11And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, Eph 4:11-12 NKJV

The apostle Paul, in his letter to the church at Ephesus, lays out the purpose of the gifts to the church and to respective members. Though he speaks to the collective church, we do well to receive this message personally, particularly, Chapter 4:11 as viewed beside I Corinthians 12:12-31. There are very specific gifts, talents and abilities within the body of Christ and within any given congregation of the Lord's Church. Quite often, members are not able to readily identify their respective ability within the realm of ministry. What we can know immediately is that all Christians should be committed to self development for the cause of Christ and for our own spiritual growth. In II Timothy 2:14-19, the Apostle Paul's directive to the Evangelist, Timothy, was that he be a student of the word. This, you see, is for all disciples, for all time. We are to be continuous learners of God's word. King David, the sweet psalmist of Israel, said it well in Psalm 119:11, "Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee." Refusing to study or to advance for the cause of Christ is tantamount to being slothful in the business of the church (see Romans 12:11). Therefore, if the church as a whole is to be properly equipped, it is the responsibility of every saint to do his/her part in developing their individual gifts. In so doing, you are contributing to the development of the body. -Selected-

A few weeks ago a popular basketball player decided to leave his home town professional franchise and go to another team in order to try and win NBA championships. One reason that many cite for his decision to leave was his realization that winning would not only take great individual effort on his part but also the help of talented and committed teammates. He needed help. Other star players have joined him and have pledged to serve in ways that complement each other even if means sacrificing their own personal statistics. I believe that the bible reveals the same thing about the success of the church. It takes each member being dedicated to personal growth, team oriented focus, and collective service.
Reading the selected text in Ephesians and aforementioned reaction caused me to read God's word a little further. I especially noticed verse 16 of that 4th chapter. The whole verse reveals much about God's design for the local congregation but it is latter part of the verse that caught my eye. Paul refers to the "effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love." The body is effective in the edifying (building up) of itself when every member does his/her share. Paul gave a thorough and passionate explanation for the diversity and necessity of every part of body to the Corinthian church (1 Co 12:1-31). This should serve to remind us that we are each special and uniquely commissioned by God to serve his kingdom locally. The latter part of the selected reading speaks to our own responsibility to grow. In that same Ephesian letter Paul urged the church to put off the old man and to put on a new man. The Apostle Peter explained that we should be adding to our faith (2 Pet 1:5-10). We should never stagnate or even feel that we have "arrived" to the point that we stop adding different virtues (or graces) to our faith. Stop and ask yourself, "What has God given me the talent and vision to do to serve Him". Once that thing or those things have been identified ask yourself how you can share your gift within the framework our team, the local church.

Bro Eli