Paul understood that the continuity of the church was predicated upon the next generation having examples and testimonies they could look back upon as ones who walked in godliness and the authority of God. As his time drew near, he made sure that Timothy was well-equipped to continue the ministry and be a useful member of the body of Christ.
You can tell a lot about a preacher, pastor, or evangelist
from whom they identify as their mentor, or a more commonly used term that I’m
not a big fan of, their spiritual father or mother. Whose teaching did they sit
under? Who poured into their life that which they are now pouring into the
lives of others?
It’s no surprise that many of the most popular prosperity
peddlers of our day can be traced back to one or two individuals who gave birth
to the thing that has become the monstrosity it is today. With each iteration,
everyone added their own wrinkle, their go-to analogy or anecdote, but the root
of it remains the same year after year, decade after decade, and the brains
behind it all was one Oral Roberts.
I mention this not to start a fresh debate about the merits
of Oral Roberts and his ministry but to highlight the fact that it is vitally
important who you draw life examples from and whom you deem worthy of learning
from when it comes to spiritual matters.
A good rule of thumb is whether they are focused on Christ
rather than on man, on the pursuit of godliness rather than the illusory
trappings of this world. If they are consistently pointing the way to Jesus,
and if their message revolves around the supremacy of Christ rather than their
own accomplishments, then you’re likely being discipled by someone who has the
kingdom of God as their principal purpose and not some ulterior motive.
Paul wasn’t teaching Timothy how to be a better orator or
more enigmatic, how to take up a bigger offering, or how to position himself
for advancement within the hierarchy of some denomination. He was providing the
practical tools necessary for being a good soldier of Jesus Christ and
exhorting him to cling to truth no matter how many wandered from it or
attempted to usurp it.
Paul was showing Timothy that it is possible to live godly in
a godless world, different from those of the world, separate and set apart, no
matter how many insisted otherwise or how many within the church gave in to
compromise. You don’t have to follow the crowd; you don’t have to go along to
get along; you don’t have to compromise biblical truth for the sake of
acceptance. You must live godly in a fallen world and a fallen church because
God doesn’t grade on a curve.
You are either salt and light, or you are not. It’s not a
spectrum; it’s binary.
When an individual or a church body prioritizes anything over
the pursuit of godliness, whether growth, fame, fortune, validation, or
acceptance, they are no longer being faithful to the calling, will, or Word of
God in their lives. In one’s own eyes, it may be for the noblest of intentions,
but the road to perdition is paved with good intentions, even noble ones.
The feedback is clear: if we keep insisting on righteousness,
sanctification, and holiness unto the Lord, we will never grow as a church or a
ministry. Was your purpose growth for its own sake or actually saving souls? We
can’t approach ministry as a business. We cannot use worldly means to open the
eyes of the lost to spiritual manners. If eternity is not incentive enough to
compel someone to take their spiritual man seriously, a Chick-fil-A gift card
isn’t going to move the needle in the right direction.
But you don’t get it. It’s a new world, a modern world, a
plugged-in, tech-savvy, busybody, easily distracted world. That preaching the
gospel and scripture exegesis might have worked back in the day, but we have to
contend with the changing times and tweak our messaging if we want to stay
relevant. What’s the point of being relevant if the cost is not being true to
scripture?
The church must reacquaint itself with its purpose anew and
pursue it wholeheartedly without regard for modernity, polling, feelings, or
pushback. The instruction we’ve received has not changed over the years. We are
to preach the gospel to every creature. That was the mandate delivered by Jesus
to His disciples, and it stands to this day. If you are a disciple of Christ, a
soldier of the cross, one who has forfeited this present life for the one to
come, then that is your singular objective, and no other should supersede it.
This steadfast commitment to biblical principles is our anchor in the ever-changing
tides of the world.
Clarity of purpose is paramount when it comes to doing the
work of the ministry. If your purpose is not well established, if you don’t
know why you’re doing what you’re doing or what you’re hoping to achieve by
doing it, there will always be doubt, hesitation, and a predisposition to being
distracted by tertiary matters that keep you from fully committing to the
course before you.
Depending on your objective, you will either do the work of
the ministry in the fullness of joy or be ever resentful of others who’ve
garnered more success with seemingly less effort. You either do it for the
glory of God or for the glory of man. The two are like oil and water and do not
complement each other. When you pursue the glory of God, your singular goal is
to point the way to Jesus and declare His lordship and sovereignty over all.
There’s no wrestling for the spotlight or trying to stand out as an individual
because, in your heart, the burning desire is that those to whom you minister
see Him and not you.
When our pursuit is our vainglory and everything we do is to
promote the self, highlight our abilities, or try the networking thing to get
in good with those who we see as someone who can further our aspirations, then
the joy that ought to accompany being in ministry quickly dissipates, and we
find ourselves obsessing over pie charts and speaking gigs rather than walking
in fellowship and obedience to God.
It’s not that I don’t know how to grow the ministry or the steps I’d need to take to promote myself. I do, and I reject them wholesale because one day, perhaps one day soon, I will have to stand before God and give an account. You can’t put that reality off forever, no matter how advanced modern medicine gets. Eventually, my time will run out, just as yours will, along with everyone we know. Will you stand before God with clean hands? The older I get, the more I return to this most essential question and search my heart to ensure that I will.
With love in Christ,
Michael Boldea, Jr.
Posted on 18 August 2024 | 11:08 am
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