Gifts and Function (JICC)

Key Passage: Romans 12:3-8
Acts 6:1-7

Our aim is not ..

• Independence (you don’t need others)
• Or dependence (you don’t have anything to contribute)

But Interdependence (we members of one another, with functions that differ)

Love gifts make God’s love tangible in practical ways—people feel cared for through action, presence, and generosity.
Word gifts clarify the nature, actions, and purposes of God so the church can understand, grow, and move in his will.
Power gifts demonstrate the presence and power of God in real time—his reality breaks into ordinary life.

Take Action:

1. Call out the gifts that you see in others
2. Compliment (two ways) - honor the gift you see in others, and find ways to compliment (harmony) the gift that you see in them.

"What we do have in our thumbs are three small but resplendently named muscles not found in other animals, including chimps: the extensor pollicis brevis, the flexor pollicis longus, and the first volar interosseous of Henle. Working together, they allow us to grasp and manipulate tools with sureness and delicacy. You might never have heard of them, but these three small muscles are at the heart of human civilization. Take them away and our greatest collective achievement might be maneuvering ants out of their nests with sticks."
— Bill Bryson, The Body - A Guide for Occupants

"A spiritual gift is a God-given unique capacity which is given to each believer for the purpose of releasing a Holy Spirit empowered ministry either in a situation or to be repeated again and again." — Robert Clinton, Unlocking Your Giftedness

Monday: Leviticus 22:26-33, Leviticus 23, Galatians 2
Tuesday: Galatians 3
Wednesday: Galatians 4
Thursday: Galatians 5-6
Friday: Deuteronomy 14:22-29, Deuteronomy 15-16, Ephesians 1
Saturday: Psalm 107-108
Sunday: Jeremiah 38-48

1. In Acts 6, mercy notices, service acts, generosity supplies, and leadership directs. Where do you usually land—and whose gift do you most need to honor this week?
2. How does “harmony” (different notes, one chord) change the way you relate to people whose gifts feel foreign to yours?
3. Where have you compared or competed instead of calling out and complementing another person’s gift?

Action item to prepare for next Sunday
John 4:1-42 - The Woman at the Well
Follow this steps to do a short discovery Bible study with someone else or with a group:

• Read the passage out loud
• A couple of people tell the story back in your own words
• What stood out to you?
• What does this passage say about God and who he is and what he does?
• What does it say about humanity and who we are and what we should do?
• Take a moment to reflect on what God is saying, what step you need to take as a result and who can help you.

3DQ - 3 discipleship questions to ask each other: What is God saying to you? What are you going to do about it? How can I help?