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February 16/17, 2013
Jason Meyer | 1 Peter 4:10-11
As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.—1 Peter 4:10–11
Introduction
I regard this sermon as one of the most important sermons that I have ever preached. I don’t say that to point to myself, but to point to the importance of the topic. We stand at a crucial juncture as a church. When God pours out grace on our church, what do we do with it? Will we passively sit back as spectators and hoarders or will we actively move forward as stewards and spreaders of grace?
You may wonder why I would craft a contrast in such stark terms. The reason is simple. We may plot different responses to God’s grace as different spots on a spectrum, but in the end all responses will flow in only one of two directions: grace will flow away from the congregation or toward the congregation. In this sense, I have nicknamed this juncture the congregational divide. What is that? I named it after the Continental Divide. What is the Continental Divide?
The Continental Divide is the line that divides the flow of water in the Americas between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Ocean. Rain or snow that drains on the east side of the Continental Divide flows toward the Atlantic Ocean while precipitation on the west side drains and flows toward the Pacific Ocean.
In the same way, I want you to think about the flow of grace. Our text this morning talks about the grace of God coming to each Christian. God designs this grace to then flow from the individual to the congregation. There are only really two options: hoarding, which creates isolated lakes of grace or spreading, which creates free-flowing rivers of grace. This is the congregational divide.
Prayer
The context of our text today fits where we ended last week in which Hebrews 10:25 stressed that the Day is drawing near. Peter highlights the same thing, “The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers. Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins” (1 Peter 4:7–8). The use of spiritual gifts will be marked by the realization that the time is short. Spiritual gifts stand as a key component in Peter’s command to love one another (v.8).
What are spiritual gifts? Wayne Grudem has an excellent definition in his commentary on 1Peter. They are talents or abilities empowered by the Spirit for use in the ministry of the church (p. 175). That definition fits the “what” of spiritual gifts, but we want to know more than a definition.
Peter highlights three things about spiritual gifts that will help us put them into practice in God-centered ways.
I believe that if these three points are internalized, it will ensure that his grace will flow to the right side of the congregational divide. Spiritual gifts (1) are for others, (2) have specific functions, and (3) are all about God. Lets take them one at a time.
Look at verse 10: “As each one has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace.” There are five key words here I would like to unpack briefly.
First, look at the word received. Peter says that each Christian has received a spiritual gift. The assumption behind the word “received” is that God gave them.
That leads to the second observation with the word grace. Spiritual gifts are a manifestation of God’s grace and kindness.
Third, God’s grace does not come in boring, cookie cutter forms. This is clear because of the word varied in the phrase “God’s varied grace.” God’s grace comes in different shapes and sizes because our needs are so multi-faceted.
Fourth, notice the word serve. “As each one has received a gift, use it to serve one another.” Spiritual gifts are not given for the purpose of hoarding God’s grace. Spiritual gifts exist to serve one another with the grace that God gives. God expects the grace to keep flowing to others in the congregation.
Fifth, I think the key concept that clarifies all of these relationships is the word steward.
A steward is not an owner, but a servant entrusted with property that belongs to his master. These were usually household managers that would oversee their master’s property to ensure its proper use. We must take seriously the fact that spiritual gifts are not about privilege, but about responsibility. We do not own them; they are not our property. We are overseers of these gifts. Once people receive God’s grace in the form of a spiritual gift, the person must make sure that this flow of grace does not get dammed up. Making sure that these gifts of grace reach others is called “stewardship.” We serve one another with the grace gifts that we have received as stewards of grace.
Peter says that there are two basic kinds of spiritual gifts: speaking and serving. Therefore, Peter is emphasizing the functional aspect of these gifts in the life of the body.
“Whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies.” God’s spiritual gifts of grace minister in specific ways. Peter says that these functions fit into two general categories: speaking and serving.
It is a helpful exercise to do a flow chart of spiritual gifts into the two basic categories of speaking and serving. Speaking gifts would include preaching, teaching, exhortation, prophecy, and tongues. The second category of serving would include giving, leading, mercy, helps, healing, and miracles.
The Speaking Gifts
Notice that the first category involves not just what one speaks, but the way one should speak. We know that one should speak the word of God, but this verse goes further. Speak as one who speaks oracles of God. Speak in a way that recognizes that God is the source of the words and that they have his authority. There is a due sense of the majesty and weight that one is handling God’s word.
True preaching always points to God’s word and says, “This passage is God’s word. God is speaking to you—see for yourself.” This is a breathtaking claim, but it need not be an arrogant claim. It should be the humble claim of one under the complete authority of God’s word because Scripture commands this way of thinking in our text today: “Whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God” (1 Peter 4:11; my emphasis).
This term appears three other times in the New Testament: Acts 7:38, Romans 3:2, and Hebrews 5:12.
