The Church Is Supernatural; You Are Supernatural

I hope we understand that the Church is supernatural. It is amazing how many Christians don't. The Church is not man made but Holy Spirit born. She was given life when the Holy Spirit was given to man. Her establishment took place through super natural methods; people speaking in languages they did not know, healings, signs and wonders. And let us not forget about the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Why do we keep forgetting about the gifts of the Spirit? Let's just refresh our memory on what some of these gifts are.

First the Apostle Paul stated that he did not want anyone to be ignorant of these gifts:

Now about spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be ignorant. (1 Corinthians 12:1)

Then he stated that there is a great purpose for these gifts:

Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. (1 Corinthians 12:7)

And then Paul names off some of those gifts:

To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. (1 Corinthians 12:8-10)

And just to make sure we understand the source of these gifts and how they are determined:

All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines. (1 Corinthians 12:11)

If you read the whole passage you will discover that if is by these gifts that the Church functions as it should. The Church is not established by man, cannot operate properly according to the systems of man, is not directed by man, is not empowered by man and is not limited by the limits of man.

Some people, trying to be helpful, developed a Spiritual Gifts survey that acts more like an interest survey than anything else. That survey almost killed me spiritually. At the time I was fascinated by missionaries and the spiritual lessons they learned n their service. I admired their sacrifice and determination to serve the Lord no matter the cost. So it should be no surprise that when I took that survey it came out that I had the gift of missions. I went into missions but I had no gift and without the Holy Spirit to sustain me it nearly killed me. Since that time I have learned that the only way to discover your gifts is by walking in Christ, obeying the Spirit, and doing what he tells you to do no matter how ridiculous it sounds. Spiritual gifts are revealed by the laying on of hands which simply confirms what is already on our heart.

Yet, we are a lazy bunch, or at least our flesh is. It takes time and effort to walk in the Spirit. It takes determination to remain in a solid relationship with Jesus Christ. It requires every day that we study the Word, are in constant prayer, take the time to worship and see ourselves in service to the King. It takes a life that is focused on Jesus Christ, where Jesus is the purpose for everything. It takes more than passion. Passion without reason is a dangerous thing. Passion is fantastic when it is rooted in the Word. For example, how could we rely on the promises of God, call upon God according to these promises if we don't even know what those promises are? No, if you want to operate in your spiritual gifting you must have a vibrant and growing relationship with Jesus Christ and you must give the Spirit his place. He is your guide, teacher, comforter and source of everything from Jesus.

The Church must operate in the spiritual gifts if it is to function properly. The World needs to see the Church as supernatural, serving the God of "all things are possible" instead of seeing it as another great humanitarian organization. The Church is more than good works, it embodies the power of God to transform. Right now we are busy applying band-aids instead of administering healing. The gifts are not for a chosen few, "Now to each one..." Paul wrote.

We need to get serious about what we are doing with Jesus Christ. A World is dying and they need to be convinced that there is a God who loves them. They need to be convinced that Jesus is real, is present and is able to transform them completely. They need to know that Jesus has the power to save them. Words are not enough. We have been equipped for action, we must be a people of action and that action must be supernatural. Let's stop limiting what God is doing by our limits and allow the Spirit to work through us. Draw close, listen and obey.