We Use our Gifts Together - September 15, 2024

It is my privilege to invite you to today's sermon podcast.

I have made the Apostle Paul's prayer request my own.

When he states in Ephesians 6.19, Pray also for me, that whenever I open my

mouth, the words may be given to me, so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel.

May today's sermon come alive to you and aid you in your understanding of God's plan for your life.

Well, Church, are you ready for this today? Are you ready for some audience participation?

Well, you're not an audience. You're the congregation. So it's kind of part of who you are anyway.

I've got some things that I'd like to do this morning, but I don't want you

to miss this message. And that is we are better together.

If there's anything you get out of this, besides the crazy things I'm about

to do, hopefully it's not too crazy.

Usually you reserve these things for a youth pastor, but it's not so crazy.

I know Pastor Ethan has some things he'd like to do in the future.

I'm not trying to scare you or anything, but some innovative ways of preaching.

We're better together. And when I thought about just that phrase there,

I was thinking of some of the iconic duos, not just of pop culture, but of history.

Just like when you think of one person or one name, the other one automatically comes to mind.

So in honor of Sheriff Kendrick being here today, I thought of the first one,

brother, and that is Andy. Who would go with Andy?

Barney. Now, I know you don't have any Barney Fives in your department. I'm pretty

sure of that but yeah you can't think

of andy without thinking of barney right so there's some others and i just want

to give you a test and just like you did right there don't be afraid to to shout

it out even if it's wrong just do it with confidence and you're okay all right

that's that's kind of how i learned some things so if i was to say lone ranger

tonto good job how about laurel,

wow you guys are good batman all right snoopy charlie all right i didn't hear

any woodstock but that would kind of go to, you know, all right. How about Patrick?

Wow oh yeah our kids left so they if

i were to say spongebob then yeah i probably should have led with that right

yeah i probably shouldn't have how about shrek donkey donkey

there you go all right this text tests

our gen x people wayne garth my

wife yeah wayne's world all right thelma good job you guys got bonnie i mean

client abbott all right this is a tough one felix Oscar the odd couple there

you go all right you Trekkies Captain Kirk Mr.

Spock live long and prosper okay how about

Scooby-Doo yeah you can't forget Shaggy definitely not how about Tom Jerry okay

Romeo Juliet yes to the cultured ones amongst us we go to another cultured one

Bert Ernie man you You guys are great. How about C3TO?

All right. Almost caught you there. This one might get some. Mario. Luigi. Wow.

Last but not least, Chewbacca. Han Solo. Han Solo. Man, give yourself a round of applause.

It's okay to clap in church. It really is.

Way to go. You done well. You did really well.

Wait, when you think about these iconic duos throughout history and pop culture,

which but you guys are very cultured this morning. I could tell that.

It's pretty awesome because even in our church, there tends to be people we think about.

We think about one, but we can't help but think about the other.

When we look at Scripture, it's the same way. When we think of Paul,

a few others come to mind.

We think of Paul and Barnabas. We think of Paul and Silas. We think of Paul and Timothy.

You just have these two that are together.

And so as we think about this, because under the theme this morning that we

are better together, it's just like these iconic duos.

You can't have one without the other. They have to go together.

And when they go together, magical things happen. You get something good out of it.

And so this morning, I want to share with you from the book of Acts chapter 18,

Acts 18 · chapter mention

just a passage of scripture that really illustrates this and really illustrates

that when we use our gifts,

the gifts that God has given us, not just our natural strengths or our natural

talents, but those spiritual gifts that really are activated when we place faith

in Christ, when we come to Christ and we submit ourselves,

and those gifts that God has given us to not just serve His church but serve

other people, God does amazing things.

And so in Acts chapter 18, I'm going to read this morning verses 1 through 8.

Acts 18 · chapter mention

And so hear now the word of the Lord from Acts chapter 18.

Acts 18 · chapter mention

The scripture begins in Acts 18, verse 1, with this. After this,

Acts 18:1

Paul left Athens and went to Corinth.

There he met a Jew named Achilla, a native Pontus, who had recently come from

Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had ordered all the Jews to leave Rome.

Paul went to see them, and because he was a tentmaker, as they were,

he stayed and he worked with them.

