Marla Runyon is a five-time Paralympic gold medallist. Diagnosed with Stargardt's Disease as a child, Marla has been legally blind for more than 20 years. In 2000, she became the first legally blind runner to qualify for the U.S. Olympic team. Marla ran the 1,500-meter race at the Sydney Summer Olympics, finishing eighth in the world, while becoming the first Paralympian to compete in the Olympics. She now has long distance aspirations. In the 2002 New York City Marathon, Marla finished fifth among the fastest runners in the world with a time of 2:27:10.
We love stories of people who overcome insurmountable obstacles to achieve incredible goals. Disabled athletes like Marla Runyon who excel in the Olympics qualify, don’t they? We need stories like these because so often we have a thousand and one excuses why we’re not making it, not performing, nor fulfilling our destiny in Christ.
Today let’s consider the life of another hero in the book of Acts. Although he wasn’t ‘disabled’ in the traditional sense of the word, it could be argued that he was ‘handicapped’ nonetheless.
His name was .....
Stephen.
Stephen was an incredibly convincing communicator. He was persuasive, and maybe even a little pushy, but lots of people were discovering Christ because of him. The only problem was, he had a way of confronting the wrong people. Eventually they hauled him up before the same court that crucified Jesus.
Stephen made a powerful defence, but when he laid responsibility for the cross at their feet, the Sanhedrin had had enough, and proceeded to stone him.
“All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel… While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’ Then he fell on his knees and cried out, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them.’ When he had said this, he fell asleep” (Acts 6:15, 7:59-60).
Stephen was a regular hero, the first martyr in church history. Through the centuries he’s been an inspiration to millions, especially the persecuted church around the world. This really is the stuff of legend, especially because Stephen overcame a genuine handicap to achieve his stardom.
The stuff of legend:
overcoming HANDICAP to achieve stardom
You might be questioning what ‘handicap’ Stephen had to overcome. The word ‘handicap’ means ‘a condition or barrier imposed by society, the environment, or one's own self.’ Stephen wasn’t so much disabled as handicapped. His handicap was cultural. Stephen came from a different country and spoke a different language. He had different cultural habits than the rest; he spoke Hebrew with an accent, and ate different foods.
The book of Acts tells us that Stephen was a Grecian Jew, a Hellenist. These were Jews who, beginning in the days of the Babylonians (600 years earlier), made their home in the Greek speaking world, where many of them had been living for generations. Some of these folk had returned to live in Jerusalem, and Stephen was one of them. To the purebred, born-in-the-promised-land Hebraic Jews, these Grecian Jews were second class. They didn’t honour the traditions properly and they read the Torah in Greek. Their faith forged by their interaction with Gentiles on their own turf was just a bit more suspect.
“In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Grecian Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food” (Acts 6:1).
In the early church discrimination had reared its ugly head. So, handicapped by his society, Stephen may have seemed like an upstart when he began telling people about Jesus and how the Jews had crucified their own Messiah. Who was this guy, and what kind of accent was that anyway?
Handicaps can become handles in God’s hands. So let me ask you, what’s your handicap? What’s holding you back from giving your all and accomplishing God’s purpose for your life?
Rembrandt, the 17th century Dutch painter, is best known for his profound use of light and darkness. As it turns out, after studying 36 of his self-portraits, it’s probable that the painter suffered from an eye condition known as strabismus — what kids call wall-eye — where one eye is misaligned so that it points outward from the face.
What’s fascinating is that this disability may have contributed to Rembrandt’s success! The artist's work demonstrates great care in the use of light to carry perspective. Because of the loss of depth perception created by strabismus, Rembrandt had "an advantage in the task of translating three-dimensional scenes into two-dimensional paintings."
Harvard Medical School neurobiologist Margaret Livingstone observed, "It illustrates that disabilities are not always disabilities. They may be assets in another realm."
What’s our excuse for not giving our all? You may be saying, “I’ve got this problem with anger.”
Well maybe if you give God your anger He can turn it into righteous indignation, a burning desire for justice for the oppressed. Perhaps you’re saying, “It’s the problems in my marriage.” Give them to the Lord and He may turn them into a genuine concern for healthy relationships. Or could it be that you have overwhelming financial struggles?
In God’s hands they can be shaped into compassion and empathy for the poor. Disabilities and handicaps can become assets in a different realm.
We need to redefine our ideas of giftedness. We live in a world where we assume every one who achieves is especially gifted. We have gifted programs in schools. We hear a great piece of music and say, “Wow that person sure has a gift!” Or we read about a surgeon so gifted that she virtually performs miracles.
The myth of GIFTEDNESS: either “Ya GOT IT” or “Ya DON’T”
The idea of giftedness is that somehow, magically, a person has something that the rest of us lack. Tell the pianist that his talent just comes naturally, and he’ll tell you about hours of practice. Tell the surgeon that her skill is just the luck of the draw, and she’ll tell you about years of training. The truth is we all have a natural ability for something, but gifts require development.
