Tuesday Tome - Ministry and Gifts

On Sunday, April 29, I will be starting a new teaching series I've entitled: You Were Made for This. The series will be an exploration of calling, ministry, spiritual gifts, and the role of each and every believer in the body of Christ. One of the books I've been reading in preparation for this series is What Are Spiritual Gifts?: Rethinking the Conventional View by Kenneth Berding. It's been a very readable and helpful study.

Berding is a professor of Biblical Studies at Talbot School of Theology at Biola University, and in this book he suggests that most Christians have a basic misunderstanding of spiritual giftedness as described in four key lists in the New Testament. Berding presents a very straightforward and thorough investigation of the original language, the textual context of each list, the Apostle Paul's idiomatic use of certain words, the key themes, and the pastoral intent of each of the four passages. The result for the reader is a richer and more accurate understanding of ministry and gifts.

Here is an excerpt from the preface:
Spiritual gifts have commonly been referred to as being the items that Paul lists in Ephesians 4:11; Romans 12:6-8; 1 Corinthians 12:8-10; and 1 Corinthians 12:28-30.1 But what are the items in those lists? This book addresses a crucial question about these items: Does the Holy Spirit give special abilities that we must discover-as many suppose when they look at Paul's lists-or does the Holy Spirit call and place us into various ministries that build up the community that he has formed? What is, after all, Paul's central concern in these passages? Is it that believers try to unearth their hidden spiritual abilities, or that they be guided by the Holy Spirit into activities and positions of ministry that build up the community of faith?

In case you're interested, here is the outline for the upcoming series:

You Were Made for This
Finding Your Place and Purpose in the Body

Sunday, April 29, 2012
Shaped: What You Do Best

Sunday, May 6, 2012
Stretched: What Must Be Done

Sunday, May 13, 2012 (Mother’s Day) – Sheri Lynch
Assigned: What Only You Can Do

Sunday, May 20, 2012
Trained: Learning to Do More

Sunday, May 27, 2012 (Pentecost Sunday) – Wototo Choir
Blessed: Giving Thanks for What Others Do

Sunday, June 3, 2012
Proven: Dependable in Doing Your Part

Sunday, June 10, 2012
Fulfilled: Loving What You Do