Every Sabbath, he reasoned in the synagogue, trying to persuade Jews and Greeks

When Silas and Timothy came from Macedonia, Paul devoted himself exclusively

to preaching, testifying to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ.

But the Jews opposed Paul and became abusive.

He shook out his clothes in protest and said to them, Your blood be on your

own heads. I'm clear of my responsibility.

From now on, I will go to the Gentiles. Then Paul left the synagogue and went

next door to the house of Titus, Justice, a worshiper of God.

Crispus, the synagogue ruler, and his entire household believed in the Lord,

and many of the Corinthians who heard him believed and were baptized.

Father in heaven, may your word bless our hearts today. Lord, may it challenge us.

May the content of your scripture today transform us and change us more and

more into the image of Christ, we pray in Jesus' name. Amen.

Thank you. You can be seated. Well, this morning, not only are we better together,

but when we use our gifts together, everything is better.

And so I just want to present to you three ideas from the scripture this morning

that really speak to this, that our gifts are better together.

And so our gifts are better together this morning and always when we share our gifts with others.

You see, in the passage of scripture,

Paul, he had just left Athens after giving an incredible sermon.

He got to stand on Mars Hill to talk and to preach to the learned of the learned

there in Greece, and just to give an astounding sermon.

If you want to know what that is, you just turn back to chapter 17,

starting in verse 16, and just see how that plays out.

It's amazing. It's powerful. And Paul moves on in his journey.

Now, he's left his traveling companions behind in Berea.

Paul kind of upset some people now and again as he went from place to place.

More often than not, it was the Jews because Paul spoke directly to them trying

to tell them about Jesus.

And they didn't want to hear about Jesus. They didn't want to hear about the

transforming grace, the transformative action that could come through believing

in this Christ because he was the Messiah.

And they did not want to accept this Messiah. And so in one occasion,

they all got together and the church people said, Paul, I think it's time for

you to get out of town. so they send him to the coast.

Hey, I like that. If I ever get in trouble, send me to the coast.

That's a good place to go for preaching the word, for doing the right things.

Okay, that's what happened here in context.

Not just because you want to get rid of me for a little bit,

although I might not protest.

No, it just depends on what time of year, I guess. So Paul's here.

He's in Corinth and he meets a Jew named Aquila and Priscilla.

Maybe it's Aquila, however you want to pronounce it. He meets them and he gets together with them.

They both have something in common, not only Jesus, but here they're both tent makers.

Have you heard the term bivocational ministry before?

That's what Paul was all about. Most of my ministry career, that's been me.

I'm not a tent maker, but I had to have another job because I was usually at

a smaller church that really couldn't afford a pastor full time.

And so the Lord blessed doubly in those circumstances to where you were able

to interact and engage with people that weren't as part of the church,

and you got to really go out and witness them to them, and then you got to gather

together with believers on Sunday and preach the word and minister on top of all that.

And that's kind of the picture we get with Paul and here with Aquila and Priscilla.

They're doing ministry together. They are using their gifts,

and they're using them in practical ways.

When you have a gift, not just a natural talent, but a spiritual gift,

it's not just like a cloud Cloud forms around you and it becomes bright and

I'm using my spiritual gift now.

And, you know, sometimes it's just the mundane things of life.

Sometimes it's just having coffee with someone. Maybe even that someone is mad

at you, but yet God has called you together and you got to work something out,

not duke it out, but work it out.

Okay. And so there you are using the spiritual gift that God has given you to

repair a relationship, to enhance or further a relationship.

Sometimes it's what we experienced yesterday. day.

We're just out there working, getting, you know, the dust blown in our faces,

coming out, looking like there's dirt in every single crease in our body,

whether it was covered with clothing or not.

It was, and just working in the dirt together, having the joy of the Lord while

we knew we were working toward a common goal to finish this playground out here for our little ones.

I mean, it was hard work, it was dusty, but it was something that we did, and we did it together.

Each person using not only their spiritual gifts, but their natural talents.

Here, Paul, we see, he was a tent maker.

And so he was using that skill, not only to make a living, but he was using

that skill because it opened up a door so that he could reach out to non-believers,

that he could have a conversation with those that did not believe in Christ.

