MESSAGE
FROM THE
WORD
WHAT IS GOD’S VIEW OF THE MINISTRY?
Colossians 1:23-29
SERIES: Colossians Message # 10
As a student in high school, I was given several aptitude tests to determine the direction I should take in college. When all was completed, I was given two recommendations. I was told to stay away from tools, and I was told that I really liked to help people so I should consider being a police officer or a minister. I had just become a Christian and didn’t quite know what a minister did, but having to write a speech every week was not my idea of what I wanted to do with my life. I had no desire to become a minister.
That illustration is indicative of how many people view the ministry. Become a minister so that you can help people. There are also those who think of the ministry as an easy job because you only have to work one day a week. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
What is the task of the minister? A generation ago, that role was pretty well defined. However, the church today has gone through a transition and what is expected of the minister is drastically different. The minister today is supposed to be a CEO, comedian, comforter, land developer, social reformer, dynamic speaker, counselor, or political activist. His message is supposed to be a self help message that is not to long and not to confrontative.
The idea that the minister is to be a student and a confronter is seen as outdated. I talk to pastors all the time who tell me they have to much on their agenda to spend a lot of time studying. Their philosophy is to take a poll, look on an internet sight, find out what is popular, get a few funny stories, add a few current events and close in prayer. The pastor is a motivational speaker. As long as he keeps the chairs full and the bank account filled, everything is great.
That is not how God sees the ministry. We read, ACTS 6:4 Were the Apostles above waiting on tables? Were they to proud to serve? Not at all. However, they understood their priorities. Serving was an indispensable ministry in the early church. But, not everyone was to be involved in that ministry. The Apostles saw their place as to be the spiritual overseers of the ministry. They would choose and train people to handle the day to day meeting of the physical needs of the people. They needed to concentrate on praying and giving out the word.
As the church began to grow and flourish, they continued to emphasize the importance of the scriptures. We read TITUS 1:5-11 As churches began to grow, Paul wanted them to have a solid foundation of leadership. When looking for church leaders, what do you look for? Should we look for generous givers, gifted administrators, type A personalities, great orators, or movers and shakers in the community? Paul told Titus to look for two qualifications. Are they holy? Are they experts in the scriptures? Those are the only two qualifications to look for in selecting elders and ministers. Obviously, the church needs administrators, givers and servants. However, if godliness is not found at the top, God’s favor will not permeate the ministry.
As we come to our study in Colossians, Paul wanted to address this topic he calls “THE MINISTRY”. We read COLOSSIANS 1:23-29 In this passage the words “minister”, “preach”, and “teach” appear four times. What is the task of the minister? It is crucial that we understand that this is God’s view we will be looking at.
FIRST, WE SEE THE PLACE OF THE MINISTRY. I was ordained to the ministry in 1978. I was asked to come forward at our evening service and the elders came forward, laid their hands on me, and sent me out to do the work of the ministry. What is that? The key is found in verse 25. Paul writes, “OF THIS CHURCH I WAS MADE A MINISTER…” The place of the ministry is within the context of the church. In the previous verse, Paul defined the church as “HIS BODY…” The church is to be about the business of taking care of those who are in His Body. That is, the ministry is to primarily focus on those who are believers.
Lest I confuse the issue, God has given the Body of Christ many gifts. The gift of the evangelist would be useless in the “Body of Christ”, because everyone is already a believer. The gift of service and encouragement can also go far beyond the walls of the “church”. There are gifts and gifted people who will give much of their time to those who are outside of the Body of Christ. This is how we reach the unbeliever. However, the minister’s primary task is to tend to those within the church.
We saw this several weeks ago, but let me just remind ourselves of what the church is. The church is not an organization and it is not a building. The church consists of all those who have committed their lives to being followers of Jesus Christ. There are two aspects to this church. There is what is referred to as the “Church Universal”. That is, every single person in the history of the world who has been “RESCUED FROM THE
There is also a local church. We read ROMANS 16:3-5 This is what we refer to when people ask us “what church do you go to”? We answer by stating the name of our congregation and where we meet. We read ACTS 2:42-47; 6:2; 13:1; HEBREWS 10:23-25 Here we see that the church has a meeting place, specific leaders, specific ministries and specific order. This is the local church and every believer in Christ needs to be an active member of this assembly.