Acts 7:38 highlights that Moses “received living oracles to give to us” (Acts 7:38). Notice the stewardship theme (i.e., received oracles from God) along with the term “oracles.” Paul also focuses on the stewardship theme as he states that the Jews “were entrusted with the oracles of God” (Romans 3:2; my emphasis). The author of Hebrews reminds his readers that they have not been good stewards of the “oracles” of God. They should be teachers by this time, but they still need to be taught again “the basic principles of the oracles of God” (Hebrews 5:12).
This brief look at the term “oracles” is somewhat surprising in that the first three instances are the “oracles of God” in the sense that God spoke them. The surprise of 1 Peter 4:11 is that the preachers are to believe that they are speaking them! In other words, the comparison (“as”) instructs preachers concerning how to think about preaching. As recipients of God’s grace, they should speak as speaking the oracles of God. God’s gift of grace leads preachers to think of their preaching as “God speaking” his very oracles through them.
This is the claim that every preacher of Scripture should make when they step into the pulpit and open the word of God. An open Bible on the pulpit symbolizes a stunning statement of authority: Your Creator and King has spoken—listen up! This authority is a 100% derived authority—God’s word is the authority; not their words. An open Bible on the part of the preacher in the pulpit must correspond to an open Bible in the pew because both are under the authority of God’s word.
The minister of the word must start with a reverent fear of God and tremble at his word. “But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word” (Isaiah 66:2). That trembling should define what he speaks (the word) and how he speaks (as though God were present in the speaking). The fear of the Lord should put a peculiar stamp on the ministry of the word—the people should know that the word of God is coming from a man who has met God.
The type of stewardship in view here is stewarding the word of God. On this score, it is hard to improve upon Paul’s pithy summary in 1 Corinthians 4:1–2. He says that a steward is one who has been entrusted with something (i.e., what) and so he must be found faithful (i.e., how) with respect to what has been entrusted.
This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found trustworthy.—1 Corinthians 4:1–2.
God is the Master, the word is his property, and the preacher is the appointed servant entrusted with it.
Paul made the same connection between preaching and stewardship in 1 Corinthians 9:16–17.
“Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! For if I do this of my own will, have a reward, but if not of my own will, I am still entrusted with a stewardship” (my emphasis).
Repeating the Cycle of Stewardship
One of the most important effects of the ministry of the Word is the principle of repetition.
God’s Word
Steward of the Word
Herald of the Word
Audience
Stewarding and Heralding
Repeated by Audience
Let me address the men for a moment. Don’t let the sermon be a “one and done” moment for you. Here is your application. The Puritans used to require the head of the household as the pastor of his house to take the points of the sermon and apply them further in his household. Household members should not only understand the points, but look for ways to incorporate them into daily life that week.
I am issuing a call for you to be that kind of man. I have put the text, the points, and questions for further application on our website for each sermon. Will you man up and take your stewardship of the word seriously? It may be that you only have to ask the questions from the website and be genuinely interested in hearing from your family members.
I think the same kind of stewardship has implications for our evangelism. If God meets us through his word, then we should also be able to take it to the streets. Was there something that stood out to you? Weave it into your conversations with friends or neighbors or family members.
The Serving Gifts
Second, spiritual gifts also fit the category of serving. Serving seems like a less sensational gift. It is not as “up front” in terms of its visibility. It works tirelessly behind the scenes—not resentfully, but joyfully.
Everyone can serve, but not everyone has a gift of serving. What I mean is this. There are some that can serve behind the scenes and they seem to be energized and not drained by it. They look at a list of needs and they instinctively and naturally move towards meeting needs behind the scenes. They can do it and not grow weary because they find a wind in their sails that did not come from them. This is what Peter means when he says, “Whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies.” The provider of the strength gets the praise.
This is the gift that most underappreciate. I will give you an example. I had someone help me come up with a list of people that helped out at the installation service. I sent out a staff update in which I thanked all the various departments that helped out. I forgot one very crucial group: the nursery workers. They are too often out of sight and out of mind. I repent of that oversight. Will you thank your nursery workers—and express further thanks by volunteering yourself?
Which one of these two types of gifts is more important? I would argue that one is not more important than the other. It is like saying, which wing is more important on a plane—the right or the left? You need both. The difference is that one of these gifts is more visible than the other. The speaking gift is more visible, while the serving gift is sometimes more invisible. But maybe because it is more invisible, it is at times more pure.
Billy Graham once gave an illustration that captures the importance of the gift of serving in this regard. He once gave a devotional for people in the Billy Graham Evangelistic Organization. He said that he thought many of them that served behind the scenes would receive a greater reward than he would one day in heaven. They kindly disagreed, but he grew serious and said: I am very visible in this ministry. When I preach, all the people see me and my name is widely known. Sometimes it is hard to get up in front of all of those people and do it without mixed motives. Sometimes I care too much about what people think of me. Those who serve behind the scenes, however, do not serve with ulterior motives of being recognized. They serve quietly and faithfully, despite the fact that they will never be in the limelight in front of thousands of people.
