How do we make people respect the gifts in us

By Hayley Boud

Today we are going to learn from each other. In every church around the world there are problems and mistakes but by listening to one another, these churches have found the way to make changes and to improve themselves as individuals and the church as a whole.

Today we are going to think a little bit about Jesus Christ and his ministry on earth. We are going to remember the way that He came to earth as God. He came to save the lost and had everything necessary in order to do that. He was God! And yet people didn’t recognise what was in Him. They didn’t recognise His ministry. He was despised and rejected as the Bible says. He was not respected. So...if Jesus Himself was not respected, how can we as Christians find the way to be respected? How can we make sure the ministry that we have is respected? How can we ensure the gifts we have are respected by ourselves and by others?

Samson was given a big ministry. He was supposed to save Israel but he didn’t stick to the principles that God gave him. He made the mistake of telling a secret. So he lost the opportunity to save Israel. We have to remember that. We have to remember to stick to God’s principles or the job that God has given to us will not be fulfilled. Can anyone think of real life examples where this has happened? E.g. Geoff Bullock

Jonah had the capacity to take the gospel to Ninevah but he refused. God pushed him to go but when he preached the gospel and the people repented, Jonah wasn’t happy. He wanted God to punish them and to destroy them. We understand his reasoning; they were after all sinners and deserved it. But God wasn’t happy with Jonah and removed the shade from him. When God removes His shade from us, we will really suffer. We have to remember that even though people around us sinners and don’t respect us or God, we have to always show them love. We must have a big heart for sinners and we must pray for them and love them always.

When we think of spiritual ministry we can sometimes use the physical minister of government to help us understand more clearly. The minister of parliament has been elected and chosen for that job. They were chosen because they had the talent, the ability, the education and people trusted them for that job. From the start people will respect them and the job they will do. That minister will also understand that the job requires them to serve the community and to work for the people who elected them. They have to remember they are not working for themselves but for the country. The same with us as Christians: we have to remember that we are using our gifts for God and we must serve others. We are not there to be served but we are here to serve. We are not supposed to tell the church what we want from the church but we are supposed to let God and His people direct us. The most successful pastor is the one who is the servant not the one telling the church what to do.

Also, the minister of parliament has to work hard in order to keep his/her respect. Once that respect is gone, the minister will lose their job. E.g. Richard Worth. Because of his behaviour, he has lost the respect of the entire country and of his boss (John Key). We have to remember that it is our own behaviour that makes people lose respect for us. We have to do our best to behave in such a way that ensures people continue to respect us otherwise we might lose the job God has given to us and God can easily find someone else to do that job. Just like John Key found a new minister and it wasn’t hard to replace Richard Worth, God can easily find someone else more respectable that will do His work.

We are not perfect. Our conscience can sometimes be a bit elastic which means it can take a while before we recognise when we are wrong. But that is ok, as long as we see it in the end. For God, it is never too late to come back to Him and improve our way of living. So if there has been anything that anybody has said today that has touched your conscience, please listen carefully and make sure to implement any changes. Let’s use the different messages we have heard today to pray for ourselves and for one another and let’s not forget how much we need one another. We are all important in front of God and each one is necessary for the building of the church of God. Even the intestines of the body that everybody neglects and hates, are extremely important!

1 Cor 12