Solving Rubik's Cube

I thought immediately of Paul writing to the Ephesians saying that they were, and we with them, created as Christ's own workmanship, created, composed. We were to be played. We are to be sung. We are to be seen and used. We are not to be preserved.

We are to participate. In fact, Jesus Christ once startled, I believe, potential disciples by saying, if you want to lose your life, preserve it. But if you want to find life, give your life away. Do you know any Christians who treat the Church as if it's optional? Well, the truth is, it's not. God's design for Christians is not for the Church to be optional. God's plan is that the Church be an integral part of every believer's life. And even more personally, God's plan is that every believer play a critical part in the life of the Church.

You're going to learn about this in more detail today. This is Wisdom for the Heart, the Bible teaching ministry of Stephen Davey. Stephen's in a series called Divine Design, and he's calling today's lesson Solving Rubik's Cube. In light of our current study on the subject of finding your fit in the body of Christ, finding your place in the puzzle, I have spent some time researching puzzles and their use and popularity. I've discovered puzzles with a lot of different functions, puzzles in the shape of animals and ships and boats. Then I came across the story of the most famous puzzle of all time. It's a puzzle with moving parts with actually 43 quintillion possible positions.

This particular puzzle with moving parts is named after its Hungarian inventor, Mr. Erno Rubik. Rubik's cube, maybe you've spent some time losing your sanctification trying to put one of those together. Each side of the cube, if you've played it, you know it fits in your hand.

It has its own color. The cube is divided into three rows or layers, each layer divided into nine cubies, they call them. And each row or layer can be turned horizontally or vertically. The challenge is to have it twisted out of shape or out of its original design and then return the cube to its original position with all the colors matching on all six panels. What I found interesting as I sort of stumbled across this is to know that there are clubs all around the world devoted to Rubik's Cube. There are internet sites, chat rooms, contests. I found pages and pages of diagrams, mathematical instructions, shortcuts, advice, algorithms.

Since I got a D minus in high school algebra, you can see why I'm a little limited in my passion to join the club. What I found interesting is that Erno Cubic never planned to invent the best selling toy puzzle in human history. It was the structural design that intrigued this professor of applied arts and design. So in 1974, he hand carved little wooden blocks, tried to figure out a way to assemble them into one puzzle, marked each one of them with a different color. And then when he got it put together, all six sides matching in their color, he then twisted it all about away from its original design and then tried to put it back together, assumed after a while that it would not be done, but it was. It took him a month to put it back. Today, there are competitions and the world record for returning it to its original position was accomplished by a Vietnamese high school student, a girl who did it in 22.9 seconds.

And that I can tell you didn't quite get there that quickly, huh? Every year, there is a competition and this year, its 35th anniversary, this international competition will be held in the hometown of Erno Rubik. To this day, nobody has solved the puzzle in less than 52 moves, although computer analysis suggests it can be solved in 22. More than 500 million cubes have been sold around the world and it is called the best known puzzle on the planet. Perhaps the best known toy puzzle, but not the best known puzzle. The best known puzzle is a living puzzle. It is a body of Christ fit together by the divine designer. There are millions of moving parts in one design.

But I would agree on this part. Rubik's cube experts who calculated that it would be possible to put it together in 22 moves suggest that that person would have to be omniscient. They call it God's algorithm. There it is. It's on the internet.

You can read it. Some all-knowing being who would know all the possible scenarios and options, someone who would know where each individual piece is located at any given time. That person, they say, could do it in 22 moves. So also the greatest, most globally practiced puzzle of all, the church. It does require an omniscient being who knows where every member of the puzzle is at any given time, one who knows all the possible millions of moves, any potential move without any move being wasted. This puzzle was put together originally not by a Hungarian or an American, but a Galilean Jew, God in the flesh who is to this day the only one capable of putting it together. Not only in the universal church, which we talked about invisible to us, composed of every member from the day of Pentecost to this generation, but the local church, the local puzzle. We had one in Jerusalem and one in Antioch and one in Ephesus and Smyrna and Philadelphia and all the way down to this day in this generation to this assembly meeting together at 6051 Tryon Road.

