in their lives. We want to tell them where we think God wants them to go to be a message bearer. We’ve learned – sometimes the hard way – that God does the calling, not us. We can create the mobilizing environment (see below), but God alone directs people.

That’s not to say we shrink from challenging people. It’s only to remember that a person manipulated by guilt or pressure from us will seldom make an effective servant.

3. Patience.

Gabe was a sophomore in university when he confirmed a sense of call to the Muslim world. I challenged him to think of himself as a mobilizer in his remaining college years. One spring break, I asked him how it was going. He replied, “Well, I challenge people with the vision of reaching the unreached, and if they don’t respond, I simply shake the dust off my feet and move on.”

I replied, “Are you still thinking of going to the Muslim world?”

“Yes, of course,” he replied.

“Well, it seems to me that your mobilizing today is preparing you for your evangelizing tomorrow. If you go to serve in the Muslim world with that ‘shake-the-dust-off-my-feet’ attitude, the only thing you’ll return with is clean feet.”

Mobilizing people takes time. Sometimes it might take three or four years of friendship to encourage people out of the American-dream lifestyle, and into the radical commitment of serving as a message bearer in the Hindu, Muslim or Buddhist world. Be patient. God is.

Mobilization Tools

So – from the attitudinal foundation of exemplary living, release, and patience – what are the tools for ongoing effective mobilization?

We look at mobilization from an environmental perspective. We plant seeds of interest, challenge, and curiosity, and then we try to create an environment where these seeds can grow. We try to cultivate four specific environments.

1. Create an Informational Environment.

First, we try to CREATE AN INFORMATIONAL ENVIRONMENT, connecting peoples’ lives to the world. The vast majority of people we meet have little to no knowledge about the rest of the world. Perhaps they’ve traveled to Europe or the Caribbean. Maybe they’ve done short-term missions to Mexico. But generally, they know little about things like the “10-40 window” or unreached people groups. Many cannot name more than three or four of the 50+ countries in Africa. And few are aware of the thousands of new missionaries being sent out from countries like Brazil or the Philippines or Nigeria.

An informational environment endeavors to get people learning about the world. It might mean buying them an up-to-date map, exploring with them the new ethnicities moving into the local city, or going to a Thai restaurant as an introduction to Buddhism.

When people start gaining interest in learning, then we might encourage a mission book, a biography, or even a conference like URBANA. From there, the information starts to accumulate, and it might be off to Perspectives or a similar course.

God guides people through the things they know. Our goal as mobilizers is to be catalysts to expanding their knowledge.

2. Create an Intercessional Environment.

Second, we try to CREATE AN INTERCESSIONAL ENVIRONMENT by connecting people to the God of all nations. We know for sure that God guides people through their prayers, and we know that God wants us to pray for the nations. We try to stir people to start praying – choose a country, a news story, an unreached people group, a world leader – and start praying.

Prayer and information blends together when we use a very simple starting point. We encourage people to examine the label of their clothes to discover where their clothes were made. It’s amazing to discover how many of our clothes are made in places like Bangladesh (Muslim), Thailand or Cambodia (Buddhist), India (Hindu), or China (secular/communist). If we can get people to discover this, then we invite them to pray for the person who made that shirt or blouse or sweater.
Can you imagine it? A Muslim worker in Indonesia might be prayed for for the first time in Jesus’ name because my friend prayed for the guy who made his shirt! And God might start a work to call my friend to Indonesia through the same prayer!

3. Create an Involvement Environment.

Third, we look for ways to CREATE AN INVOLVEMENT ENVIRONMENT by connecting people with opportunities to serve. Short-term missions draws the world closer than ever before, providing an opportunity for hands-on involvement which God can use to call people into cross-cultural service.

But there’s so much more! When we have the world on our hearts, sometimes we overlook the world at our doorsteps. Getting people mobilized to discover God’s direction for them doesn’t always begin with overseas short-term mission trips. It might start by hosting an international student, taking a class on Islam so that we can talk to the Pakistani guy who runs the gas station, or getting involved in an ESL class in a nearby city.

Many observe that the Holy Spirit guides like a rudder – so the boat needs to be moving in order to be directed. Involvement gets people started towards greater participation in God’s global mission, and from that ESL class, someone might end up in China. From hosting international students, another might end up in the Middle East. And from a class on world religions, a third might move to England to reach out to the Pakistanis there.

4. Create an Investigational Environment.

Finally, we try to CREATE AN INVESTIGATIONAL ENVIRONMENT by inviting people to active listening for God’s call. God uses curiosity to direct people’s lives. An investigational environment seeks to encourage people to wonder.

We might get them wondering about subjects like human lostness – “Did you ever wonder what happens to someone who dies without ever hearing about Jesus? I mean, if they are going to heaven already, why did Jesus need to die?”

We might get them wondering about the imbalances in the world – “Isn’t it amazing how we think everything important in the world seems to be focused on the USA – when we represent only 5% of the world’s population?”

Or more often, we simply try to get people wondering about their own calling – “With your skills and training in computers, did you ever think of the dramatic impact you could have in Bible translation?”

Mobilization – it’s for all of us! And as we faithfully serve wherever God has placed us, we can create the environment where God can cause future message-bearers to grow.

As we prepare for this season of 21 Days of prayer and fasting, it is imperative that we catch God’s vision of what He intends to do in this hour. We are called to participate with God in creating the very thing He has in His heart to bring forth. This is a mystery to us. Why would the limitless God of the universe who can do anything at any moment seemingly stoop to the level of partnering with us frail and weak human beings? The answer is that He is totally given over to relationship with His bride. His husbandly heart is moved with desire as He looks upon His bride and that desire seeks to do all in companionship with her and through her.

