God in His grace has given us a variety of gifts—one of those gifts is salvation. The New Testament affirms that believers in Jesus Christ are saved by God’s grace. Paul stated this throughout his letters, but never more clearly than in his letter to the Ephesian Christians—For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast (Eph. 2:8-9). Because believers have received the gift of God’s grace, we are charismatic! God has gifted us for salvation.

 

God has also gifted us for service. As believers, we have all been commissioned to ministry—to service.  God never commands us to do something without providing the necessary resources to do the work He has given us to do. Peter instructs us that every believer has been given a gift (or gifts) essential to the ministry that God has called us to do—As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God (1 Peter 4:10).

           

A recent popular movement within the Christian community has so redefined the word and ideas behind charismatic that many Christians reject the word when applied to them. Rather than rejecting the concept of being charismatic, we need to define (or redefine in some instances) the concept. Being charismatic is not just a perfectly good biblical concept, but one that is absolutely essential to our doing the ministry God has called us to do. 

           

The grace gifts of God are essential to salvation and to service. The grace gifts are foundational to the very idea of being Christian. Every believer has received God’s gifts of grace—for salvation and for service—and is charismatic because of those gifts.

 

 

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