These buildings are not the church, it's the moving parts that make up this puzzle with millions of possible moves. The New Testament spells out for us the church, the offices of the church, the authority we're to follow in 1 Timothy 3. There is order to respect 1 Corinthians 14. There is doctrine to teach and defend Titus 1. There are gifts to be exercised, Romans 12. There is a mission to fulfill 1 Corinthians 15. There are relationships to develop Ephesians 4. There are dangers to avoid and false teaching to ignore Acts chapter 20. There are funds to invest 2 Corinthians 8. There are ordinances to practice Matthew 28 and 1 Corinthians 11. And there are unique to every congregation opportunities to seize Revelation chapters 2 and 3.

And that's just the beginning of what every individual puzzle attempts to accomplish. So the question for the believer is not do I really need the church? Do I really need the local assembly? The question is how can I live without it?

Since it is God's primary instrument in both developing the believer and reaching the world. The question to ask is OK where do I sign on? Where do I fit in this magnificent puzzle? And then for us as an assembly we would ask how do we fit together with all the pieces interlocking?

Let's go back. Paul has told us to approach this puzzle with the attitude of humility. Verse 3 he says a believer should not think more highly of himself than he ought to think. You cannot find your place in the puzzle without an attitude of humility. Then Paul talked about the principle of unity verses 4 and 5. He repeats the expression which I hope you've circled in your Bible's one body. It's as if to say we consist of a lot of moving parts but we are one complete puzzle.

Third we discovered the principle of diversity though we are many pieces we are one body and fourth we uncovered the principle of accountability. In verse 5 he said we are individually members of one another we belong to one another we are blood related. So we left our last session and I want to start there with the question is there room in your life for the rest of us. Is there room in your heart for this family.

Is there time in your world for your blood relatives. If your answer is yes and Paul of course assumes it would be. He now moves to what we'll call the final principle that just sort of gets us ready to look at all the pieces and this is the next logical step in his discussion and it is the principle of availability. The last part of verse 6 implied by the context and direction of Paul's exhortation. Let's start at the beginning and since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us let each exercise them accordingly. In other words assuming there is a desire to serve. Now there needs to be a discovery of where to serve.

Paul gives a rather short list of possibilities though certainly not exhaustive. In verse 6 the latter party mentions the gift of prophecy and verse 7 the gift of service the gift of teaching and verse 8 the gift of exhortation the gift of giving the gift of leading and finally the gift of mercy. You can imagine just with that short list there are a million possible ways to exercise just those few gifts alone but it's as if he says get ready to do something get ready to act.

Are you available. This is what the church is to be. Paul has this passion for the role of the individual believer it's echoed by other apostles and other passages like Peter who wrote as each one of us received a special gift.

Same word used here. Employ it use it in serving one another first Peter 4 10 Paul wrote to Timothy and do not neglect the spiritual gift within you same Greek word. Do not neglect that special endowment to be used for the sake of your spiritual family. Don't set it aside. Don't pack it away. Use it.

Before Niccolo Paganini died this world famous violinist composer he willed his personal violin to his home city of Genoa under one condition. It could never be played again. When I read that I thought immediately of Paul writing to the Ephesians saying that they were and we with them created as Christ's own workmanship created composed. We were to be played. We are to be sung. We are to be seen and used. We are not to be preserved. We are to participate in fact Jesus Christ once startled I believe potential disciples by saying if you want to lose your life keep it for yourself. Preserve it.

But if you want to find life give your life away. We are not preserves like my grandmother's preserves in the basement of that home in Minnesota we'd go every summer back there. She had preserves down in the basement kept in the dark on shelves.

It was cool down there and those thick masonry jars I'd go down there and look at them preserved until some future day. We're not that. We're more like basins of water. We're ready at the door for the first pair of dirty feet that go by. We are to be disturbed. There are unsettling aspects of ministry and service. Are we willing. So before Paul talks about specific terms he spends time informing us on how to approach one another what we should pursue as we serve one another why we should serve one another and now are we willing to serve one another which is the perfect order by the way. It's the perfect progression. You see availability always precedes opportunity.

I think the reason many Christians do not sense opportunity from God is because God knows that they are unavailable in their hearts. They have hung out on the door handle of their hearts. Do not disturb. Leave me alone.