In the first article to prepare us for the 21 days, we were called to consider the state of our spiritual lives. God is beckoning each of us to His high calling of personal revival. He desires to revive us from our spiritual slumber, each and every believer who calls upon His name, stimulating a deep desire to individually pursue God with all of our heart, mind, soul and strength. With these revived ones, God is then seeking to bring forth generational awakening. This is a corporate reality among the people of God where due to having our spirits individually revived we now contribute to the corporate whole and move together toward awakening across the generation.

It is true that we must individually choose whether or not to receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Yet, God views His people not individually but corporately more often than we might realize. He loves and is ever committed to each individual yet is seeking to mature and grow His corporate body into what He has always intended it to be as His unified and single body. Then finally through a generation truly awakened to His ways, thoughts, desires and who willingly gives herself to joyfully participate with Him in His purposes, He will bring forth global harvest to an extent that history has never known. A harvest is coming from every people group and tongue under heaven that is going to blow us away and the only thing standing in the way of this is us.

Ezekiel 37:1-14 unveils to us part of our purpose in this season. Dry bones cover the earth today. These dry bones represent the body of Jesus Christ which is not functioning to the capacity that she should be. They represent the compromise, complacency, apathy, the spiritual weakness and so much more keeping us from effectiveness in the purpose of God. Ezekiel is given the opportunity to view these bones strewn on the desert floor. He is told by the Lord His plan of doing a creative miracle of bringing them to life and then commanded to be the vessel through which that plan would take place. He was to speak to the bones the words the Lord gave Him and life would be infused into them. Ezekiel does this and watches with amazement as the process of sinews and flesh and breath being put into them takes place. They then stand to their feet and number an exceedingly great number whom God promises will go into the land.

As we consider the concept of generational awakening we are wise to ask ourselves what God is seeking to awaken in us corporately. What are some core realities that need to be awakened in our hearts and deliberately cultivated so that they persist within us over the long haul of a lifetime spent walking with and serving God? Each of these begins with us as individuals yet they do not stop there. If the body of Christ is to faithfully accomplish what God has in His heart for today’s generation then each of these realities must be taught, preached, written about and prayed until they begin to be internalized across multitudes of ministries, organizations and church traditions. This is generational awakening as God intended it! But it requires we move from our often very individualistic mindsets related to our lives in God to include a corporate understanding as well.

1. Our True Calling

One of the most important of questions which many in the emerging generation of believers is asking revolves around God’s calling or will for our lives. Today, the will or call of God is often reduced to guess work in many parts of the body of Christ. It seems that we have gotten away from Paul’s understanding of this expounded in his prayer for the Colossians in 1:9, “that you would be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.” Paul stating “the knowledge of His will” specifies that we can and are to know the specific will of God for our lives. It is not guess work but something that those awakened to God and His heart will begin to walk in with confidence, faith and courage.

History is divided up into time and eternity. Our state in eternity will depend much more than we often realize on what we do with our time. Our time on earth is precious and what we do with that time will have direct correlation with our reward in heaven. This has no bearing on our salvation itself but on the rewards referred to in Scripture. Time on earth is for sowing, eternity is for reaping. Such truth adds a tremendous amount of seriousness to our lives as believers and as the corporate church. It amplifies the need to know what we are to be about in life and ministry as our true calling in order not to misspend our time.

Scripture asserts in many places that the corporate calling of an awakened generation is two-fold: a dwelling place of God Most High and to participate in the global harvest. These two over-arching realities will be infused into every plan and task. They will be on the forefront of hours of intercession and will be at the center of financial giving. They will be the primary content of preaching and teaching.

The first portion of this corporate calling is to be a dwelling place of God Most High. We are awakened in the reality of how much we are magnificently loved by the living God and have opened up our very beings to receive and drink of that infinite love. We corporately come to realize that God is not perpetually mad at us for not measuring up but instead thrilled with joy over us choosing to follow His Son. We then give back love to God through developing a lifestyle of corporate worship, prayer, adoration, fellowship, devotion and surrender. In doing so we are forever changed as we experience Him drawing near in ways we could not have imagined because we cooperated with His prescribed ways of doing things. Such a community becomes a place where the very presence of God can dwell freely. This is the very core of our calling as we are daily conformed into the likeness of Jesus when we cooperate corporately to be the dwelling place of God Most High.

The second portion of our true calling is to participate in the coming global harvest in every way possible – intercession, giving, mobilization, going, advocating. God has given the human race a special privilege not afforded by any other of His creations. Jesus Christ perfectly completed the atonement. We then preach the finished work of Christ in accomplishing redemption for humanity. He has placed upon His corporate church the calling and responsibility (which we will all be held accountable) of making this plan of redemption available to all humanity. This is the great unfinished work of the body of Christ and her true calling. This is God’s priority in this age.

If we will align our hearts and the activities of our lives with these two core realities of the true calling of the global church, we will not fail to walk according to God’s perfect will. For all that we do toward these two great ends, we will individually be rewarded greatly in eternity.

2. Our True Identity

Our identity as individuals and as the corporate people of God is vital. So much attention, energy, time and focus is given to honing that identity with those around us. We want to be seen in a particular light which culture, society and many other influences have told us are acceptable and right. For us this is inside the Christian community. In much of this there is present the sin of people-pleasing. We want to be seen as the good Christian, the successful Christian. We want to have the biggest church in town or the ministry that everyone talks about. These desires in themselves are not bad but when we are driven by them because our identity is based in them we’ve made an idol of these things.

Too many churches and ministries sell out on pursuing the true calling of God in pursuit of being the biggest and flashiest. Size does not always equate with being pleasing to the heart of the Father. It does not necessarily mean that God is blessing that particular group. They’ve not necessarily been awakened to their true identity as a people of God. King David is one of the best Biblical examples of having his identity in the right place. He never sought to be king. Such ambition to worldly greatness was never in his mind. He never felt that he had to become king to prove that he was worth something and had value. This is the crux of the issue.