The secret of Stephen’s giftedness doesn’t lie directly within himself. It wasn’t just natural gifting that made him who he was, nor hours of practice.
“Now Stephen, a man full of God's grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people” (Acts 6:8).
These miracles didn’t arise out of Stephen’s well-honed talents, or his magnetic personality. There was something else at play here. Consider Stephen’s composure as life ebbed out of his body while he was being stoned.
“But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God” (Acts 7:55).
Where does a man find the determination, grace and courage to face his own death? He found it in the fullness of the Holy Spirit. He found it in a vision of Jesus. Where can I get that kind of stamina, you may ask? You get it from an ongoing relationship with the Holy Spirit.
Did Stephen have some natural tendencies that made him a compelling communicator? Sure he did. However, what made him spiritually compelling, and what accomplished eternal benefit in his ministry wasn’t due to his natural talents.
Ultimately it was his spiritual potential that made a difference. That’s why it’s so necessary to develop our relationship with the Spirit. It’s about making ourselves — spirit, soul and body — available to Him.
Anything that is of eternal value comes from Him. Stephen might have been a great debater, but that’s not why we remember him. He became legendary because he made an eternal difference; he was fully available to God; he gave God his all.
You and I can make an eternal difference too if we’ll come to a fresh understanding, and learn to develop our spiritual gifts. Spiritual gifts are about supernatural ability connected to divine purpose.
"Understanding Gifts"
Supernatural ABILITY for divine PURPOSE
Sometimes we may wonder why we can’t perform miracles. We may wonder why we don’t seem to be able to heal anybody. Why is it always other people who experience the supernatural at work? Be careful of this kind of attitude. It’s a self-centred approach. It’s all about me, me, me!
Spiritual gifts are not just about experiencing the supernatural, they’re about connecting the supernatural to divine purposes. We need to put ourselves in the centre of His purpose and plan. If we make ourselves available to Him, anything can happen. Look at what Paul says to the Corinthians:
“There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men. Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good” (1 Corinthians 12:4-7).
Let’s get some basic understanding about spiritual gifts from this text. First of all, these giftings are from the Spirit. They aren’t just human abilities that one polishes and shines until they look really pretty. Someone can work hard at developing a singing voice, but that doesn’t mean it’s a spiritual gift. These are gifts from the Holy Spirit.
Secondly, if we’re going to take Scripture seriously, we have to believe that the gifts of the Spirit are available to every believer. Now somebody may shrug his shoulders and say, “I guess God blesses others, but not me.”
He may walk away without realizing that a divine treasure is just waiting to be discovered and released in his life. The Bible says each one is gifted.
The most important thing to note is that it’s not about you. Spiritual gifts are for the benefit of the body of Christ (the Church). One of the reasons some people have a hard time discovering their gifts is because they rarely find themselves serving others.
Giftings are:
•
from the SPIRIT
•available to every BELIEVER
•for the benefit of OTHERS
None of us, in and of ourselves, is sufficient. In the church we need each other. Individuals may have wonderful gifts, but we still need each other. We may feel that we’ve absolutely no gifts to offer, but sure enough, as the Bible tells us, our gifts are essential to the building of God’s kingdom. Imagine how unhealthy the church is when so many of us don’t recognize our place in fulfilling divine purpose. The truth is that God’s purposes work through people.
You may remember Jimmy Durante, that bulbous-nosed comedian with the rough Brooklyn accent they called the Schnozz.
After the Second World War he was asked to perform in a benefit for veterans. He told them his schedule was very busy and he could afford only a few minutes, but if they wouldn’t mind his doing one short monologue and immediately leaving for his next appointment, he would come. Of course, the show’s director was thrilled to have him.
When Jimmy got on stage, something interesting happened. He went through his short monologue, and then stayed.
The applause grew louder and louder. Pretty soon, he’d been on the stage for 30 minutes. Finally he took a last bow.
Backstage someone stopped him and said, “I thought you had to go after a few minutes. What happened?”
Jimmy answered, “I did have to go, but I can show you the reason I stayed. You can see for yourself if you’ll look down on the front row.”
In the front row were two men who were obviously having the time of their lives laughing and crying. Each had lost an arm in the war.
One had lost his right arm and the other had lost his left, but together they were able to clap, and that’s exactly what they were doing.
That makes an interesting picture. If only we, as members of the church, despite being handicapped by our humanity, could function in harmony together.
The Holy Spirit can release that kind of unity among us if we allow Him. He can bring us together through the operation and release of His gifts upon the body of Christ.
Let’s consider the variety of gifts that are available. There are at least three types of gifts listed in the New Testament.
