Normally my writing is geared towards encouraging people that there is hope beyond where they are. That God has plan for them and wants them to take steps to move forward in freedom and deliverance. However, lately I've been thinking a lot about the need for balance of grace and truth as we minister to others. In some cases, people need the gentle touch of grace, in other cases they need to hear the truth. Both can help people transition to growth and freedom in their lives. As I thought about these two principles, I also was reminded of a sermon I once heard.
In this sermon the preacher spoke about two different kinds of people in a church congregation. One group was called the “Thinker Group”, and the other was the “Feeler Group.” The “Thinker” group are the ones who would say something like” I really don't care about the worship I would just rather sit and listen to sermons or talk theology/revelation all day.” The” feelers” would say I would rather experience a longer worship time and less preaching. Again, balance is needed between these two groups.
The balance is this, whether you’re a truth or grace person, a thinker or feeler the concern is that the enemy comes in and tries to cause these people to be at odds with each other. Remember scripture says we are all different parts of the body. No one is more important than the other. “But now indeed there are many members, yet one body.” (1 Cor. 12:20 NKJV)
The bottom line to all giftings, whether they be the Motivational gifts, Ministry gifts or Manifestation gifts. … The common denominator for each of them is this verse - “But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually just as He wills.” (1 Cor. 12:11 NASB) In other words, we don’t decide when to activate them, He does.
Here is a very brief overview of each gift group:
Motivational gifts - (Rom. 12:6-8 NKJ) These gifts are the intrinsic driving forces of a believer’s life, directing them towards specific acts of service and expression of God’s love.
Ministry gifts - (Eph. 4:11,12 NKJ) These gifts are the talents and abilities given by God to enable believers to serve effectively in specific roles within the Church.
Manifestation gifts - (1 Cor. 12:4-11 NKJ) These are supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit that are given to believers to edify and build up the church.
It is important that we know our gift. Even more important is that we ask the Holy Spirit to help us remain humble when He flows through us with various gifts.
Why is this important? If we really want to be ready and involved with the next big move of the Holy Spirit, we are going to need be balance in these areas. As wonderful as revival is, it can also be messy. The enemy often comes in to work excesses and distortions among the people of God. We need to be prepared.
Lastly, speaking of things getting messy, unless the Lord directs otherwise, I think the next blog will discuss “messy” as mentioned in Proverbs 14:4. It has some interesting renderings in various bible translations.
If you would like to learn more about spiritual gifts, I would like to recommend the two links below for you to check out. Of course, I would be glad to sit down with you to help you discover what God is calling you to.
Sam Storms Blog - https://www.samstorms.org/enjoying-god-blog
Three Categories of Spiritual Gifts - https://spiritualask.com/what-are-the-3-categories-of-spiritual-gifts/
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