So I want you to know it's okay to use your spiritual gifts,

even when you're not doing churchy stuff, because it's just part of who you

are. You can't help but do those kind of things.

For example, one of the spiritual gifts, and I kind of should have told you

before, is just serving. It's the gift of helps.

Hey, if someone needs a hand, I'll be there. It doesn't have to only be with church-related stuff.

Brother, sister, you see someone broke down on the side of the road,

you have the ability to help them, and you have the gift of helps.

You can't help but want to help them.

Stop and say, what can I do? How can I? If you have the gift of hospitality,

then you want to make sure they got a cold bottle of water or a warm cup of

coffee, depending on the season.

You always got something nearby that you can hand them.

Even if it's not in the realm of the church, you're still wanting to reach out

practically to help somebody else.

You see, it's this kind of idea that God has given us these gifts,

not just to use in this building, but to use wherever we go and wherever God calls us to go.

And that's what was going on here with Paul.

He met Akilah and Priscilla, and there they were together, ministering,

serving, making tents, blessing other people, and just sharing in the love that they had.

So we are better together when we use our gifts with others,

but we're better together also when we use our gifts for believers and for unbelievers.

I don't know if you caught that portion in there, the little controversy that

That came up with Paul at this synagogue now, right?

Here he is. He's just preaching the word. He's trying to convert.

He's trying to reason with the Jews, the scripture says, trying to persuade

them, but also the Greeks as well.

And then Silas and Timothy finally get back from Macedonia. So he has more time

now to do what he does best, and that is to use his gift to prophesy, to preach.

And so here he is as an apostle, just preaching the word, trying to convert

these Jews and Greeks to Christ.

But something came up. Now, I don't think this church has ever had any problems,

but maybe some of the churches you've been involved with.

Sometimes there's a little group that likes to cause a little bit of trouble

and they stir up a little controversy.

Usually it's from miscommunication. So again, I would encourage you to get the

church center app so you don't become one of those people. People know that's

not a good connection to make.

But here are a group of Jews. It says they became a little opposite. They opposed Paul.

They opposed him. Not only did they oppose him, but they began to abuse him.

I don't know if that's physically or verbally, but nevertheless,

sometimes those words hurt more than a punch in the face.

Nevertheless, Paul did something drastic. He shook the dust off of his cloak,

shook his clothes. I say, I'm done with you guys.

This is the way you're going to be. I'm just trying to give you a free gift,

the free gift of salvation.

And all you're doing is just abusing me and opposing me at every right and left

turn that I take. So forget you guys. I'm going to the Gentiles.

At least I know I can expect this kind of behavior from them,

but it should not be fitting of God's people. This is my long paraphrase. Okay.

Speaking as a preacher sometimes.

There was once a preacher that he preached the same sermon for three months.

And finally the board called him in, said, pastor, we got something to ask you.

We didn't know how to do it individually. So we just thought it's best.

We all got the same question.

Pastor, why is it that you are preaching the same exact sermon week after week,

and you've done that for the last three months?

The pastor kind of straightened his glasses and looked at each one of them and

said, well, I'm going to preach it until you start practicing it.

I wonder if that's kind of how Paul was thinking here.

You guys aren't getting it. And so I'm going to keep doing it.

And finally he said, fine, this is enough. I'm out of here.

You see, he did not leave the Gentiles out of the big picture of God's salvation,

the salvation that was planned for all of humankind, all mankind everywhere.

Here, Paul said, okay, if you're going to reject Christ yet again,

here in the synagogue, here in the place of religious worship,

then I'm going to go hit the streets.

I'm going to go out to where the people are, the Gentiles, those that are despised by you Jews.

I'm going to go reach out to them with the good news.

You've had a chance to receive it, but now it's time to give them a chance as well.

And so that's exactly what Paul does.

He used his gift for the believers, those who had a faith, some kind of faith

in God, but would not take the extra step to acknowledge Jesus as Savior,

as Messiah, and they just began to become ugly. And so Paul said, I'm out of here then.

Folks, we've got to make sure that we are using our gifts, not only for people

in here, as we teach Sunday school classes, as we encourage one another,

lead Bible studies, just serve and just do everything that you do.

But when we go out of the doors, we're still an ambassador of Jesus Christ.

