Grace for Española
 
I have to admit, I love gifts. I love giving them and receiving them. Gifts are a great way to express our affection for others. A gift tells someone, "You are important to me and I thought of you when I picked out this particular gift."

God has given us some gifts. In addition to life itself along with the blessings we experience, we have received the gift of forgiveness of sin and eternal life through Jesus. Not only that, God has given us spiritual gifts to use in our daily lives as members of the body of Christ to become giving people.

Spiritual gifts are god’s supernatural enablement to empower Christians for loving service. Spiritual gifts are just various ways we love and serve each other. We need not get confused or contentious about the topic of spiritual gifts. As we follow the flow of thought in Romans 12 we find ourselves responding to God’s mercies in the gospel by offering our bodies as living sacrifices (v. 1). Then as mercy-loving, mercy-dependent people, we are transformed by the renewal of our minds as we saturate our minds with God’s truth and grace and we experience God’s will for our lives (v. 2). As mercy-soaked, Christ-exalting renewed people, we humbly give ourselves to the ministry of the body as members of one another (vv. 3-5).

In verses 6-8 of Romans 12 we find a list of spiritual gifts that represent some of the ways God has uniquely endowed His people with grace gifts to be used in the building up of the body of Christ. What follows is a brief explanation and caution about each of these gifts.

Prophecy: The divine enablement to proclaim God’s truth with power and clarity in a timely and practical manner for correction, repentance, or edification. Danger: Tendency to be proud of their speaking ability or to rely on their ability rather than God. In their desire to make things right they may be insensitive to the feelings of other people.

Service: The divine enablement to attach spiritual value to the accomplishment of physical tasks with the body of Christ. Ability to demonstrate love by the meeting of practical needs. Danger: Can be bitter if their deeds are not recognized. Over emphasis on practical needs to the neglect of spiritual needs.

Teaching: The divine enablement to understand and give detailed explanation of biblical truth. Ability to search out and validate truth which has been presented. Danger: Focus on content at the expense of application.

Exhortation: The divine enablement to come alongside another in need of encouragement to reassure, strengthen, affirm, or challenge those who are discouraged or wavering in their faith. Ability to motivate others to trust and obey God. Danger: Spend too much time with people who are needy but not changing.

Giving: The divine enablement to earn money, manage it well, and wisely contribute to the work of the Lord with cheerfulness and liberality. Danger: Pride in their ability to make and invest money, seek a return on investment, desire recognition, desire to control what they’ve given to, or judge the way others handle their money.

Leadership: The divine enablement to see what needs to be done, set goals, and attract, lead, and motivate a group of people to accomplish the work of the ministry. Ability to coordinate the activity of others for the achievement of common goals. Danger: Use people to meet goals, pushy.

Mercy: The divine enablement to minister cheerfully and appropriately to people who are suffering or undeserving and to spare them the consequences of their choices. Ability to identify with and comfort those in distress. Danger: Hard to be firm, may enable others to live in sin by not allowing them to face the consequences of their choices, can be misunderstood by the opposite sex.

Do you know what your gifting is? Are you using your gifting to minister to God’s people? If not, why not? You the gifting God has given you are needed in the ministry. You also need the gifts of others to be exercised in your life. We have a mutually interdependent relationship to each other as Christians. Ask God to help you know His will and live in it as you dedicate your life to Him in response to all He is for you in Jesus. God delights to not only give spiritual gifts, but for us to unwrap them and use them for His glory and the good of His people.
 
 
I recently had a physical exam and am happy to report that I am in good health. It’s reassuring to know the condition of your physical body is good and there are no problems to worry about. The church of Jesus Christ is also likened to a body. What does a biblically healthy church look like? A biblically healthy church is one that accurately preaches the Word of God resulting in sound theology and an accurate understanding of the gospel. The gospel is then declared through proper methods of evangelism and evangelistic preaching resulting in biblical conversion. Converts are joined to the church with the expectation of being fully committed to the ministry of the church and the church grows through mutual edification by the power and gifting of the Holy Spirit into the image of Christ to the glory of God.

