John Bevere - It's Never Too Late
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Hey everyone, welcome to the Gifted course! I am so excited about this course that I can’t even tell you how thrilled I am, because I know what is going to happen in your life as a result of going through these eight lessons. This is actually the second part of a three-part course series. All three courses stand alone, and it is important that you understand that. However, I strongly recommend that you go through each of them. The first one is called «Gifted,» and the final one is called «Multiply.» So, these are stand-alone courses; you don’t have to do all three, but I highly recommend it.
I want to open this lesson with a story. Several years ago, I was asked to speak at the LA Dream Center, and my normal procedure is to fly in on a Saturday night, preach either Saturday night or Sunday morning, and then fly home after the Sunday morning service. One of our ministry partners lives in Southern California and knows that I really enjoy golf, so he called and asked if I could come in a day early and play at the Riviera Golf Course. Oh my goodness, it was so exciting!
After a great round of golf, we were driving back to the hotel when this wealthy financial partner made a statement to me. He said, «John, can I really be vulnerable with you and open up and ask you a question?» I said, «Absolutely.» He said, «John, I have worked so hard—hours and hours, for years, for decades—to build my businesses. Our net worth is about $9 million. My wife cares for my children, and they are set for life. I am entering into my fifties. Why should I work so hard to build our worth up to $35 million in this decade?» I immediately looked on the inside and said, «God, I need an answer for him,» and the Lord immediately gave it to me. I looked at him—his name was Stan—and said, «Stan, let me present a scenario to you. Suppose I say to you, 'Stan, I’ve written about 17 books, flown all over the world, stood on platforms, fought jet lag, and eaten crazy foods that weren’t normal to me—though they were actually delicious—so why should I get on any more planes and preach? Why should I write any more books since everything is good for me? '»
He laughed in the car and said, «I wouldn’t want to be in your shoes when you face Jesus.» I responded, «Stan, you just said the exact same words.» I remember the smile leaving his face; he turned away from the road as he was driving and looked at me as if to say, «What?» I said, «Stan, here’s the situation: God has given every single one of His kids gifts, and we can do one of three things with these gifts. We can use them to build the kingdom of God, benefit ourselves, or neglect them altogether. My gifts are obvious to you; it’s writing and speaking the word of God, and I do it all over the world. The problem is, your gifts aren’t evident to you and how important they are in building the kingdom of God—you haven’t connected the dots.
The Bible says the gifts that are not noticeable are actually more valuable, which means your gifts could be even more valuable than mine.» I’ll never forget that car went quiet. He dropped me off at the hotel, and six months later, I felt led to call him. I said, «Hey, Stan, how are you doing?» He replied, «Do you want the real truth?» I said, «Sure.» He said, «I have been tormented—in a good way—for the last six months over the words you spoke to me in that car.» I asked, «Well, Stan, what are you doing about it?» He responded, «I am working my tail off to build our businesses to $35 million and beyond so that I can give and build the kingdom of God.»
This is what we’re talking about! Many of you watching this course right now have gifts in your life that are dormant because you haven’t connected the dots the way Stan did. The purpose of this course is to identify and develop your gifts so that you can enter into the fullness of your calling. Now, here are some things we’re going to cover in this course. First of all, we’re going to learn that not just some, but everyone—including you—is gifted for a specific purpose. Most god-given gifts are not directly connected to church gatherings, which is why many people don’t recognize the importance of their gifts when we have a church conference or a service on Sunday morning.
Secondly, there are a vast number of gifts that God gives to His people—a slew of them! Thirdly, you and I are actually stewards of those gifts. What does it mean to be a steward? We’ll discuss that. Fourthly, we’ll talk about how to discover your God-given gifts, and fifthly, how to develop our gifts. Let me make a statement here: you’re going to see the spiritual aspect in this course and the practical aspect. Why the spiritual? If you look at Romans 12, where it talks about our supernatural gifts from God, it says they operate by faith. But there is also a practical aspect to discovering and developing those gifts, and we will identify both.
