Verse of the Day Devotion:  1 Peter 4:10   

“As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” – 1 Peter 4:10

In this verse, Peter is telling Christians that God has given each of us at least one special gift for us to use in His service.  He does not list the types of gifts so we cannot tell if he is speaking of a specific gift or simply the gift of the Holy Spirit, which we know all Christians receive.  But whatever that gift is, it is given to us in order to serve the Church, meaning those who are Christians. 

And it is important though to remember we cannot control how God has distributed them out.  We can pray that God will give us certain gifts, but ultimately He is the one who decides how they will be disseminated.  And there are various spiritual gifts.  Paul said, “Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit.  And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord.” 1 Corinthians 12:4-5.  God chooses which gifts we will receive and what we will do in ministry.  What is important is that we all are given gifts for the purpose of serving God and the church.

And there are two different type of gifts.  The first, as seen in 1 Corinthians are the spiritual gifts.  These are stated as manifestations of the Spirit.  These being the word of wisdom through the Spirit, and the word of knowledge through the Spirit.  To some the working of miracles. To others the gift of faith, which is the special gift whereby the Spirit provides Christians with extraordinary confidence in God’s promises.  An example of this may be those in places of persecution in countries which are adamantly against the Christian faith. And to some prophesy and  distinguishing of spirits, to some speaking in tongues, and to some the interpretation of tongues.  And these are needed gifts, or God would not give them today.  Some believe that tongues has ended, however the scriptures do not say anything like this, therefore we must be careful here.  God will provide any gift He deems necessary within the Church.

And second, some gifts He gives us are not any of the above but are important in His service.  For instance, the gift of public speaking or of  organization.  Maybe the gift of consolation or being able to understand what people are going through more than others.  These can be gifts that He gives us through interactions with people He has put in our path.  Sometimes He will give us natural gifts in order to serve His people, such as the gift and desire to cook, or clean, or caring for those who need care from another. Or possibly physical things such as Bibles to spread throughout the world, or food to give to Christians who are starving. Sometimes the gift can be a desire given to us for filling God’s peoples need. And in Ephesians, we see He gifts the Church with what is needed for the Body of Christ to grow in the Lord.  These gifts include but are not limited to prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers. 

 In closing, God disperses His gifts as He chooses, for the benefit of the Body of Christ, and to help them be a witness to those who are not Christians, helping them become followers of Christ.  And the purpose of these gifts is to serve God and the Church  according to His calling to us.  Use the gifts you know God has given you.  If you are not sure what your gifts  are, pray that God will show you and follow His guidance.  As we get closer to the return of Christ, these gifts will become even more important in order to reach the lost and strengthen Christians in their walk. 

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries.