The New Testament corrects our misunderstandings and our propensity to curve inward on ourselves. Peter instructed his readers in 1 Peter 4:10: “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace”

I loved watching the Chicago Bulls in the 90s because Michael Jordan was the best player in the world. Even when Michael Jordan retired from basketball to play professional baseball, the Chicago Bulls were still one of the best teams in the NBA. Why? Because of superstar Scottie Pippen. Pippen was a fierce defender and could play every position on the court. One play during Pippen’s career still lives in infamy.

The Bulls were tied with the New York Knicks in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals. There were 1.8 seconds left on the clock. Without Jordan, everyone expected Pippen to take the last shot. But head coach Phil Jackson didn’t call on Pippen. Instead, he drew up a play for rookie Toni Kukoc. Pippen expressed his frustration during the timeout. After all, he was the team’s leader, one of the best players in the entire league. Pippen felt disrespected so he chose to remain on the bench for the last play. When his team needed him the most, Pippen let his ego get the best of him. He forgot that his God-given talents served one ultimate purpose: to help his team win the game, even if it meant inbounding the ball instead of taking the last shot (Spoiler alert: with Pippen on the bench, Kukoc swished the game-winning shot at the buzzer.)

Basketball fans know that Pippen’s career was not defined by that single moment. We should be slow to pass judgment. In fact, we should see something of ourselves in his weak moment. We’ve likely never been denied the opportunity to take a game-winning shot in an NBA playoff game, but we may have been the child that grumbled over not getting playing time we thought we deserved. Maybe we have thrown a pity party when we didn’t get the promotion. Maybe we were offended when the pastors told us we weren’t ready to preach. Or maybe we have been angry when our spouse doesn’t seem to appreciate the work we do at home. When we are not recognized as we think we should be, we often take it as a personal offense. We feel disrespected, unappreciated, and undervalued if our gifts and talents don’t get the platform for expression that we think they deserve.

Spiritual Gifts and the Misguided Need for Self-Expression

I wonder how often Christians think their spiritual gift needs a platform for expression in the local church. Of course, no Christian would ever admit it, but how often do we use spiritual gifts to justify selfishness and individualism? It’s the posture that says, “I am gifted in teaching, so I need to preach.” Or, “I am gifted in evangelism, so I need to lead an evangelistic outreach.” Or, “I am gifted in discipling women, so I need to start a women’s ministry.” Or, “I am gifted with children, so I need to lead the children’s ministry.”

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