Many of us feel we must achieve or accomplish for God in order to have value before Him in His kingdom. This is a flawed understanding because a person’s or corporate group’s value is not ever increased or diminished from something outside of themselves. David knew he had value for two reasons: he was loved by God and because he loved God in return. Our true identities and value boil down to this reality. We are His and He is ours. When this is clear within our hearts and we are not striving to attain value from some other source we are free to pursue God and be used of God without it causing disruptions within. God can’t release many of us into the very will He desires for us because He knows it will disrupt us and bring havoc to our inner lives because our identity is not founded upon truth.

If we are to faithfully lay hold of the corporate inheritance that God has planned for His Church, we must be awakened to our true identity found only in being loved by God and loving Him back with all our hearts, minds, souls and strength. This is all!

3. Our Unclaimed Riches

One of the realities God seems to be awakening in many across the body of Christ is the need to desire the treasures available to believers. We play an active part in receiving such things as we cooperate with God in seeking and pursuing them. The blessings which God provides us and are ours in Christ can be placed into three categories.

First, those which come upon us immediately following our trusting Jesus as Lord and Savior. These include forgiveness of sin, justification before the Father, regeneration, sonship to God and the baptism into the body of Jesus Christ. These are ours even before we have any idea of what they mean. Second, are those riches which we will receive only when Jesus returns. Such are moral perfection, the glorification of our bodies, the full restoration of God’s image on our redeemed personalities and being ushered into the very presence of God in all His splendor and majesty. Third, are the treasures which are ours by virtue of the shed blood of Christ but that Scripture makes clear we will not possess unless we make a concerted effort with focus and intentionality to do so. These include victory over the sins of the flesh, victory over the self-life, the consistent flow of the Holy Spirit possessing our personalities, fruitfulness in Kingdom work, regular awareness of God’s presence in our midst, an increasing awareness of deep intimacy with Christ, and a consistent spirit of worship flowing from our hearts.

God’s will is to awaken His corporate church to the absolute necessity of deliberately pursuing such treasures in Christ which are essential to our own spiritual health and to our capacity to be used of God in the coming global harvest. A lack of such deliberate pursuit is evidently hindering the global purposes of God in more ways than we fully grasp.

This earnest, sincere and deep desire seems to be a common pre-requisite when it comes to obtaining spiritual realities in the life of a believer. Such riches are not given lightly therefore half-hearted and wishy-washy requests will not be granted. We need to grasp that what God is entrusting to us is of the highest possible value. Those who are not truly hungry will not fully appreciate what they have been given and thus God cannot give such precious realities to them. Not possessing this desire has no bearing upon our salvation, yet what is at stake is going to the next level with God. A helpful question to ask ourselves is “How much of God do I really want?” We are as close to God as we want to be and we have received as much spiritual reality as we have hungered for.

Will this generation be the army? Each of us must assess our true calling, our identity, and our unclaimed riches. But in order to engage as an army, we must begin to think corporately even before we think individually. Our calling as a generation is to dwell with the Almighty as we purposefully reap the global harvest. Our identity as a generation is that we are His beloved and He is ours; He loves us and we love Him. Our unclaimed riches as a generation must mark us – a generation victorious over our self-life, keenly aware of God’s presence, deeply dwelling in intimacy with God, and fruitful in every good work. Let us band together and choose God’s grace to perfect us in His presence!

Now the Word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying “Arise, go to Ninevah, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before me.” But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.
Jonah 1:1-3

The book of Jonah is a powerful little book that has much to teach the modern church of Jesus Christ. There are several great themes and purposes encapsulated within it. The central figure is a prophet who came from a town about an hour’s walk from Nazareth. It is probable that he was a disciple of Elisha and succeeded him as prophet. He lived during the reign of Jeroboam II and was a statesman in the northern kingdom of Israel. He is mentioned also in 2 Kings 14:25.

To fully grasp the significance of the three verses above at which we want to look closely, it is critical to understand some of the larger themes of the book as a whole that are at play. Two primary purposes are threaded throughout the book: (1) To underscore God’s true attitude toward His chosen people and all outsiders (2) To reveal the clear-cut responsibilities of those who claim to represent Him.

In the time of Jonah, Israel possessed an attitude toward God that was growing more and more perverse. She was increasingly viewing Him as being only for her. There was a feeling that God had created Israel for Himself and that as a result He held only hatred and contempt for any outsiders of Israel. Jonah is meant to be a representation of the common attitude of pride surrounding being God’s chosen people and thus, God being hostile toward all others. Through the book we find God helping correct such a low and false view of Him. His correct outlook and desire for the surrounding peoples (and thus all peoples) is seen through His divine pity, His divine patience and His divine power clearly revealed as we watch Him dealing specifically with Jonah. God is seen to be wholeheartedly committed to working behind the scenes in the lives of His people. He takes care of us even as we see He took great care of Jonah. To do so He will manipulate nature, intervene in human affairs and do great things which the mind cannot comprehend (sustaining a person in the belly of a fish) in order to teach one man about His huge heart. In many ways the book of Jonah is a “test” book. It is a challenge to all believers. It tests our own hearts. How we view this book is how we view God, His Word, and His purposes in the earth.

Let’s now look closely at the three verses that commence this little book. Many lessons can be applied to the global church today as we observe Jonah in these few verses. The context of the Scripture is clear. Jonah is a prophet and receives a clear call from God to go to Ninevah and prophesy against it of what is to come if they do not turn from their wicked ways. The perversion of Ninevah had arisen before God and the bowls of filth were full and required justice. The call of God causes Jonah to literally run the other way and seek to flee the situation entirely and in doing so also seek to get away from God Himself. What is going on here? What is happening under the surface that God wants His people today to see and to grasp at a heart level?