Once a believer is joined to the church, what is his or her responsibility as a church member? Do we get to pick and choose our responsibility as if we are consumers seeking personal fulfillment? Or, is there a pattern of responsibility that each member must accept as a servant of God? Clearly, the Bible teaches we are to be servants not consumers. Sadly, however, too many Christians today do not see themselves as servants of God but as consumers with a right to customer satisfaction and personal comfort.

It seems that one of the underlying reasons for a low view of church membership today is a fear of infringement upon one’s personal freedom. But does this sound like the mentality of a servant of Christ? Nope. Here’s what one author said about it: "…many Christians bounce from church to church, shopping for the fellowship which best suits their tastes. If the current congregation fails to satisfy, there’s always another one across town with open doors, eager to accommodate a new customer. Changing churches is not much different than changing brands of cereal. The freedom to choose products according to one’s tastes and preferences is healthy in a marketplace, but churches are not commodities in a marketplace. Congregation hopping militates against our Lord’s orderly design for His church."

I would like to use the remainder of this article to present what I believe God would have us do as our minimum responsibilities as a church member.

1. Members are expected to attend corporate worship each week. If we don’t attend, we are not built up in our faith and we remain unknown to the other members and leaders.

2. Members are expected to attend an open group Bible study. Bible studies are not only places to study the Bible, but also to ask questions, share insights, and be in fellowship with others.

3. Members are expected to be involved in at least one ministry or mission activity a year. We expect our members to look beyond themselves and serve others for the sake of Christ and the gospel.

4. Members are expected to give regularly. If we don’t give, we cannot have paid staff, support missions, or have a place to meet with lighting and climate control. How we use the money God allows us to manage on His behalf is a very good indicator of where our heart is.

5. Members are expected to pray and to read and study the Bible daily. Personal time with God cannot be substituted or side-stepped without harm to our spiritual life.

6. Members are expected to protect the unity of the church. Jesus said we will be known as His disciples by the love we have for one another. That means we will resolve not to say or do anything that undermines our unity. We will seek the good of the whole even if it means not getting our own way. We will support the direction and decisions of the leaders God has put in place in His church.

7. Members are expected to participate in business meetings. Occasionally the church meets to make decisions that affect the entire church family. Our participation is needed to ensure the unity and common direction of the church.

So how can we apply some of this? For the church member, may I ask you? What is your membership in this church communicating to God? To others? There is no point in meaningless membership. Does your membership in this church involve anything beyond your presence on Sunday morning? How are you contributing to God’s work through this church? Does anybody in the church really know you? Do you prefer to remain unknown? Do you have an interest in knowing and serving others? Do you financially support the ministry of the church in a way that goes beyond "tipping God"?

How about you non-member? What is your non-membership in the church you attend communicating to God? To others? If you are set on not committing to a local church, I have very real concerns about your spiritual condition. Have you truly died to self to be alive to God? Jesus is passionate about His church (Eph 5:25). Are you? I honestly cannot think of a better way to express your commitment to Jesus than by committing to a local church where you love and serve God’s people year after year faithfully. Jesus identified with you and your sin on the cross. Will you identify with Him and His body through His church?

Ultimately, God saved us and placed us in the body of Christ for His own glory and our everlasting joy. We are opposing God’s purpose and our own happiness when we foolishly live as if we know better than God and refuse to do His will. My prayer and hope for you, dear reader, is to lay aside your pride and self-reliant attitude and embrace your calling and role as a member of God’s church to the fullest. We are never more like Jesus than when we give of ourselves for the benefit of others. Let it begin in the house of God. Amen.