I'll show up for an hour or two. That's all that's got to be good enough for you Lord. Do not disturb. If you want to obey Paul's challenge to exercise your gifts accordingly you're going to need to be available or willing to do four things here are four challenges regarding your spiritual gift. Number one if you're going to exercise your gift obviously you have to discover it. Discover it. How. The first key word is exposure.

And there are three layers of exposure. First there is exposure before God in prayer. You begin and you you are involved and it surrounds you. Pray. Corey 10 Boom once asked this perceptive question is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire.

Does it drive your life or is it used only in emergencies. There is exposure before God in prayer. Secondly there is exposure before the word for insight. You stay distant from the word of God and you will never feel close to the family of God.

They go hand in hand. If you want to find your fit in the family of God you must spend time in the word of God. Then third there is exposure before others in council expose yourself to the opportunities then pray with the facts in front of you search the scriptures for insight and direction.

Talk to others about your leaning and your desire and your thoughts. So the first key word is exposure. The second key word is experimentation. I found it interesting in fact I just read a book written by a pastor on the subject of volunteerism. He's reached the point after giving all sorts of guidelines on discovering and utilizing spiritual gifts he's come to the conclusion the best advice he can give a believer is walking with Christ desiring to be used of the Lord is this one word experiment.

Just experiment. What do you think you'd like to do. What do you enjoy doing. Where has God blessed your efforts. That doesn't mean it's all roses. We'll talk about that in a minute but this fits with what we've already discovered in Romans 12 verses 1 and 2. You follow after God. You seek to please him. You pursue purity and then you do whatever you like. Isn't that liberating.

It's almost frightening. Pursue him. Love him. Seek to please him.

Honor him and do whatever you'd like. Experiment. Found it amazing as we did our annual review and all the departments turned in all of their facts and figures that we now have 111 ministries serving here and for this body and as outreaches 111 ministries requiring two thousand fifty eight volunteers to pull them off. So I emailed this last week all the departments and asked them to just send me some of those two thousand and fifty eight opportunities and as you can expect they sent me obscure ones and that's really what I was looking for anyway. Beyond what we would know to be the obvious like the volunteer who every week clips coupons and organizes them for families in our church who are in need of cost saving measures or the volunteers who come in month after month to do nothing more than roll pennies nickels dimes and quarters or like the mother and her two daughters who come in once a week to gather all the stuff we've left behind. Gather up it all and store it in cabinets for the pastoral. I mean for the church body to find.

I will admit I've never purchased an umbrella. No need to. There are all kinds colors shapes. I mean you want to go there and the communicators please come by there are cabinets full of toys and utensils jewelry books shoes bags coats jackets everything you bought your kids last Christmas it's over there in those closets and somebody organizes it. Two thousand fifty eight pieces of the puzzle who are finding her fit. Discover yours through exposure and experimentation. Discover it. The second challenge that emanates from Paul's exhortation is not to just discover it but develop it. Christians have the idea that finding your spiritual gift will be that thing which comes easily. That gift will require no effort no discipline no practice no research no study.

Nothing could be further from the truth. It is rather a capacity for service rather than a ready made ability to perform. It's going to take time and effort to contribute that piece. So discover it and develop it. Let me move on quickly delight in it.

Thirdly delight in it. God has specifically designed you to make contributions here and there. While all of the gifts could be arguably responsibilities of every believer we could make a point to that effect it's interesting to me that Peter makes it very clear that there is a special gift that we focus on and where we contribute it might be a gift or gifts.

There are a few things that last forever. People do your gift becomes the primary avenue through which you connect people to the grace of God. Let me read again what Peter said through your spiritual gift you steward or you dispense the grace of God to others. You dish it out. This is how your life experiences the good and the bad your passion your personality your education your spiritual interests.

They all come together. God uses everything and then places you in the body and you effectively minister to the body in those ways and bring him great glory. I found it interesting to be reminded again this week of the Apostle John. He was the last living apostle and he comes to near the end of his life and he writes in his third little letter he says this I have no greater joy than to know my children are walking in the truth. He didn't say I have no greater joy than to know I was selected to write five of the books of the New Testament. In fact he doesn't say I had no greater joy than to know I was personally discipled by Christ. He said I have no greater joy than to know people that I poured my life into people I touched people I helped. He now calls them his children.