SECOND, WE SEE THE PROBLEMS OF THE MINISTRY. If I was to ask you to list some of the problems in the church, you might answer something such as a lack of parking, hard pews, need for nursery workers and more Sunday School teachers. Those may or may not be relevant to this or any other church, but this is not what Paul was thinking. As Paul addressed the importance of the church, he mentioned three critical issues.
The first problem is lack of commitment. We read, VERSE 23 There is no frustration that is more disturbing to the pastor than people who just won’t commit themselves to the Lord. Paul pleads with these people not to be “MOVED AWAY FROM THE HOPE OF THE GOSPEL…” God wants us to be steadfast and resolute in our following of Him. We are told 1 CORINTHIANS This is how God builds His church. It is not by the mighty, the wealthy, the famous, or the gifted. God builds His church by using the faithful and the committed.
A second problem is an unclear message. Paul defines what the message of the church is. He calls it, “THE HOPE OF THE GOSPEL…” The gospel is defined as, 1 CORINTHIANS 15:1-5 The essence of the gospel is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. That is the foundation of the gospel. It goes beyond that, but this is its foundation. Why should we concentrate so much on the gospel? We read ROMANS If you want to manifest God’ power, proclaim the gospel.
This is not the only place Paul states this. We will see shortly that this should be the heart of the pastor’s ministry. Let me mention it here and I will expand our thoughts later. Paul writes in verse 25 that God’s plan was for him to, “FULLY CARRY OUT THE PREACHING OF THE WORD OF GOD”. When Paul refers to proclaiming the gospel he has in mind the preaching of the word of God. Humor, relevance, current events, thought provoking questions, and touching stories are all a part of a good sermon. However, the heart of the message must be the word of God. The church has replaced the proclamation of the gospel with PR campaigns and is in danger of becoming irrelevant.
The third problem is a cowardly church. You will remember that our governor called politicians who refused to make difficult decisions “girlie men”. It got a great laugh and made his opponents angry. Paul writes, VERSE 24 This is far different from spiritual girlie men. There is an opposing side to this. We read II TIMOTHY 4:9,10 Demas was a young men who went on a trip with Paul. He must have seen Paul get arrested, beaten, and mocked. Demas may have seen it as a privilege to go out with Paul, but when things got rough, he bailed. We read HEBREWS 11:32-12:2 When we stand before God, may we all be able to say, “in the midst of the battle, I stood”. This is what Paul told the Ephesians EPHESIANS This is what God expects of us, to stand.
In 1961, John Kennedy was inaugurated as the 35th president of the
Paul was willing to suffer for the church to advance. What suffering are you willing to endure for God’s work to advance? The Southern Baptists are the most successful denomination in the
The Guinness Book of World Records states that the longest letter ever written was by a French artist in 1875. We wanted to let his girlfriend know how much he loved her so he decided to write “I Love You” one thousand times for every year since the birth of Christ. That is nearly two million times. After a few days of writing, he became tired and hired a secretary to do the writing. That is a picture of so many believer’s depth of commitment for the Lord. We will pay any price, as long as it doesn’t inconvenience us. That is not the commitment Christ made to us.
Jesus told us, MATTHEW 5:10-12 Paul picked up on this same theme in the pastoral letters and wrote II TIMOTHY 2:3, 3:12, 4:5 Jesus died on the cross so that we could be empowered to live for Him. How He must be grieved that so many of His followers refuse to pay any price to serve Him.