Your undershepherd for Jesus,

Pastor Massimo
 
 
The beginning of a new year is always a good time to take stock of where we’ve been and where we’re heading. As a church, we have much to celebrate and thank God for in the past year. One of the most significant events in the life of our fellowship was the calling and ordaining of a new pastor. There are always adjustments to be made as the church members and new pastor begin a new relationship. From my perspective, the transition has been very smooth and I can say as your new pastor I am very pleased with the spirit and harmony in the church. Perhaps the honeymoon is still in effect, but I sense a real comradeship in core values. There is a true hunger for the Word of God evident which is the most foundational and determinative core value a church can have. When a church allows the Word of God to direct its ministry, it places itself in the way of God’s blessing and fruitfulness in ministry. In other words, a God-honoring, God-blessed church will always ask itself, "Whose church is this?" To which the answer is "God’s." And also, "What does God, in His Word, say we should do?" This submissive attitude toward God as expressed in the attitude toward His Word will make all the difference in the life of our fellowship and will become more obvious as the months and years progress and we look back and see God’s hand of blessing.

FBC conducted numerous outreach events in 2009. Among them were the Easter Egg Hunt, VBS, Summer Mission Trip, Back to Church Sunday (newspaper ads, booklets), Harvest Festival, Desert Skies Concert, Angel Tree, and Children’s Christmas Program. In the Fall, we carried out a "You’ve Got the Time" campaign to get our entire church family listening through the audio New Testament. As part of that campaign, we were able to raise, with the help of an anonymous 3 to 1 matching donor, over $2,200 to fund the Lao language audio Bible. I was told by Hosanna, that our gift put that project’s financial need over the top!

We began a weekly radio program on KKIM that reaches from Socorro to Southern Colorado and around the world on the internet. The program director loves our program and gave us 285 free 30 second ads and has invited me to talk live on the air 3 times about our ministry. They’ve also repeated the program at 4pm on Sunday at no charge! This ministry is not funded by our regular budget so if you’d like to support it, mark your gifts (above regular tithes/offering) "radio ministry."

In 2009 we also were able to fund and offer biblical counseling booklets on a range of topics from depression to divorce. We have already had to restock the display completely. Please keep in mind that these booklets cost $3 each and this ministry is not funded in our regular budget. So if you’d like to contribute at any time toward the booklets, mark your special gift "counseling booklets."

For our children’s ministry, we were able to begin again our children’s church and we began offering our children a weekly Bible Bookmark to encourage daily Bible reading. We also launched a mid-weekly youth discipleship group that I lead each Wed. evening for teens who want to grow in their faith, maturity, and knowledge of God’s Word. Turn out has been meager so pray for our teens for a desire to take seriously their spiritual lives and come together each week to learn and be challenged.

We added four new members to the Ministry Team this Fall and we were able to complete a new Pictorial Directory that should be published and distributed by early February.

As we look toward 2010 there are several challenges we face as a church family. One of the most important I see is the need for our church to grow deeper in fellowship with one another. Life and ministry is about relationships and for our church to grow stronger and healthier in 2010 we must each make a commitment to get to know and love one another better this year. I’ve suggested from the pulpit for our members to share meals together as an easy beginning point. Later in the year I hope to see our church conduct a "dinner with six" initiative where people can sign-up to share a meal with a few others that they don’t know very well. I believe we will be pleasantly surprised by the joy and body life ministry that can result.

Another major concern is our current level of giving has not matched our approved budget expenditures. Our church has been in a spending freeze the last few months and we’ve sought to reduce spending where possible, but it’s not enough. In 2010, we will be offering a ministry effort to biblically instruct and assist our membership in personal financial planning. We don’t just want to plead for an increase in giving, but to help our people manage the resources God has entrusted in the best way possible that will bless them and God’s church as a result. You may recall my Christmas gift to those in attendance one Sunday morning was Randy Alcorn’s excellent little book The Treasure Principle as one small effort to this end (have you read it yet?). More information about this effort will be forthcoming shortly.

Please continue to lift up our fellowship before God in prayer. Look for ways to be a blessing to others and seek to make the most of your involvement each week. Remember that God loves you and I do too.

Yours for the Master,

—Pastor Massimo

 
Keeping Our Kids 10/27/2009
 
What can church and parents do to stop our young people from leaving the church? How can we reach our kids minds and hearts? Dr. Al Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, offers some great advice to churches and parents. Read his interview with Answers in Genesis here: http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/am/v4/n4/church-change.
 
