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The Amish Voice 8
Will you set all your own ideas aside and believe in Jesus alone
for your salvation? Right now? If so, why don't you talk to
God about it? You could just say,
“Lord, I have sinned against
You many times in my life and deserve to go to hell for my sin.
But right now, the best I know how, I cast all my sins upon
you, Jesus; believing with all my heart that You paid for them
in full when You died on the cross. Jesus, I open my heart
and ask You to come in and be my Savior forever. Amen.”
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John 20:27-31
Then saith he [Jesus] to Thomas, Reach hither
thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand,
and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.
And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my
God.
Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou
hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have
believed.
And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his
disciples, which are not written in this book:
But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the
Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have
[eternal] life through his name.
—Joe Keim
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END
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN TALENTS AND GIFTS
TALENTS
GIFTS
Talents are natural
Gifts are supernatural
Talents are inherited from one's parents, ultimately from Adam Gifts are received from God
Talents are received at birth; they are natural endowments.
Gifts are received at the time of the new birth
Talents are possessed both by saved people and by unsaved
people. There are many unsaved people who are very talented
(musical ability, artistic ability, athletic ability, mathematical
ability, etc.).
Gifts are possessed only by saved people, those who are mem-
bers of the church which is His Body. An unsaved person might
mimic a spiritual gift, but it is counterfeit and limited to self-
activity (e.g.-a false prophet, a false teacher, etc.).
A man may be very talented as a TEACHER in the public
school system or at a prestigious university. He may be recog-
nized as an outstanding teacher by all of his co-workers. He
may be very talented when it comes to communication skills
and oratory. He may even win the "Teacher of the Year"
Award.
This same man, upon believing on the Lord Jesus Christ, may
not receive the gift of teaching. Spiritual gifts are determined by
God not by any natural talents which a man may possess. If this
same man should receive the gift of teaching it is above and
beyond and distinct from any natural teaching talent which he
had. It is something that he did not have prior to the new birth.
For full effectiveness talents need to be developed. A person
who is naturally skilled musically must still learn to play an
instrument, often demanding years of practice. Most profession-
al athletes not only have natural talent but they have developed
this talent through years of practice and hard work.
Gifts need to be exercised and this can only happen as the be-
liever stays spiritually healthy and grows "in the grace and
knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 3:18). The proper
exercise of spiritual gifts requires spiritual growth and maturity
(Ephesians 4:13-16).
Talents possessed by believers ought to be surrendered and con-
secrated to the Lord and used for His honor and glory. Exam-
ple: A skilled organist playing for a worship service "as unto
the Lord."
Gifts are given by God for the outworking of God's LIFE as
expressed by the Body of Christ. When the Body is healthy the
LIFE of God is manifested and God is glorified (compare 1
Corinthians 14:24-25).