Spiritual Gifts 5 - Target Service.

Friday, Sept 25, 2009. What is the purpose of the Holy Spirit? What is the purpose of the gifts? When we analyse the role of the spiritual gifts, when we use these gifts in our daily life, we need to have a clear picture about their purpose. It is not enough to be excited by God and by his gifts. It is not enough to “somehow” follow the Lord. It is important to really follow him. It is important to understand his ideas about life and purpose!

There is a lot of noise around the spirit and around spiritual gifts in some of our churches. People worship the spirit - and they worship the gifts. But the gifts have the purpose to serve, they do not exist to be in the center of our life. The center should be the Lord with his love. When our community is no longer focussed on building healthy relationships, but is focussed on some phenomena, we have lost ballance! That will cause many problems and a church which looses ballance will suffer and wither. There are too many churches today, who suffer in this way! You can loose the center by going the way of a dry institutional death. But you can also loose the center by worship of what God wanted to be a tool only.

Again and again during his ministry Jesus tried to lead his people to his attitude of service. He tried to lead them to an attitude of brotherhood. Who wants to be the first of all should be everyone's servant! The purpose of the Holy Spirit is to serve and to work. He is called “the comforter”, he is a spirit of love and dedication, of truth and sincerity, of joy and cheerfulness. To learn to live in the attitude of Jesus is a high goal.

We are usually strongly influenced by the attitude of this world, which is an attitude of blatancy, an attitude of pretending, an attitude where people try to be better than others. But the attitude of the Holy Spirit is different. With the spirit we will try to be open for others, be on the same level with them, be there for them and with them, comfort them, encourage them, love them, work together with them, be truthful and full of appreciation. The key feature of the kingship of Jesus is his attitude of service.

Is there a better world? Yes, there is a better world within the old one and there will be a better world when the new creation God comes to full reign. The better world is the world of the spirit, it is the world of Jesus, the world into which he takes his disciples. When you come to faith, you enter this world. It is a world of mutual service, of sincere mutual love, of deep truth and reliability on all levels. It is the world of the Holy Spirit and fully includes the spiritual gifts which he gives.

Spiritual gifts will be used in the right way when we put service first, when we use these gifts as tools of service. Spiritual gifts are given as acts of love, as tools which serve to be there for others. They may be great tools, but they are just tools to do the important things. You give a present to a loved person, not to establish new love into the present, but to put the person into the center. When we keep our focus on God, on his truth and his love, then we will use his gifts wisely and effectively. [R.W.E.P., jesusnetwork.eu]

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