First, let’s consider what God was calling Jonah to do. First, Jonah was called to cry out against Ninevah was to declare to it the trouble and disaster that was coming. God’s compassion towards Ninevah was clearly revealed and displayed in this command to cry out against it. God was seeking to bring a solution to bear which would protect the great city from the inevitable judgment that was in time going to be necessary for justice. Today, God’s compassion is revealed in exactly the same way. He loves all ethne (individual ethnic people groups within geo-political nations) and seeks to protect them from the inevitable. He longs for them to experience His greatness, His salvation, His deliverance from a life of worship of false gods and to experience the intimate relationship He has created all humanity to be satisfied through. This is our call today among the nations. We are to proclaim the trouble and disaster that awaits those who do not repent and rend their hearts toward God. Obviously, this is primarily an eternal trouble, but also a trouble in this world. God is patient beyond human capability to imagine, yet in time justice for wickedness must be reckoned. In this particular situation that time had come for Ninevah. So God, in His relentless mercy, seeks to send His ambassador to call for a turning of their hearts.

Secondly, we’ve only gone three verses into the narrative and are not yet shown why Jonah responded as he did. But due to the prevailing mindset of the Israelites of the day, we can see what is going on here. Jonah has been tainted in the same way as his fellow Israelites. A subtle belief had crept in that Israel had a corner on God and as a result He should not care for any others but them. An elitist prejudice arose in their hearts. This is a caution to all who follow God and who lead God’s people. We are not above having the wrong mindsets and outlooks on God and how He sees things seep into our own understanding and polluting it. We must proactively guard our hearts and minds with the Word of God and the revelation of the Spirit. Apart from this we will become tainted with a wrong attitude as Jonah did. Many in the global Church today fall into the same outlook as these Israelites possessed. We develop an inward-looking, self-centered, “God is all about me” perspective which is completely foreign to the heart of the Father.

This is wrong enough as it is, but then we often couple this with a subtle hostility and contempt that God could really love and want the best for certain outsiders. In many ways, Jonah’s response of fleeing possessed the spirit of a national hero. Consider it for a moment, Assyria was a dreaded enemy of Israel. God speaks to Jonah about going to the capital city of that dreaded enemy to speak a word that might actually cause the people to repent and turn from their wickedness and thus escape doom. His being obedient would keep them from being destroyed which, in his thinking, would continue to endanger Israel as they could rise up later and attack Israel and take them into captivity. By fleeing, Jonah was seeking to alleviate the option of them responding to God’s word and instead be destroyed by God and thus protect Israel from this dreaded enemy. Jonah saw his fleeing as a willingness to sacrifice himself for the sake of protecting and saving his people and thus as completely honorable.

Obviously he was thoroughly misguided! God’s ways are not our ways. What appeared certain in Jonah’s nationalist heart was not reality or truth. How often do we seek to help God because what He seems to be doing and asking us to do does not gel with our vision of how victory and salvation will come to a people? His ways often contradict our plans and purposes because we have taken our cues from our culture, political situation or self-absorbed agendas. Spiritual maturity leads us to yield and submit to Him and His will even if it confuses, angers or frustrates us about God. In His tremendous love and mercy, however, He is moved to teach us His heart though discipline and correction. This is His incredible heart of love and concern for every person alive.

In our day, it seems that there is a similar attitude to what Jonah felt towards Assyria among many in the Church today. Its target is those caught in the web of Islam. A quiet sense (and sometimes not so quiet) exists that we should not be reaching out to these ones who we perceive to have done so much harm around the world. They deserve whatever judgment God has in store for them (this is becoming a teaching in the church). Because of their adversarial attitude toward Christianity, we should forget about them at the least and destroy them at the most. And due to their hostility they should not be loved as Christ calls us. True reports are cited often of comments made by leaders in the Church who seem to possess venom in their words toward those caught in the bondage of Islam. By doing so these have betrayed the reality that their hearts are not aligned with God’s. When we are tempted to think that our denomination, doctrinal stream, even country that we live in, has in any way a corner on God we need to remind ourselves of 1 John 2:2 “And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.” As the narrative of Jonah goes on we know that God used drastic means to teach His servant about His heart for all peoples and that He, in no uncertain terms, is a nationalistic God. If we are not careful and turn from our own false assumptions of God, He might have to use similar means to get our attention.

Lastly, we find Jonah fleeing from God and seeking to board a ship that will take him to Tarshish. In the ancient world there was a false understanding that a deity only had authority in the specific places that it was worshipped. Though a prophet, Jonah was still very human and thus prone to incorrect theology. It seems as if he was bent on the belief that God would not find him in Tarshish. Outside of Israel he thought that he would be away from God’s power to make him do what he most definitely did not want to do. How often do we possess a similar yet slightly different perspective? In our Christian cultures we believe intellectually that God is everywhere, yet by consuming our lives with busy-ness, entertainment, personal priorities and more we are seeking to tune Him out and be left alone. We don’t give Him the time to speak or to lead.

Our petty and worldly excuses for why we cannot do something that He may be leading us to, are grievous to the heart of God. Jonah, though possessing great disobedience, had a teachable spirit and God was able to break through (later in the book) and God molded Him and formed Him. It is that teachable spirit and a willingness to allow God to form and mold our mindsets and outlooks about what He is really like, that is critical. We will all make multitudes of mistakes when it comes to grasping God’s perspective on things, yet a teachable spirit which confesses it is wrong and cries out to God for right understanding is what God is after.

