Week 10 | Day 3 – THE BODY OF CHRIST – Romans 12:3-8

As those who belong to Christ, God has placed us into something bigger than ourselves—the body of Christ (the church)—where we are to think soberly about ourselves, receive spiritual gifts by grace, and use these gifts to build others up so the whole church matures and advances the Great Commission——both gathered and scattered. Sadly, too often, these gifts of the Spirit get misconstrued and misappropriated leading to dysfunction within the church and within a person’s spiritual calling. Yet these gifts are for not for plugging volunteer roles in the church but for edifying and building up each other to be a fully developing follower of Jesus. These gifts are the responsibility of every believer, yet no one has all the gifts. So, to learn how to be merciful, we need to be around those with the gift of mercy. If we're to become good stewards or better encouragers—we learn this from those with the gift of generosity and encouragement. Quite literally, we are to rub off on one another to help each other to become more like Jesus.

APPLICATION

1 - Start with Sober Thinking

Measure yourself by the measure of faith, not by comparison or pride. You are a grace-receiver before you are a gift-user.

2 - Remember that Gifts of the Spirit are Grace—not glory

Gifts are given by the Holy Spirit, not earned. No gift is greater or more important than the next. So, there should be No boasting—only stewardship.

3 - See the Gifts of the Spirit as Relational Ministry—not as Volunteer Church Roles

Your gift is a way to form Christ in others (see Galatians 4:19), not merely to fill a slot. Ask, “How does my gift help people look and become more like Jesus?”

4 - Mutual Edification is the Objective

No one person has all the gifts, yet we all have the responsibility of all of the gifts—meaning we need one another. Teachers help us handle truth; encouragers help us persevere; the generous model stewardship; the merciful tutor us in compassion; leaders set pace; and servers embody Jesus’ towel and basin.

5 - Discover and Practice Your Gifting—Learn from the Gifting of Others

Every virtue is every believer’s responsibility (e.g., mercy, generosity, encouragement), but God has uniquely gifted each of us to become living tutors for the rest of us.

6 - Aim for Christlikeness and Completing the Mission

The test of gift-use is this—are people becoming more like Jesus? Is our church more faithful on mission in our city and among the nations?

PRAYER

Lord, in view of Your mercy, I offer myself to You today. Thank You for placing me in Your body and for the grace-gifts You have given me and others within the church. Show me the gift(s) You’ve entrusted to me, and teach me to use them to help others thrive in You. Make me humble, eager to learn from those differently gifted, and faithful to build up Your people so that, together, we live on mission for the sake of the gospel—both gathered and scattered. Amen.