THIRD, WE SEE THE PRIORITY OF THE MINISTRY. If I were to ask you what you believe the church’s highest priority should be, I would be willing to bet that your # 1 choice would involve something that affects you. For instance, if you have teenagers, you might think the number 1 priority should be a good youth ministry. If you just had a baby, a nursery would be high on the list. If you are a young couple, having activities with others your age would be important. All of these ministries are good, but are not the priority. They can be ways to reach our priority, though. We read VERSE 28 The chief priority of any church is take its entire membership and make them “COMPLETE IN CHRIST”. That term “complete” is translated “perfect” in the KJV. Our job is not complete until you are all perfect. You will understand then, how far we still have to go. Let me show you how this word is used elsewhere. We read LUKE 2:43; JOHN 4:34. , 17:4 Do you understand now how this word is used? Our goal is not to be perfect people in the sense that we never sin, it is be perfect in the sense that you have arrived at the point where God wants you to be. Let me give you a single word for this; maturity.
How do we know when we have accomplished this task? There are many different ideas on how this might be defined, but let me give you a thought. The training of the church is done when its members can stand on their own and do that which has been done to them. In other words, the church’s priority is to help people to grow up. We can get a sense that we have done that when those who were babes in Christ reach out and help others to grow up in their walk with Christ. Paul writes, EPHESIANS 4:11-16 We are to “GROW UP IN ALL ASPECTS…” That is maturity. This is the church’s priority. The church is to be about the business of seeking to see people born spiritually, and then see them grow up.
How do we know if someone has reached this point of completeness? How can the church tell if someone is mature? This may not be the absolute and only answer, but let me give you the definition Rick Warren gives in his book, The Purpose Driven Life. In this book, Pastor Warren identifies five specific characteristics, or purposes, by which a church, or an individual, can determine if they are growing. Those five purposes are:
1. A dynamic worship of God
2. An active participation in a Christian Fellowship
3. A steady increase in Christ-like behavior
4. A commitment to serving God by serving others
5. A desire to reach others for Christ
If I could give each of those purposes a single word it would be:
1. Worship
2. Fellowship
3. Godliness
4. Service
5. Evangelism
How do we help someone grow up? As I went through this list, I felt there was one purpose that was greatly missing. He didn’t include studying the Bible. However, as I tried to think through these five purposes, I saw the light. Bible study is not a goal, it is the means to reaching the goals. If the purpose is to worship God, how do we do that? We have to study the Bible to see how He wants us to worship Him. If we want to live a godly life, how do we go about that? We have to study the Bible to see what it means to be godly and how to go about that. We study the Bible to learn how to do that which God wills us to do. We do not study the Bible just to learn more.
Let me illustrate this by using the example of a baby. If you have a baby and are totally ignorant of how to help a baby grow, I would give you three specific keys that would help you grow your baby. Those three keys would be;
Food
Rest
Exercise
What happens to a baby that does not eat? For a little while, it may lose weight. However, in a short period of time it would become malnourished, become sick, and even die.
What happens when a baby does not rest? It becomes cranky and irritable. Without rest, a baby will not become properly adjusted.
What happens to a child that does not exercise? The child will become lethargic, weak, fat and lazy. It is exercise that builds muscles and works off the fat.
Let me give you a spiritual analogy of these three actions. Spiritual food is Bible Study. Spiritual Rest is worship. Spiritual exercise is service. When we don’t eat, rest, or exercise, what are the consequences? We become anemic, lazy, fat and sick. Let me ask you to examine your life. Is your spiritual life dynamic or dull? Is your worship exciting or boring? Is your service non-existent, or vast? To the degree that your desire is to grow up, is the extent that you will enjoy your walk with God. Compare this to our Mission Statement. It reads, “Faith Christian Church seeks to bring people into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ by studying His word, enjoying His people, practicing His presence, and caring others”. All of Pastor Warren’s priorities are in our mission statement. However, that is only important if you as an individual are committed to our mission’s statement. To attend a church that is right does not make you right. It has to become personal.
FOURTH, WE SEE THE PASSION OF THE MINISTRY. What is it that causes your heart to beat faster? It might be a sporting event, restaurant, person, or a movie. However, if your heart is right with God, there will be a passion For Him that will burn hotter than any of those other likes. You may have a passion for singing, fellowship, or ministering to others. Look at how Paul addresses this issue. We read VERSE 25 Paul’s passion was to “FULLY CARRY OUT THE PREACHING OF THE WORD OF GOD”. As I tried to determine how to address this issue, I noticed that word “…FULLY…” I began to trace it through the New Testament and found some interesting ideas. Let me share that with you. We read, MATT. ,17; Our word for fully is translated “FULFILLED” in these passages. Matthew is trying to point out that Jesus came to fulfill or to complete what was stated earlier. Jesus finalized the Old Testament prophesies. There is another way the word is used. Luke tells us of Paul’s first missionary trip. When the Jews rejected Paul’s message, he began to preach to the Gentiles. We read ACTS 13:52 The Gentiles came to Christ and were “FILLED WITH JOY…” In other words, they were dominated by that emotion. There is another passage in which this word is used. Paul writes, PHILIPPIANS 4:19 Paul’s word for “SUPPLY” is the same word. How much of your needs will God provide for? He provides every little detail. Put this all together and what is Paul trying to say? Paul’s desire was to take the word of God and squeeze every little morsel out of its pages. He did not want to leave one little detail unknown.
That is my passion. When I come to the scriptures, I want to know everything there is to know. I study and then I write my sermon. You cannot imagine the frustration I feel after I preach my sermon and then realize that I left out a point. When I finish and then learn some new application to the passage I just finished. I want to drain the passage of every little tidbit of information and application.
I understand that this is not the norm in the church today. Even in churches that believe the Bible, this passion is not often seen. This began at the very beginning. You will remember that God placed Adam and Eve in the Garden and placed only one restriction on them, stay away from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. You will remember that the serpent came to them and asked a very simple question, “HATH GOD REALLY SAID…” From that point to today, the evil one has not changed his approach. Satan’s primary attack can be summed up in one statement, challenge God’s word. If God’s passion is for His people to preach the word, the enemy will try to mess that up.
Let me list several alternatives to the scriptures which have popped up to challenge the notion that God’s word has the answers to life. Every one of these issues is influencing the people that sit in our pews on Sunday morning.
First, is atheism. That is, the denial that there is no God, therefore there cannot be God’s word. There were few atheists until our generation, but they are out there now. In a nutshell, they say “God has not spoken”. For the sake of space, let me also include in this area a simple denial of the Bible as the word of God. There are many who claim to be Christians but who reject the authority of God’s word in their life or in the culture.
Second, is diversity. In this, we are told that all religions are equal and should be given equal weight. This is where our culture is today. The Bible can’t be praised because it might offend members of some other religion. Shortly after the attack on September 11, 2001 in New York, the University of North Carolina decided to require incoming freshmen to read a book on understanding Islam. Their logic was that we did not want Moslems to think that we were hostile to them.
Third, is science. We have seen this on several occasions in the last few weeks because of our study of verse 16, that Christ is the creator of all we see. We are told that science explains everything there is to known. Throughout history, some of the great scientists were believers. However, science divorced from God leads to death camps and master races.
Fourth, is psychology. There is nothing wrong with psychology. The word comes from two Greek words meaning “the study of the soul”. Every Christian should be a psychologist. However, modern psychology, like modern science, has divorced itself from God. It has tried to understand the consequences of sin while denying the existence of sin. This has been brought into the church and ended up as “salvation by therapy”. The purpose of psychology is to search the soul and the only way to do that is to understand the Bible. The counselor needs to take the scriptures and apply it to the individual. Principles that are violated need to be corrected. Violations left uncorrected will lead to emotional problems.
Fifth, is mysticism. This is both inside and outside the church. Forget the Bible, just give me an experience. The New age movement and some of the hyper charismatic groups fall into this group. Don’t worry what the Bible says, just tap into God, whatever you perceive Him to be and what happens, is true.
Sixth, is miracle seekers. This is the move of Christian Television today. The people at the time of Christ were always looking for signs and wonders. Jesus performed miracles, but they were usually met with disbelief. We believe that God is a miracle working God. Lest you think the way to reach people is through miracles we read, LUKE 16:27-31 Jesus stated that the preaching of the word was more powerful than performing miracles.
