How to minister to others

How to minister to others

This Sunday, we were privileged at CDC to have our own Pastor Micky share the message on “How to minister to others” from 1 Thessalonians Chapter 2.

Starting off, Pastor Micky shared with us a funny story of an English speaking missionary who went to minister in a foreign country. He found a church, saw an empty seat in the front, and quickly sat down. Not understanding a word of what was being said, he decided to just follow what his neighbor did. Then there was an announcement with loud clapping and his neighbor stood up. So he followed suit. Suddenly he heard some gasps of shock all round and realized only two of them were standing. So, he quickly sat down. Later, the kindly Pastor who spoke English said to him “My friend, I see you don’t understand Spanish. There was a birth in the Acosta family and I asked the father to stand up…. Serving God is never easy and there are moments of embarrassment and culture shock at times. The Apostle Paul, however, faced worse, being beaten, stripped, hunted, put in prison and facing death many, many times.

In his letter to the Thessalonians, Paul now proceeds to explain to them how to minister to others. The translation of minister in those days was actually “servant” and that was how Paul saw himself to his congregations.

 1You know, brothers, that our visit to you was not a failure. 2We had previously suffered and been insulted in Philippi, as you know, but with the help of our God we dared to tell you his gospel in spite of strong opposition.

From these verses, we see that Paul was forced to minister with great courage and perseverance, in spite of strong opposition but with the help of God. In Philippi, Paul continued preaching even though he was stripped and beaten. In Thessalonica, he faced the same suffering but would not stop declaring the gospel. We can’t wait for circumstances to be ideal to start serving. We must be ready to share the Word in season and out of season. Secondly, we must depend on the power and strength of God to serve, and that is why we need to pray often! On our own strength, we will not go far.

Besides that, we also see that Paul served with integrity.

3For the appeal we make does not spring from error or impure motives, nor are we trying to trick you. 4On the contrary, we speak as men approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts. 5You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed—God is our witness. 6We were not looking for praise from men, not from you or anyone else.

Paul’s message was not from error. His message was not popular, telling people they needed forgiveness from their sins, but it was true. Paul’s message was also not impure. He did not seek to get profit from his listeners as many traveling preachers and magicians did. He never took any money from them. He served from a pure heart. Finally, Paul did not try to trick them by persuasive words or false promises. He spoke the truth plainly. Paul spoke as a man approved by God, entrusted with the gospel, and his heart was tested by God.

We need to be careful of wrong methods used to gain converts such as the Prosperity Gospel which tells people you will have no more problems, you will become rich, you will always find good health and prosperity. The true gospel promises peace, love, joy, eternal life, but also warns of suffering that Christians must face for their faith.

The Apostle Paul was always poor, on the run and in this world, he had nothing. However, he received the joy of seeing people come to know the Lord, and that was more precious to him than all the wealth and riches of the world.

As apostles of Christ we could have been a burden to you, 7but we were gentle among you, like a mother caring for her little children. 8We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us. 9Surely you remember, brothers, our toil and hardship; we worked night and day in order not to be a burden to anyone while we preached the gospel of God to you

Moreover, Paul showed love and care to the Thessalonian church like a nursing mother to her young. He was gentle with them, and was willing to sacrifice himself for their benefit. As John Maxwell once said “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care”.

11For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, 12encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory.

Finally, Paul also watched over them with concern like a father. He worked day and night so that he would not be a burden to them. He showed them his good example that they might follow him, and with his words he encouraged them, comforted them and urged them on in the faith.

In conclusion, Pastor Micky challenged us:-

-         Are we ministering to others?

-         Are we serving out of love and care for others?

-         Are we living lives worthy of God?

May we, like Paul, learn to serve others faithfully out of a pure heart and show shining examples for our Lord Jesus.

God bless,

Jason