Honoring All Gifts

Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; ⁵and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; ⁶and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. ⁷To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 1 Corinthians 12:4-7

The early Christian church, like the church today, was filled with division. This is not particularly surprising given the rapid growth of the church and the diversity of backgrounds people came from. The biggest division stemmed from the cultural and class collision of the Jewish Christians and the Gentile Christians. Whether the issue was circumcision, food sacrificed to idols, or simple table fellowship, these groups were in conflict. This is why Paul writes so extensively to the Corinthian church. He argues and encourages the church to look beyond their differences and see their fundamental unity their share in Christ.

For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. ¹³For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. 1 Corinthians 12:12-13

The differences within the early church were not reasons to divide or separate, rather the church should see itself as the Body of Christ with a variety of needed and necessary parts. Not all parts of the body can be hands, or feet, or eyes as Paul so poetically demonstrates. Some people are needed to be gallbladders and splines and hearts which are needed but unseen. All parts are needed and all parts are valuable.


Paul's intended audience are the Jewish Christians who were more powerful in the early church. All of the apostles came to faith in Christ as Jews. They carried with them different worldviews and values than the Gentiles. The Jewish Christians could also see their group most prominently represented in the leadership of the early church. How easy it must have been to look down upon the Gentile converts. How quick they may have been to diminish or marginalize their gifts and contributions. Because of this, Paul argues, those who are in more powerful and high profile leadership positions must humbly include and honor those with less power.

On the contrary, the members of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, ²³and those members of the body that we think less honorable we clothe with greater honor, and our less respectable members are treated with greater respect; ²⁴whereas our more respectable members do not need this. But God has so arranged the body, giving the greater honor to the inferior member, ²⁵that there may be no dissension within the body, but the members may have the same care for one another. 1 Corinthians 12:22-25

In this passage Paul is prescribing behavior for the church rather than describing. The wisdom for the Corinthian church still applies today as we seek to honor and affirm each person's gifts. All of us are created by God, all are given gifts by the Spirit, and all are needed for the Body of Christ to develop fully. For those in positions of power and leadership, like pastors or elected officers, the challenge is to humbly remember that as important as your position is all people have a role to play. For those who are behind the scenes the challenge is to remember your gifts and use them. The church cannot realize its potential when leaders do all the work and other members sit on the sidelines. We need all parts of the body, working together, to God's work.

Leadership Development

⁷But each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift. ⁸Therefore it is said, ¹¹The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, ¹²to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, ¹³until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. Ephesians 4:7;11-13

Leadership in the church is essential to the future of God’s work in the world. Effective leadership is needed for local churches, denominations, and world-wide ministries. This is true today and it was true when the church was being established. In the letter to the Ephesians, we see a model of leadership that involves different leadership gifts and styles all working together.

The letter states that “each of us” was given grace according the measure of Christ’s gift. In other words, we have all been given something and effective leadership requires utilizing each person’s gift. The five-fold gifts in Ephesians are: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors (or shepherds), and teachers. The church needs leaders with all of these varied gifts which means a church needs more than one leader. A church will not realize its potential if it relies solely on a pastor. Rather, a combination of leaders both clergy and lay is required to develop a robust five-fold leadership team. A quick description of the five-fold leadership model may help exemplify these differences.

Apostles, like the original twelve, are those who have gifts to start new faith communities. This could entail a mission start congregation or creating a Christian movement. The key is that these leaders can build something from nothing. Prophets are those who speak God’s truth to God’s people. They comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. Their ministry is often needed for renewal and repentance. Evangelists are gifted at personal conversion. They are able to share the gospel in compelling ways that help individuals take a step forward in faith. Pastors are those with gifts for caring for God’s people. They are attentive to the needs of the people and, like a shepherd, are on the lookout for those who are straying. Teachers are leaders who effectively share the content of the faith and can pass it on. They help others learn the nature of the Christian faith and encourage people to live it out.

Each of these gifts are very important for the church today and are all very different. As an ordained pastor, I know I have strengths in some of these areas and deficiencies on others. The key is to recognize that one person cannot do and be all things. I need to surround myself with a team that has complimentary gifts so that all areas are addressed. Those leaders need to be encouraged and empowered to use their gifts in meaningful and impactful ways.

