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Ministry Qualities Part 4 – The Word of Truth

19 Jun

I’m continuing my look at the qualities Paul describes to the church at Corinth.

…in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left…
2 Corinthians 6:7

As I was studying for this installment, this verse caught me totally off guard.  The phrase, in truthful speech, is not what Paul wrote.  He literally said, in the Word of truth.

That made a big difference to me.  That’s especially the case because we’re talking about the earmarks of true ministry.  One of the defining qualities of ministry is that it proclaims the Word of truth.

That phrase is found throughout the New Testament.  So I felt led to devote this whole article to it.  The question is; how do I know if someone or some group is declaring the Word of truth?

Here’s what to look for.  Keep in mind that even though you may not like the methods of some ministry, that doesn’t mean that they’re not walking in the truth.

And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit…
Ephesians 1:13

This is an important point.  The Word of truth is synonymous with the Gospel of your salvation.  Simply put, the Word of truth gets people saved.

The Word of truth releases the Holy Spirit to convict the unsaved and draw them to Christ.  So the first thing to look for is the saving work of the Spirit.  Are people receiving Christ as their Lord and Savior through this ministry?

But there’s more to it than that.  Jesus prayed for His disciples as He was preparing them for His departure.

Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.
John 17:17

Not only does the Word of truth bring salvation, but it sanctifies us as well.  As we continue to receive this Word, our lives are changed.  Most of us can look back to who we were when we were first saved and we don’t even recognize that person.

The Word of truth is anointed by the power of the Holy Spirit.  It does continual work in us.  As we submit to the Lord’s presence, we find that change is an ongoing process.

We can ask, are lives being changed through this ministry?

In writing to the Colossian church, Paul comments about their faith and love…

…the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the gospel that has come to you. All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God’s grace in all its truth.
Colossians 1:5-6

This is the power of the Word of truth.  It should be a part of every Christian ministry.

Question: How have you seen this demonstrated in a Gospel ministry?

© 2020 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on June 19, 2020 in Ministry, Spiritual Walk, The Gospel, Word of God

 

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Ministry Qualities Part 3

17 Jun

This is the third in a series about the earmarks of a godly ministry according to the Apostle Paul.  He wrote about them in his second letter to the Corinthian church.

…in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left…
2 Corinthians 6:6-7

My last post ended with patience.  Now we’ll continue on…

Kindness – This is a quality that most believers don’t understand properly.  For a detailed explanation, click here.

Simply put, kindness is not just a matter of doing nice things for people.  In God’s eyes, the definition of kindness is; doing good to those who absolutely don’t deserve it.

Our problem is, when someone is doing wrong, we want to see them punished.  Of course, when we do something wrong, we want to be forgiven.

We need to spend time with the Lord so that we can pick up the same heart that he has.  In that way we can show the love of Christ to all people – even those we label as “undeserving”.  We must see others as the Father sees them.  They all have great potential in Christ.

In the Holy Spirit – This is probably the most important one.  Many of the qualities we’ve looked at so far are impossible to maintain in our own strength.  We need the work of the Holy Spirit within us.

That’s how the fruit are produced.  We must remain in the vine – Christ Jesus.  Time spent praying in the Holy Spirit is never wasted.  It changes us more and more into the image of Christ.

Sincere Love – This is a big one!  The literal Greek reads love without hypocrisy.  How can we do that?

This verse is talking about agape-love.  This love is a choice; there’s no emotional involvement.

So if I show love – doing something good – for someone I really don’t like, isn’t that hypocritical?  Good question.

Actually, that’s not being hypocritical; it’s being obedient to the Lord.  Hypocrisy would be to do something nice for them now, then gossip about them when they’re not around.  We’re to show people love and respect whether we like them or not.  This also includes whether they’re physically present or not.

This is another reason why we need the power of the Holy Spirit active in our lives.  Without His influence, we could never hope to live up to these godly qualities.

Question: How have others treated you with kindness and love in the past?

© 2020 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on June 17, 2020 in Leadership, Ministry, Prayer in the Spirit, Spiritual Walk

 

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Ministry Qualities Part 2

15 Jun

We’re continuing to look at the qualities of a true ministry according to Paul in his second letter to the Corinthian church.

…in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love…
2 Corinthians 6:5-6

In my last post, I talked about hard work, now we’ll go on from there.

Sleepless Nights – The Greek word used here literally means awake.  In the New Testament, it’s normally used to mean keep watch.  The Scripture teaches that church leaders keep watch over the souls in their care (Hebrews 13:17).