In order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen
Why do we serve people as stewards of God’s grace with our gifts? We serve as stewards of grace for the supremacy of God. We want God to be glorified in everything through Jesus Christ.
These three verses are remarkably God-centered. First, verse 10 recognizes that spiritual gifts are manifestations of God’s varied grace. Second, both speaking and serving gifts point to God. Those who speak speak with a God-centered focus: as one speaking the oracles of God. Those who serve serve in the strength that God supplies. No one should wonder where the wherewithal for serving originates. It flows from God. Third, verse 12 says that God should be glorified in all things at all times. “In order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ.” The glory and dominion belong to him always: “To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever.” All the glory and the dominion belong to him always—for ever and ever.
The Christian hedonist takes exquisite joy in ascribing glory to God. His whole heart soars at the thought of God’s supremacy being seen and savored. I love the story of Jonathan Edwards’ conversion. He was converted at age 17 as he was reading 1 Timothy 1:17: “Now unto the King, eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and glory, forever and ever. Amen.” He said this:
As I read the words, there came into my soul ... a sense of the glory of the Divine Being; a new sense, quite different from any thing I ever experienced before. Never any words of Scripture seemed to me as these words did. I thought with myself, how excellent a Being that was, and how happy I should be, if I might enjoy that God, and be rapt up to Him in Heaven, and be as it were swallowed up in him for ever! ... From about that time, I began to have a new kind of apprehension ... of Christ, and the work of redemption, and the glorious way of salvation by Him. An inward, sweet sense of these things ... came into my heart.
His diary and notebooks bear the stamp of this sweet, inward sense in the heart of his allegiance to the supremacy of God. One entry in January of 1723 illustrates this sweet, inward sense:
Now, henceforth, I am not to act, in any respect, as my own. I shall act as my own, if I ever make use of any of my powers, to any thing, that is not to the glory of God, and do not make the glorying of Him, my whole and entire business.
Sobering Example of Embezzling God’s Glory
In the same way, the Christian hedonist is severely pained when he or she embezzles praise from God. We do not want to be like Herod in Acts 12. Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat upon the throne, and delivered an oration to them (Acts 12:21). We then hear the people’s response: “And the people were shouting, “The voice of a god, and not of a man!” (Acts 12:22). Then we see God’s response to Herod’s response: “Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last” (Acts 12:23). I am not saying that God will do that to everyone when they embezzle praise from God or else none of us would be here today. What I am saying is that this is what all of us deserve. This would be God’s proper response to us. That gives us great pause as we think about using our gifts for God’s glory; not as embezzlers of his praise.
Conclusion
There was a moment in my life this week in which I found my desires for spiritual gifts ratcheted up a few notches. It was not a concern that God’s grace would reach more people and help them, though that does excite me. It was not the thought that more people could be more active in the body of Christ, though I long for that as well.
I can express this realization by drawing a contrast that I read in Sam Storm’s book, The Beginners Guide to Spiritual Gifts. He distinguished two ways of thinking about spiritual gifts. Do we talk about “God and his gifts” or “God in his gifts?” Storms makes the point that ...
Spiritual gifts are nothing less than God himself in us, energizing our souls, imparting revelation to our minds, infusing power in our wills, and working his sovereign and gracious purposes through us. Spiritual gifts must never be viewed deistically, as if a God "out there" has sent some "thing" to us "down here." Spiritual gifts are God present in, with, and through human thoughts, human deeds, human words, human love.
He had me there. If spiritual gifts are manifestations of God, then desiring the gifts is desiring God. Wanting more of the gifts to be expressed at Bethlehem is wanting more of God’s presence to be manifested at Bethlehem. Is this a biblical way to think about gifts?
Storms more than proved his point from 1 Corinthians 12:4–11:
Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.
How do you discover your gift? Some people talk about finding your gift through taking a spiritual gift inventory test. Sam Storms emphasizes (pp. 164–165) not finding your gift, but letting your gift find you:
If we spend less time searching to identify our spiritual gift(s) and more time actually praying and giving and helping and teaching and serving and exhorting those around us, the likelihood greatly increases that we will walk headlong into our gifting without ever knowing what happened. God will more likely meet us with his gifts in the midst of trying to help his children than he ever would while we’re taking a spiritual gifts analysis test.
Let me encourage you to do this especially in small groups. There is an internal sense to a gift. There is a flow of grace that energizes you and you feel carried by God. There is also an external confirmation from others. They will tell you that something you did ministered grace to them. That has happened to me many times while preaching and teaching. When you find that gift, use it to serve others. And when people want to encourage you, receive it but do not stop there. Receive it and then bundle it up in a bouquet of grace to give back to God. All things are from him and through him and to him. To him be the glory forever. Amen.