A Piece of a Masterpiece: Understanding Your Role in God’s Design

Have you ever wondered where you fit in God’s grand design? Like a puzzle piece that seems insignificant on its own, each of us represents just one part of a much larger picture that God is creating.

In Ephesians 4, Paul reveals God’s blueprint for the church and for our spiritual maturity. We’re not meant to be the whole picture—we’re designed to be one important piece that, when fitted together with others, creates the masterpiece God intended.

Building on the Foundation

Everything in Ephesians has been building to this central focus. In the first three chapters, Paul established that we are:

• Blessed with every spiritual blessing
• Called, redeemed, and assembled as members of Christ’s body
• Built together into a spiritual building where dividing walls have been torn down
• Made alive together in Christ by grace through faith
• God’s workmanship, created for good works

In Ephesians 4, Paul transitions by saying, “Therefore, in light of all God has done, walk worthy of your calling.” The first six verses focus on our unity in Christ, while beginning in verse 7, Paul explains how we are unique.

What Does It Mean to Be Uniquely Gifted?

“But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift” (Ephesians 4:7).

Notice the shift from “all of us” in verse 6 to “each one” in verse 7. God is doing something unique in each believer. We’re all gifted in Christ with unique spiritual gifts.

Spiritual gifts differ from talents:

• Talents are natural abilities you have (music, athletics, art, teaching)
• Spiritual gifts are implanted by God through His Spirit specifically for building up the body of Christ

How Did We Receive Our Spiritual Gifts?

Paul emphasizes three times that our gifts come directly from God (verses 7, 8, and 11). These gifts are:

• Given “according to the measure of Christ’s gift” (v.7)
• Part of Christ’s victory spoils that He shares with His people (v.8)
• Distributed by the risen and ascended Christ who is “far above all” (v.10)

As 1 Peter 4:10 reminds us: “As each one has received a spiritual gift, let him employ it as a good steward of God’s manifold grace.”

What Kinds of Spiritual Gifts Exist?

In verse 11, Paul lists some specific gifts: “He gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelists, some as pastors and teachers.”

This isn’t an exhaustive list of all spiritual gifts (see Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12 for more), but it highlights vocational gifts specifically set aside for the proclamation of the Gospel:

• Apostles – Those who physically met the resurrected Christ and were sent out by Him
• Prophets – Those who proclaimed God’s message
• Evangelists – Those specially gifted to share the Gospel and challenge others
• Pastors and Teachers – Those who shepherd and instruct the flock

While all believers have spiritual gifts, some are vocationally called to use their gifts in church ministry. Could God be calling you to vocational ministry?

What Is the Purpose of Spiritual Gifts?

Spiritual gifts aren’t just for our benefit or possession—they’re for the body of Christ. Verse 12 explains they are “for the equipping of the saints, for the work of ministry, for the building up of the body of Christ.”

This reveals God’s body-building plan:

• Gifts equip believers
• Equipped believers do ministry
• Ministry builds up the body

Can you be a Christian without going to church? Technically yes, because salvation comes through faith in Christ, not church membership. However, you cannot be an obedient believer outside the local church because God has gifted you specifically to use your gifts within the church body.

How Long Should We Use Our Spiritual Gifts?

Paul answers this in verse 13: “until we all attain to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.”

We keep using our gifts until:

• We are all united in faith and knowledge of Christ
• We reach spiritual maturity
• We measure up to the fullness of Christ

Like Paul said in Philippians 3:12, “Not that I have already attained it yet, but I press on…” We’re not there yet, which is why we’re still here using our gifts.

What Happens When We Use Our Spiritual Gifts?

The result is spiritual maturity. Verses 14-16 show that when we properly use our gifts:

• We are no longer unstable – “no longer children, tossed here and there by waves”
• We are no longer easily deceived – not carried about by “every wind of doctrine”
• We speak truth in love – balancing conviction with compassion
• We grow up in all aspects to be like Christ
• The whole body is “knit together” and functions properly

Life Application

Like a fire suppression system that’s never connected to its water source, our spiritual gifts are ineffective if we’re disconnected from Christ and His body. God has gifted you with a spiritual gift that He intends for you to use in the church so that we all grow up in Christ.

Ask yourself these questions this week:

1. What spiritual gifts has God given me? If you’re unsure, pray and ask God to reveal them to you.
2. Am I actively using my gifts in the context of the local church?
3. Is my use of spiritual gifts helping others grow in maturity and stability?
4. Am I speaking truth in love, or do I tend toward either harsh truth or shallow love?
5. How can I better connect to Christ as my source so my gifts can flow effectively?

Remember, you are a piece of God’s masterpiece. You’re not the whole picture, but you’re an essential part of what God is creating. When you use your gifts as designed, you help complete the beautiful image God is forming in His church.