Our gifts mean very little to God without real commitments to people.
Wow! Please let that sink in for a moment.
We all want to feel unique and gifted… and we are. We all want to feel like we have something special to offer God and the world… and we do. But the truth is, our gifts and talents, without the basis of deep commitments and sincere devotion to relationships and community, have very little usefulness to God.
There are over 60 “one another” commands throughout scripture: “Love one another”, “accept one another”, “honor one another”, “forgive one another”, “encourage one another”, “bear one another’s burdens”, “confess your sins to one another”, “provoke one another to good works”.
By intentional design, our Creator hardwired us with the need for community and relationships. There are great dangers in going solo with your spirituality. If anyone could’ve done life alone it was Jesus. But the Son of God chose to do life in the context of relationships with others. So must we. The greatest virtues of our Christian faith hinge upon it.
When we say that we don’t need God’s family (the Church) or community with other believers, we are not only deceiving ourselves, walking in spiritual pride, subject to self-serving arrogance and blatant disregard for all that Jesus values and has promised to build; we are also attempting to hijack the greatest virtues of Christianity (these one another virtues), which God designed for the purpose of community. These virtues are meant to give hope to a broken world, but instead get hijacked in the dark corners of isolation.
In Romans 12:9-16 (ESV), Paul says this:
[9] Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. [10] Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. [11] Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. [12] Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. [13] Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.
Above this passage in my Bible it is titled: “Marks of the True Christian”. How accurate that is! So here are some questions for you to ponder…
- Who are you showing genuine love to? V9
- Who are you committed to? In other words, who knows they can count on you? V10
- How does that commitment manifest itself on a regular basis?
- Who are you honoring in your relationships? V10
- How are you serving the Lord by serving others? V11
- Where do you need to be more patient? V12
- Who are you praying for constantly? V12
- Who are you contributing to the needs of, and showing hospitality to? V13
If we want our gifts to matter to God, we must uphold them with the basis of strong community.
You are a person uniquely wired with gifts, talents, hopes, and dreams. But know that all these characteristics have very little value outside the context of relationships. People matter to God. And if we want our gifts and talents to matter to God, we would do very well to use our gifts and talents to intentionally build people and serve others in life-giving community.
Are you doing this?