Ephesians 4:11
It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
The Christmas after Lorene and I bought our first home my brother sent me an usual gift. It was about the size of a small board game – but it was way too heavy to be a backgammon set! I wracked my brain and, for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out what exotic gift the mysterious package might contain. So imagine my response when I finally opened the box to find … a ratchet set. A 40 piece ratchet set. “Really?” I thought, “for Christmas!?”
I pretended to be both happy and grateful for my brother’s gift, all the while thinking, “What was he thinking? Has he ever heard of a new golf club?” And I put the ratchet set on a shelf in my garage.
But the truth is, some 25 years later I still have that ratchet set. The metal box it came in is rusted now and I have probably lost of few of the 40 pieces over the years. But of all the gifts I have received in all the Christmases since then, that ratchet set has probably been the most useful. I am certainly not a handy-man in any sense of the word, but I have used that ratchet set to build swing-sets, fix (or try to fix) bikes, and dozens of other small issues around the house.
Looking back, my brother gave me the ratchet set because, having owned his own home for a few years, he knew that I would need it before I did. He knew that even though I am not the “handiest” guy around, I would still need to have at least a few tools to take on the odd-jobs that come with owning a home. So his gift was to equip me with the tools I would need to do important things like tighten doorknobs and replace towel racks. In the same way, God has given us the gift of his word which then equips us with the tools to participate in building up the body of Christ: Read the words of Paul again:
It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
Ephesians 4:11
That tells me that God wants to use each one of us to build his Church. He has given us the tools we need – spiritual tools of knowledge and maturity that come through his word and that enable each one of us to serve in some way to build up the body of Christ.
It strikes me that the “tools analogy” actually has two applications. First, God has given us the necessary spiritual tools that enable us to take on the challenges that life presents to each one of us; tools like faith, knowledge, wisdom, endurance, and peace. But second, as we grow in faith and spiritual maturity, we become tools in the hands of God as he uses our service to build his church.
Years ago a high school student filled out an application to serve on a short term mission team I was leading in Student ministries. In answer to the question, “Why do you want to go on this trip?” he answered, “I want God to use me like a tool.” I loved that response and have always appreciated that young man’s simple desire to be used by God.
As we conclude this week – thank God for the gift of his word and ask him to grow and mature your faith so that your life can be used like a tool to build his church.
Pastor Brian Coffey
That tells me that God wants to use each one of us to build his Church. He has given us the tools we need – spiritual tools of knowledge and maturity that come through his word and that enable each one of us to serve in some way to build up the body of Christ.
It strikes me that the “tools analogy” actually has two applications. First, God has given us the necessary spiritual tools that enable us to take on the challenges that life presents to each one of us; tools like faith, knowledge, wisdom, endurance, and peace. But second, as we grow in faith and spiritual maturity, we become tools in the hands of God as he uses our service to build his church.
Years ago a high school student filled out an application to serve on a short term mission team I was leading in Student ministries. In answer to the question, “Why do you want to go on this trip?” he answered, “I want God to use me like a tool.” I loved that response and have always appreciated that young man’s simple desire to be used by God.
As we conclude this week – thank God for the gift of his word and ask him to grow and mature your faith so that your life can be used like a tool to build his church.
Pastor Brian Coffey
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