Those who are in leadership can’t afford the luxury of falling asleep spiritually.  We need to stay alert as to what’s happening in society around us.  We also need to be listening to what the Holy Spirit would have us speak.

Hunger – This is not the normal word for being hungry.  It’s a choice to abstain from eating food.  I believe that it should rightly be translated fasting, as it is in the KJV.

If you read my blog regularly, you know that I think fasting should be a normal part of any Christian’s life.  So for those who are following the call of God in their life, it’s a necessity.

Purity – this literally means cleanness in the original.  We need to keep ourselves spiritually clean.

Does that mean we need to live a perfect life?  Absolutely not.  What it does mean, is that we’re always quick to repent when we realize that we’ve missed the mark.  Don’t let a day go by without confessing your sin to the Lord.

Understanding – In the above verse, this word simply means knowledge.  I believe that we need to constantly be learning and growing in our knowledge.  That not only includes Scripture but also the world around us.

Technology is changing so rapidly, and we need to be aware of these things.  Each day brings new advantages to how we present the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Always stay teachable and open.

Patience – In the Greek, this is a compound word.  It means long tempered.  A true minister doesn’t get immediately angry in a bad situation.  They don’t let their emotions carry them away.

We have to be careful to always be led by the Holy Spirit.  We can’t afford to do or say something that we’ll end up regretting later.

If you have an anger problem, it will help if you spend time in the Lord’s presence.  Intimacy with the Holy Spirit brings great changes in our lives.

We’ve covered a lot of ground in these last two posts and we’re not finished yet.  Don’t get discouraged.  None of us are perfect, but this gives us something to strive for.  I’ll continue this in my next post.

Question: How do you see these qualities at work in your ministry?

© 2020 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on June 15, 2020 in Fasting, Leadership, Ministry, Spiritual Walk

 

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Ministry Qualities Part 1

12 Jun

I’m continuing to look at Second Corinthians.  In my last post, I ended with Paul beginning to talk about the qualities of a true ministry for Christ.  Now we’ll see these in greater detail.

Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger;
2 Corinthians 6:4-5

Great Endurance – This is from a Greek word that means to live or continue under. Sometimes that’s one of the hardest things to do.

God’s calling will lead you to a certain place or group of people.  Things don’t always work out the way we want.  We’d much rather leave and do something different.  This attitude says, “I’m not leaving here until God sends me someplace else.”

The kingdom of God doesn’t work like corporate America.  We don’t search for the best pay packages and move on when something better opens up.  We follow God’s call wherever it leads.

Troubles – This word actually means pressure.  This always comes with the calling of God.  We feel the pressure to complete what God desires us to do.

Of course, we also feel the pressure of the normal conditions of life.  We must fulfill the call to provide for our home and family.  We need to take care of our social requirements as well.  You can never get away from the pressures of life.

Hardships and destresses – I’m dealing with these two together because they’re very close in meaning.  Hardship means constraints while distress means narrowness of room.

They both talk about the fact that there’s very little “wiggle room” in the call of God.  As followers of Christ, we need to watch how we live before people.  They will always judge the Lord based upon what we do and say.

We have to be careful to let Christ be seen in us.  We can’t live like everybody else.  We want others to be drawn to the Lord and not turned away by our actions.

Beatings and imprisonments – I’m glad that I live in the United States.  But for many believers around the world, this is a real possibility.  We should always remember to pray for our brothers and sisters who are under persecution and remain true to Christ.

Riots – This Greek word literally means instability and disorder.  That’s a good description of what’s happening across our nation right now.

As Christians, we’re always called to be the voice of hope in extreme situations.  We must always be prepared to share the love of Christ no matter what’s happening around us.

Hard work – This should go without saying.  But Paul lets us know the truth about the ministry.  It definitely involves hard work.

That’s because we have to help a lot of hurting people.  One of the things that you learn quickly is that hurting people don’t mind hurting those who are trying to help them.

Of course, that’s when we need to pray for great endurance.  It’s hard to continue to walk this road continually, showing the love and joy of Christ.

But in the end, it’s all worth it for the blessing of seeing transformed lives.  I’ll continue with this in my next post.

Question: How have you experienced these qualities in your life and ministry?

© 2020 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on June 12, 2020 in Leadership, Ministry, Missions, Spiritual Walk

 

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Character is Everything

08 Jun

In my last post, we looked at the purpose of God’s grace.  It brings about God’s will in us.  What is that will?  It’s to bring the message of His salvation and favor to the world.

For he says, “In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.”  I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.
2 Corinthians 6:2

This is God’s priority.  Bringing the message of salvation to the world we live in.

