Have you ever sat in a church service and wondered, “What am I doing here?” (Have you ever sat at your desk at work and wondered the same thing?) Well, you’re not alone. Many Christians haven’t the foggiest notion of where they fit in. The importance of knowing your place in God’s plan for His church and for your life is difficult to overstate.
Every true believer is a member of the universal church of Jesus Christ. As such, we make up His Body. Jesus is the head of that body. Just as the physical human body contains many specific parts, every Christian is a uniquely qualified and gifted member of the body of Christ. The sovereignty of Almighty God determines our position and our function in the church.
“But as it is, God has placed and arranged the limbs and organs in the body, each [particular one] of them, just as He wished and saw fit and with the best adaptation. Now you [collectively] are Christ’s body and [individually] you are members of it, each part severally and distinct [each with his own place and function].” (I Corinthians 12:18,27 Amplified Bible)
Let me share something very liberating. You can not be what God has not called and equipped you to be. Serving God is not a matter of selecting a ministry, but rather a matter of identifying your own unique gifting and sharpening those areas in which God has ordained you to serve.
“Are all Apostles (special messengers)? Are all prophets (inspired interpreters of the will and purpose of God)? Are all teachers? Do all have the power of performing miracles? Do all possess extraordinary powers of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret?” (1 Corinthians 12:29-30 Amplified Bible)
The singular answer to these questions is no! If we could function in any calling or operate any spiritual gift at will, we would have no need for one another. As surely as the eyes need the ears, the hands need the arms, and the legs need the feet, the body of Christ needs each of its members working together.
“For because of Him the whole body (the Church in all its various parts) closely joined and firmly knit together by the joints and ligaments with which it is supplied, when each part [with power adapted to its need] is working properly [in all its functions], grows to full maturity, building itself up in love.” (Ephesians 4:16 Amplified Bible)
When Jesus Christ was physically present on the earth, He had the Holy Spirit without measure. Jesus embodied all the offices of ministry and operated in every spiritual gift. As individual Christians, we move in the Spirit by measure. No one person occupies every office of ministry nor operates in every spiritual gifting. However, the body of Christ can enjoy the manifestation of the Holy Spirit without measure. To do so we must learn to recognize and accept our own gifts and callings, recognize and accept the callings and the gifts in other believers, and learn to harmonize with one another by walking in the unity of the faith. Then the Church can fulfill the great commission.
Joseph A. Cerreta, Ph.D., is an author, broadcaster, popular Bible teacher, and the Senior Pastor of New Covenant Family Church in Holiday, Florida. (C) 2006 by Joseph A Cerreta, all rights reserved.
