How is a Lord-approved Ministry measured?Should we measure large numbers?, popularity and fame?Huge apparent impacts?
Ministry is measured by fidelity
- Do we know that those who receive the sweet words will enter into the joy of your master?Is the servant good and faithful? (Mt 25:21).
- The one who has bet all his life on his master’s work.
- Not hiding his talent underground as a “guarantee”?In case the teacher came back while he lived for himself.
- Well and faithful.
- Was Moses also praised by the Lord for being faithful throughout my house?(Nb 12.
- 7).
I believe that the clearest text on the subject is 1 Corinthians 4. 2: “Butlers must be faithful to each one”. Paul warns against those who judge someone’s ministry beforehand: “Wherefore, judge nothing beforehand, until the Lord comes, who will also enlighten the occult of darkness and reveal the purposes of hearts; and then everyone will receive God’s praise. ?(1Co 4. 5). In other words, when the Lord comes, will he show the occult and reveal the intentions of the heart and what he will seek?What is required? Loyalty.
Remember that Paul tells this to a proud church, which believes he is already rich, rich and reigning, but which simply fails in his faithfulness. Many gifts, little love; Great manifestations, little holiness Church that had the super apostles and Paul, do you know this backward apostle who became like the garbage of this world, and like the scum of all (1C 4. 13), who at the end of his life was arrested and martyred?without glamour. However, he knew that he had fought the good battle, completed the race, preserved faith, and that the crown of justice was reserved for him (2 Timothy 4. 7-8).
Let’s be honest. At the end of a successful life, we imagine many people crying and feeling our death around us, as we close our eyes, painlessly, and cross the Jordan. Prison and martyrdom do not seem very triumphant.
Don’t hide indolence under the cloak of fidelity
So far, many have agreed. The problem is that many hide their indolence under the mantle of fidelity, as well as the evil servant: “Here is the talent you have given me; I hid it and will I return it faithfully?Yes, amazing! Indolence uses fidelity speech. However, in essence, here is the saying: “I have not tried his work, my master; Did I do the basics to hide talent when you come back and dedicate my time to other subjects?.
Modern versions of this can be something like: “I really preach the truth!Is that why no one wants to listen to me?Dear brother, did you think it might be because you have no pastoral touch?”Or maybe you’re preaching wrong? Yes, I know, it hurts to think about that possibility.
“No!” but someone will say. ” Isaiah was called to preach and God said no one would listen to him. “I bet you didn’t have a vision of God’s throne, and he called you to preach until people were deaf (spiritually) and died or exiled (literally). So, who knows, you might not want to consider a self-examination. Or ask other people for advice? After all, it can be a blind spot.
Or: “We are a faithful little church. ” Seriously, however, this can also be the fact that the church has wooden panels so that every visitor feels like an intruder, or, of course, they stopped evangelizing, or that everything in the church indicates that it is not. No matter if there are visitors or not: there is no clear display of the gospel and the call to faith, there is no one looking for visitors to receive them, no one is bothered by the fact that there is no new face for more than 4 months.
We read in Acts that the Word grew as the Lord added to the church, as ministers were faithful in planting and watering. Yes, yes, it is God who gives growth (quantity and quality?Not just one, not just the other, right?). And yes, my brother, he does. And that’s something we have to ask for. Yes, we should. In fact, I’d even say it’s something to look forward to. When a child is not growing in height and strength, we worry and seek to examine what the problem is in their body. After all, lack of growth usually shows a disease (you’ve noticed it normally, haven’t you?). So, when things don’t seem to be paying off, our stance should be . . . Yes, self-examination, and cry out to God.
Actions vs. results
Trying to escape the dichotomy?He feels the same problem I mentioned earlier: shepherds who have not made enough effort, but who have hidden their comfort under the cloak of fidelity. Keller illustrates with a pastor from a rural area who moves to an urban center and keeps doing things the same way and things don’t seem to go very well. He understands that the pastor should look at his lack of fruit, evaluate his ministry, and try to put it in context (simplifying, of course).
Jonathan Leeman, in a book review, understands Keller’s point of view and agrees that every minister should have a sacred ambition and be hungry for fruit, but points to one problem: Keller’s idea of fruition always resembles success: results. Behavior. In other words, it may be that the shepherd who has moved to a great city finds dry land and can do nothing but continue to preach the Word; however, you may lack effort and wisdom. The thing is, if that’s the problem, the fault lies precisely in fidelity, not results. As Leeman rightly points out, our actions are under our control, the results are not.
Think, for example, of evangelism. If we define it in terms of results, such as “winning souls,” then we will direct the object toward something we do not control (the conversion of a soul) and might be tempted to do anything to achieve that goal. , if we define him in terms of our actions and fidelity, we will understand that, as Bill Bright said, “to succeed in testifying is simply to share Christ in the power of the Holy Ghost, leaving the results to God. “
Ministry is measured by active fidelity
Therefore, I understand that the best way to evaluate our department is through what I have called “active loyalty”. All right, you could only call it fidelity, but to distinguish it from “transvestite indolence of fidelity”?(Or passive loyalty), I preferred to add a term.
In practical terms, what does that mean? This means that we must think of fidelity as something that requires work, self-examination, overcoming, and fruit desire; a pastor who does not want the growth of his church (again, quality and quantity) may not be faithful (we must remember that the growth of a church does not necessarily mean turning it into a mega-church; there is the possibility of growing by multiplying new churches) The result may not be in our hands, but to want and seek the East. a minister who does not seek to improve his vocation is not faithful.
Let me put it another way: unless you also want to speak and practice the verses below, you better not even speak faithfully:
?” I also became weak because of the weak, to overcome the weak. Did I do everything for everyone, so I could save some by all means?(1C 9. 22).
Don’t you know that those who run in the stadium all run, but only one wins the prize?Run so you can catch up with him. And he who fights for everything abstains; they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; us, however, an incorruptible. For that is how I run, not as I uncertain; so I fight, not like hitting the air, but I submit my body and reduce it to servitude, so that by preaching to others I do not repudiate me in any way (1C 9. 24-27).
?« How I love everyone, not for my own benefit, but that of many, to be saved (1C 10:33).
?« But by the grace of God, I am who I am; and his grace to me was not in vain, but I worked much more than all; not me, but God’s grace, who is with me. ?(1C 15. 10)
?« Therefore, my beloved brethren, be firm and constant, always abundant in the work of the Lord, knowing that your work is not in vain in the Lord (1Co 15. 58)
I hope you have noticed that all these texts come from 1 Corinthians, the same book that says that “butlers must be faithful”. I hope this will help us understand that Paul has in mind more than doctrinal fidelity.
So what if you do not see fruit in your ministry ?, if you let yourself be guided by the results, you will fall into the error that the end justifies the means, that is, do not try to do everything possible (whether biblical or not), but try to do everything within the framework of fidelity (although it may seem strange how?Be barbaric with barbarians?). So the question is: how can I strive to be more faithful?, or: where in my ministry do I need to be more loyal, do not hide your indolence under the cloak of passive fidelity, nor guide your ministry through results. actively faithful.
By: Vin-cius Musselman Pimentel. © 2016 Let’s Go Back to the Gospel. Original: Loyalty vs Success: How to Measure a Department?
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