And those gifts that we have don't shut off as soon as you walk out the door.

The gifts that you have, they continue wherever you go.

So when you go to the grocery store, when you go to the school that you're learning

at or teaching at, when you go to volunteer wherever you're at,

those gifts are still active.

And they're still expected to be used as God gives you the opportunity.

So our gifts are better together. Not only when we share them with others,

because we're better together.

Not only when we use them for believers and non-believers alike,

but because when we use our gifts together, I want to tell you the kingdom of God expands.

The kingdom of God grows. Had Paul not decided to leave the synagogue here and go out,

we have a whole group of people that might have been delayed or might never

have come to know who Jesus the Messiah was. us.

But because of the disagreement, now I'm not saying church trouble's good.

Church splits are not good.

Of course, this wasn't a church, this was a synagogue. But it says Paul left

the synagogue and went next door to a guy that was a worshiper of God.

He said, I'm going to go find someone that's on the same page as me that just

wants to worship God, just wants to be about the business of God.

And we're going to see what kind of trouble we can get in together for the Lord.

Good trouble and so he goes and he

he finds a titius there justice a worshiper

of god and it says christmas the synagogue ruler and

his entire household believed in the lord there in verse 8 and it says many

of the corinthians who heard him were believed and baptized or believed and

were baptized the church expanded the kingdom of god expanded because paul chose

not just to stay in the salt shaker, so to speak,

in a modern day kind of understanding of what the church is supposed to be.

But the salt went out to where the salt was needed.

Paul went out to where he was needed.

Folks, we should be witnessing God moving, not just in here,

but outside in our communities,

wherever we're at, up in Parma, where I'm at, down here in Holmdale,

in Wilder, in Marsing, every place in between, over in Caldwell and Nampa.

We should see God moving.

See the Spirit of God moving people, not just to treat people well and to act kindly.

That's just what we do because that's what God has redeemed us to do in that way.

But when we begin to use our gifts outside of the wall to help people,

to encourage people, whatever gift that might be,

boy, I want to tell you, God is glorified and people start to get really thirsty

for the living water that Jesus can provide.

They get to be a little bit hungry for the bread of life, which is Jesus.

And they begin to question.

I remember there was a time when I was a bivocational pastor in Springville,

California. California, and just across the mountain, they had to kind of drive a ways around.

There was an Indian reservation, and I happened to get a job there working for

a social services agency.

And so I go in, and when I meet people, I don't tell them I'm a pastor.

Some can tell, but some, I just let them find out later.

But man, you learn some colorful phrases when you don't tell people you're a

pastor right off, especially on the Indian reservation over there.

They had some phrases I never heard before about people that look like me.

And so that was an interesting learning experience.

But I love those people. They were great.

They were loving. But one guy I worked with, he didn't find out for,

I think, almost a half a year. His name was Robin.

But after he found out, man, I became the Rev.

Hey, let's go talk to the Rev. And he said it just like that.

I didn't go above and beyond.

But people will know just by looking at you. And they'll question in you.

There's something different about you. What is it?

You don't respond in anger the way I see other people respond in anger.

You don't get retribution or seek retribution the way I see others seeking retribution.

No, you act different. What they see is you reflecting the image of Christ to them.

They see the image of God reflected in you and your lifestyle and how you live and who you are.

And that's a powerful statement. You preach without preaching.

Just by the way that you live, the choices you make, the way that others look at you.

So we're witnessing God moving like that. And folks, the bigger picture,

when we're all using our gifts in here, hey, it glorifies God.

But when we use them out there, each one of us.

In our different places, God is still glorified and the Holy Spirit moves out

into the community where the Holy Spirit wants to be, where the lost folks are.

It's not always in here, unless you've invited someone, but it's out there where

we need to be expressing the love of Jesus,

where we need to be shining his light, where we need to be being a reflection

of God to people that are looking for an answer, an answer for hope,

who are in need of salvation,

who are in need of a purpose in life beyond just what they see day to day.

And folks, we can be the ones that reach out to them.

When we use our gifts together, people will recognize God and they will respond in one way or another.

Well, they did with Paul anyway.

We have his example of how he worked and how he ministered.