 
We’ve been looking at Ephesians 4 for many weeks now in this blog. Is the divine plan for the growth of the church clear enough? Understanding it is the easy part. Living it out is the more difficult part. Growing into maturity as a church and individual believers requires effort, patience, love, and sacrifice. It will cost you to be part of the church, but it is worth it. What is it costing you?

I’m reminded of the time when King David was making provisions for the building of the temple in Jerusalem. He wanted to build it himself, but God wouldn’t let him since he was a man of war. Rather, God said Solomon, David’s son, would build the temple. But God allowed David to provide all the materials. David wanted to buy the land for the temple but Araunah, the land owner offered to give it to King David. Notice David’s response:

Then the king said to Araunah, "No, but I will surely buy it from you for a price; nor will I offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God with that which costs me nothing." So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver (2 Sam 24:24, emphasis added).

True worship is costly worship. It will cost you to obey God and serve Him in His church. There will be responsibilities to meet, people to forgive, erring brothers to confront, as well as money, time, and sweat to give. As we do what is required of us by God’s Word, we will notice changes take place over time. We will grow into Christlikeness. The church will become healthy and strong. New believers will be added to the church. Significant ministry will take place. Lives will be forever changed. God will be glorified. Doesn’t that sound exciting? People who work out say, "No pain, no gain." In ministry, we can say, "No sacrifice, no joy."

Seven Dangers to Guard Against:
* Politics without principle
* Knowledge without character
* Wealth without work
* Pleasure without conscience
* Business without morality
* Science without humanity
* Worship without sacrifice

Let’s review where we’ve been in our study so far. We saw that (1) God has given us participation in His eternal purpose; (2) God has given us the structure for fulfilling His eternal purpose; (3) God has given us a calling to contribute to His eternal purpose. We are to continue in this process, "till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ" (Eph 4:13, NKJV). So the goal is spiritual maturity defined by likeness to Jesus Christ.

How do we achieve spiritual maturity? "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" (Eph 4:16). Did you catch it? "Every part does its share." Are you growing in your faith and knowledge of Christ? Are you doing your part to build up the body of Christ?

If the book of Acts were still being written, what would it say about you? "So and so lived out his life in comfort and ease?" "He kept to himself and kept his nose clean?" Or, "She lovingly and faithfully served the Lord through His church all her life. The lives she touched by her personal ministry were encouraged and blessed. She found Jesus’ words true, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’ (Acts 20:35)."

We are the body of Christ. Jesus wants our hands, that’s how He works. He wants our feet, that’s how He goes. He wants our voices, that’s how He talks. He wants our hearts, that’s how He loves. True worship is costly. It means denying self to be used by God in the lives of others. Have you come to a point in your Christian walk that you have consciously yielded your life to God to serve Him in whatever way He calls you? If you do, it will cost you. But the reward is out of this world!

To know, to do; the Head’s commands, For this the body lives and grows;
All speed of feet and skill of hands, Is for Him spent, and from Him flows.
-author unknown
 
 
11　And He personally gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers,
12　for the training of the saints in the work of ministry, to build up the body of Christ, 13　until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of God’s Son, [growing]  into a mature man with a stature measured by Christ’s fullness. 14　Then we will no longer be little children, tossed by the waves and blown around by every wind of teaching, by human cunning with cleverness in the techniques of deceit. 15　But speaking the truth in love, let us grow in every way into Him who is the head—Christ. 16　From Him the whole body, fitted and knit together by every supporting ligament, promotes the growth of the body for building up itself in love by the proper working of each individual part (Eph 4:11-16, HCSB).

The ultimate goal of our gifting and calling by God to serve Him in the church is the growth or maturity of the body. Is that your goal as an individual believer? Verses 13-16 describe what this goal of building up the body of Christ looks like.

The goal defined (v. 13): "until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of God’s Son, [growing] into a mature man with a stature measured by Christ’s fullness." Verse 13 answers the question, "How long will this continue?" Answer: Until we all reach the goal of unity, knowledge, and maturity as measured by Christ Himself. We are to come to complete conformity to Christ as the standard of perfection.