What else are we going to do? We’ll discuss how to effectively use your gifts and finally, we’ll identify and develop the correct motivations for using those gifts—in other words, our intentions matter. This is what we’ll cover over the span of these eight lessons. It is crucial that you journey through every single one of them because everyone has a purpose. By the way, to go into further study, this course is based on «Multiply Your God-Given Potential,» and I go much more in-depth in this book. If you’re enjoying this course, make sure to read it, because there is so much more to say.
Alright, let’s begin. I’m going to go to probably the most familiar scripture for Christians: Ephesians 2:8-9. We all know it: «For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.» If anyone has been saved for a week or two, they likely know this scripture. We are saved by grace, and it’s not of ourselves; it’s not our good works; it’s because of what Jesus did for us. This is where the disconnect occurs; however, the very next verse has to be remembered. The Bible was not written in chapters and verses. These were long letters, and later on, I believe it was around the 14th century, they were divided into chapters and verses. The very next statement after this famous scripture is verse 10, which begins with the word «for.» «For» is a conjunction, meaning because of this. So, Paul is actually not finished with his thought. It’s amazing that we always quote these two verses but stop before «because of this.»
So, what does he go on to say? «For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works.» We are created in Christ for what? For good works! «Which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.» It doesn’t say we would walk in them; it says we should. Our free will and our obedience come into play here. God designed something for you, but you are the one who determines whether you will walk in that calling that He prepared for you beforehand—before the foundations of the world, before you were conceived in your mother’s womb. God has a specific plan for you, and I don’t care how you entered this world. If you were born what society calls illegitimately, you were born on purpose for a purpose. That is exactly what this scripture says!
In essence, this scripture is saying that we are saved by grace to be someone—a child of God—but we are equally—listen to me carefully—empowered by that very same grace to do something. You have a mission from Heaven! I mean, think of yourself as an ambassador from Heaven, and God has prepared this magnificent work for you. He gave you tools to fulfill that assignment. Are you tracking with me? It’s so cool! Let me make this really clear: we are all called. I’m going to read some scriptures to solidify this.
2 Timothy 1:9 says, «God, who has saved us and called us…"—listen to the word «called"—"with a holy calling.» Your calling on your life is holy—not according to works, but according to His own purposes and grace, which He gave us in Christ Jesus before the world began. That was 2 Timothy 1:9. Look at 1 Corinthians 1:26: «For you see your calling, brethren.» We are supposed to be able to see it; we are meant to know it, and we’re going to talk about that.
Ephesians 4:1 says, «For you have been called by God.» 1 Corinthians 7:20 states, «Let each one remain in the same calling in which he was called.» Romans 11:29 says, «For the gifts…» —now here we go—"the gifts and the callings of God are irrevocable; they’re unchangeable.» Hey, that means if you’re not walking in your God-given calling and you’re 35 years old, guess what? The calling is still irrevocable. In other words, there’s still time to get involved! You know, Moses didn’t really enter into his calling until he was 80. Smith Wigglesworth, one of the greatest ministers of the Gospel in the 20th century, didn’t enter into his calling until he was in his 50s; he was a plumber before that. It is never too late! That is why I highly recommend that you go through the Called course, because I specifically talk about this. It is actually one of our Messenger International’s most popular courses.
Now, I want to say something here that I think many people overlook: when we engage in our calling and use our gifts, it energizes us; it strengthens us. Jesus made this statement in John 4:34: «My food…"—now I want you to say that out loud—"My food is to do the will of Him who sent me and to finish His work.» Jesus had an assignment; we all have assignments. Jesus said, «My food is to do it and to finish it.»
Now listen to this: Jesus said in John 20:21, «As the Father sent me, so I send you.» Just as Jesus had a specific assignment that was food to Him, we have a specific assignment that is food to us.