But what about us?  Is this our priority?  There are so many other things that we want to do and experience.  To some, God’s will is inconvenient.

Paul is getting to that.

We put no stumbling block in anyone’s path, so that our ministry will not be discredited.
2 Corinthians 6:3

This is something that every believer has to come to grips with.  How people view our ministry is based largely on how they view us personally.  Paul is literally saying that he doesn’t want to create an offence that would cause the ministry to be blamed.

That’s why we need to be constantly working on our character.  It’s the character of the minister that determines the perception of the ministry.

Unfortunately, there are those who think it’s just the opposite.  They feel that people should think highly of them because of what their ministry is accomplishing.

We have to understand that how we live is a reflection of Christ.  The world judges the Christian message based upon what they’ve seen in the believers they’ve met.  Sometimes they’re left with a negative opinion.

We need to accurately reflect the love of Christ no matter what we’re going through.  Paul now goes through a list of these qualities.  I think that it’s important for us to hear them.  So I’m going to take a couple of posts to explain what he’s saying to us.

And yes, some of them sound very inconvenient.

Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses;
2 Corinthians 6:4

The key is, Paul wants everyone to know that he’s a servant of God.  He doesn’t serve his own needs or wants.  He doesn’t serve the world or even the churches.  He serves God.

That has to be the foundation of our attitude.  We live and act at the Lord’s good pleasure.  We’re in the service of the King of the universe.  We want His kingdom to be accurately represented.

We serve with that in mind.  We desire the character of Christ to shine through us.  That’s the only way to draw people to the cross.

Question: How does your character reflect your service to Christ?

© 2020 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on June 8, 2020 in Leadership, Ministry, Spiritual Walk

 

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Grace for a Purpose

05 Jun

Paul continues to talk about the attitudes of a true minister in his second letter to the Corinthian church.  It’s something we can apply to our lives right now.

As God’s fellow workers we urge you not to receive God’s grace in vain.
2 Corinthians 6:1

We talk a lot about the grace of God. As believers, we’re always praying for grace. Many seem to be always running around seeking God’s grace. Why is that? How we answer that question is very important.

Why do you want the grace of God in your life? Is it another way of saying, “I want God’s blessing on my life.”?

I’ve heard grace defined in many different ways. God’s unmerited favor. The enabling power and presence of God. All we need for life and godliness. They’re all good descriptions, but they leave out a key ingredient – purpose.

There’s always a reason attached to the grace of God. Listen to how the Apostle Paul explains it in his letter to the Roman church.

Through him and for his name’s sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith.
Romans 1:5

In this short verse, I see three elements of grace. They speak not only about what God wants to bless us with, but how He wants us to use what He freely gives us. We need to take these to heart as we seek to manifest God’s grace.

Through Him and for His Name’s Sake – He doesn’t give us His grace so that we can spend it on our pleasures. It’s about His agenda on the earth. What does the Lord want to accomplish through me? That’s where His grace comes to the forefront.

I need to pick up this attitude. I receive His grace so that His name will be magnified in my life.

We Received Grace and Apostleship – Grace and calling go hand in hand. Seeking God’s grace without finding your calling in Christ is worthless. It’s through His grace that you fulfill your purpose.

It’s the Lord’s grace that brings you into your destiny – what you were created for. Without that knowledge, you’re simply living from problem to problem. Instead of always seeking grace to get over the next obstacle, find the direction that the Holy Spirit is leading you to.

To Call People from among All the Gentiles – Paul was aware that God’s grace had pinpoint accuracy. He was called to bring the Gospel of Christ to the Gentiles. That’s why God poured His grace on Paul’s ministry.

It’s the same for us. As we grow in Christ, we need to fine-tune our calling. Who am I called to reach? What are my gifts and abilities? As you begin to answer these questions, you find that perfect position of grace that you’re called to walk in.

Be careful to always heed Paul’s warning not to receive God’s grace in vain.  That means that I don’t receive the grace of God for no purpose. Grace is always attached to destiny. Our walk today must be with an eternal focus. That’s what the Lord’s grace is all about.

Question: How have you seen the grace of God active in your life and ministry?

© 2020 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on June 5, 2020 in Ministry, Spiritual Walk

 

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A Righteous Exchange

03 Jun

In my last post, I talked about how Christ reconciled us to God.  I explained that the Greek word deals with the concept of exchange.

We know that when God removes something, He always replaces it with something else. Jesus Christ bore my sin to the cross.  What’s the opposite of sin?

It’s clear from Scripture that the opposite of sin is righteousness. You can read all of Romans, chapters 5-6, and see how God replaced sin with His righteousness.

