Concepts
of Ministry
The best way to find out how to have a spiritually healthy
and dynamically growing congregation (and what pastor in his right
mind doesn't want that?), is to look at the congregations that are
dynamically growing, both spiritually and numerically. The next
step is to emulate whatever they're doing that is Biblically sound
and correct--right? Jesus told Peter in John 21:15-17
"Feed my lambs...tend my sheep...Feed my sheep." Healthy, well-fed
sheep reproduce and produce more sheep. Healthy sheep are sheep
that are being properly fed and given water. Christians are the
sheep of Jesus. Jesus through this statement to Peter was showing
him what His chief concern was. Paul in a similar manner told the
Ephesians "And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets,
some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for"--What?--"for
the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity
of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man,
to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we
should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about
with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning
craftiness by which they lie in wait to deceive, but speaking the
truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head--Christ--from
whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint
supplies, according to the effective working by which every part
does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself
in love."
We see by these verses that Paul is stating the main purpose of
the ministry--whether apostles, prophets, evangelists or pastor-teachers--is
for the express and central purpose of the edification of the body
of Christ. Bringing unity of the faith and the knowledge of the
Son of God is also a purpose of the ministry, to bring unity to
the body. So we see the office of the ministry has been created
by Jesus Christ for the edification of the body of Christ. One of
the central philosophies of the fellowship that wrote the two accompanying
articles is that the ministry is for the express purpose of fulfilling
Ephesians 4:11-16 which was just quoted. That is also the central
purpose of this web site.
You may notice that many of the studies in this web site--the expository
studies of Paul's letters, and an expository study on the Book of
Mark--are studies based on expository sermons given by one of the
fastest growing Christian revivals of this century (or they are
actual transcripts, used by permission). These expository sermons
go forward, verse by verse, chapter by chapter, through whatever
book of the Bible that is being taught from. This particular Christian
revival, as I stated, is one of the fastest growing Christian revivals
going right now, and they have accomplished this growth by the simple
Biblical formula of "feeding" their sheep by this methodical process
of giving expository sermons--no gimmicks, no come-ons. One more
important point about their method of giving expository sermons
is that they will start an expository study, say, on the book of
Mark. They will continue on that study, covering maybe a chapter
a week, until the series of sermons on Mark is finished. This adds
an essential continuity to their preaching. I call this
the connective expository sermon. This form of teaching
is a key component of their philosophy of ministry, a key component
which helped propel their spiritual and numeric growth often to
the 1000 percent level. So be sure to read the other two articles
that make up this section called Powerful Concepts of Ministry.
One is titled Philosophy of Ministry and the other Principles of
Ministry. These concepts are all things this Christian revival has
learned over the past thirty years under the able leadership of
their senior pastor. So if you're a struggling pastor, contemplating
throwing in the towel, the two accompanying articles are especially
for you--and your congregation. Applying them to your ministry will
enliven your congregation beyond your wildest dreams. Jesus placed
you over the sheep in your congregation. You are responsible for
their welfare and growth, even though they are Jesus' sheep in the
final analysis. The accompanying concepts will help you effectively
feed those precious sheep. They will help you bring about the unity
and maturity within your congregation that Paul talked about in
Ephesians 4:11-16. So click on Philosophy of Ministry. Read
it through. Then click on Principles of Ministry. I
guarantee that when you apply these concepts to your congregation,
you will not be disappointed with the result. These are, by the
way, Biblical concepts. They are not some fancy quick-fix gimmicks.
They are solid Biblical principles and philosophies of ministering
to the flock of Jesus Christ, principles you'll learn to shape your
ministry around for the rest of your career as a pastor.
Another important concept is that you and your healthy sheep
have to have a heart to reach the lost, the unsaved. This
website has a whole section devoted to that vital subject titled "What
is Evangelism?". So once you learn how to effectively feed and water
your sheep, evangelism will help you bring in new sheep for Jesus.
A friend of mine in commenting about how one church he knew of was
aimed at only attracting the spiritually healthy, and young married
couples, had this to say, "I am convinced that this approach to
evangelism will virtually ensure two things--their church will not
grow quickly and that if it does, it will comprise only respectable
married families. That is hardly the approach we want to follow.