If you have allowed a wrong outlook to cloud your mind or heart regarding God’s heart toward those who practice Islam I want to suggest a few practical ways to allow God to mold and form your heart. (1) Confess that God is not a nationalistic god who takes up the political agendas of your particular country ; (2) Confess that out of misunderstanding you have bought into a lie concerning these precious people who need Jesus as savior; (3) Ask God to open up your eyes to His thoughts on these ones; (4) Ask Him to saturate your heart with His all-consuming love for muslims; (5) Begin to pray for a particular muslim city in the world and the people who live there every day; (6) Give Him permission to send you to an unreached muslim city as a message bearer of His great love.

Remember that God is bigger than our wrong mindsets and is not surprised by them, but He does desire for our minds to be renewed, refreshed, and transformed through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Over the last several years there have been subtle, but positive signs among Christian young adults concerning the possibility of a renewed, widespread, long-term movement to reach the nations. Small groups committed to global prayer have historically always been at the center of new thrusts of global mission vision among students. It seems timely, then, to unleash a present widespread call to devoted prayer among the college student population focused on the urgent realization of the global purpose of God.

Prayer is one of the most powerful mobili-zation tools we have at our disposal. It is not enough to have a speaker simply talk about stories going on around the world to mobilize today’s college students. What engages this generation is the chance to partner with God through personally interceding and standing in the gap for a people group, culture, city, or social sector completely different from their own. This, coupled with the knowledge of others that are also praying fervently for the same thing, is a powerful motivator. There is a cry in the hearts of the younger generation to engage with the Living God in a meaningful way as they align themselves with His passions.

We need round-the-clock, ongoing houses of prayer raised up in local churches and on college
campuses that cry out to God, day and night, for peoples around the world whom the Church has
forgotten. The spiritual power required to see the gospel planted around the world and for millions to be ushered into the Kingdom will be sustained only by these prayer furnaces. God knows that prayer and intercession must once again become our primary activity to move forward appropriately and power-fully. There is a global mission movement arising among the younger generation.

Student Volunteer Movement 2 (SVM2) is seeking to serve this movement. One of its priorities is encouraging the formation of Global Prayer Teams on college campuses and in local churches around the world. These are small groups of committed young adults who gather on a weekly basis crying out to God for the fulfi llment of His purposes among every culture on the earth in our lifetime, for local and global revival, and for an increase of practical involvement in global proclamation among the younger generation. Just imagine a global prayer movement among the younger generation where 50,000 Global Prayer Teams are meeting weekly on campuses throughout the world. Why not now?

You can request a Global Prayer Team Guide be sent to you from the website – www.SVM2.net – for a small suggested donation of US$3. We encourage leaders of campus ministries and college fellowships to order multiple copies and get them into the hands of their student leaders. This guide will equip you, envision you, and practically lead you in how to form these small groups in your community. Will you partner with God in this pivotal hour and raise the bar of intercession for the world in your community?

It seems timely to unleash a widespread call to devoted prayer.

Christianity is facing a crisis across the globe-the crisis of identity

Once, on the airplane, I was asked a question whether I am a Christian or not. I was traveling within America. I did not rush to answer the question. Actually instead of answering the question I raised another question by asking “what do you mean by saying a Christian?” The answer followed, “Are you Jesus’ follower?”

This was the beginning of our conversation which lasted more than an hour. During this conversation I realized that next to me is a person who claims to be running from God, who thinks of himself not to be worthy of God but at the same time so eagerly he seeks after God-this last one was quite obvious, since he was the one who started the conversations after reading on my bracelet forgive, peace, and love. I realized that David (I do not want to use his real name) became a Christian in a prison when he was about 20. Now he was about 28. He kept telling me that once he denied God and now cannot go back to him anymore. He couldn’t forgive himself! Although he claimed his statement to be true, I knew that he did not desert God! No, he did not desert God, but rather he rejected the corrupt Christianity. I remember before ending the conversation I told him, “Nobody in this world, even the devil, can convince me to keep denying God. Even if I think I have denied him once!”

Worldwide Christianity faces an identity crisis. In 1 John 5:4 we read, “Every God-begotten person conquers the world’s ways. The conquering power that brings the world to its knees is our faith. The person who wins out over the world’s ways is simply the one who believes Jesus is the Son of God.” (The Message) Recently, I have been asking myself the following questions: who are those Christians who truly overcome the world instead of being overcome by it? Who are or where are those Christians who do not fear the world, or do not compromise the world, or do not withdraw from the world, but rather walk toward the darkness, jump into it and overcome it? Or how many are the true children of God who truly resemble and reflect the power and love of God? Actually, how many are those who truly understand that Christianity is not all about doing things, but rather and first of all it is about becoming the kind of human being that resembles Jesus. And how many are those willing to pay the price of becoming the true children of God?

What is behind the Crisis?

In his book “Wide Awake” Erwin McManus writes: “We have confused comfort with peace, belief with faith, safety with wisdom, wealth with blessing, and existence with life.” Additionally I would say that we have confused freedom with taboos, greatness with success, hypocrisy with truthfulness, and courage with fear.

For instance, in Math 5:9 we read, “Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called sons of God.” (NIV) Thus, God calls peacemakers to be the blessed ones! But we all know that peacemaking is a quite difficult job and very often in order to make peace we may need to give up our comfort. In order to make peace, where there is a conflict, we may need to risk our lives. Sadly there are very few willing to risk what is so dear for them, and this is quite natural. By doing so, unfortunately, we forget that God is calling us to a life beyond the natural, to a life based on his standards and principles. In other words, God is calling us to Christ-likeness.

Often, when God calls us to ‘beyond the standard’ life, we limit God by our taboos and belief systems: we refuse receiving God’s greatness, and by doing so we refuse living out our own greatness. We refuse God’s greatness because we have our own understanding of His isHihhheporiorepgreatness. We refuse to receive what God wants us to give, because it will shake our comfort, because it will shake our belief system, because it will even shake the way that we view God-it will shake our worldview. From the Old Testament we know that nobody can see God and stay alive. This is even true for our days. No way to stay alive after seeing God: we will die for ourselves and live only for God and by doing so we will find our true humanity.

