Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. 1 Corinthians 13:1 KJV
The visible and the audible gifts can be quite distracting. We ascribe greater importance to those gifts that are easily noticed; those gifts that appear as if the church cannot do without. We celebrate those who have the gifts, forgetting the role all the other non-visible/audible gifts play in the body of Christ. Today's extract seeks to place the gifts of the Spirit in the right context, and also lay emphasis on the right attention to be ascribed to all that I see and hear.
First, God places greater importance on people, not gifts. Yes, the gifts will be used to bless lives but if there were no human beings to bless or impact, the gifts will be of no use. I have to sort out this order of importance, if my life will be all that God has set it out to be. The gifts are good, but the template of usage is equally, if not more important.
Secondly, God gives gifts to people so that one person can supply what is lacking in the other. No one person is given ALL available gifts; God's divine arrangement is such that no single person can boast about his qualifications, endowments and self-sufficiency. Whatever it is I have been given is God's expectation from me to touch and impact another life. If I refuse or neglect to use the gift in this manner, how do I demand that another person supply that which is lacking in me?
Thirdly, I can be quite charismatic, with people literally eating out of my hands, but without the right heart, I am only wasting my time; God takes no glory from a life that does not point him out everytime. I cannot be a seasonal wonder; good only when it is convenient and then doing my own thing at other times. How is my heart? How is yours?
I can be very gifted in both the ways of men and of God, yet lack the heart of God in carrying out my assignments. This is the danger: a lot of applause by men but no recognition by God. At the end of it all, man's applause is uncertain and unpredictable, and it is dangerous to set store by it. I may know the tongues of men and of angels, and be able to decipher the mysteries of men, yet i gain nothing if my heart does not rest on the things that bring God praise.
Love is the connection between activity and impact. Being busy is not the same as making impact. Speaking well does not automatically imply serving in line with God's will. If I will not end up as a mere noisemaker, I must find out what God's will is and pursue it with all my heart. Love remains and is able to focus, even when the heart is heavy. No matter what i have got now, it is not enough if there is no love. I ask God to help my walk with him, so that my work for him can be accepted by him. His time of favour is here.
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