A church that does not have all of these gifts present among their leadership will struggle to reach God’s potential for its work. It is evident that many congregations and denominations have favored some gifts and denigrated others. In my own tradition, there is very little discussion of leadership gifts for an apostle or evangelist. In my seminary training I was encouraged to preach well, administer the sacraments, visit my parishioners, and speak to justice issues. To the extent that evangelism was discussed at all, it was usually cast in a negative light. It does not take too much imagination to connect this attitude and the training pastors receive to the continual decline in mainline protestant denominations.

In the end, the goal of leadership in the church is to: “equip the saints for the work of ministry.” Leaders equip others to use their gifts to minister in the world. Leaders are not to be the doers of ministry but the empowerers of ministry. When leaders equip their people to do God’s work in the world the Body of Christ is built up and can be a stronger presence in the world. In order to reach this potential we need strong leaders with a variety of gifts, building people up to be God’s people in the world.

May God continue to bless the church and the work we do together!

Love Builds Up

Now concerning food sacrificed to idols: we know that “all of us possess knowledge.” Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. ²Anyone who claims to know something does not yet have the necessary knowledge; ³but anyone who loves God is known by him. 1 Corinthians 8:1-3

Conflict in the church is inevitable. Whenever people gather together and strive to live and work together there is bound to be disagreements, tensions, and conflict. Conflict is not a sign of an unhealthy church, in fact many times conflict allows important issues to surface that had not been previously known or addressed. How conflict is handled is the key. Running away from a conflict or denying that it exists is rarely helpful. Instead, if church leaders are able to create the space for conflict to be named and for people to share their thoughts in ways that are respectful, situations can be addressed in ways that bring positive results and healthy growth.

Paul writes to the church in Corinth about a conflict about whether or not Christians should be permitted to eat meat that had been sacrificed to idols. He frames the issue in way that doesn’t focus on food, but rather the tension between “knowledge” and “love.”  The knowledge is that there is only one God and that other gods or idols are not real and “no idol in the world really exists.” (8:4) There is only one God and any contrary claim is false. The issue is some of those with this knowledge began eating sacrificed meat in the presence of new Christians. These new Christians, whom Paul calls “weak” are troubled by seeing more mature Christians eat sacrificed meat. After all, many of these new Christians just left pagan religion behind to confess there is only one true God. Now they see more experienced leaders doing the same pagan practices they abandoned? It is easy to see how this would be confusing and cause new converts to stumble.

So while Paul acknowledges that those with this knowledge are technically correct, he asserts that knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. In other words, a mature and loving response to this situation is to take into account how other people respond when considering the best decision. If as followers of Christ, we are arrogant about our knowledge we are only puffing ourselves up. But it is even more important to help build up the Body of Christ, by helping all people grow in faith. Paul admonishes those with knowledge to take this into account and charges them with responsibility for those under their care:

So by your knowledge those weak believers for whom Christ died are destroyed. ¹²But when you thus sin against members of your family, and wound their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ. 1 Corinthians 8:11-12

The ethical principle Paul espouses is being sensitive and compassionate toward others is a virtue and that actions which tear others down unnecessarily are immoral. There may be some things, like the core of the gospel, that are worth stubbornly insisting on, but in many cases we need also to consider the impact our behavior has on others. The church is God’s people assembled together, mutually building one another up for God’s kingdom work. Let us all pursue the love the builds up rather than settle for knowledge makes only ourselves look good.

The Cost of Being Right

We do not live to ourselves, and we do not die to ourselves. ⁸If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. Romans 14:7-8

I have read these words countless times at graveside services for families saying good bye to a deceased loved one. In that context, these words remind us that no matter what happens in life God is always with us, in life and death. While reading this passage from Romans is certainly appropriate for a funeral, the original context that Paul sought to address was not death but food.

In the early church there was considerable conflict between Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians. The conflict that Paul addresses centers around the Jewish Christians who maintain strict observance of dietary laws while others, whether Jewish or Gentile, feel free to eat whatever they like. This caused a crisis of faith for those who held fast to those regulations, as they felt those who did not were violating God’s commands. As a technical matter, Paul believes that no food is unclean, but for the sake of the mutual upbuilding of faith, he encourages sensitivity and restraint and not judging those who practice and believe differently.