The fact is that I can’t be righteous on my own – it had to be a work of God’s power.

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
2 Corinthians 5:21

This verse is the essence of our salvation.  He took my sin and now gives me His righteousness.  It’s beyond anything we could have hoped for as human beings.

What is our salvation all about?  There are many believers who don’t really understand what happened to them when they bowed their knees to Christ.

To some, it simply means that they decided to be good. To others, it means that they’re going to try and follow the teachings of Jesus. That is NOT Christianity.

It all starts with an understanding of our condition without Christ.

…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…
Romans 3:23

Our problem is sin. You probably already know that the word sin, in both the Greek and Hebrew, means to miss the mark. That means that we’re all deficient, inferior to, God’s glory. Even though we were created in the image of God, in Adam we’ve fallen from that high position.

It doesn’t matter who you are, where you were born, or how good you are. In Adam, the whole human race is guilty of sin – missing the mark. But as bad as that is, it gets worse.

Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned…
Romans 5:12

It turns out that sin brought a friend with him – death – separation from God. Who is under the penalty of death? EVERYONE! Death is the penalty for not living up to the glory of God.

You can look at it this way; every human being ever born was born onto the path that leads to death. There’s no reversing it, no exits, and it leads straight to hell. But, praise God, that’s not the end of the story.

Christ came to the earth as a man, God made flesh. He took on humanity but lived a life totally without sin.

Because it was He who created us, only He had the power to take our place. That’s the concept of substitution. He took our place on the cross in the penalty for our sin.

Now we come along, thousands of years later, on this path that leads to death. We can’t leave it or even turn around. We hear the Gospel of Christ. We decide to accept what Christ did for us by faith.

That’s when everything changed. The Lord freely gives us His righteousness.  It’s the basis for a new life in Christ.

Question: What were the events that led to your salvation?

© 2020 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on June 3, 2020 in Spiritual Walk, The Gospel

 

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The Word of Reconciliation

01 Jun

In my last post, I talked about the way we’re changed in Christ.  It’s not by willpower or trial and error, but the power of the Holy Spirit at work in us.

Now Paul talks about the nature of that change and our response to it.

All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them.  And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.
2 Corinthians 5:18-19

This passage is the basis for everything we do in Christ.  It’s all about reconciliation.  But that’s a big word.  What does it mean, exactly?

We’re told that God reconciled us to Himself in Christ.  That Greek word is actually used for money-changers. It’s like when you travel abroad; you turn in your US dollars and exchange them for the equivalent amount of Euros.

In the context of this passage, it means to change mutually. Because of what Jesus did, a change occurred in the relationship between God and the world.

Christ took the sin of the entire world – past, present, and future – and bore it to the cross.  The fact that He rose from the dead proves that God accepted His sacrifice.  Now the way is opened up for all of us to enter a new relationship with God through Christ.

We have to see that the change was mutual.  Because Christ took away our sin, the anger of God subsided.  That allows us to approach God for forgiveness and restoration.

It doesn’t end there.  Once we experience this great gift, we enter into the service of reconciliation.

There are a lot of things that take place when we bow our knee to Jesus Christ.  One of them is referred to in this passage.  It literally says that the Lord has laid down inside of us the Word of reconciliation.

What does that mean to us?

We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.  We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.
2 Corinthians 5:20

This part of the equation is just as important as the first part.  There are some who teach that because God reconciled Himself to the world, everyone is saved no matter what they do.  But that’s not the case.

Reconciliation is a mutual change.  God has already prepared His forgiveness for all who want it.  The problem is that forgiveness requires action from both parties.

Forgiveness must be both given and received for it to take effect.  I have to come before God and agree to His terms of reconciliation.

The difficulty is that I have to admit that I was at fault and there’s nothing I can do to rectify my condition.  I then have to accept the fact that only the work of Christ can reconcile me to God.  There are many who can’t live with that.

But for those of us who’ve experienced the grace, love, and forgiveness of God, there’s nothing better.  Praise God for His incredible gift!

Question: How has this reconciliation changed your life?

© 2020 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on June 1, 2020 in Ministry, Spiritual Walk, The Church, The Gospel

 

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The Big Lie – I Can’t Change

29 May

Did you make any New Year’s Resolutions this past January?  Are they still going or have you given up on them?  The Apostle Paul talks about what our attitudes should be.

So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view.  Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer.
2 Corinthians 5:16

That includes how we look at ourselves.  We can’t see ourselves from a worldly perspective.  We need to see ourselves in Christ.

