Ephesians 4:7
“But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift.”
Having emphasized our unity in Christ, Paul now focuses on the importance of serving and ministering to each other. The operative word here is “grace.” God has given every Christian “grace gifts” so that he or she is able to serve others.
This is a central theme that echoes throughout scripture, and I have written about it in previous posts. God equips you with gifts so that you can do the work of the Kingdom. And just as there are many different gifts, so there are many different forms of Kingdom work.
Peter taught this same truth. “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 4:10-11)
Peter makes it clear that we are “stewards of God’s grace.” If you recall, a steward is someone who manages something on behalf of someone else. In reality, the gifts that God has given you don’t actually belong to you. They belong to God and are intended to benefit others. Your task is to be a steward of those gifts and use them to serve the people that God puts into your life. It can be accurately said that God gives gifts to others through you.
This is what it means to be an ambassador for Christ and agent of the kingdom. God calls you to himself and saves you, and then he sends you back into the world as an agent of his kingdom. As part of that calling and sending, the Lord equips you with gifts and abilities that he wants you to use in order to do your job, and to serve and benefit others. This is a profound, game-changing principle that should direct every aspect of our life and work.
The big truth is that grace is not just for saving; it is also for serving and working. But when we fail to serve, a tragic thing happens: Grace flows into our lives, but does not flow out. We become self-oriented rather than kingdom-oriented. We become a recipient of blessing, but not a conduit. We take, but don’t give. We become a parking lot rather than a highway.
Back to Peter’s words: “each has received a gift.” Think deeply about the implications of what that means for you. Let this reality have the appropriate weight in your life. God wants you to know that your gifts are not an accident of genetics and experience. He knew what he was doing when he made each of us, and he has intentionally given us the gifts we have in the measure we have them.
You are on assignment from God. This is why Paul says in Corinthians, “Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him” (1 Corinthians 7:17). You are a bondservant of Christ and a steward of the gifts you have received. So live your assignment. Be a steward of the grace that God has given you.
Other people need the impact and benefit of your gifts. That’s why God gave them to you.