Let us therefore no longer pass judgment on one another, but resolve instead never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of another. ¹⁴I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself; but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean. ¹⁵If your brother or sister is being injured by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. Do not let what you eat cause the ruin of one for whom Christ died. Romans 14:13-15

 Paul espouses a communal rather than individualistic ethic. It matters how other people feel and even when you are right sometimes you are wrong. This sounds like good advice for any relationship. There are times when the relationship between people is more important than the individual. Paul is encouraging the Roman church to be sensitive, thoughtful, and flexible in how they treat one another. He encourages them to see the higher value of brothers and sisters coming to faith in Jesus Christ than the rightness of which food they can eat.

Let us then pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding. ²⁰Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong for you to make others fall by what you eat. Romans 14:19-20

So the next time you find yourself arguing or debating with a dear friend, family member, or fellow member of the Body of Christ ask yourself whether the benefit of being right is worth the cost.

Branching Out

If the root is holy, then the branches also are holy. ¹⁷But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, a wild olive shoot, were grafted in their place to share the rich root of the olive tree, ¹⁸do not boast over the branches. If you do boast, remember that it is not you that support the root, but the root that supports you. ¹⁹You will say, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” ²⁰That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand only through faith. So do not become proud, but stand in awe. Romans 11:16-20

In Romans, Paul makes a compelling argument for how God’s salvation through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, is an extension rather than a repudiation of God’s salvific work in the Old Testament. In other words, there is continuity in the gracious way God interacts with humanity in both the old and new testaments. Salvation is by grace, through faith, apart from works of the law. It was the faith, not the works, of Abraham that was “reckoned to him as righteousness.” (Genesis 15:6) So while the people of Israel were chosen for a special relationship with God, this was always the gracious offering from God not the result of adherence to the law.

In the death and resurrection of Christ, this graciousness is revealed for all people, not just the Jewish people. Our relationship with God, and our salvation, is not a matter of the family you were born into, the faith tradition you inherited, or our moral perfection. Rather it is a matter of faith:

If you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Romans 10:9

Anyone who has faith has salvation. This is the central message of Romans and the heart of the gospel. Salvation is, and always has been, a matter of faith.

So what then becomes of the Jewish people who do not believe? Are the ancestors of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the same people God chose for a special relationship, no longer included in the promises of God? Paul desperately wants the Jewish people, his family and friends, to be saved (cf. Romans 9:1-5, 10:1) but also recognizes that by rejecting Christ they are standing outside of the promises of God. He uses the familiar image of a tree to illustrate the situation. In the Old Testament the people of Israel are often depicted as trees in both positive and negative ways:

The righteous flourish like the palm tree, and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. ¹³They are planted in the house of the Lord; they flourish in the courts of our God. ¹⁴In old age they still produce fruit; they are always green and full of sap. Psalm 92:12-14

To provide for those who mourn in Zion— to give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit. They will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, to display his glory. Isaiah 61:3

The Lord once called you, “A green olive tree, fair with goodly fruit”; but with the roar of a great tempest he will set fire to it, and its branches will be consumed. Jeremiah 11:16

So when Paul uses the image of branches broken off from the holy root of God, and a wild olive branch grafted in its place, he is describing both the continuity of salvation and the situation of those who do not believe by using an image for God’s people that would be readily recognized. The grafted branches (Gentiles) should not however look down upon the broken branches (Israel) because:

And even those of Israel, if they do not persist in unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again. ²⁴For if you have been cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these natural branches be grafted back into their own olive tree. Romans 11:23-24

God has not given up on the Jewish people and they could at anytime be grafted back into the tree of salvation. Salvation is a gift of grace through faith and it is open to all. This is good news for all branches of the human family.

Already, Not Yet

For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? ²⁵But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Romans 8:24-25

There is nothing more powerful than hope. Hope allows us to endure hardship, suffering and pain and still trust that redemption and healing are possible. Hope allows us to believe that despite the brokenness, sin and evil in our world, God will be victorious. Hope allows to see a future that has not yet been fully realized that we know is true and to wait for it with patience.