And so I want to tell you this morning as we wrap it up, you know,

we've been justified as Christians, as people that have placed their faith in

Jesus Christ, we've been justified through the death, burial,

and resurrection of Jesus.

That means God sees us just as if we didn't sin. Isn't that great?

Isn't that worthy of saying amen?

Because God has justified us through what Jesus has done.

When we accept that and it transforms our life, we realize that we're empowered

by the Holy Spirit of God, the very Spirit of God, to do these things at low.

Boy, they're impossible.

And you want me to forgive that yahoo that did this to me, that treated me so poorly?

You want me just to forgive him without at least getting one or two good digs in on him?

You want me to do what? To go to these people? I can't stand them.

And you want me to share Jesus with them, and they're going to think I'm an

idiot. They're going to make so much fun of me. God, you want me to do what?

You want me not to look at what, but to look at this? You want me to read this

Bible that, boy, it's hard to understand sometimes?

You want me to spend some time praying?

Just talking to myself or really talking to you?

We think about all that. We're empowered by God's Spirit. More than just what

we might look down on as what could be seemingly tedious in the Christian life,

but that are so foundational, so necessary, as we have up here on the board.

A prayer is the key to power. What's the power? or it's the power of the Holy

Spirit of God working in us. And what does prayer do? It aligns us with God's will.

It helps us as we pray to God to see, God, am I in step with you or out of step?

Am I in sync or out of sync with you? And help me to realign where I am in position to you, God.

And in doing so, God opens up the floodgate of his blessings as we go out.

Not always tangible, but how about the blessings of peace of mind?

That's something you can't really buy, but God gives it to us.

How about in the midst of a chaotic life, God just gives you this peace in your

heart to where you have everything you need.

Even if you don't really have everything you need, there's a contentment that's

there, a godly contentment where there's these kind of blessings that come our way.

Folks, I want you to understand that the gospel, the good news that Jesus has

died for your sin, paid the price for it, and opened up a door for you to live

a holy life that blesses him that blesses others.

It's not just about being rescued from sin, but there's a renewed purpose to

be the person that God has created you to be.

He has activated those gifts within you because that's who he's really created

you to be, to live that life out.

And are you taking that step to do that?

Don't be like the fellow that says, I've been saved by grace and I'm going to warm this pew till I die.

God didn't save people just to be pew warmers. And there's a reason that pews

are called pew. Do you know that?

Have you ever had a youth trip and had to sleep on one?

Okay, enough said. Where people's backsides are going, you should never lay

your head down on them. Let me just say that.

Said too much. Folks, God has saved us not just to rescue us from sin.

That's vital. That's important.

But he's also given us a mission. He's given us the mission of Jesus to seek

and saved that which was lost.

He's given us the encouragement that God is patient, not wanting anyone to perish,

but everyone to come to repentance. We're about this mission.

And how do we do that? We do it in the way that God has created us.

Whether you're introverted or extroverted, no matter what your personality is

like, what you've been through in life, God has a purpose, a mission just for

you, how you've been made and what you've been through.

You can't get more personalized than that.

And so as we seek God, we're examining how we've been made and then what we can do.

Hey, next week, I'm going to give you another paper, kind of like the one you

had today for the church center, but it's something that will help you explore this.

It's a little survey. You can, I'll have some paper copies if you want to do

it the old school way, which is fine.

Or if you want to take out your phone and snap that QR code,

it'll bring up a survey or you can do it online on your computer at home.

But it helps you to explore how you may be gifted spiritually. if you're just not sure.

Or maybe you've taken one of these before and you're like, oh yeah,

that's right on. And when you go to do this, it'll probably be affirmed through that.

But it just doesn't assess your spiritual gifts.

It asks, what are you passionate about in your heart?

What are those things that you're just like, man, that's me.

That's what I wake up, can't wait to do.

If it's yard work, then you wake up, I can't wait to use my lawnmower.

I can't wait to get that weed eater going. If you're passionate,

you have a heart for that that kind of thing.

If you have a heart, a passion for watching football, then you love Saturdays,

especially if it's college football, Friday and Saturdays.

If you have a passion for Boise State, you have to wait till next week or maybe

the next if they get to play anybody.

I heard Portland State had some problems. We need to pray for them so Boise can beat them.

