Make sure you are saved yourself?
The first and most important advice I would give to my fellow service-men in this Gospel work is: make sure you are saved yourself. Mathew 7:21-23 is the drama of many, even famous Pastors who were well-known for doing miracles and casting out demons yet the Saviour of souls never, even one day knew them. They were not saved! Far be it from you that you are missing that which you are calling others to have. Beware that in your calling others to light, you are still in darkness yourself. Take heed that in your attempt to rescue them in a burning building, your own house is also on fire. What must you do then? Do what the rest of believers do every day, that is, examine yourself if you are truly in Christ. Test yourself, not by the miracles you do, not by demons you cast out, but by your character and conduct. Is there evidence of the fruit of the Spirit of Galatians 5:22 in your own life? Is your love for Christ really the motivation for your ministry? Start now.
Take your ministry seriously
Nothing on the planet is as serious as having the souls of fellow humans in your responsibility. Therefore, take your job seriously – before God and before the people you serve. We must all thrive to be that good servant in the Parable of Matthew 24 who, instead of abusing and mistreating the one he was supposed to protect, he was found faithful when his Master came.
Teach your people the Gospel!
I met (on my way home) a couple of evangelism brothers from a church whose leader is one of the most famous and biggest ministries in the whole continent of Africa. It did not take long in my conversation with them to realize that they didn’t know the Gospel message – and I mean that. I asked them the simple question: what is the Gospel? If I were dying right now and begged you to explain to me the Gospel message, what would you say to me? To them, the Gospel was to read the “prayer of salvation” written by their father and to “accept Jesus as my personal Saviour.” Friends, that is not the Gospel message, not even close! I am amazed that we have relapsed to this powerless formula instead of giving people the full-colored Gospel message. The Gospel begins with a reminder of who God is; He is holy, and righteous, unlike us humans who are unholy and corrupted by sin, hence we are deserving of holy judgment in a place called hell. The message then proceeds to the Cross of Calvary, where the Son of God took upon Himself to be our ransom, redemption, propitiation, and sacrifice; dying the death we deserved so that He could give us the righteousness we did not deserve. After you explain the Cross, you then conclude with a reminder of man’s response to that which Christ has done; it’s called repentance and faith in Christ. Question: when did you last teach and preach about something like this? The story of Jesus’ death and resurrection is the salt and pepper of the Christian faith, the very thing that your people must hear as often as they come to church – not just once a year on Good Friday. As leaders, we rather be guilty of other things other than denying people the full knowledge of the Cross. Teach your people the Gospel message!
Teach your people the full Bible
One other concerning thing I have noticed is that many of us have been taught an imbalanced diet of the word of God. It is a big problem when as a leader your sermons are all about motivation and no exhortation or rebuke, encouragement and no warning. Sure, God wants people to have happy marriages and successful lives, however, if that is all your sermons are all about, then your ministry is very imbalanced. Such is not fair to the innocent souls who look up to you. What happened to the sermons about the coming of Christ? Where are the messages about the holiness and nature of God? What is wrong with warning teachings about hell? Why don’t you give people the fullness of Scripture? Therein is their growth and maturity in the Lord Jesus.
Point people to Christ, not to yourself
The phrase “anointed man of God” is indeed a Biblical term that has now been misused to mean a man who is so special in such a way that all the keys of your life are dependent upon that man. No friends, that is wrong. Yes, God does anoint His servants, yet that Anointing is not for self-promotion but for Christ’s promotion. Whenever you project yourself as the savior of your people, guess what you have done? You have demoted Christ and elevated yourself to His glory and position! Our duty is simply to point people to Christ, not to our names and the names of our ministries. It is Christ who saves and sanctifies His people – you are simply His servant. All of us ministers are standing on the shoulders of John the Baptist, who publicly declared himself, not as the light but as a witness to the Light (Christ). Catch that fish and take it home.
Train your people towards evangelism
The goal of the body of Christ is not nice church buildings, big sound equipment (those things actually contribute nothing to saving the lost world) but it is making disciples. Nevertheless, no believer is naturally passionate about sharing the Gospel with others – they need to be trained and taught about its importance. Therefore, may it be the goal of every true minister of Christ to stir those he leads towards evangelistic missions.
Humility, humility, humility!
Pride is when you view yourself as more important than reality itself. Sad enough, this devilish spirit is dominating among many of us shepherds of Jerusalem. As a leader, it is true that everyone looks up to you. Your name is on everyone’s lips and minds. How then can you keep yourself humble? Answer: remember that you are – just like your people – equally a sinner. Therefore, you need the same grace they need. Therein is a reminder that the Lord took a lost sinner like you, saved him and gave him this ministry of drawing others to the same salvation. Who then can boast except in the Lord? Keep this thought forever in your heart – a good guard against pride.
The Church of Christ is not a business enterprise
The worst advice I have been given as a minister of Christ is that I should use my Bible-teaching gift to make it in life. That of course is a code name for success by worldly standards. That is the mindset of many, even those in ministry today, who have chosen to do this, not for the sake of salvation and sanctification of souls but for their own self-promotion and greed. May you not read this and be counted as one of them.
Protect your people against false prophets
The best shepherd does not only lead his sheep to green pastures but also safeguards them from wolves. It begins with teaching your people strong and well-defined doctrine before it goes on to identifying false doctrines and obvious false teachers that are around. Also, be careful about who you invite to come and minister in your church. Such things are very critical in developing the Spirit of discernment in your people so they can know the difference between natural grass and artificial turf; the truth of the Gospel and damning heresies.
Embrace criticism
There is no more perfect ministry than that of our Lord Jesus when He was walking on earth. Yet we discover that mockers and despisers were ever so present by His side. Therefore, no matter how true and well-meaning your ministry is, far be it from reality that everyone will clap hands. Criticism will find you no matter how much you try to hide from it. However, your attitude towards that kind of setback is key. Anger and bashing upon your despisers will do nothing but make it worse. For your own information, the Lord uses criticism to humble us, to drive us to prayer and to make us examine our spirituality so we can correct our weaknesses. Therefore, embrace criticism and prayerfully forgive your enemies as you continue doing what you believe the Lord called you to do.
Brethren, I hope all this has been helpful to my fellow laborers in the harvest of heaven, until we meet again on the Judgment Seat of our Lord, happy hunting.
Sinothi Ncube
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