In difficult circumstances, frequently, when we know what is right to do or to speak, we somehow act otherwise. We simply fear to take consequences to our actions of acting truthfully. Because of not doing what we are supposed to do, we indirectly contribute to evil. Therefore, by refusing to actively support good we passively support evil. We read in Math 12:30, “This is war, and there is no neutral ground, if you’re not on my side, you’re the enemy; if you’re not helping, you’re making things worse.” (The Message)

Winston Churchill has said, “Without courage all other virtues lose their meaning.” Sometimes Christians fear to doing what precisely they are called to: to follow Jesus the way that Jesus calls them. Sometimes Christians fear courageously resembling Jesus and truthfully following his footsteps-this last one is quite costly business. Oftentimes Christians fear becoming who God wants them to become, since God likeness and identification with Christ is again costly. Hence, fearful and timid Christians prevent the world from receiving God’s blessings. Christians want to stay safe at the expense of the world. The world needs us the way God wants us!

Thus, fearfulness, self-centeredness, greed, wrong passion, hypocrisy, ignorance, competition among Christians contribute to this crisis. Fear is a very complex phenomenon and its affects are multifaceted. The most devastating affect that fear causes is that it destroys God’s greatness in us and forbids God to create in us and to work through us.

The 21st century offers great challenges and great opportunities for Christians. In this century Christianity can’t be received as a system of beliefs, or practices of taboos, or simply attendance to church services. People are looking for more. They are looking for a true spirituality that will provide them a true meaning of life. People are looking for a meaning that they would be ready to live for and if necessary to die for. The world desperately needs an example but not a theory.

Actually it is quite risky to allow God to be God in our lives: God’s presence suggests a new construction of our hearts, which is possible only after being fully deconstructed. Great examples to this statement are Abraham, Moses, Joseph, Daniel, Paul, Peter and many others. All these people loved God, but they all paid the high price to allow God to lead them to places that God wanted them to be. As a result of this they all became a huge blessing to the nations!

In Isaiah 55:8-9 we read, “I don’t think the way you think. The way you work isn’t the way I work.”God’s Decree.” For as the sky soars high above earth, so the way I work surpasses the way you work, and the way I think is beyond the way you think.” (The Message) It takes a long way for humans to penetrate into God’s reality and start seeing things from God’s perspective. In this process of transformation humans face lots of challenges and changes. When people allow God to take his place in our hearts, He eagerly starts the process of transformation from being a human to being a right human, the one that we saw in Jesus Christ. God eagerly is looking for people who are willing to truly possess Jesus-likeness.

The Emerging Generation These days God is raising up a generation that refuses to accept Christianity as a system of beliefs and taboos. This generation is inward oriented generation that is looking for true spirituality and for true meaning in Christian faith.

Humanity in the 21st century is struggling to find their true selves. In this age of technology and information it is easier to get lost. Life has become very fast, and in this crazy motion it is almost impossible to find our true identity unless we truly stand close to God. The society that we live in does not shape us toward our true identity, but rather destroys us. First thing that the world kills and destroys in us is our identity. The world questions our God likeness, our belonging to God as children of God. In Math. 4: 1-11 we read about Jesus’ temptation. It is interesting to stress that in this passage the devil questions Jesus’ identity by asking, “If you are the Son of God….” The devil was not able to defeat Jesus, because Jesus knew his true identity. Jesus was confident who he was and where he was heading. Jesus’ confidence was due to his close relationship with his Father. Jesus was able to accomplish his mission because he knew who he was!

God is raising up a generation of courageous young people who are willing to be the true followers of Christ. This generation is tired of religion that does not make things any better. The cravings that God has put in our hearts this generation is willing to fulfill. Across the globe, all over the world, there are people ready to hear God’s wild call and follow it. This call can be in many different ways, toward many different directions, but the core of this call is the identification with Jesus, the resemblance of His character.

Simplicity

The principle of simplicity is very simple-to be a Christian is to follow Jesus. To follow Jesus is to become like Jesus. To become like Jesus is to live like Jesus. To live like Jesus is to be identified with Jesus. To be identified with Jesus is to possess his character and courage. Jesus likeness will move us to lay down our lives for the sake of others. Jesus likeness will empower us to be willing to pay the price to bring back humans to their true humanity, to their God-like humanity. Jesus likeness will kill our fears and lead us to places that we are scared to go. Jesus likeness will bring a light to the world!

The 21st century is a pivotal time for Christian history. Would you consider being a part of this history making process by joining the emerging generation of courage, faith and adventure?

In Part 1, I discussed both the beneficiaries of the gifts of the Spirit as recorded by Paul in Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12, and Ephesians 4; and the motivation for exercising these gifts as primarily highlighted in 1 Corinthians 13. I noted that the beneficiaries of the gifts are not those possessing or exercising the gifts, but the ones being ministered to through the gifts. In other words, the gifts are not for my benefit as one exercising any one of the gifts, but for me to be a channel of God’s grace to others in the body. The gifts are meant to work together to help build up the entire body of Christ, and not any one individual leader or member. In addition the primary motivation for using the gifts needs to be one of love. The gifts exercised without love are like the squeaky hinge of a rusty gate-very grating on the nerves (cf. 1 Cor 13:1-3 in the Message).