Can you pray for that? I don't know if you can.

All right, back to the scripture here. It'll assess your abilities. what can you do?

What are the things that just through life, hey, I can do this.

I can change a tire. I can change an engine.

I can fix a leaky toilet. I can just show up and help sweep or mop or vacuum.

Some are very specialized. So what are your abilities? And then,

of course, personality is, we're all some kind of personality one way or the other.

There's no good or bad personalities, although they may clash with our personality

style. So it kind of assesses that. And then And your experiences,

what have you been through in life?

What are those things, whether good or bad, that, boy, you've just been through

and God's carried you through.

So it spells out shape. How has God shaped you?

This is something that I've created. Rick Warren, a pastor at Saddleback Church

in Southern California, he came up with this acronym a long time ago.

But it's a great framework to really explore how God has created you and how

God has gifted you to venture out and to find your purpose and to really be plugged in and active.

Boy, you can't be happier in a congregation of a church unless you're doing

something, unless you're active.

I mean, that's when the blessings flow. That's when you grow spiritually.

I won't preach my sermon next week, but that's when the light bulb comes on

and boy, you really open up the floodgates of heaven. Hey, is it hard? Yeah.

Is it hard work sometimes? Oh yeah.

But the joy comes, the blessings come and you just can't get away from that.

So action points this morning, I want you to consider and list practical ways

that you can work with others to make a bigger impact than you could just by yourself.

What is something that you do with someone else that really just blesses you and blesses others?

I want you to partner with other Christians and use your gifts to reach people

outside of our church, outside of our faith community.

Well, you know, we have a great church, Mountview Church of the Nazarene.

It's part of a global church, the Church of the Nazarene.

But I want to tell you, we're not the only ones going to heaven. Do you realize that?

There's a lot of great churches out there, a lot of different denominations,

because there's, as I said a minute ago, there's a lot of different kind of

people, a lot of different personalities, some that could be reached that we

might not be able to reach out to. But guess what?

God's given us some people that we can reach out to, and we just need to make

sure we're out there doing it.

Last but not least, I just want to encourage you to partner with God in using

your gifts to reach people outside of the church,

church wherever you go don't be afraid just to lend a helping hand to reach

out to them in love to let them know that god loves them let them know that

you do too and whatever you can do to help serve them that you'll be willing to do that folks.

We can use our gifts together. And when we do, life's better together.

Life is better. This morning, I was talking a little bit with Steve as we forgot

to put a bulletin insert in.

And Steve was kind of teasing me that I had to do this. And I said, had to do this?

What do you think I did in McCall, man? I did the bulletin for a while.

I printed the inserts. I folded them puppies.

I said, this is like a blessing. I've been here six months and I've never had

to do this because other people use their gifts to be able to do that.

And to get the crease a little bit straighter than I used to, I think.

Folks, we just serve together. We partner together. And we glorify God together.

You know, we might as well get used to working together like this and using

our gifts together because we've got a whole eternity to be together.

So let's get through the uncomfortableness and understanding one another right

now and just start loving on everybody, beginning with the house of God.

Would you pray with me this morning?

Father, thank you for your word. Thank you for the example.

Of Paul in the book of Acts, in spite of difficulty within the religious center there in the synagogue,

God, he was still about the purpose you created him for, to share about Jesus

the Messiah with all those who would listen, first starting with the Jews,

but Lord, then going to the Gentiles, to those who are not of Jewish origin

or ancestry or belief. God, we thank you this morning.

And Lord, it's not just a source of affirmation that others have experienced

the transforming grace of God, salvation that comes through Jesus,

but Lord, that we together can serve others.

And Lord, just put a big spotlight on you because this is why we worship together.

This is why we respond to your word together.

And so Lord, would you help us to respond today? As we close in a song and then

the Lord's prayer, Lord, know that we are looking, we're looking for places

to serve outside these walls this week.

Lord, we want to glorify you in Jesus' name. Amen.

I want to thank you for joining today's sermon podcast. You can find a copy

of today's sermon, as well as other sermons, and the sermon outline from today

on our church's website,

www.mvcnaz.org.

It is my prayer also that you will seek out a church home that recognizes the authority of the Bible.