The Marks of Maturity

Verses 14-16 show us the results of attaining the goal of verse 13. First, we will be marked by Truth or doctrinal stability (v. 14): "Then we will no longer be little children, tossed by the waves and blown around by every wind of teaching, by human cunning with cleverness in the techniques of deceit."

False doctrine is a hook God uses to draw false brethren away from the true church. Genuine believers are known for holding fast to the truth. There are many false teachers who use "human cunning and cleverness" to mislead and exploit people. Another version translates this phrase as: "ingenuity in inventing error" (Goodspeed). True believers do not "invent doctrine" but rather discover the doctrine of Scripture. Cleverness, novelty, and innovation in doctrine are not really things to celebrate in those who teach God’s Word. Faithfulness, clarity, and unity are traits to be praised.

Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ (Col 2:8, NKJV).

A second mark of maturity is Love (v. 15): "But speaking the truth in love, let us grow in every way into Him who is the head—Christ." Also, in verse 16: "building up itself in love." The phrase "speaking the truth," can be translated "hold the truth," "follow the truth," "pursue the truth," "live in the truth." Also, "let our lives lovingly express truth in all things—speaking truly, dealing truly, living truly" (Amplified Bible). How committed are you to truth? Do others see you that way?

How committed are you to love? Do others see you that way?

What do you love? What do you love more than anything else? Henry Scougal wrote, "The worth and excellence of a soul is to be measured by the object of its love." You become like that which you love. Do you love Christ? Do you love Him enough to put His priorities and concerns before your own? Tell me what you love and I will tell you the condition of your heart and soul.

A third mark of maturity for the church is Service (v. 16): "From Him the whole body, fitted and knit together by every supporting ligament, promotes the growth of the body for building up itself in love by the proper working of each individual part."

As we draw our life from Christ our head, the body is nourished and strengthened. The body is seen as a unit, "fitted and knit together by every supporting ligament." How are you supporting the body? Are you joined to the body in such a way as to be supported yourself? This is how the church "promotes the growth of the body for building up itself in love." No member of the church is to be left out. We grow into maturity as a church "by the proper working of each individual part."

How should you serve God? How has God gifted you? What ministry has God placed on your heart? There is a place for you that God has uniquely prepared, gifted, and called you to serve.

This is a story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and Nobody. There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did. Somebody got angry about that because it was Everybody's job. Everybody thought that Anybody could do it but Nobody realized that Everybody would not do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done.
 
 
11　And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12　for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13　till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ (Eph 4:11-13, NKJV).

Last time we considered the job of a pastor, now we turn our attention to the saints (believers in general). In a previous article we saw that God’s Word says the saints are to carry out "the work of ministry," and we defined that as whatever role God has for you that either directly or indirectly fulfills the Great Commission—making disciples (Matt 28:19-20).

We also saw the process of ministry as follows: (1) The gifted men (evangelists, pastor/teachers) equip the saints, (2) the saints then serve (using their own gifts, see Rom 12:3-8; 1 Cor 12; 1 Pet 4:10-11), (3) the body is then built up or edified and we all grow into maturity.

So every Christian is to contribute to this goal of spiritual maturity (Christlikeness). But you may be wondering, "Am I really qualified to do ministry?" Well, it may help to consider the qualifications of the original 12 disciples of Jesus. Here’s how one consulting firm evaluated the disciples:

To: Jesus, son of Joseph
Woodcrafter, Carpenter shop, Nazareth.

From Jordan Management Consultants

Dear Sir,

Thank you for submitting resumes of the 12 men you have picked for management positions in your new organization. All of them have now taken our battery of tests; we not only ran the results through our computer, but also arranged personal interviews for each of them with our psychologist and vocational aptitude consultant.

It is our opinion that most of your nominees are lacking in background, education, and vocational aptitude for the type of enterprise you are undertaking. They do not have the team concept. We would recommend that you continue your search for persons of experience in managerial ability and proven capability.

SIMON PETER is unstable and given to fits of temper. ANDREW has absolutely no qualities of leadership. The two brothers, JAMES AND JOHN, the sons of Zebedee, place personal interest above company loyalty. THOMAS demonstrates a questioning attitude that would tend to undermine morale.

