HIS GLORY IN USING SPIRITUAL GIFTS AND AUTHORITY

THE GLORY OF CHRIST STUDY IV Y Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted there by the devil. And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry. And the tempter came and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.’” Mat 4:1-4 Before Jesus begun His public ministry, and after being filled with the Holy Spirit, we see the Holy spirit leading Him to the wilderness to be tested. God allowed the devil to come and tempt Him. Testing was necessary for Jesus before the public ministry. In the same way, we must be tested before God can entrust us with public ministry. Yes, he humbled you by letting you go hungry and then feeding you with manna, a food previously unknown to you and your ancestors. He did it to teach you that people do not live by bread alone; rather, we live by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. In the wilderness He fed you manna which your fathers did not know, that He might humble you and that He might test you, to do good for you in the end. Deut 8:3,16 The purpose of the wilderness experience is that we maybe humbled and broken. Before God can use use, He has to break us, He has to humble us. Jesus was broken first, we are to follow Him. In His eyes, personal brokenness is more important than public ministry. Do you seek to be broken or do you only seek to be blessed? In the first temptation, we see the purpose to which God gives us spiritual authority and spiritual gifts. The temptation was for using the gifts for personal profits. Jesus had the power to change stones into bread, and He was hungry, but His reply shows us that the gifts and authority are not for us to use as we would want to, but we are to listen constantly to God on how to use the spiritual gifts and authority God gives us. God hadn't told Jesus to change stones to bread, and therefore He wouldn't do it even if He had power to, and he had a personal need, and no one could claim He had stolen His bread. We see the attitude of Jesus which we are to follow; the attitude is, that the gifts and authority God gave Him is not to serve His onlwn purposes but the purposes of God who gave it. If God has given me a gift, it is to serve His purposes not mine. If God has given me authority over people, it so that I can use the authority to lead them to God's purposes. But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 1Cor 12:7. This means spiritual gifts are to be used to bless the entire body of Christ. What is your attitude towards spiritual gifts? For you have given him authority over everyone. He gives eternal life to each one you have given him. This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. John 17:2-3 We see here the purpose for which God gives us authority over others is so that we can lead them to a deeper knowledge of God. Are you exercising the authority God has given you to lead others to know God more or are you taking advantage of those whom God has placed over you? It's unfortunate that today many misuse their God given authority and gifts to extract money, get honour, and sex with those whom God has brought under their authority. But we see none of this in Jesus. His Glory is seen in using His spiritual gifts and authority to bless others and lead them to God. Oh that God may raise leaders armed with the same attitude of Christ in the use of Spiritual gifts and authority.