The Call to the Ministry

The one thing that makes a person stand out is that they’ve heard from the Lord to enter the ministry.

Many people select ministry. Few are chosen into the ministry. The Lord Jesus is the Head of the church. He selects.

According to Ephesians 4:11, “He gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, some to be pastors, and some to be teachers.“

Why?

• To reduce intrusion into a place of ministry by people not called by Him.
• To select people, preordained by the Lord, to fulfill His will.

In the day and hour we’re living in, we know that there’s certain individuals that the Lord didn’t call to stand among us in our ministerial ranks. They’re smooth is their diction, know how to please a crowd, and they take advantage of the unsuspecting.

Heed these words from Paul recorded in 1 Corinthians 2:4.

“And my speech and my preaching were not with enticing words of men’s wisdom but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.”

The call of God demands that you not look to please man because your assignment comes from the Lord, not man.

Paul told Timothy these words that you must live by.

2 Timothy 4:2-4 (NKJV Strong’s) “Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.“

Today, there’s millions of false prophets, teachers, and false pastors, also known as “hirelings.” People need genuine ministers to give the Word of God regardless of what people want to hear.

In The Minister’s Crucible, we will strive to ensure that what we give new ministers is the solid sound teaching of the Word of God so you can minister to people, with confidence and with the strong convicting power of the Holy Spirit.

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How To Minister During A Crisis?

Many minsters are making decisions to preach safe messages. What is a safe message?

A safe message is a message that doesn’t “ruffle” the people’s feathers. Messages that doesn’t hurt people. Messages that people want to hear.

Why do some of us do this?

• Pastors want to minister to people to give them the sense that God isn’t angry.
• You want people to come back.

All ministers must be very careful not to mince words or hold back the truth. Paul shared in Ephesians 4:15a “…but speaking the truth in love.” Sadly, people believe that when you speak the truth that you hate them. The Lord loves man so much, that He can’t help but to tell us the truth, even if it hurts people.

For instance, homosexuals call the preaching of the truth about their sinful lifestyle, “hate speech.” Ministers will avoid telling people that a certain sinful behavior is………sinful. For a minister to side in with people when the Word of God tells us otherwise, is gross error.

Look at Proverbs 30:6 (NKJV Strong’s) “Do not add to His words,
Lest He rebuke you, and you be found a liar.”

Very few will share the truth regarding this current crisis.

People are looking for hope and nothing else. Why?

They’re faced with the fear of acquiring this illness and they’re concerned about the probability of death. When you’re faced with your mortality, for most people, it gets their attention.

But when you don’t give them the truth, you’re responsible. We that are called by the Lord to the ministry to serve people the Word of God. The truth, the whole truth. Nothing less. When people are faced with mortality, if we fail to tell them the truth, it hurts the heart of the Father. They could have been saved from sin, death, and hell.

But because we just wanted to avoid telling them the truth, they’re numbered with the transgressors. Let’s be quick to tell them the truth, no matter how much it hurts them.

Preaching Fire & Brimstone, Or Hope, Or Both?

Which one shall I preach?

When a person get the call to the ministry by the Lord, some of them are closer to the moment the Lord saved them from sin.

Why do the preachers preach fire and brimstone at the beginning of their ministry?

• Usually it’s out of preaching with very high emotions and a sense of urgency.

We know that people die every day. In fact, every 24 hours, it’s estimated that 150,000+ die throughout the entire world, and enter into eternity.

To put the 150,000 in perspective, that’s 6250 persons an hour.

But where does the spirit of man go after expiration?

Notice what the Lord Jesus said in Matthew 7:13-14 (NKJV Strong’s)

“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.“

Destruction?

John 3:16 (NKJV Strong’s) “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

Notice what the Lord Jesus said…..”shall not perish.” But look also at 2 Peter 3:9 (NKJV Strong’s) “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.”

If you haven’t noticed, it’s the combination of both that gets the job done. We must remember, we can’t condemn the world. We are sent to share the hope of the gospel, but we must also tell them the penalty for failing to obey the gospel. This is the incentive necessary to compel men to be saved.

It’s not the will of the Father that men perish. The Lord sent His Son, the Lord Jesus, to die for our sins. This is the gospel in its purest form. People are dying, not just of the coronavirus, but other diseases and the thought of death should be enough to compel us to get saved.

Proverbs 23:17-18 (NKJV Strong’s) “Do not let your heart envy sinners,
But be zealous for the fear of the Lord all the day; For surely there is a hereafter,
And your hope will not be cut off.”

If you fail to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with people, you’re negligent of the call of God on your life.

So yes, we preach both.

One cannot do without the other. People need to be warned but they also need the hope of the gospel to be saved.