“ And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ.”
Every believer in Christ Jesus has a call and responsibility to the work of the great commission. In addition, some have been assigned to pioneer the Word of God in different areas as needed by the church. Ephesians 4: 11-6 explains that those occupying these different positions are placed there to equip and build the church so that the church will
Walk in Unity: This is one of the biggest problems in the modern-day church. Jesus prayed according to John 17:21 “that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” Unity was so dear in the heart of Jesus. He understood the power of unity and made it a point to pray about it. When we are united, we can accomplish so much. As building blocks in God’s house, we need each other to play our part. How can the church stand if there is disunity? Mark 3:24-25 “If a kingdom is divided against itself, it cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, it cannot stand.” Additionally, we have one common enemy; Satan and to fight him, we must stand in unity and defeat him.” Leviticus 26:8 “Five of you will pursue a hundred, and a hundred of you will pursue ten thousand, and your enemies will fall by the sword before you.” The enemy understands the power of unity. He knows that whatever we agree upon the earth God stamps it approved in the heaven (Matthew 18:19). He also knows that when two or three are gathered in unity, the Lord is there (Matthew 18:20). It is interesting because the ministers of the Gospel understand this yet they walk in disunity.
Knowledge of God’s glory: Jesus came to shine His light into the darkness of the world. 2 Corinthians 4:4 “In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.” The gods of this world have blinded the eyes, block the ear, and the minds of their understanding and therefore they cannot accept the word of God. 2 Corinthians 4:6 “For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God's glory displayed in the face of Christ.” Jesus is the knowledge of God and He thought the knowledge of God during His own ministry on earth as noted in His prayer in John 17:8 “For I have given them the words You gave Me, and they have received them. They knew with certainty that I came from You, and they believed that You sent Me.” Through this knowledge the church is able to unveil the knowledge of the glory of God according to Isaiah 40:5 “And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all people will see it together. For the mouth of the LORD has spoken." Without the glory of God in the church, I have no idea why the church should be in existence. When the earth is covered with the knowledge of His glory, it leads to growth and maturity in the church and thus the fullness of Christ. With the knowledge of His glory flowing and radiating in the church, people will see and want to worship God as stated in Psalm 22:27 “All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the LORD. All the families of the nations will bow down before Him.” Spiritual growth and knowledge of the Lord enables Christians to grow in their ability to discern and confront issues of life with the truth of God’s Word instead of falsehood, cunning, and craftiness perpetuated by the false preachers who are after their gain rather than promoting spiritual growth.
Every true minister of the Word has been called into whatever work they do by the same Holy Spirit and thus expected to teach, build, and guide Christians towards heaven. 1 Corinthians 12:8 “To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by the same Spirit.” All minsters of the Gospel are expected to be working on one goal; transformation into God’s image as indicated by 2 Corinthians 3:18 “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into His image with intensifying glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” This is done through teaching the Word. They cannot teach the truth if they are lacking, thus they must know the Word to preach/teach so that it will shine in their lives and beyond. 2 Peter 1:19 “We also have the word of the prophets as confirmed beyond doubt. And you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.”
There is the need to pray for these ministers that God will mold and use them to bring His glory in the church. Pray that God will raise intercessors in every ministry He has called and given His work on this earth.
Pray that God will be gloried in every aspect of the work He has placed in the hands of these ministers. 1 Peter 4:11 “Whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”
Pray that God will grant grace to the ministers to shepherd God’s flock just according to what is written in this passage. 1 Peter 5:2-4 “Shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.”
Pray that the church will gain insight of the role of the ministers of the Gospel and will seek to respect them and the grace they carry. 1 Thessalonians 5:12 “We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you.”
Pray for the anointing over the ministers to preach Christ and not themselves. Pray for the anointing to shine forth the glory of God. 2 Corinthians 4:5-6 “For what we preach is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.”
Pray against any form of negligence in the lives of the ministers. 2 Chronicles 29:11 “My sons, do not now be negligent, for the Lord has chosen you to stand in his presence, to minister to him and to be his ministers and make offerings to him.”
Pray that they will be careful to attend to the physical and spiritual needs of the flock. Acts 20:28 “Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.”
Pray that they will be passionate to delight themselves daily in the Lord. Isaiah 58:14 “Then you will delight yourself in the LORD, and I will make you ride on the heights of the land and feed you with the heritage of your father Jacob." For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”
Pray that they will obey the command to preach the Word of God. Acts 10:42-43 “And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead”. 2 Timothy 4:2 “Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.”
Pray for a fresh baptism of the power of the Holy Spirit upon them. Acts 1:8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Romans 15:19 “Through mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God; so that from Jerusalem, and round about unto Illyricum, I have fully preached the gospel of Christ.”
Pray that ministers of the gospel will desire to spend time in the presence of God so that He can teach them and give them the Word for the season. Isaiah 50:4 “The Sovereign LORD has given me a well-instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary. He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed.”
Pray that as they seek God, He will put His Word in them so they will not speak themselves. Jeremiah 1:9 “Then the LORD put forth his hand and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.”
Pray that God will raise and establish ministers after His heart. Jeremiah 23:4 “I will raise up shepherds over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid or dismayed, nor will any go missing, declares the LORD.”
Pray that they will be protected and strengthened every day of their lives. 2 Thessalonians 3:3-5 “But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one. 4 We have confidence in the Lord that you are doing and will continue to do the things we command. 5 May the Lord direct your hearts into God's love and Christ's perseverance.”
Pray that God shall supply their needs in every aspect of life, family and ministry. Philippians 4:19 “And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”
Pray that the church will support the ministers of the gospel in providing and praying for them. 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13 “We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves.”
We must also stand on God’s Word and declare that false ministers shall not prevail. Ezekiel 34:2 "Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: 'Woe to the shepherds of Israel, who only feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed their flock?” 2 Peter 2:1 “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction.”
JOIN US EACH NIGHT ON OUR PRAYERLINE AT 9:00 PM EST
DIAL-IN USING YOUR PHONE:
UNITED STATES: +1 717-275-8940
UNITED STATES: +1 712-832-8330
ACCESS CODE: 9475411#