First, there are gifts from the Holy Spirit. These include what we normally consider the more supernatural gifts such as ‘the working of miracles’, ‘gifts of healing’, speaking in a language one has never learned (‘various kinds of tongues’), or the interpretation of that language.
Three types of gifts:
Gifts from the HOLY SPIRIT.
These gifts are manifestations that we couldn’t possibly create on our own, they’re something the Spirit does through us.
“All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines”
(1 Corinthians 12:11).
Paul says the Spirit gives these gifts to each of us as He chooses. That means one day at work someone may confide in you about receiving bad news from her doctor.
You may feel prompted to ask her if you can pray, and as you do, God’s Spirit gives you a gift of healing for that person. These types of gifts are from the Spirit.
As you make yourself available to the work of the Holy Spirit, He’ll release His gifts to you as needed to bring a solution, healing or miracle (etc.) for a certain time and place for the glory of God. This can only come by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
In Stephen’s life, two of the gifts that you see noted in 1 Corinthians 12 are particularly prominent.
First, the Bible says he’s a man “full of faith and the Holy Spirit,” (Acts 6:5) and then you discover that his ministry was punctuated by the working of miracles.
In Romans 12 there’s another list of gifts, and these seem to be resident in the individual.
Gifts that are "resident" in the INDIVIDUAL.
“We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; ministry, in ministering; the teacher in teaching; the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness”
(Romans 12:6-7, NRSV).
Someone may ask, “Surely these are natural gifts, mere inclinations of an individual’s character, how then are these gifts of the Spirit?”
Well they are natural inclinations, but when you give them to God, they become supernaturally charged. See verse six where it exhorts the reader to use their gifts “in proportion to faith.”
Suppose someone is an encourager by nature. When encouragement is spoken, by the guidance of the Holy Spirit, to the right person, at the right time and place, it can bring light into a dark situation. It’s all about your availability and submission to the leading of the Holy Spirit.
In Stephen’s case we’ve already acknowledged that he’s a fine communicator. A closer look at the message he gives in Acts 7 to the Sanhedrin council who are judging him, demonstrates how carefully crafted his defense actually was. He touches on themes that were especially close to the ruling parties of the Jews. Stephen refers to the promised land, the law of Moses, the temple, the coming of Christ and His crucifixion, and shows Israel’s failures at each point.
That natural knack for teaching, submitted to the power of the Holy Spirit, is an occasion for several conversions and at least one martyrdom. Some people get upset when they hear the truth of God’s Word, but other people get ‘saved.’ Stephen’s not just a guy with the gift of the gab. This is an example of the Holy Spirit at work.
There’s one more important gift list to consider in Ephesians 4. These are gifts (or ministries) that are resident in the body of Christ, the Church.
Gifts that are resident in the CHURCH.
Paul lists five God-given gifts (or ministries) with a very specific function for the building up of the church.
“…so that the body of Christ may be built up” (Ephesians 4:12).
These gifts include the ministry of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers.
God has gifted certain individuals in the church who care about ‘shepherding’ people with the pastor gifting.
Or ... if you’re like Stephen, who was powerful and persuasive in presenting the gospel ... you may be an evangelist.
It’s interesting to note that you don’t have to have a title (such as reverend) in front of your name, or wear a white suit to be used by God in these ways.
Discovering your potential
How do I discover my giftings in Christ? Many of us wonder what potential we really have, especially for being used by God.
You may be secretly thinking, “I know that I can work a drill press, or administer meds, or balance a ledger, but can I really make an eternal difference?” We all can make excuses.
In "The Purpose Driven Life", Rick Warren reminds us that, “Abraham was old, Jacob was insecure, Leah was unattractive, Joseph was abused, Moses stuttered, Gideon was poor, Samson was codependent, Rahab was immoral, David had an affair and all kinds of family problems, Elijah was suicidal, Jeremiah was depressed, Jonah was reluctant, Naomi was a widow, John the Baptist was eccentric to say the least, Peter was impulsive and hot-tempered, Martha worried a lot, the Samaritan woman had several failed marriages, Zacchaeus was unpopular, Thomas had doubts, Paul had poor health, and Timothy was timid. That is quite a variety of misfits, but God used each of them in his service. He will use you, too, if you stop making excuses.”
Your potential is ACTIVATED by the Holy Spirit.
We need to remember that the Holy Spirit is the One who releases all the potential that’s locked inside of us. Let’s take a look at Acts 6, and see how Stephen realized his potential in Christ.
The church was growing, and the apostles were faced with a management problem. They needed additional help, and chose seven men to assist them. Stephen was among the chosen ones.
“Brothers, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom…They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit”
(Acts 6:3a, 5b).
You’d think the apostles might have said, “Find the most organizationally gifted men to take care of this mess.” But they didn’t.
Instead, they decided to find people “full of the Holy Spirit.”