We feel it is our duty to tell you that MATTHEW has been blacklisted by the Greater Jerusalem Better Business Bureau. JAMES, the son of Alpheus, and THADDEUS definitely have radical leanings, and they registered a high score on the manic depressive scale. SIMON THE ZEALOT, having pronounced terrorist leanings, would blow apart the harmony of the team.

One of the candidates however, shows great potential. He is a man of great ability, and resourcefulness, meets people well, has a keen business mind, and has contacts in high places. He is highly motivated, ambitious and responsible. We recommend JUDAS ISCARIOT as your controller and right hand man. All of the other profiles are self-explanatory.

We wish you every success in your new venture.

Sincerely yours,
JORDAN MANAGEMENT CONSULTANTS


Obviously God’s qualifications are not those of the world. God is glorified in using the unlikely to accomplish the extraordinary.

26　For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. 27　But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; 28　and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, 29　that no flesh should glory in His presence (1 Cor 1:26-29, NKJV).

You might say, "But I have so many inadequacies. I don’t have what it takes." Great! You are just the kind of person God can use!

9　And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10　Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong (2 Cor 12:9-10, NKJV).

When you choose to rely on the Lord to serve Him you become the most qualified person to be used by Him. All He requires is a willing heart. Are you willing to let God use you in ministry? God doesn’t need your ability, but your availability.
 
 
In light of previous posts on the church, I think it would do us some good to examine the expectations we place on a pastor. Are they realistic? Even better, are they biblical? Where do we get a job description for a pastor? What if we were to poll church members and come up with a composite summation? Well, we might just end up with the following want ad. One wonders who would apply for the job.

"Minister Wanted"

A real challenge for the right man. Opportunity to become better acquainted with people. Limitless benefits! Applicant must offer experience and know-how as:

Office Manager, educator, artist, theologian, circus clown, audio engineer, politician, salesman, diplomat, writer, missionary, traffic cop, psychologist, funeral director, wedding consultant, master of ceremonies, athlete, and teenage specialist.

Must know all about the problems of birth, schooling, marriage, children, diets, and death. Also conversant with the latest theories and practice in economics, nuclear science, nutrition, pediatrics, and women’s liberation.

Right man will hold firm views on every subject, but is careful not to upset people who disagree. Must smile habitually, sing softly. Must be forthright, but flexible; return backbiting and gossip with Christian love and instant forgiveness.

Should have friendly disposition 24 hours a day. Must be a captivating speaker and intent listener.

Education preferably beyond Ph.D. requirements, but always concealed in homespun modesty and folksy tale. Able to sound learned, however. Familiar with literature read by congregational members. Will spend at least 30 hours per week in the study, but remain ever available and adaptable to sudden interruption.

Must certainly be "up" on current events, novels, the arts, and periodicals – reading a minimum of 15 hours weekly in fields outside the ministry.

Applicant’s wife must be both stunning and plain – smartly attired, but conservative in appearance. Gracious, yet discerning, loving, yet disciplined. Efficient, yet casual and available. Must be thrilled to work in church kitchen, teach Sunday school, run copy machine, baby sit, never become discouraged, never listen to gossip, and yet be fully aware of all church problems so she might "pray more intelligently."

Applicant’s children must be clean-cut, all-American models. No long hair, beards, mustaches, bare feet, overalls, or pukka-shell necklaces. Well-behaved, yet no different from other youths at church. Tanned and handsome, but seldom at the beach (unless witnessing). Present and quiet at all church services.

Applicant’s auto must not be new…or old. Adequate, but not stylish. No van, camper, sports car, convertible, or motorcycle permitted. Home near the church and always available for gatherings. Must be neither large nor small, lest others feel uneasy. Swimming pool questionable, since family must appear humble, slightly strained, decent, and unoffensive.

Directly responsible for views and conduct of all church members and visitors. Impervious to criticism, yet teachable and transparent. Visionary, yet budget-minded. Creative, yet traditional. Defender of the faith, yet pleasant and positive.

