July 18, God's grace in spiritual gifts. As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another

as good stewards of God's varied grace for Peter 410. When we use our spiritual gifts,

we are stewarding grace, not yesterday's grace, but today's grace, arriving in every moment of need.

And this future grace is varied grace. It comes in many colors and shapes and sizes.

This is one of the reasons spiritual gifts in the body are so diverse. The prism of God's gifts in

your life were refract shades of divine glory that would never come through my prism.

There are as many future graces as there are needs in the body of Christ. And more,

the purpose of spiritual gifts is to receive and dispense the future grace of God to those needs.

But someone may ask, why do you take Peter to refer to future grace?

Doesn't a steward manage a household store that is already on hand?

The main reason I take Peter to refer to future grace is because the next verse illustrates

how this works. And the reference there is to ongoing supplies of future grace.

He says, whoever serves, let him serve by the strength that God supplies.

In order that in everything, God may be glorified through Jesus Christ,

1 Peter 4 11. The word is supplies, not supplied. As you serve, serve in the power of the

ongoing supply of God's grace to do what you need to do.

When you fulfill your spiritual gift to serve someone tomorrow,

you will be serving by the strength that God supplies, and that supply will be tomorrow,

not today. As your days so shall your strength be due to early 3325.

God goes on day by day, moment by moment, supplying the strength in which we minister.

He does this because the ongoing, inexhaustible supplier of power gets the glory.

Whoever serves, let him serve by the strength that God supplies,

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