Jesus’ Ministry
January 18, 2019
Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 12:1-11
Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 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 discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. All these are activated by one and the same Spirit, who allots to each one individually just as the Spirit chooses. –1 Corinthians 12:4-11
God created us with a diversity of talents so that all that is needed in a Kingdom ruled by love would be provided. People with differing gifts usually perceive the world through the lenses of those gifts. While that is a good thing, communication problem can arise when our individual views do not mesh, or our priorities are not shared. A good example of that is the story of Mary and Martha*. Mary chose to sit at Jesus feet and soak up everything he said; Martha was hustling about fixing a meal and complaining that Mary was not doing her fair share of the work. Jesus essentially said to let Mary be Mary and Martha be Martha that Mary had chosen the better way. That stings those of us who are blessed with Martha’s traits. I also have a good dose of Mary though. My mother soon learned when I was a child that taking me to work in the garden was more work than it was worth, while my sister was a born gardener. I was soon left in the house to cook and clean which I did quickly, so I could read.
We grow spiritually when we learn for the experiences of others who are not like us. It is worth the effort to try to see the world through other eyes. It certainly would help us understand them better. Who knows we might be surprised to find a talent that we did not know we had.
Prayer: Thank you Lord, for the beautiful variety of people you provided in this world. Help us learn to love and respect each of them as we share in the responsibility of developing your kingdom on the earth. Amen.
*See Luke 10:38-42