In Part 2, I want to address another foundational understanding of the gifts of the Spirit that I have found particularly encouraging, edifying, and valuable for my life and ministry. The spiritual gifts are only one way in which God has prepared us to be ministers and leaders. J. Robert Clinton talks of the Giftedness Set which includes natural abilities, acquired skills, as well as the spiritual gifts.[1] In other words, we need to learn to minister and lead out of all that God has created us to be. This article will focus on the importance of the combination of all three and then address natural abilities and acquired skills, looking at how these can work together with spiritual gifts. In Part 3 and 4 of this series, we will look specifically at Spiritual Gifts.
The Importance of the Giftedness Set

I have noticed that we frequently make a dichotomy between our spiritual life-what happens at church on Sundays, mid-week prayer meetings, small group Bible studies, and other church gatherings-and what we do the rest of the week in our homes and jobs. There is an expectation that when we come to church, we are suppose to be “spiritual” (whatever that means!) and exercise spiritual gifts, and then when we return home and to work, we rely on our natural abilities and all of the skills and knowledge we have learned or been trained to use. While this may sound like a bit of an exaggeration, it is easy to fall into this pattern unconsciously because we haven’t connected the exercise of spiritual gifts with our daily lives.

But God did not just create spiritual gifts. He created each individual with a unique combination of characteristics and opportunities for development. Are we suppose to forget these when we walk in the door of the church? If someone is a gifted worship leader, chances are they have some natural musical abilities and have learned some skills of playing an instrument or reading music. These work together with a sensitivity to the Spirit, perhaps a prophetic gift, to lead a group of people in worship.

On the other hand, we, perhaps subconsciously, combine natural abilities and acquired skills with spiritual gifts in the church. Would we hire a secretary who did not know how to type? Or a bookkeeper that did not have skills in accounting? Do we want a pastor who does not have skills in preaching or studying Scripture? A leader without some natural abilities and learned skills would have a hard time. But we certainly want someone in leadership and responsible positions who is sensitive to the Spirit of God and who can express the love of God to those who are in the body or may come into a church gathering. Thus to separate spiritual gifts out from the rest of who God created us to be, we can get ourselves into trouble. God intended us to be all of who we are, and to minister and lead out of that person God created and gifted us to be! I have found this to be incredibly freeing. God wants me to be led by his Spirit whether I am in church or in the home or at work! He wants me to use his gifts where ever I am, and he also wants me to use my natural abilities and learned skills as well.
Natural Abilities

Given the value of God’s creation and unique formation of each one of us, it behooves us to work to discover and use the abilities within us. Often these are pretty obvious as we grow up. Some people are really artistic or musical, perhaps outgoing and relational. Others may be quieter and more pensive with a gift for analyzing or strategizing, while others are really gifted at crafts or working with their hands. Still others seem to be born leaders, while some have no desire to be in any kind of leadership position. The list could be endless. The important thing is to begin to take note of how you are created and what you are able to do “naturally.” Sometimes certain things are so natural to you that you don’t really understand why others can’t do them as easily. Growing up, I was always very analytical and loved math problems. To me figuring out math problems was fun and easy and I couldn’t understand why others struggled so much with different math concepts. It took me awhile to realize that not all people think the way I do! But when it comes to music, it is just the opposite. I have only a little natural ability in this area and have had to work hard to learn to read music and play an instrument.

Likewise, sometimes we discover these natural abilities as we reflect back on our younger years. You can ask yourself some very practical questions like these: What did I enjoy doing as a child? What did I dream of being as I grew up? What kinds of things just came easily for me to do? When I could choose what I wanted to do, what was that? What did other people see in me and encourage me to do?

Through asking these kinds of questions, I discovered some of my teaching abilities. My first paid job was teaching sailing at age seventeen. But at age fourteen, I was teaching informally in a camp context. At sixteen, I was asked by my science teacher to do demonstrations of lab experiments for other classes. When I became a Christian in college, I found that I was soon teaching the Bible studies in the dorm because I intuitively picked up the ideas of inductive Bible studies. I could easily add another dozen items to this list that all began to demonstrate to me something of my natural abilities in the area of teaching. But I never realized this until I did some intentional reflection on how God created me.

If you start taking some notes, you will find over the next week, or month, or even year, the Lord will bring to mind different events, life experiences, words from other people, inner revelations, that will begin to show you how you are created and the unique abilities you bring to the Body of Christ that the Lord might want you to develop and use. Keep a log of these insights and, over time, you will begin to see some fascinating patterns of God’s unique creation in you.
Acquired Skills

Acquired skills are closely related to natural abilities. We can get training in lots of ways. Sometimes it is formally in an educational setting, but probably more often we learn best in informal or non-formal settings where we get to learn through experience and demonstration. For example, I learned to sail through classes beginning at age seven. But I really learned to sail and race small boats because I would hang out with my Dad or my Grandpa. Both were excellent sailors and I would just do it with them, ask questions, be trained by them in certain skills and techniques. When I started racing small boats at about age ten, by Grandpa would ask me how it went, why did I do what I did, and then would give me clues on how to do better the next time. Gradually I went from finishing at the bottom of the fleet to being one of the regular competitors at the top.

You can begin to ask yourself, what have you been trained to do? What have you learned from others that has shaped you and given you opportunities to continue to develop as a leader? Think beyond what you have done at university in the classroom. Who has coached you? Who has mentored you in some way? Who discipled you as a young believer? Who has given you opportunities to develop your natural abilities and spiritual gifts while providing you guidance and direction? Add these insights to your journal about your natural abilities.

All of these are an important part of knowing who you are as a member and leader in the body of Christ. Hopefully you can begin to see how these natural abilities and learned skills are important in helping you exercise your spiritual gifts. Together all three make you the unique leader that you are, an expression of God’s goodness to the Body of Christ.

In the next articles, I will talk about the Spiritual Gifts and how you can work to develop these. As I think about becoming all that God wants me to be, I am encouraged by Philippians 2:11-12: “continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.” Or as the Message translation says, “Be energetic in your life of salvation, reverent and sensitive before God. That energy is God’s energy, an energy deep within you, God himself willing and working at what will give him the most pleasure.”[2] God wants us to work with Him to develop all that we are, even as he releases his power and purpose within us to make it happen. We minister in partnership with him! What an awesome privilege.