This kind of hope is powerful and liberating and plays a central role in Paul’s theological vision in Romans. This hope is rooted in the understanding that the death and resurrection of Christ is the pivotal moment in history. On the cross, Jesus defeats all the powers of death, sin, and evil. This has already happened and yet we also know that sin and evil still exist in our world. God’s kingdom was ushered into the world in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, but is not yet fully realized. At the second coming of Jesus, the kingdom of God will be fully realized and all that is not from God will be eradicated. This is the central promise of the cross, but it is not yet here and so we wait with hope and faith and patience.

So how shall we wait with patience? Paul offers the evocative image of the creation in labor pains to illustrate the hopeful waiting:

We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; ²³and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. Romans 8:22-23

The not yet, kingdom world is already present but not yet born. The whole creation waits with eager hope and expectation that God will deliver on the promise of redemption. This is a powerful image that captures the hope for what we cannot see but deeply trust. We trust that as we wait that nothing will separate us from the love of God.

For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, ³⁹nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39

Baptism is Death

Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.

Romans 6:3-4

 

In Romans, Paul makes the case that baptism is death. It is death to self, death to sin, death to all things apart from God. In the early church, and in many churches today, people were baptized as adults in a river. They were fully immersed and held underwater and emerged as a new creation. They were not only cleansed of their sins, but their old self was drowned and left for dead. Baptism into Christ’s death means that our sin died on the cross and that we have new life in the power of the resurrection. This is a powerful and life-giving promise.

In the Lutheran tradition, where we most often baptize very young children with a splash of water, I wonder if we miss the power of baptism into Christ’s death. While I am not suggesting we hold toddlers underwater in the rapids of the Mississippi, I do think we need to internalize the power of baptism as death. If baptism is death then we no longer need to fear our own mortality. If baptism is death then the end of our story has already been written. If baptism is death then we are free to live this life as children of God, walking in newness of life. Baptism is more than forgiveness it is liberation from all that binds us.

This liberation however does not except us from the real struggle of human existence. It does not prevent human suffering. But what it does offer is real hope in the midst of suffering. (see Romans 5 Boast in Hope and Suffering ) We have hope because we know how the story ends for us and for the world: redemption, reconciliation, and the Kingdom of God. In baptism, this promise is secure and when we understand and accept this promise, it has the power to change our lives. May we trust the promise and walk each day as a child of God and in newness of life.

Saved by Grace

Therefore you have no excuse, whoever you are, when you judge others; for in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, are doing the very same things. Romans 2:1

In Paul’s letter to the Romans, he offers a comprehensive vision of the salvation of God and what it means to live our life in response. The first three chapters spell out our deep need for God’s grace. We need God’s grace so desperately because we are mired in sin. The truth is we are not “ok” in our relationship with God. On our own merits we fall short and are fully deserving of God’s wrath. It is only by the grace of God, through the death and resurrection of Christ, that we can be saved.

Take, for example, the sin of judging others. This is something we all do, all the time. We judge people by what they wear, how they talk, how much money they have, etc. We also have a very human tendency to judge the morality of others as well. I have noticed that when we judge other’s behavior our boundary of what is righteous behavior and what is not is just below our own behavior. “Those people” we sneer silently (or aloud) and we think of ourselves as somehow better or superior. Paul wrote to the Romans about this very human tendency not to condemn them but to force them to take inventory of their own sin.

You say, “We know that God’s judgment on those who do such things is in accordance with truth.” ³Do you imagine, whoever you are, that when you judge those who do such things and yet do them yourself, you will escape the judgment of God? ⁴Or do you despise the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience? Do you not realize that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? ⁵But by your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath, when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed. Romans 2:2-5

The truth is we are all sinners, whether we know it or not, and in deep need of God’s grace. In Romans, Paul makes clear that on our own we are nowhere in our relationship with God. On our own we deserve, and will receive, God’s wrath. But God sent Jesus Christ into the world for our salvation. Not for perfect people, or good people, but all people. All people have access to salvation. All people, no matter who they are or what they done, can be saved. This is the gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ.

But now, apart from law, the righteousness of God has been disclosed, and is attested by the law and the prophets, ²²the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, ²³since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; ²⁴they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Romans 3:21-24

Let us know clearly our deep need for forgiveness. Let us know clearly the infinite love and grace of God. And let us live life, loving God and one another, in response.