They are still walking in the truth. You don't sit around and admire your gift. You admire God. You thank him for his divine design in your own life and how he is allowing you to touch the lives of others through teaching or reaching or encouraging or confronting or evangelizing or restoring or discipling.

The list goes on and on and on and on. Discover it develop it delight in it. Here's a fourth challenge. Don't despair in it. The minute you decide to serve somebody else you are open now to joy and to sorrow. The question is will you serve people. Will you not grow weary in well doing. Second Thessalonians Chapter 3 verse 13. Every dedicated servant of Christ knows the wilderness of serving that person you tried to help.

They go back into their lifestyle of sin and you ask yourself what is the use. You show up and you serve and you're never noticed much less ever thank I know there are two thousand fifty eight people and I have probably not thanked personally well over a thousand of them. Will you serve anyway. Will you be content with the promise of Christ that your Heavenly Father who sees in secret will reward what you have done in secret. Are you willing to serve Christ and not care who gets the credit. Are you willing to fail at attempts to serve him and start over again.

Are you available to keep experimenting and praying and searching and asking and adapting. I love the story of the little five year old boy who was out the backyard he had his baseball cap on he had his plastic bat and he had his plastic ball. He got out there in the backyard by himself and his mother overheard him say just as he threw the ball into the air I am the greatest hitter in the world and he swung at any missed. He picked up the ball and daunted and said a little louder I am the greatest hitter in the world. And he threw the ball up and he swung and he missed. He looked at his bat to inspect it for a flaw. You know men learn very young it's the equipment and so he looked it over adjusted his cap and picked the ball up and with greater resolve than ever he threw the ball up in the air as he said I am the greatest hitter in the world and he swung and he missed thought a moment and he picked up the ball and he said I am the greatest pitcher in the world.

And if we could only adapt so easily. We dream of being home run hitters in the family of God and we're going to do something significant. Well maybe God wants us to pitch or maybe he wants us to rake the infield. Maybe he wants us to mow the outfield or set out the bases or sit on the bench and keep stats.

All of it's necessary to pull off the game and every part is needed. It leads me to toss in just one more challenge here. It's a well-worn phrase but I almost hear it in the middle of Romans chapter 12 verse 6. Let each one of us exercise our gift accordingly. As if I hear Paul say don't just stand there do something. There are so many things that can be done in a growing family believers.

The last thing we ever want to do is sit around and wait for somebody to feel gifted. If you hand off your child to that kindergarten teacher and maybe you did it today and only to discover a room full of kindergarteners and I'm not going to tell you how many I hear are in there but the teaching staff maybe that particular Sunday is unexpectedly in trouble because the two assistants called in sick. You don't need to stand in the hallway and have a prayer meeting for godly teachers to show up.

Just roll up your sleeve and dive into the wriggling mass of kindergarteners. It just might be that active availability leads to discovery and there's no telling what you'll learn from the children. From what I hear children seldom misquote their parents in Sunday school.

They usually repeat word for word what they have heard and they make up stuff for fun too. When my oldest daughter was in her four-year-old Sunday school class at Colonial the teacher was going around the room asking for prayer requests and when the teacher got to her my daughter said pray for my daddy he's got a drinking problem. I've no idea where she got that from trust me. To this day it's a mystery the teacher said excuse me. She said oh yeah my daddy's got a drinking problem we really need to pray for him.

So they prayed for my drinking problem. Fourth grade Sunday school probably the highlight of that teacher's career. Discover it develop it delight in it don't despair in it and just do it. As I read those articles on Rubik's Cube I found it interesting that Mr. Rubik's primary fascination which led to the invention of the cube was a desire to see an object with independently moving parts that would stay together and not fall apart. Individual movement without disconnecting from one another. What a picture of the body of Christ.

Moving parts unified hearts. I hope you're encouraged by today's lesson. You're listening to Stephen Davey our Bible teacher here on Wisdom for the Heart. To learn more about our ministry visit wisdom online dot org. If you haven't seen it I encourage you to install the Wisdom International app to your phone or tablet. You can access the library of Stephen's 36 years of Bible teaching. You can read our daily devotional, read Stephen's blog, follow our year-long Bible reading plan and much more. Install it today then join us next time as Stephen brings you more wisdom for the heart.