If you want to be an effective leader, it is important for you to know and understand anything you can about how God has gifted you for the responsibility. If you know your strengths and weaknesses, and the strengths and weaknesses of others on your team, you can all work together to complement each others’ giftedness to create a synergy in leadership that is greater that what each of you could do individually.

Having said that, I want to ask two prior questions that I want to address. First, who benefits from the gifts God has give you? Second, what is the foundational motivation for exercising your gifts? The answers to these two questions will shape our understanding of the gift passages in Romans 12:6-8, 1 Corinthians 12:7-11, 28-30, and Ephesians 4:11.
Who Benefits?

When we start talking about God’s gifting of leaders, we can easily focus on ourselves and what God is doing in and through us. We may not readily admit it, but we are often thinking, “Look at me! See what I can do or see what gifts God has given me!” This is a dangerous trap that leads to pride and self-confidence. In all three of our passages, the gifts clearly belong to the Lord and are given by God for the benefit of others not the leader.

Look at Romans 12. The passage about gifts is in the context of presenting our lives as a living sacrifice so that we can be changed and transformed, a witness to God’s perfect will (v. 2). In addition the gifts are described in terms of what they do for others. Each gift contributes to the building up of the body—none is complete in itself. When we exercise any of the gifts, we do so for the benefit of the others in the body. Our teaching benefits others, our prophecy is for the benefit of others, our service serves others, and so on. We may benefit from the exercise of the gift also, but the primary beneficiary is others in the body.

We can see a similar pattern in 1 Corinthians 12:7: “Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.” Clearly the beneficiaries are others in the body, not the one to whom a gift is given. The previous verses (4-6) are very clear that all the gifts come from the Holy Spirit, from the same God, and are distributed by the Spirit of God. They are not our possession in the sense that we own and control them. Paul is confronting issues of pride in the church at Corinth where some are saying, “My gift is better than yours.” Again, Paul uses the body image to illustrate how the gifts must work together, each doing their own part. If any gift is not functioning in the body, it is like being a crippled person missing an arm or a leg. “But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it” (12:24-26).

Finally, in Ephesians 4, Paul again establishes the beneficiaries of the gifts given to leaders. In this passage he is talking about leaders who are apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers (sometimes referred to as offices). These leaders are gifts to the body of Christ, for the purpose of equipping God’s “people for the works of service, so that the body of Christ may be build up, until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of god and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ (4:12-13). Clearly, the leaders are important, but their importance is measured by the results in the body, by the people being built up, by the people becoming linked together, by the people becoming mature in their relationship to Christ. There is a clear sense that either we all get there together or none get there! There are no lone leaders at the top—they must have a body they have built up by exercising their gifts.
Motivation for Exercising Our Gifts

My second question about motivation is equally important. If the gifts are given to individuals in the body for the benefit of others in the body, what is the motivation that is behind the exercise of the gifts. To answer this question I will start with 1 Corinthians.

We are all familiar with 1 Corinthians 13, the famous and familiar passage on love. It is often read at weddings to encourage the husband and wife on how to love each other, but its primary context is in the exercise of the gifts of the Spirit for the benefit of the whole body of Christ. This chapter is strategically placed between the introduction of the gifts of the Spirit in chapter 12, and a more detailed description on the exercise of the gift of prophesy in Chapter 14. Furthermore, the introduction of chapter 13 (v. 1-3) describes the use of gifts without love as being worthless. A person can prophesy, can be eloquent and powerful in the process, clearly speaking forth truth from God, but if this is done without a motivation of love, then the person is just making noise—unpleasant noise at that. If the beneficiary of the gift is another, then we need to love that other member of the body of Christ. Our motive is never to be self-serving, or self-promoting, but an expression of God’s love working through us for the blessing and benefit of the recipient.

For example how do we feel when we pray for a person who is sick, injured, or crippled, and they are healed, when at the same time we may be sick, injured, or crippled and God has seemingly not answered our prayers for ourselves. Do we get mad at God? Or jealous of the healing the other person received? Can we continue to pray for others and allow the Spirit to work through us to touch others, even when we are still seeking God for answers to similar prayers for ourselves? This can be a big challenge, but we must remember the gifts are not ours, but they are ours to give away to others as a love-gift from the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. What an opportunity to witness to God’s love and goodness.

While the 1 Corinthian passages are the most direct in addressing the relationship of the gifts of the Spirit to the motivation of love, the passages in both Romans and Ephesians also discuss the gifts in the context of loving those in the body of Christ. Romans 12:9, for example, begins to address the importance of love in the relationships between believers. Likewise, the Ephesians 4 passage is sandwiched between the prayer that the believers would grow in their knowledge of the all surpassing love of Christ (Eph 3:14-21) and the instructions for relationships in the body that exemplify love (Eph 4:14ff). In this passage itself, Paul states that believers are to be “speaking the truth in love” so that we will grow, together, into the body of Christ, which corresponds to the purpose of the gifts of the leaders to the church to build up the body (3:12-13).

In conclusion, if we are to study the gifts of the Spirit, it is foundational to understand them in the proper perspective. First, the beneficiaries of the gifts are not those who exercise the gifts, but those who are the receivers of the ministry of the gifts. As we exercise any gift of God, we cannot take credit or pride in what we do because it is God who is working through us (1 Cor 12:6), to build up the body together and minister to one another. Likewise, our motivation must be one of love, expressing God’s love to those being ministered to. Or as Peterson says in the Message Bible, “If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don’t love, I’m nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate” (1 Cor 13:1). We want to be transmitters of love, not creaking gates, clanging cymbal or clanging gong (NIV).

In Part 2, I will share some thoughts on how our natural abilities and acquired skills are meant to work together with the spiritual gifts from God.