Seventh, is popularity. Take a poll, find out what the “in topic” is, find a verse and throw in a few verses and you got a cutting edge message. The problem with this is that it caters to the lowest level of the culture. You do not ask, “what does God say”, but “”what do people want to hear”.
Eighth, is feelings. This is the dominate philosophy of our day. If it feels good, do it was the motto of an entire generation. Whether it is same sex marriage, animal rights, smoking, environment, or child rearing, the deciding issue is how people feel about the issue. Right or wrong are only valid for the individual. We do not have the right to impose our feelings on another, because all feelings are personal. There is no truth, only subjective feelings.
Into this God throws the church and tells it to confront the culture with the scriptures. Let’s look at the examples of Biblical preaching. How did the church address the Bible? Let’s look at the ministry of Jesus. We read, MATTHEW 4:4, 7, 10; 5:17-19; 8:4; 12:1-7, 39,40; 13:14-16; 19:3-6; 21:13, 42,43; 22:37-40, 42-45; 24:15; LUKE 24:27, 44-47 Jesus did not ask the culture what it wanted to hear, He said “THUS SAIT THE LORD”.
The early church practiced the same thing. We read, ACTS 1:16; 2:14-16,42; 3:18; 4:24-26; 8:4,35; 12:24; 13:5,15,23,32,33,44,48,49;14:7,15,21; 16:32; 17:2,3,11,17; 18:5,24;19:8,10,20; 20:27,32; 1 TIMOTHY 3:15 This is not something unique to the church age. Hundreds of times in the Old Testament the phrase “THUS SAITH THE LORD” appears. The people of God are to love those outside of God’s plan, but we are to share with them what the Bible says. The question has to be asked, why should we study the Bible? What can the Bible do for me in the 21st century? In addition to the alternatives and the examples, let’s see the benefits of Biblical preaching.
First, it reveals how to be right with God. This is what the Ten Commandments tell us. God has revealed His will to His creation and wants us to live by His standard. We read, II TIM. It is as we learn the scriptures that we understand God’s plan for our life and how we are to live by them. We read ACTS 13:44-52 Here was a community that was outside of God’s plan. Paul showed up, began proclaiming His word, and the city suddenly saw their need to “get right with God”. The scriptures give us God’s pattern for life.
Second, it reveals how to mature. We read I PETER 2:2 How do we behave after coming to Christ? How do we mature? It is the Bible that reveals right and wrong and helps us get it right. We read HEBREWS We may think we have it all together, but God’s word is the final judge. It is as we read God’s word that we He brings correction and affirmation.
Third, it reveals how to have social order. This is where God’s word and our culture clash. The Bible is not relevant just for those in the church. The Bible is relevant for an entire culture. We live in the greatest country in the world. The freedoms and the blessings we have are incredible. However, we are close to the ledge of turning our back on the one who dispenses those blessings on us. Throughout the history of our nation, we have pledged allegiance to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. This is why we are referred to as a Judeo-Christian nation. Just for your encouragement, let me give you a historical run through our nation’s religious covenant with God.
1492
1620 Mayflower Compact
1621
1622 First Synagogue established
1623 Great Awakening begins
1624 Declaration of
1625 Congress approves money to print Bibles in colonies
1626 George Washington inaugurated. Adds “so help me God” to his oath
Walks to
1791 Bill of Rights Approved. Samuel Provost appointed first Chaplin
1792 President Jefferson attends church in House of Representatives chamber
Pays for musicians out of public treasury.
1812 National Anthem written
1813
1814 Emancipation Proclamation
1888
1889
1890
1891 “Separation of church and state” mentioned for first time in a legal decision
These are just a few of the historical evidences that our nation is founded on a Biblical foundation.