All replies kept confidential. Anyone applying must undergo full battery of exams…to determine sanity. (Source unknown)

Ridiculous? You bet. Exaggeration? Sure. But is there some truth to it? Yep! While you won’t find this want ad listed in any employment directory, many churches post them in the pew.

How thankful I am that I have not encountered this perspective here in our church! So what is a pastor to do? We don’t have to guess. God’s Word tells us plainly that Christ gave to the church gifts including that of pastor-teacher, "for the training of the saints in the work of ministry, to build up the body of Christ" (Eph 4:12, HCSB).

What are the qualifications for a pastor? Again, God’s Word doesn’t leave us in the dark. You may read those qualifications in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1. You will find there that almost all of the qualifications have to do with character qualities. Only one qualification has to do with function and that is to be able to teach God’s Word and refute those who contradict it.

Training season never ends this side of eternity. When the church is not trained, the ministry will flounder. As your pastor, you can count on me to provide training for your spiritual growth and personal ministry. Two questions for you to consider at this point: (1) Do you see yourself in need of training? (2) What kind of ministry does the Lord have for you to put that training into practice?
 
 
11　And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12　for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13　till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ (Eph 4:11-13, NKJV).

Last week we considered the job of a pastor, now we turn our attention to the saints (believers in general). In a previous article we saw that God’s Word says the saints are to carry out "the work of ministry," and we defined that as whatever role God has for you that either directly or indirectly fulfills the Great Commission—making disciples (Matt 28:19-20).

We also saw the process of ministry as follows: (1) The gifted men (evangelists, pastor/teachers) equip the saints, (2) the saints then serve (using their own gifts, see Rom 12:3-8; 1 Cor 12; 1 Pet 4:10-11), (3) the body is then built up or edified and we all grow into maturity.

So every Christian is to contribute to this goal of spiritual maturity (Christlikeness). But you may be wondering, "Am I really qualified to do ministry?" Well, it may help to consider the qualifications of the original 12 disciples of Jesus. Here’s how one consulting firm evaluated the disciples:

To: Jesus, son of Joseph
Woodcrafter, Carpenter shop, Nazareth.

From Jordan Management Consultants

Dear Sir,

Thank you for submitting resumes of the 12 men you have picked for management positions in your new organization. All of them have now taken our battery of tests; we not only ran the results through our computer, but also arranged personal interviews for each of them with our psychologist and vocational aptitude consultant.

It is our opinion that most of your nominees are lacking in background, education, and vocational aptitude for the type of enterprise you are undertaking. They do not have the team concept. We would recommend that you continue your search for persons of experience in managerial ability and proven capability.

SIMON PETER is unstable and given to fits of temper.

ANDREW has absolutely no qualities of leadership.

The two brothers, JAMES AND JOHN, the sons of Zebedee, place personal interest above company loyalty.

THOMAS demonstrates a questioning attitude that would tend to undermine morale.

We feel it is our duty to tell you that MATTHEW has been blacklisted by the Greater Jerusalem Better Business Bureau.

JAMES, the son of Alpheus, and THADDEUS definitely have radical leanings, and they registered a high score on the manic depressive scale.

SIMON THE ZEALOT, having pronounced terrorist leanings, would blow apart the harmony of the team.

One of the candidates however, shows great potential. He is a man of great ability, and resourcefulness, meets people well, has a keen business mind, and has contacts in high places. He is highly motivated, ambitious and responsible. We recommend JUDAS ISCARIOT as your controller and right hand man. All of the other profiles are self-explanatory.

We wish you every success in your new venture.

Sincerely yours,
JORDAN MANAGEMENT CONSULTANTS

Obviously God’s qualifications are not those of the world. God is glorified in using the unlikely to accomplish the extraordinary.

26　For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. 27　But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; 28　and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, 29　that no flesh should glory in His presence (1 Cor 1:26-29, NKJV).

You might say, "But I have so many inadequacies. I don’t have what it takes." Great! You are just the kind of person God can use!

9　And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10　Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong (2 Cor 12:9-10, NKJV).