Why?
Supernatural wisdom and power was needed to solve their dilemma.
They needed people who were fully available to the Spirit.
Anybody could have taken care of the organizational needs, but it was going to take the wisdom and power of the Holy Spirit to restore peace and love where there had been division and discrimination.
The Pentecostal movement, that began 100 years ago, exists today because a man with physical disabilities and social handicaps allowed the Holy Spirit to activate his potential.
A black, one-eyed holiness preacher named William Seymour held meetings in a broken-down Methodist church which was turned into a warehouse on Azusa Street in Los Angeles.
People of every background came not only from North America, but from all over the world to be touched by the power of the Holy Spirit at Azusa Street. Seymour was a man who went on to inspire generations of Christians.
Gifts are DEMONSTRATED
by "stepping up to the plate".
In Acts 6, the apostles realize they have greater responsibilities so they decide to delegate.
"It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. Brothers, choose seven men from among you… We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word"
(Acts 6:2-4).
How would you feel if someone came to you and said, “We have this important job we need you to do. We’d like you to take care of feeding a few thousand people each day, and afterwards, do you think you could take out the garbage?”
Many of us would probably say, “Sorry, I’m too busy. Sorry, that’s not my gift.”
What would have happened if Stephen hadn’t stepped up to the plate and said, “Did you say you needed someone to serve? I’d be glad to help.”
Stephen’s ministry began with this serving opportunity. He soon found himself interacting with people, serving and loving them, and the next thing you know, miracles are happening and people are finding new life in Jesus. What began as waiting on tables turned into an historic ministry of divine proportions just because Stephen was willing to take a swing.
Power is LIBERATED by taking a swing.
It was Wayne Gretzky who said, “You miss a 100 per cent of the shots you never take.” And he was right.
Stephen began to take some shots and soon the power of God was liberated, released in his life and ministry.
“These men began to argue with Stephen, but they could not stand up against his wisdom or the Spirit by whom he spoke” (Acts 6:9b-10).
Business leader and speaker John Maxwell loves to tell the story about when he went to watch his nephew Eric play his first little league baseball game.
Eric was more than a little intimidated, wearing an oversized jersey and his helmet pulled down over his ears. He could hardly hold the bat.
He was scared because the biggest kid on the field, Butch, was on the pitcher’s mound. Of course the big guy had a wad of bubble gum in his mouth, and the beginnings of a moustache was growing on his upper lip.
As Eric stepped up to the plate, he hugged the bat, closed his eyes and prayed. The ball floated by three times, and then the umpire cried, “You’re out!”
Eric had a look of relief on his face. It looked like he was praying, “Oh, Dear God, thank you that I’m still alive.”
As he walked back to the dugout to a chorus of jeers, Maxwell decided this was the moment for a heart to heart talk. He called Eric over and said, “Forget what your coach has told you about baseball. Your Uncle John is going to tell you how baseball really should be played. You see, baseball is a very simple game. You only have to do one thing. The next time you go up to bat and Butch throws the ball, you just swing the bat. That’s all you have to do. Butch throws the ball. You swing the bat."
Eric looked at Maxwell and said, “You mean I don’t have to worry about getting a hit?”
"That's right Eric."
A smile suddenly lit up his face. “Uncle John,
I can do that.”
The next time up, Eric swung the bat, but his timing was a little off. In fact, he swung so late that the ball was already in the catcher’s glove and the umpire decided not to call a strike on him.
From the stands, Maxwell was clapping and shouting, “Beautiful swing, Eric!”
After three more pitches, Eric struck out. But Maxwell was on his feet, "Eric McCullough, that’s the finest strike out I’ve ever seen in my life.
I loved the way you strike out. Way to go Eric.”
The third time up, Butch threw the ball, and Eric swung the bat. The ball hit the bat and then dribbled a few feet forward. Maxwell was out of the stands running down the first base line yelling, “Eric, keep on running.”
As Eric rounded around first base, Maxwell cut across the infield to third base and kept yelling, “Come on, Eric.” As Eric reached third base and headed for home Maxwell said, “Together, we both slid safe into home!”
Fast forward 10 years. Eric has graduated from high school and goes to visit his Uncle John. He asks him, “Do you remember my first little league baseball game when you taught me if you don’t swing the bat, you’ll never get a hit? I’ve never forgotten what you taught me, and I just want to tell you that when I go to school in the fall, I’ll be going to college on a baseball scholarship. Uncle John, thanks for teaching me how to swing the bat.”
Just maybe if we’d have enough courage to swing the bat a few more times, we’d get a few more hits. We’ve got to have a good eye, we’ve got to be wise.
We’ll miss a 100 per cent of the balls that we never swing at.
Let’s make way for the Holy Spirit and give it our all.
Step up to the plate, and take your swing!