If people were forbidden to enter buildings that had biblical references etched in their walls, we would not be able to enter the Capital Building, CIA, Supreme Court, Congress, Washington Monument, Jefferson, Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, House of Representatives Building, or the Library of Congress. Over the past fifty years, we have gone from acknowledging God’s word to forbidding God’s word. A court in
The church must once again come to the conclusion that its task is to say, “THUS SAITH THE
LORD” and not what happens to be popular at the current time. What happens when we turn our back on God and decide we have a better plan? If we reject the Biblical pattern and go our own way, are there negative consequences? Let’s look at just a few cultural issues
In 1950 the illegitimacy rate was 5%. We then came up with birth control and free sex. The illegitimacy rate sky rocketed. Public schools went from teaching abstinence and self control to free love and individual expression. Our nation has gone from two STD’s, Syphilis and Gonorrhea, to almost 70 STD’s.
Previously we defined marriage as a man and a woman. Then we began to tell people they could define the family any way they wanted. A live in boy friend is 70 times more likely to abuse a child than is the biological father. The rise in single moms has gone up dramatically. The number of young men in prison is directly related to the prisoner’s involvement with his dad. Usually it is nonexistent.
We were lead to believe that homosexuality was just another life choice and should be promoted in the culture. Same-sex marriage was just as valid as was opposite sex marriage. Then AIDS broke out and has caused the death of millions. Recently, a new strain of the AIDS virus was discovered. Lymphgranulomaveneria has jumped the rate of detection to disease from ten years to three months.
Family roles were redefined causing women to choose between a family and a career. The idea that dad would bring home the salary and mom would raise the children was seen as oppressive and sexist. Now, major publications are beginning to run articles on women in high powered jobs leaving to go home and have children.
We taught that children were to be brought into the world within the context of a marriage relationship. Children were good and several were better than one or none. Then, we began to worry about Zero Population Growth. Too many people were going to destroy the planet. There are no countries in
The self esteem movement told us that we had to praise every activity our children were involved in, regardless of how good or wise it is. God tells us that good self esteem comes from understanding we are His child. Studies are now being presented which indicate that those with the highest self image are not good people. We are telling thugs that they are good and it is coming back to haunt us.
Every major social problem in our nation today is a result of politicians saying God’s word is not relevant on that issue. All that is needed is for the people of a culture to return to the structure of a Biblical lifestyle and order will return.
FIFTH, WE SEE THE PATTERN OF THE MINISTRY. If our passion is to be about the distributing of God’s word to people, how do we go about doing that? As would be expected, God does not leave us in the dark on how to accomplish this. We read COL. 1:28 In this verse, we see a four-fold pattern in the ministry.
First, we preach. The word used in verse 28 is “PROCLAIM”. The KJV translates it “PREACH”.
We saw in verse 25 Paul wrote that he was called to “FULLY CARRY OUT THE PREACHING OF THE WORD OF GOD…” In the original, the word for preach in not stated, it is implied. We all are aware that preaching is a part of the church, but what does it mean? The Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary defines preach as “to deliver a sermon; to urge acceptance or abandonment of an idea or course of action; to exhort in an officious or tiresome way”. The editors of Merriam-Webster need to find a different church. However, preaching is a Biblical demand. Paul wrote 1 CORINTHIANS 1:17-23 Did you notice that “preach” is used three times?
The nature of preaching is to take the message and deliver it in a confrontative manner. You are confronting the listener with your message and seeking change in their attitude or in their behavior. In our culture today, preaching has a negative connotation. We even make statements like “don’t preach at me”. To tell someone else what to do or confront someone’s behavior is the new unpardonable sin. Ake Green is a Swedish pastor. In July, 2003 he preached a sermon calling homosexuality a sin and was arrested for a hate crime. In January, 2004 he was convicted of “hate speech against homosexuals”. This past week, an appeals court overturned the verdict, although the court made it clear that it did not agree with what Rev. Green was saying. In
Second, we admonish. I want to look at how this word is used. We read ACTS 20:31; 1 THES. ; II THES. 3:14, 15 If the nature of preaching is to confront, the nature of admonishment is to cry. There may not be physical tears, but there is the attitude of grief and sorrow in having to deal with this situation. It is the attitude of putting your arm on this person’s shoulder and saying, “we need to deal with this issue, how can we do this best”? It is sitting down with someone who has been caught in a sin and being gentle with them. We read GALATIANS 6:1 Do you see the distinction between preaching and admonishing? Preaching confronts. Admonishing pleads. Both are essential to the Body of Christ.
