SPIRITUAL GIFTS: CAPACITY AND MATURITY
BEFORE YOU READ
AFTER YOU READ
DOCUMENTS AND LINKS
As we've discussed the gifts of Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Shepherds, and Teachers that are listed in Ephesians 4:11 we've talked about how each every single person is given at least one gift. Often we are given all 5 gifts in varying degrees but have one or two that are our greatest God given strengths.
One thing that is important to clarify is that while everyone is given a gift and a role to play in the body of Christ, there is a great deal of diversity in how those gifts are utilized. Not all evangelists win hundreds of people to Christ like Billy Graham. Not all teachers are as polished in communications as Andy Stanley or Tim Keller. Not all apostles plant hundreds of churches. There is always a danger in comparing the way we use our gifts to the way that others use their gifts. In America we often confuse big results with success.
First and foremost, we use our gifts out of gratitude. Ephesians 4 talks about Jesus winning a great victory over evil and rescuing us from sin and death. We don't use our gifts to get Jesus to love us or earn his approval. Our service to Jesus flows from hearts that are in awe of the love that we have been shown and is an act of worship to say thank you for all you have done. Serving others is done to show them how deeply they too are loved by the God of the universe.
Secondly, comparison is the killer of joy. When we look at the gifts of others and wish we had theirs, we lose the sense of gratitude we should be serving from and end up feeling entitled to something different. To be unsatisfied with our gifting is to question the wisdom, design, and heart of God for you. He knew what He was doing when he created you and give you your gifts. He knew the work that He had created you for. And He loved you enough to give you the gifts that you have in order to be part of that plan.
With that in mind, let's talk about two factors in the use of our spiritual gifts.
CAPACITY
Capacity refers to the maximum ability to contain something or to produce something. When we speak about capacity,we're primarily concerned with a persons innate ability to complete tasks and serve people. Have you ever heard that old saying "They've got a lot on their plate?" I heard one leader say that it seems like some people have different size plates. Some people have a desert plate, some have a dinner plate, and some people have a lunch tray. This appears to be the case.
For example, when you look at the story of Moses and Jethro in Exodus 18:21, we see that the challenge of leading and governing the people of Israel required delegating authority to others. Jethro says, "Appoint them as leaders over groups of one thousand, one hundred, fifty, and ten." Some leaders are given the responsibility of overseeing 10 people, while others oversee fifty, or a hundred, and then a thousand.
Now I could be completely off, but if we were be extremely conservative and look at what the lowest number of Jews who left Egypt it might be, it could of been around 30,000 people. That would mean the amount of leaders Moses would need to identify would look like this.
30 leaders of 1,000
300 leaders of 100
600 leaders of 50
10,000 leaders of 10
While leading 10 people might not seem significant, they were vital to the mission of God. 10,000 people with the capacity to oversee 10 people was crucial to making sure that Moses was not overwhelmed and was able to do the unique work that only he could do. None of these people were unimportant.
Jesus himself, was the greatest equipper in the world. The largest group of people he ever personally mobilized for ministry while he was on earth was 72!
You may not be called to know, serve, and minister to any more than 10 people. That's okay! The point is to do your part and love that group of 10 as deeply as possible. You may be someone who can handle overseeing 50 people. That doesn't make you better or more valuable. It means that's the way God created you. Thank him, and then do your part.
It seems to me like while there are far fewer people who are given the capacity to lead 300 or even 1,000 people, we make them the heroes and put them on conference stages. I'm glad that God has created those leaders. We need them, but they're no more important than the unnamed thousands of people who serve 10 people. What is important is to be faithful to serving the number God has given us.
What size group of believers do you see that God has you serving?
MATURITY
The second category that is important to consider when we're talking about the use of spiritual gifts is maturity. Are these gifts being developed? Are others being trained to use their gifts well? It's not enough to identify whether or not you're wired to be an evangelist if you don't actually learn to share the gospel. Not only should an evangelist seek to learn how to share the gospel, but they should seek to help others do the same. Those who are gifted in them should both learn to do them well, but they must also equip others to do the same. This applies to all five one of the APEST roles and gifts.
Ephesians 4:12 says that "Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ." This means that doers must eventually become equippers.
If you are just now figuring out what your gift is, find someone you know with the same gift and ask them to mentor you. If you can't find a mentor, I recommend Neil Cole's book Primal Fire. It gives a more in depth look at what each role does. If you have been serving in your role for a while, find a single person that you can start mentoring. Share what you've learned. You often end up learning far more from teaching then you knew before.
Once you've mentored one person, find another, then another, then maybe start a group. The point is that what God has given you must be invested in the lives of others. A sure sign of maturity is reproduction.
