“For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.” – Romans 12:3 KJV

Pride of position should not be present in the heart. Just as you have been given a measure of faith, so also has every member of the Church received a calling. Thus, we all have a purpose to fulfill within the Church, which means there isn’t a member among God’s people who is more or less important than any other. For every son and daughter of God has a part to exercise in the body of Christ, to work together as a unit to build up and edify the members thereof, thus fulfilling God’s objective for the Church.

Unfortunately, a number of Church leaders are guilty of neglecting to allow certain members to exercise their gifts in this way. It’s as though they are oblivious to the fact that each member possesses something from God to contribute to the Cause of heralding the truth as it is in Jesus Christ. Indeed, they will sometimes invite people to inform them of what their gifts are, but they are reluctant to open doors for them to exercise their gifts, unless they have something that they’re looking for, of course. Now, why would God give someone a gift if it weren’t meant to be exercised? How could there not be space in the Church to put that gift to good use? By behaving in this way these so-called Church leaders do not fulfill their purpose in Christ; instead, they suppress the gifts of the Spirit, putting the lamps of many underneath a basket, so to speak. Thus, they discourage many who would leap at the opportunity to be useful in God’s Church, and thereby rob many of blessings that God would send forth through them if they would allow each member to do their part to edify and build up the Church.

Listen, if you are a leader in God’s Church then you need to open doors of opportunity for those who desire to be useful in doing the Lord’s work. No member of the body should be given the impression that they have no place within God’s Church to carry out the work of Jesus Christ; nor should anyone suggest that certain members are more important than others. And if you are someone who has been suppressed in this way, don’t be discouraged. If you truly have a desire to be useful in God’s Church then God will use you. But you must be willing to go where He leads, and do what He asks of you. He may already be using you in a profound way and you might not even realize it.

Let us unite with our brothers and sisters in Christ, working together to serve the same purpose in building up and edifying God’s people. Unless we work together in love to achieve Christ’s objective for the Church, we won’t experience the full measure of the power of the Holy Spirit. But when we become one in spirit and truth, we will blossom into something wonderful. And thus we will reap a harvest of blessings in Jesus Christ!