Third, we teach. To teach is to give information. In the context of the church, it is to take the Bible and seek to present it to the members in a systematic way so that the people will understand what the Bible has to say on certain issues. What does the Bible say about homosexuality, marriage, money, sin, parenting, leadership or a host of other issues. Many of you may have come out of churches in which preaching was all that was done. All you heard about was repent, confess, sinners bench, sin, and get right with God. Preaching is an important part of the ministry. However, there must be teaching to go along with that. It is not enough to just call people sinners and ask for change. We must teach them what the Bible says and how it applies to their lives. Notice also that this is to be universal. We do not just teach men. Children are not the only ones to need Sunday School. We are to teach everyone. How critical is teaching? We read HOSEA 4:1, 6 Ignorance is not bliss in the spiritual world, it is deadly.
Fourth, we examine. This is a missing part of most ministries today. Paul writes that he wanted to “PRESENT EVERY MAN COMPLETE IN CHRIST”. In order for that to take place, he had to examine people and test people to see how they held up. This is one of the purposes of trials. I played football in high school. On Monday our coaches would diagram a play and we would run the play without anyone trying to stop us. After we would get the feel of the play, we would run it against the defense. Sometimes it went well. Other times the play would completely fall apart. The coaches then knew what areas needed work. We would practice it again and again, so that the play worked great on Friday night.
There is another way to examine what is going on. Self examination is needed. This is one goal in taking the Lord’s Supper. As we examine ourselves, God reveals areas in our life that need course corrections and we won’t need to have people confront us.
Self examination is important, but we must understand that self examination is only valid if we use a proper standard. We read HEBREWS The word of God is our “plumb line” as it were. It gives us the proper standard to see if we are going the right direction. This is why our culture is fighting desperately to remove the Bible from every public place. The aberrant culture cannot take over if the Bible is the standard of society. The Bible must be removed. This is why there seems to be a giant move in our schools to promote Islam. It isn’t that they like the Koran, its that they hate the Bible and promoting the Koran removes the Bible as the sole authority in our culture.
It is the Bible that defines right and wrong. It is the Bible that obligates us to address sin in the lives of the people. This is one of the greatest needs in the church today. The church at large has chosen not to deal with sin in its midst. We have bowed to the culture and fallen for the line that we have no right to judge the sins of others. The Bible not only gives us the right to judge sin, but the obligation to do so.
SIXTH, WE SEE THE PAIN IN THE MINISTRY. This may surprise some, but God does not promise a pain-free life. This sounds like a strange concept, that there is pain in the ministry. Remember, there is pain in being a believer. We saw that earlier in verse 24 that Paul was willing to suffer if it meant that the gospel was carried to the ends of the world. We read VERSE 29 The word for labor is used to describe Peter and his partners in their fishing venture. We read, LUKE 5:5 They were really weary after this physically exhausting time. The word has to do with becoming physically exhausted. The word for “STRIVING” is also an interesting word. It is “agonizomi” in the Greek. The word agony is in its root. We read, II TIMOTHY 4:7 The word pictured a soldier in the middle of a battle expending every ounce of effort to win the war.
Let me ask you how much effort you expend to serve the Lord. Paul is talking about his work for God on their behalf. However, he was also challenging these believers to model their ministry after his. Where do you expend your energy in working for God? Where do you sweat to see the
LAST, WE SEE THE POWER IN THE MINISTRY. This is important for us to understand, especially coming after what we had just seen. We do not work hard for God in our own power. Paul tells us that it is “HIS POWER, WHICH MIGHTILY WORKS WITHIN ME”. Our energy is not our own effort, but the power of God.
One of the turning points in World War II was the
God loves the church. He sent His Son to die for the Church and gave the Holy Spirit to empower the church. He expects you to be a part of His church and to work for its success. His desire is for every member to be an active part of the ministry He has established. He also expects you to live a godly life so that He might present you as a pure bride to His Father.
This message is from the teaching ministry of Glen Jackson, pastor of Faith Christian Church in
