What does it mean for Jesus to be King? What does that look like? We know that the Kingdom of God doesn't look like our kingdoms. We know that God's ways are not like ours. Jesus came to a nation expecting their Messiah to come and deliver them out of the hands of their occupiers with force and bravado. They had developed a picture of what the coming Kingdom of God would look like based on the way human kingdoms functioned, but Jesus came and defied the human narrative. Jesus came and fulfilled the Scriptures to deliver a kingdom of love, grace, mercy, and compassion. He came to deliver His people from the strongholds of sin into the stronghold of God's loving arms.

How does God speak and what sorts of things does He speak? What's the purpose of His speech? The Lord wants to partner with us in ministry and to do that He shares His thoughts and plans with His people. That's really what we're talking about when we talk about things like words of wisdom, knowledge, or prophecy. These are revelations from God to someone that we wants to partner with to accomplish His purposes on earth. Pastor Cami unpacks the practicality of these gifts as we continue our series through 1 Corinthians 12 and Divine Power.

Ministry under the empowerment of the Holy Spirit is not a role for the isolated few. It isn't a privilege of the clergy to use the gifts of the Spirit. It is the joy and honor of all followers of Jesus to join in with the Body of believers in partnering with the Holy Spirit, for the common good.

One way that spiritual gifts get abused is when we see people as having power, rather than being empowered by the Holy Spirit. It's important to keep our focus on the power of God working through us and remember that all believers are gifted to function empowered by the Spirit for the upbuilding of the Church. We do however, have to actively choose to engage with the Spirit and participate in His work on the Earth.

Pastor Ryan opens a new series on the "spirituals" described in 1 Corinthians 12. Western culture doesn't tend to take spiritual matters very seriously. Even people who claim to believe in such things don't tend to practice them in any significant way. But Paul said he didn't want us to be ignorant of such things. Not for lack of information nor for lack of interest. This new series is an opportunity to learn about the way Jesus has invited us to come alongside Him and minister empowered by the Holy Spirit. As we follow Jesus and learn to do what He did, we have to learn the way He did things. That is what Divine Power is all about.

Followers of Jesus are called to tell people about Jesus. The question is, "Are you somebody worth listening to?" Is there anything about your life that is enticing, that makes someone want what you have? Do you have anything to share? Do you share with conviction? The Lord helps us to grow in our ability to share His love and character as we continue to earnestly seek after Him and follow His ways. The key there is that we need His ways to share who He is in an effective and credible way.

Jesus called His followers to proclaim His coming "to Jerusalem, Judea, and the ends of the earth." What does that mean for us now? What is our Jerusalem and Judea? And how are we supposed to reach people? The answer is simple: empowered. We don't have to do it alone, but with the help of the Holy Spirit we can be witnesses of the character and majesty of God to our community, country, and globe.

We can choose to go about our lives as is. We can choose to just try and be a good person and act kindly and live our lives in our own strength. But Jesus told us that it would be better for us if He went away for a very specific reason. That reason was the promise that His Holy Spirit would come and give us the power to live supernatural lives. We don't have to live this life in our own strength because He has offered His. The question is this: Do you want and are you ready for the God of the universe to fill you and help you live the life He is calling you to?

Tools have their purposes. You could use a screwdriver as a hammer, but it wouldn't be nearly as affective at that as it is at driving screws. More importantly, it's not available to fulfill its true purpose while its being used inconsistently with its design. Likewise, we've been made by a Creator with design and purpose. We get to choose to either misuse and abuse the way God has crafted us or make ourselves available to the Master. It's then that He can use us the way He truly intended to fulfill His work.

We all have gifts and talents. More than that, we all have a story. Last week we talked about how we are vessels made to be filled. Part of that filling is the things that we're good at, but part of that filling is simply our story. It's the word of our testimony. It's the places that we've failed and been hurt. As vessels made for honorable use by the Father we are also made to be emptied; to be poured out. We are made to share those stories and experiences and use our gifts and talents to bless others. That is honorable use for His Kingdom: when we use what we've been given to bless others and point them to Jesus.