However, having come to the realisation that he himself is of more importance than the gift, a person must also know the importance of the gift with which he has been honoured. We have been made members of the body in order that the gift(s) we each have received may be used for the glory of the Christ and the edification and mutual benefit of every member of the body. Gifts of the Spirit are not only enablings, they are also entrustments, and because this is so, it at once becomes apparent that they must also be necessities.
The lifelong ministry of the saints is to build up the body, and the gifts are given for this fundamental purpose. The overall power and mastermind working through all this is in Jesus, the Head of the Body, and the Spirit animating the body is His Spirit, into which every member has been made to drink. Having thus become members of His body, each has to submit to Him in order to develop the mind of the Spirit of the body. Each member is a gift; what are called the gifts are means of function, enablings distributed to make the body fully operational among men now in the same way and by the same powers as the Lord Himself operated among men of old.
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G.W. North (1913 - 2003)
G. W. North was born in London England in 1913. As a young man he became aware that the Lord was calling him into the work of the ministry. At timely stages the Lord placed folk in his path who were able to direct him into the truth of heart purity and a more expansive understanding of the ministry of the Holy Spirit. He held pastorates in Kent and Bradford. By the late 1960s, following a significant period of ministry in Liverpool, he began a more itinerant ministry. This led him to many parts of the world, and occupied him until well into his eighties. His powerful preaching and the unique sense of the Lord's presence, which seemed to brood over his meetings, were always intensely challenging.The true secret of his remarkable ministry stemmed from his personal communion with the Lord Jesus. To him, 'entering the holiest' was not merely a theological concept; it was a distinct spiritual reality - and the central feature of his spiritual life. It was here, in the place of worship, that his revelatory ministry found its source. He preached from understanding and conviction. He was never the echo of another, nor did he take on board the ebb and flow of various contemporary emphases. He was not a man of 'books'; he soaked himself in Scripture and allowed it to saturate his heart and mind. Truly, this is a man who has lifted up a standard for the people. Mr North went to be with the Lord on 29th April 2003, shortly after his ninetieth birthday.