Are you ready for this? What does food do for us? Food strengthens us; it energizes us. I mean, do a little experiment: eat a meal on Monday and then don’t eat anything for four days. Tell me how much energy and strength you have! Well, doing the will of God in our lives is what strengthens our inner man. I have to say this with a very heavy heart, but I’ve been in ministry for over 35 years, and what I have noticed causes people to backslide quicker than anything else is when they become lethargic and lazy concerning the call of God on their lives. On the opposite side, I remember when I was a young man taking care of Lester Sumrall, one of the greatest men of God in the 20th century. I had the privilege of hosting him at our church several times; he was so full of energy. He was writing three books at one time and doing a Bible course while he was writing those books. He had so much energy that he literally wore out all the young men who traveled with him. He was full of life and energy because he was engaged in doing what God had created him to do.
That is what will happen with you. If you’re feeling tired, lethargic, or lazy and you don’t have much motivation, you need to check up: am I really doing what God has called me to do? Because that is your food; that is what energizes you.
So let’s talk about this: God prepared a work—a calling—and gave you the tools. Now, here’s where we start really diving into the gifts. If you want to know more about calling, again, watch the course called «Called.»
Alright, let’s think about it: if I need my tooth repaired, I do not go to the ophthalmologist. The ophthalmologist doesn’t have the knowledge or tools to fix my tooth. Who do I go to? I go to a dentist, right? If I’m building a house and something is wrong with one of my light fixtures, I don’t call the plumber—he doesn’t have the correct tools or knowledge.
It’s the same with us. Many of us are frustrated because God has given us gifts and tools for what He has called us to do, but we are trying to do something else. So we become lethargic, we don’t have energy, and we struggle with what we do. Why? Because we have tools for something else! If I’m going to be on the tennis circuit, and all I have are dental tools, I’m going to be frustrated. I won’t be able to hit a tennis ball very well with a pick or something like that.
So, it’s crucial that we understand the tools that God has given us and how they help us accomplish what He’s called us to do.
Here’s why discovering your gifts is so important and why operating in them matters: Proverbs 18:16 says, «A man’s gift makes room for him and brings him before the great.» The phrase «makes room» is a very interesting term. It’s a Hebrew word, and here’s how the Complete Word Study Dictionary defines it: a verb indicating to enlarge. It means to extend, to open wide, and to gain living space or territory.
So, the gift of God in your life—what does it do? It opens up or creates a pathway for you to move into what you are going to be best at. It literally creates space and a pathway for you to travel. I love this: you’re going to meet him in the last lesson; his name is Chris Pace. He made a statement once that I think is powerful: «When you discover your gifts, you move in the right direction. When you develop your gifts, you rise in the right direction.»
So, let’s say that again: when you move in your gift, you move in the right direction. When you develop those gifts, you rise in the correct direction. If you look at Proverbs 22:29, it says, «If you are uniquely gifted,» or as the New King James Version says, «If you excel in your gift,» you will rise and be promoted; you won’t be held back. So, if you excel in your gifts, God says you’re going to rise.
Remember, if you discover your gifts, you start moving in the right direction. If you develop your gifts, you rise. Think about King David: when he was just a boy, he was out there playing the harp. He was gifted to play the harp; he wasn’t just a gifted warrior. He excelled at it.
In other words, you can have a gift, but if you neglect it, you won’t excel at it. David was likely out with those sheep, with that harp, singing songs to the Lord when someone of importance needed a skilled musician. David was the first one his men recommended. Why? They wouldn’t have recommended him if he didn’t work on that gift.
That’s why it’s essential to focus and develop your gifts—because you will rise into the area that God has called you to.
In closing, let me say this: What if someone walked up to you and said, «Hey, I have a secret that will cause you to rise above all your natural abilities, and that secret is only known by a few?» Would you be interested in knowing that secret? Well, I’m going to talk about that secret—it truly exists—in the very next lesson.