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Restoration Ministry

Restoration 2006: Prepare Me

Ron du Preez

Virtuous Valentine: The Love of Your Life

Communicating In Code: The Secret of the Scrolls

Trip Into the Trinity: Figuring the Unfathomable

Eric Walsh

Bible Study Hour

A Ransom for a Rebel: Bloody Business of the Beasts

Living it Up for the Lord: It’s Crazy to Cling to Cancer

Belonging and Be Living: Your Money Where Your Mouth Is

Miracle Makeover: A Lifetime Warranty

The Quarantine Guarantee: The Rest of the Story

James Kyle

Let Your Lawyer Run Your Life: Acquittal is Assured

Griping Over God’s Gifts: A Prophet or a Loss

Interview with Leonard Brand

Secrets of Centenarians: Living Long in Luxury

Interview with Gary Frasier

Interview with Marge Jetton

The Medium is the Message: A Grave Turn of Events

The Ultimate Thanksgiving: Family Friends Forever

Richard Walton

Interview with Leslie Pollard

Cardiology of Commitment: The Heart of the Matter

Bible Ethics Question and Answer Session

Welcome to our final week as we get back into the Word.

This is the last week we will be together in the Word and as you can see I brought quite a few bits of evidence with me today.

I just want to quickly review a phrase that captures what we covered a few days ago and we talked about the sanctuary the wonderful message of what Jesus is doing right now for us and this is the phrase Christ died for sin and now serves as our priest 1 short phrase that captures that message.

Christ died for sin and now serves as our priest.

Thank You, Lord, we can spend a few moments today in Your word, digging further to understand more so that we will know how we can live to your glory.

A quick question, how many of you can remember who this person is?

Here's a picture of a lady on the cover of People magazine and the title is from hostage to hero how Ashley Smith with faith, smarts and courage, we'll come back to that word smarts, talked her way out of the hands of an alleged killer.

It happened about a year ago, March 2005, when Brian Nichols, the man up there, who was being taken, he was on trial, he grabbed the gun from a deputy, he ran with the gun into the courthouse, shot and killed the judge, shot and killed the court reporter, shot another deputy, fled the courthouse in Atlanta, Fulton County Courthouse, and then came across a federal agent who was working at home off duty.

He shot and killed him, stole his truck and stole his gun, and then he showed up on 02:00, March 12, 02:00 in the morning, Saturday morning, at Ashley Smith's place.

I'm going to briefly tell you what she did.

She sat down with him And Ashley calmly began to talk to him.

Told him, told Brian about her late husband who was killed in a knife fight.

She told Nichols that if he killed her, her child would be an orphan.

She read to Nichols from an inspiration book and talked to him about her faith in God.

Here she was a hostage and she was brave to do that.

Ashley Smith told Brian Nichols that his life still had a purpose.

She said this, You should go back to prison because you can minister to the inmates.

And I'm quoting now, you can go to jail, Ashley Smith said to this multiple murderer, you can go to jail and save many more people than you killed.

She's challenging this man whose picture by the way showed up right there on television while when he came into the house he said to her turn on the television and she turned it on and there his picture was we're hunting for this killer and there he was in her home and she said to him go to prison where you can minister to the inmates fascinating courage more than courage I believe she was imbued by the Spirit of God to challenge this multiple murder to do something good.

When we talk about the gifts of the Spirit, what do we mean?

Last week we talked about stewardship we said we are all CFOs what does a CFO stand for?

Chief Financial Officer, stewardship we are business managers of God's gifts and last week we talked about 2 T's You remember what it was?

And I said that today we're going to talk about the third T.

So open your Bibles to Matthew chapter 25.

Obviously Jesus is talking in the context of the end of the world.

We've done with time, with treasure, and now notice the third T.

Matthew 25, verse 14, For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them.

Now when you look at the context folks, It's very clear that this is a parable that Jesus is telling really to some degree about himself.

He is the man who's going on this long journey, going back to heaven.

And when he leaves, of course, the Holy Spirit is going to give talents, gifts to his people, those who are followers of Jesus.

And he goes away and holds us who are here accountable for the proper use of these talents but what is the purpose why do we have these gifts turn with me now to Ephesians the letter to Ephesians by the Apostle Paul because Paul states very clearly the why and the reason, the purpose, why did God give these gifts to His people?

Ephesians chapter 4 verses 11, 12, 13 we'll look at the reasons right here and 14, very clear why these spiritual gifts, why these talents and he himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists and some pastors and teachers, Ephesians 4 verse 12 now for, here's the purpose, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, For the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry.

For the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry.

So that the saints, God's people, can be equipped to minister.

Reason number 1 and reason number 2, for the edifying of the body of Christ.

So here are 2 important reasons, so that we can reach out to others, number 1, and number 2, so that we ourselves can grow in the Lord.

Till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God to a perfect man to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.

By the way when we talk about growing that means we grow together in unity.

We grow to maturity, unity, maturity and it says that we should no longer be children, because we're mature, no longer children.

They are tossed to and fro, carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plottings.

So the purpose of the gifts, essentially 2 major functions.

1, so that God's people can be equipped to share, reason number 1.

Reason number 2, so that we can grow in unity, in maturity, this is all in growth, unity, maturity and we won't be shifted by all kinds of strange doctrines.

So there we have the 2 fundamental reasons for that.

2 main reasons that the gifts are given for us.

In fact there's a line I'd like you to learn.

First part of the line says God's gifts are for growth.

God's gifts are for growth and to share His love.

That's the purpose of the gift as you study the scriptures.

God's gifts are for growth and to share his love.

Very simple, God's gifts are for growth and to share his love.

Now we come to the question, how are the gifts given?

Turn with me now to the book of the letter to the Corinthians.

1st Corinthians chapter 12 and I will admit right away you must be aware the Corinthian church you can read this in the context, chapter 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, these were clearly folks that were having serious problems, sectarianism, chapter 1, problems in chapter 2, chapter 3, immorality, chapter 5, suing each other, chapter 6, problems in marriage, chapter 7, they were having all kinds of problems and Paul was trying to correct all kinds of issues in the church now we're going to 1st Corinthians chapter 12 so remember this is a problem church as you read it Paul is correcting issues and trying to help this church to grow properly.

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Series

Restoration 2006: Prepare Me

Griping Over God’s Gifts: A Prophet or a Loss

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Recorded

The Ministry of Healing

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Ellen G. White Exposed (Prophet or Pretender)

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The Spirit of Prophecy Matters

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Alan Parker - Truth or Hoax: Validity of Ellen White

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Revelation Made Simple

17. Prophetic Movement at End Time

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Eyes of the Church

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Restoration 2006: Prepare Me

Griping Over God’s Gifts: A Prophet or a Loss

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The White Elephant in the Room

The Last Deception in God’s Church

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The Spirit of Prophecy

Answers to Objections About the Spirit of Prophecy

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Ellen White Under Fire

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GYC 2012 Seminar: Revolutionary Apologetics - The Adventist Edge

Jesus’ Apologetics on Prophets: EGW Outside Adventism

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Sound Doctrine