Chuck Smith really impressed me when he described how he and his
wife would sit on the beach and watch the hippies pass by. They
were filled with compassion for these "freaky" kids who were wrecking
their lives with drugs and trying all kinds of things to fill their
emptiness. It is hardly the respectable folk--especially the high
and mighty--who acknowledge their need for Christ. Some people are
too impressed with big cathedrals, lovely architecture, and the
culture of the well-bred. This makes it hard for them to roll up
their sleeves to get the work of evangelism done. They have become
set in their ways. You are right about this congregation we're talking
about with the big beautiful building, their model of ministry is
hardly the example we want to follow. In fact, I am beginning to
wonder if traditional church buildings will ever again draw most
young people into their midst. Perhaps our whole physical location
needs to be rethought. Could you imagine the pastor in this particular
building saying--as one pastor did in a Calvary Chapel--tear up
the carpet if that is causing a problem for the trampling feet of
the hippie "types" who are in our midst?" I think you can see my
friend's point. Ministry must be relevant to those you are reaching
out to for the Lord to save. And who are those the Lord
wants to save? Matthew 9:10-13, "While Jesus was having dinner at
Matthew's house, many tax collectors and "sinners" came and ate
with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked
his disciples, 'Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and
'sinners'?' On hearing this , Jesus said, 'It is not the healthy
who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means:
'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' For I have not come to call the
righteous , but sinners.'"
My friend (a divinity student at a major prestigious university)
also had this to say about the connective expository sermon format. "I
am in agreement with you about the need for connective expository
sermons (though I think we should be flexible so that on special
occasions we can speak on a topic for that day or season). There
is no better way for people to get a better appreciation for the
Holy Scriptures' meaning than through connective expository
sermons. But those who give them must stick with them and be consistent.
This approach is far more preferable and beneficial than merely
subscribing to some ancient creed or confession and rigidly adhering
to its strictures. We must be free to re-engage the Scriptures in
their original context, but also willing to bring them to life for
our time..." And his recommendation for those wishing to try this
format: "Here are some suggestions: start with the gospel of Matthew
and when finished, take on the other Gospels--contrasting and comparing
their distinctive contributions. " And then..."start with the NT
letter that is the earliest written (1 Thessalonians--around AD
50 or 51). Then from there go through each of Paul's letters based
on their age. That way we can see the development of Paul's thought.
We could also view Paul as a living example of 2 Peter 3:18 (growing
in grace and knowledge). His progression in understanding (at one
point thinking that Christ would return in his lifetime) should
especially inspire WCG. We should also study Acts and cull the many
principles from it so that we can practice them now (of course we
have to be discerning as to what applies directly to us and how
we see those parts that speak to our situation). In the process,
anyone following this connective expository format will be giving
their members somewhat of a seminary education, a tour and deeper
understanding of the ancient world, and inspiration from the Word
of God (which transforms lives and motivates us to be better Christians).
These are the benefits. I recommend the following approach: 1) study
the original context (recipients, purpose of letter, author and
his life story, surroundings, and reason for the letter or book);
2) meaning and theology of text on its own terms; 3) contemporary
application (that is, how does it apply to our present situation?).
That would mean we would have to cover a certain portion of a letter
in any one sermon (say Romans 1:1-15), give a sense of its meaning
to its original hearers (for example, Paul dealing with Jesus' role
in God's plan and his desire to share spiritual gifts with the brothers
and sisters in Rome--and the Gentile-Jewish issue), and think hard
about how this might apply to us in the light of Romans and the
rest of Scripture...This method should also help members think about
effective ways of interpreting the Bible when they are in the privacy
of their homes. This would have the benefit of giving people the
discernment to avoid esoteric or tangential issues. In any case,
these are just some suggestions that I think would be helpful in
sorting out what we could do to improve our preaching."
To learn more of this model of ministry be sure to log onto the
other two articles in this section,
"Philosophy of Ministry" and "Principles of Ministry".
Another vital concept of ministry, one of the most vital,
is to not leave God out of the picture. To maintain a growing and
vital ministry and church it is essential to promote member participation
in corporate prayer as well as educating your members in the biblical
essentials of private prayer. This website has a whole
section devoted to prayer, corporate and private. This is one of
the most vital concepts of ministry there is, because worship is
all about our personal and corporate contact with the Lord, with
God the Father in Spirit led and filled prayer. Be sure to log onto
the section
"What is Prayer?" and apply those vital concepts, teach those vital
concepts to your congregation. Read about the miracle of the Brooklyn
Tabernacle and how prayer, corporate and private, transformed this
tiny dying congregation into a vital congregation of over 4,000
people in the heart of Brooklyn, New York.
So to recap, what are the vital concepts of ministry we must apply
to our congregations to foster growth?
- Make the pastures within the congregation green and lush so
your members become spiritually healthy and nourished, and thus
removing all desire they may have to move to greener pastures.
(Read the other two articles in this section.)
- Make sure you make prayer, private and corporate, a vital part
of your congregation. Educate them about prayer. (See section "What
is Prayer?")
- Evangelize to those in your local community who aren't born-again.
The two vital parts of evangelism, two legs it walks forward on
are:
a. Evangelize verbally and in print with the Word of God
b. Evangelize through your Good Works of service to the needy
and hurting, the lost, in your community. Without putting your
actions and money were your mouth is, God's Word will be hollow
to them because they won't see you living it through servant ministry.
(See
section "What is Evangelism?")
Editor, UNITYINCHRIST.COM
PO Box 875, Fitchburg, MA 01420 |