Welcome back, my friends. Sometimes when I get excited about what I learn in my daily study, I get carried away. I explain things in a way that makes them more confusing than the Scriptures themselves. I apologize if I have ever done this to you—I know I overthink things. Five words that help someone know Christ are better than a whole sermon that confuses (1 Corinthians 14:19). We only need to know: “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). Today, I see a warning about that from Paul as we read 1 Corinthians 12–14.

Calling Jesus Lord

We see that everyone who surrenders to Jesus Christ can call Him Lord (1 Corinthians 12:3). If you are not willing to let Him guide you and wish to remain in control of your life, you need to pray that God would change your heart. When He is in your heart, He will give you the faith to surrender. But when you do call Him Lord, bowing to His will, you will receive other gifts (1 Corinthians 12:4–7).

Diversity of Gifts

Not everyone gets the same gift. Paul lists several, starting with the apostle (1 Corinthians 12:28). I understand that only fourteen apostles existed: the original twelve, Matthias, and Paul, who saw Jesus and whom He sent. This does not make someone like Barnabas less. Therefore, it would be wrong to rank these gifts even though Paul listed apostle first, which is a great honor.

At our church, we have a man who greets people at the door and makes sure everyone has a bulletin. He is every bit as important to the successful ministry of our church as the people who bring the food we put out, or the musicians, or even the preacher (1 Corinthians 12:22–23).

Titles and Misplaced Roles

A pastor has many more responsibilities than most of us, and he possesses these gifts. That is why I know I am not cut out to be a pastor. When people who are familiar with my writing or preaching call me pastor, I quickly correct them. These are separate, but not lesser gifts (1 Corinthians 12:29–30).

The problem is we love titles and ranking. We have positions open for someone to lead the children’s ministry, and people shy away. They may love children and may help, but that sounds like a job and more of a burden than they seek.

We also make the mistake of looking for people to fill roles we need filled. A delightful couple joins the church and are good with children, so we stick them in the daycare where we need help. This may not be their gifts, so they get stressed out and quickly change churches because it wasn’t what the Spirit was leading them to do (1 Corinthians 12:15–18).

Serving in Love

Instead, we must get to know the people and learn how the Spirit is leading them. They may not be looking to take part at that level, but when they see they have a gift that God has need for, He will guide them to fill those roles. Meanwhile, the person filling those gaps now can focus on the needs that they have gifts to meet.

This all takes patience and faith (1 Corinthians 13:4, 7). We frequently feel we can’t wait when pressured to fulfill a need. We might have babies in the nursery, so we need someone to serve there. These workers are perhaps the most valuable of all because crying infants and wandering toddlers would distract the sanctuary without them (1 Corinthians 12:22).

The Greatest Gift

None of this is possible without love (1 Corinthians 13:1–3). Love forgives a multitude of sins (1 Peter 4:8). It also enables us to serve in situations that may not be our calling, but fill a need. As individuals, this is noble, but the leadership of the church must be in prayer at all times to find the way to let everyone serve and reach their potential instead of relying on a few who are willing.

Those who are not serving need to pray about how they can help to edify the others (1 Corinthians 14:12). They don’t have to take a complete role, but if they remove a little of the burden, the whole church will function at a much higher level and everyone will benefit more from the experience (1 Corinthians 14:26).