Retooling the Church: A Spiritual Gifts Toolkit

By Clay Quarterman

Its time to Retool the Church by a fresh analysis of the Spiritual Gifts, a subject frequently twisted by popular ideas and poor theology. This new look shows that the gifts are not a mere manipulative technique, but a prime source for our growth in holiness, unity, and numbers. Practical stories from a missionary career illustrate the place of gifts in the churchs life. Pastors and laymen, Presbyterians and Charismatics will appreciate this book, which includes tables of the original texts and a flexible test to put this toolkit to use.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Apr 16, 2012
• ISBN: 9781469191652

Clay Quarterman

Clay Quarterman Clay Quarterman is a missiologist in Odessa, Ukraine, fluent in Portuguese and Russian, who has lived 33 years in Europe. He has a PhD from the University of Wales and several other theological degrees. He loves photography, clarinet, archery, scuba diving, sailing, and… his awesome wife! Clay and Darlene work with Mission to the World and have four grown sons and two granddaughters in the USA. They call Jackson, Mississippi, home. After a career of church planting and theological education, Clay is passing on some of this experience in written form.

Book preview

Copyright © 2012 by Clay Quarterman, Ph.D.

Library of Congress Control Number:       2012906311

ISBN:         Hardcover                               978-1-4691-9164-5

                   Softcover                                 978-1-4691-9163-8

                   Ebook                                      978-1-4691-9165-2

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted

in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying,

recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system,

without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Photos copyright ©2012 Clay Quarterman

Cover Photo copyright ©2003 Bob Burnham. Used by permission.

Russian version available from TULIP Publishers, Odessa, Ukraine

Unless otherwise indicated, scripture quotations are from the King James Version.

Where indicated NIV, Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 Biblica.

Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Where indicated NASB, Scripture quotations taken from the New American Standard Bible® Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

For more of Clay’s stories of life in Ukraine, visit:

www.ClayQ.blogspot.com

To order additional copies of this book, contact:

Xlibris Corporation

1-888-795-4274

www.Xlibris.com

[e-mail]

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Contents

Introduction : DANGER!

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER 1: Just the Right Gift

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER 2: Wedding Tools

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER 3: Tool Arranging

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER 4: Retooling the Gifts

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER 5: Put the Tools to Work

APPENDICES

WORKS CITED

About the Author

To Matt, Nate, Ty & Lex,

beloved sons,

Tools of the Covenant

for the next generation

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Introduction : DANGER!

Tools, even spiritual tools, can be dangerous.

Zachary, the 4-year-old son of my missionary colleague, was with his dad in their tool shed in Kyiv, Ukraine. Jon tried a new hand drill on a piece of wood just as Zachary unexpectedly stuck his finger in the hole. The tip of his finger was sheared off cleanly by the drill, and in spite of evacuation to a German hospital, the finger couldn’t be restored. Tools are useful, but they can be dangerous.

Spiritual gifts are also tools needing careful use. Many people are afraid that the teaching of spiritual gifts will bring division or discord. Because of the danger, some pastors are reluctant to speak of the gifts or analyze them closely. But the church isn’t being built as it should be, and many members are disengaged and confused.

But do we really need another book on spiritual gifts? Although there are many resources available on this topic, many of them are deformed and dangerous, being based on popular ideas and poor theology. Some have turned the gifts into a mere manipulative technique. For these reasons, many people fear or avoid the subject. We need a spiritual gifts makeover to retool the church.

A fresh analysis of the biblical texts reveals that the Gifts of God are meant to be primary tools for our growth in holiness and unity. If we ignore them, we are disregarding the very means God has provided for our growth. This book is meant to help re-form our understanding and put these gifts to their proper use, retooling the church for action.

It is designed practically, so the reader may skip among sections of interest—whether theological, practical, biblical, or historical. It is also designed to be adapted for various church traditions.¹ The first part explains why the spiritual gifts have fallen into disuse in some churches, showing that even those who believe that some gifts have ceased (Cessationists) have no excuse for not using the other spiritual gifts actively.

Next are the lists of spiritual gifts, based on fresh research, noting the original Greek and modern terminology. Each gift is explained, distinguishing between offices, gifts, and skills. Jesus’ Gifts to His Bride may be the most immediately useful section, helping people discover their giftedness and dispelling modern notions about many of the gifts. We must return these tools to their intended use of building up the church, rather than using gifts for boasting, ostentation, or argument.

After some technical sections, there is a section on how to adjust the tools to reflect theological differences. Reformed readers will especially appreciate Calvin’s functional-equivalence approach to the spiritual gifts. Others will enjoy the comparison with previous approaches and the distinction between similar gifts.

A section then examines the duty of the Pastor to promote spiritual gifts—not only as a program, task, or method, but as an ongoing operation of the ordinary means of grace. An example is given from a Puritan church in early America. A final section looks at the role of the Gifts in a spiritual church.

The Appendices are not just for reference, but for practical use. Discovering My Spiritual Gifts is a self-test to help believers analyze their gifts, and the other appendices are provided for further study or to help adapt the test for various contexts.

May the Lord bless these tools as we build One Church—the beautiful Bride of our Lord Jesus Christ. Maranatha! Come, Lord Jesus!

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CHAPTER ONE

Just the Right Gift

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CHAPTER 1: Just the Right Gift

All I want for Christmas . . .

I will always remember Christmas 1958. On other Christmases, I got clothes or socks or a stocking of oranges—not too thrilling for a rambunctious young boy. But on that Christmas, I think I got it all—roller skates, bowling pins, and a toy tool set! I was elated. I needed other things, but as a child, these were the only things I could think of.

God knows what we need, whether milk or meat. But if we only get the utilitarian things we need and never the things we want, we are dissatisfied. But God’s gifts are generous, and not superfluous. They are both pleasant and made to fit exactly with our need. And we need the gifts of the Holy Spirit—the gifts he has placed in every believer. This was a lesson I needed to learn.

Twenty years later, in 1979, I was a young missionary in Lisbon, fresh out of seminary. I thought I was God’s gift to the world. I was called on to visit the sick and the poor, since one million refugees had crammed into Portugal, fleeing African wars. One of every ten people was a refugee. I thought I would make a pastoral visit to Brother Polycarp, a refugee in our church from Guinea Bissau. He was living in a hovel, but he came to worship regularly. I thought I would encourage him, but it was he who encouraged me! What a gift of faith he had! He was humble, and his prayers were powerful. Without money, family, or influence, he quietly eked out his life, never doubting God’s faithfulness.

I learned that Polycarp had been a postman in Guinea Bissau, West Africa, but was falsely accused and imprisoned there by the Communists. All his cellmates were taken out one day and shot, but his life was spared. He turned to God in his cell and pledged faithfulness if he was released. He was miraculously freed, and he did not go home before walking straight to church to give thanks! Polycarp remained faithful ever after. What a testimony!

As I made my way from his shanty in the Lisbon slum, I realized what an appropriate name he had, being named after Saint Polycarp, one of the earliest Church Fathers, who was burned at the stake for this testimony: Eighty-six years I have served Christ, and he never did me any wrong. How can I blaspheme my King who saved me?

Brother Polycarp did not get well, but went to the Lord 20 years ago. But I will never forget his spiritual gift of faith—a gift that lives on in my memory, in spite of the cultural, linguistic, and racial barriers between us. I needed his gift! And I hope