A number of years ago I read a book called Changeology by John Norcross, Ph.D.  He talked about some myths we’ve bought into about change.  I’ve noticed them in the lives of many believers, so I’m adapting them for this blog.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!
2 Corinthians 5:17

As Christians, our faith is in Christ as the agent of change, making us more like Him.  We can’t afford to buy into the lie that change is beyond our grasp.  Have you listened to the enemy’s deception in this area?

“I can’t change on my own.” This one is partly true.  If you take God out of the equation, then change is a lot tougher.  But the simple fact is that you have to start the ball rolling.  It all begins with your decision to change; then God has your permission to act on your behalf.

“I can only make insignificant changes.” The deception in this is that no change is ever insignificant.  Sometimes the smallest change has the greatest effect.  On the side of a mountain, the smallest gust of wind can start a huge avalanche. If God can change something small in your life, then you can trust Him for something greater.

“I don’t have enough willpower to change.” It’s not about willpower, it’s about faith.  Willpower places trust in yourself to do the work.  You need to put your expectation in the power of the Holy Spirit working in you.  The simple fact is that your flesh will never change itself.  Time in God’s presence is the most effective means to see God’s hand upon your life.

“I can’t change who I am.” The Scripture above exposes this fallacy.  In Christ, your past never determines your future.  Personality, family traits, and even bad habits are not outside the power of God.  The Lord can heal hurts and bitterness of the past.  You need to open your heart to the Great Physician to do the work that only He can do.

“I’ve tried to change in the past and failed at it.” The Bible is clear that we might experience failure in our lives.  The key is to not wallow in it.  You may fall, but keep getting up.  Perseverance is the key to victory.  One great success will wipe out all the sadness of past mistakes.  Let God strengthen your heart for the path ahead.

Maybe you’ve fallen victim to one of these insidious attitudes.  If so, then it’s time to lay them down and choose the path to your destiny in Christ.  Decide today to yield to the Holy Spirit’s power.  Let Him work with you as you walk step by step to your high calling in the Lord.

Questions: What do you want to change in your life?  How can you allow God to be a part of this process?

© 2020 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on May 29, 2020 in Encouragement, Power of God, Spiritual Walk

 

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What Do You Live For?

27 May

Before the holiday, I was posting about Second Corinthians.  The Apostle Paul was explaining to the church that they needed to be prepared for their future performance review before the judgment seat of Christ.

That’s how Paul described the fear of the Lord.  It’s living under the knowledge that we have to give an account to Him someday.  That’s also why the apostle went into such detail describing his ministry.

We are not trying to commend ourselves to you again, but are giving you an opportunity to take pride in us, so that you can answer those who take pride in what is seen rather than in what is in the heart.
2 Corinthians 5:12

The word, commend, in the above verse actually means to introduce.  Paul was afraid that his epistle was beginning to sound like a letter of introduction to a church that didn’t know him.

That wasn’t his goal.  The word opportunity is a Greek word that means a starting point.  Paul is giving them the basis for understanding true ministry.

The starting point is what’s in the heart.  That’s how you judge a ministry’s value.

Sometimes you ask someone about their ministry and immediately they start talking about all that they’re doing.  They take pride in the outside – what is seen.  That’s not the heart of a true ministry.

The more important issue is what God has done in the heart and life of the minister.  It’s about why I’m doing what I’m doing.  That’s where ministry for the Lord begins.

If we are out of our mind, it is for the sake of God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you.  For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died.  And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.
2 Corinthians 5:13-15

This speaks volumes to me about the mindset of a church leader.  Paul makes it clear that it is Christ’s love that compels him – keeps him on track – to do God’s will.  That’s important.  It keeps us free from wrong attitudes.

Notice that it’s not the need that compels him.  Too many people are need-driven.  They see all the people who need salvation, help, or counsel.  They end up burned out because they’re not in tune with what God wants them to do.

Also, it’s not about the work that needs to be done for God.  There are those with the attitude, “If I see something that needs to be done, I just do it.”  That’s great in the short term, but you can’t sustain it.

That’s why in many churches 10% of the people are doing 90% of the work.  I can’t do both my job and yours and be effective at either.  We all need to be fulfilling our calling.  We all need to be compelled by the love of Christ.

The bottom line is that we live for Christ.  We don’t live to fulfill the needs of the people.  We don’t live for the work of the ministry.

WE LIVE FOR CHRIST!!!

Question: How do you see this at work in your ministry?

© 2020 Nick Zaccardi

 
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Posted by on May 27, 2020 in Leadership, Ministry, The Church

 

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