3. Genuine Love Serves Others

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We use our spiritual gifts to serve others in response to God’s mercy. Paul then lists in Romans 12:5-8 the many ways God gifts us, gifts meant to serve others. If you haven’t read this list, take some time to read over the many ways in which God gifts His children before moving on.

One thing to remember when reading about spiritual gifts is that Paul reminded us to be humble just a few verses prior. So it doesn’t matter what gifts you have; we are all on the same team, and each has its own function, but we are working together as the body of Christ.

I have taken one of the spiritual gift assessments a few times, and perhaps you have, too. These are good starting points, but might I suggest that a better approach to discovering your gifting is to think about the needs of your church and ask God to help you meet those needs? We might even end up serving or using gifts that we didn’t know we had but that the Holy Spirit equipped for a specific need.

The Holy Spirit graciously gifts His Children, but we are responsible for taking action.

God can accomplish His plan without us, but what a gift that He invites us to co-labor with Him as we serve the church body. In this selfless service, we show how the Lord has changed our lives and is actively working in our hearts.

Showing genuine love for those who drive us crazy, people we don’t care for, or goodness, sometimes even the people we like, is hard work. I’ll be honest: sometimes, avoiding certain people or maintaining the status quo with our frenemies is easier. But, a “grin and bear it” mentality is not what God desires for his people.

Instead, let us be people marked by a genuine love for God and His people. Our hearts desire to live a life worthy of the gospel. It is in the loving of the unloveable, unity among diversity, and selfless service that we show the world the power of Christ to redeem, reunite, and reconcile, and who wouldn’t want that for their lives?

Related Articles:

How to Identify and Effectively Use Your Spiritual Gifts

3 Misconceptions about Spiritual Gifts