When you choose to rely on the Lord to serve Him you become the most qualified person to be used by Him. All He requires is a willing heart. Are you willing to let God use you in ministry?

God doesn’t need your ability, but your availability.

Serving with you,
Pastor Massimo
 
 
In light of last week’s article, I think it would do us some good to examine the expectations we place on a pastor. Are they realistic? Even better, are they biblical? Where do we get a job description for a pastor? What if we were to poll church members and come up with a composite summation? Well, we might just end up with the following want ad. One wonders who would apply for the job.

"Minister Wanted"

A real challenge for the right man. Opportunity to become better acquainted with people. Limitless benefits! Applicant must offer experience and know-how as:

Office Manager, educator, artist, theologian, circus clown, audio engineer, politician, salesman, diplomat, writer, missionary, traffic cop, psychologist, funeral director, wedding consultant, master of ceremonies, athlete, and teenage specialist.

Must know all about the problems of birth, schooling, marriage, children, diets, and death. Also conversant with the latest theories and practice in economics, nuclear science, nutrition, pediatrics, and women’s liberation.

Right man will hold firm views on every subject, but is careful not to upset people who disagree. Must smile habitually, sing softly. Must be forthright, but flexible; return backbiting and gossip with Christian love and instant forgiveness.

Should have friendly disposition 24 hours a day. Must be a captivating speaker and intent listener.

Education preferably beyond Ph.D. requirements, but always concealed in homespun modesty and folksy tale. Able to sound learned, however. Familiar with literature read by congregational members. Will spend at least 30 hours per week in the study, but remain ever available and adaptable to sudden interruption.

Must certainly be "up" on current events, novels, the arts, and periodicals – reading a minimum of 15 hours weekly in fields outside the ministry.

Applicant’s wife must be both stunning and plain – smartly attired, but conservative in appearance. Gracious, yet discerning, loving, yet disciplined. Efficient, yet casual and available. Must be thrilled to work in church kitchen, teach Sunday school, run copy machine, baby sit, never become discouraged, never listen to gossip, and yet be fully aware of all church problems so she might "pray more intelligently."

Applicant’s children must be clean-cut, all-American models. No long hair, beards, mustaches, bare feet, overalls, or pukka-shell necklaces. Well-behaved, yet no different from other youths at church. Tanned and handsome, but seldom at the beach (unless witnessing). Present and quiet at all church services.

Applicant’s auto must not be new…or old. Adequate, but not stylish. No van, camper, sports car, convertible, or motorcycle permitted. Home near the church and always available for gatherings. Must be neither large nor small, lest others feel uneasy. Swimming pool questionable, since family must appear humble, slightly strained, decent, and unoffensive.

Directly responsible for views and conduct of all church members and visitors. Impervious to criticism, yet teachable and transparent. Visionary, yet budget-minded. Creative, yet traditional. Defender of the faith, yet pleasant and positive.

All replies kept confidential. Anyone applying must undergo full battery of exams…to determine sanity. (Source unknown)

Ridiculous? You bet. Exaggeration? Sure. But is there some truth to it? Yep! While you won’t find this want ad listed in any employment directory, many churches post them in the pew.

How thankful I am that I have not encountered this perspective here in our church! So what is a pastor to do? We don’t have to guess. God’s Word tells us plainly that Christ gave to the church gifts including that of pastor-teacher, "for the training of the saints in the work of ministry, to build up the body of Christ" (Eph 4:12, HCSB).

What are the qualifications for a pastor? Again, God’s Word doesn’t leave us in the dark. You may read those qualifications in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1. You will find there that almost all of the qualifications have to do with character qualities. Only one qualification has to do with function and that is to be able to teach God’s Word and refute those who contradict it.

Training season never ends this side of eternity. When the church is not trained, the ministry will flounder. As your pastor, you can count on me to provide training for your spiritual growth and personal ministry. Two questions for you to consider at this point: (1) Do you see yourself in need of training? (2) What kind of ministry does the Lord have for you to put that training into practice?

Serving with you,

Pastor Massimo