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“And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ.”
Ephesians 4:11-12
Napoleon once pointed to a map of China and said, “There lies a sleeping giant. If it ever wakes up, it will be unstoppable.” Today the American church is a sleeping giant. Each Sunday, church pews are filled with members who are doing nothing with their faith except “keeping” it.
The designation “active” member in most churches simply means those who attend regularly and financially support the church. Not much more is expected for membership. But God has far greater expectations for every Christian. He expects every Christian, every child of the King for which was called by God, to use their gifts and talents in ministry. If we can ever awaken and unleash the massive talent, resources, creativity and energy found in the typical local church, Christianity would explode with growth at an unprecedented rate!
There’s a clear, indisputable message that the apostle Paul is telling the church at Ephesus in the above passage. They were not to sit on their stone chairs and soak in the messages that were preached each Sunday. No, they were to know that they each had gifts given to them by the Holy Spirit and they were to discover those gifts, develop those gifts, and deploy those gifts for the “work of service” that was to be done. They were to infect and impact the world with their love for Christ and see to it that they stayed pure, righteous and holy in the process. The world was not to taint them, but they were to “change” the world in which they lived. They were not to be a sleeping giant.
That message still rings true today. If you have accepted Christ as your personal Lord and Savior then, according to God’s Word, you are filled with the Holiness of God. You have a divine gift for which God desires to use through you for the building up of His corporate church, the body of Christ. Allow the sleeping giant inside you to awake and change the world!
In Christ,
Dave
For additional reading on obedience in the Christian life, check out Abundant Blessings and Bridegroom of Blood.
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