“So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work”
EVERY TRUE MINISTER OF THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST WAS GIVEN TO THE CHURCH BY CHRIST HIMSELF IRRESPECTIVE OF POSITION OR TITLE. CHRIST HIMSELF IS THE HIRING MANAGER OF HIS EARTHLY ORGANIZATION, CALLED THE CHURCH OR MINISTRY. Therefore, anyone working in this organization is not working for anyone else including his/her self, but for Christ. So, his income comes from the owner of the organization.
Ministers are called to one purpose: Making God’s people become like Christ himself for the building of his house. Thus, in their job description, they are to equip the people through love, giving, care, teaching, preaching, sharing, mentoring, monitoring, directing, reprimanding, and replicating other workers. All these investments are to ensure that the church birth forth mature spiritual believers who will continue to worship the Father in spirit and truth. To do the work effectively, ministers of the Gospel must be grounded in the word of God and prayer. Being led only by the Holy Spirit. This is the process that sanctity, qualifies, and equips them to do the work they are called to do.
1. There is a grace for intercession that God has granted to us. Stand on that grace and call on the God of mercy and compassion to open the heavens over the ministers of the Gospel. Stand with every true servant of God and ask the Lord to forgive them. As they ask in prayer, may the Lord hear them and send them rain due in its season: 2 Chronicles 6:26-27 “26When the skies are shut and there is no rain because Your people have sinned against You, and they pray toward this place and confess Your name, and they turn from their sins because You have afflicted them, 27then may You hear from heaven and forgive the sin of Your servants, Your people Israel, so that You may teach them the good way in which they should walk. May You send rain on the land that You gave Your people as an inheritance.”
2. Taking care of the flock has to come from the place of love. Not the kind that comes when one is aware of what they will get in return. Genuine love is not boastful, prideful or self-centered. It gives without looking back: Pray that the Love in the heart of God will descend upon the hearts of the ministers. John 21:15 “When they had finished eating, Jesus asked Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you love Me more than these?" "Yes, Lord," he answered, "You know I love You." Jesus replied, "Feed My lambs."
3. God cannot abundant his own, even when they go wrong. There is room for forgiveness. As intercessors, pray for the grace to stand in the gap for the ministers of the Gospel. Ask the Lord to help you not to focused on fault finding, but to lift them up in the place of prayer, asking the Lord to help them serve in reverence and fear of the Lord: 1 Samuel 12:22-24 “Indeed, for the sake of His great name, the LORD will not abandon His people, because He was pleased to make you His own. As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by ceasing to pray for you. And I will continue to teach you the good and right way. Above all, fear the LORD and serve Him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things He has done for you.”
4. You go on social media and people are posting grievances against servants of God. That is very disrespectful and sinful before God. Remember if they have sinned, they were in the first place called by God. Read what Samuel said in 1 Samuel 24: 10. There is a Godly way of holding our leaders accountable and one of them is by prayer. Pray against the spirit of disrespect of spiritual leaders. 1 Samuel24: 10 “See, your eyes have seen how the Lord gave you to me today in the cave. Some told me to kill you, but I had pity on you. I said, ‘I will not put out my hand against my leader, for he is the Lord’s chosen one” Hebrews 13:17 “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.”
5. Pray that the Holy Spirit will reveal this scripture to them. They have been commanded to take care of the church that was bought by the blood of the lamb. This is neither by force nor under any pressure. It has to be a willing heart of love, that is not out for self-gratification. Pray for the grace for this work: 1 Peter 5:2 “Care for the flock that God has entrusted to you. Watch over it willingly, not grudgingly--not for what you will get out of it, but because you are eager to serve God.”
6. The Apostles of old did not only preach the gospel, but their lives impacted the lives of those they ministered to. Pray that God will transform the lives of the ministers of the gospel, so that people will not only hear the word of God from them, but will see their lives as something enough to emulate: 1 Thessalonians 2:8 “Having so fond an affection for you, we were well-pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God but also our own lives, because you had become very dear to us.”
7. Ministers of the gospel are first called in the place of prayer; therefore, as they are led by the Spirit of God, they are supposed to be in constant prayer for the church. This is part of taking care of the flock. Pray for a fresh fire of the spirit of intercession upon them, so that they will be able to pray for the sheep they are called to lead: Colossians 1:9 “For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding.”
8. Pray for the transformative power of the Holy Spirit upon the ministers of God. This power is revealed when men walk in obedience and surrender in the place of prayer. 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.”
9. The word of God is what prepared Joshua for the work God had for him. Pray that ministers of the gospel will take steps like Joshua to put this word into practice. Joshua 1:8 “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success”
10. Pray for the readiness to apply in verses just the way it is, this is very straightforward: 2 Timothy 4:1-5 “4 I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: 2 preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. 3 For the time is coming when people will not endure sound[a] teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, 4 and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. 5 As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.”
11. Pray that God will be glorified in every work done by all his servants: 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.”
12. The effectiveness of a minister comes with humility and total surrender, knowing fully well that everything has been by the grace of God, and thus the mission of the minister is to testify to the gospel of that saving grace. Pray that as they minister, it will be only under this grace and nothing else: Acts 20:24 “But I do not consider my life as something of value or dear to me, so that I may [with joy] finish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify faithfully of the good news of God’s [precious, undeserved] grace [which makes us free of the guilt of sin and grants us eternal life].”
13. Pray that God will give the church ministers after his own heart, not those who are in for what they want. Pray for ministers with the heart of going after the one lost sheep: Jeremiah 3:15 “‘And I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.” 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.”
14. Pray for the blessing of the Lord over them and that God will provide all their needs: 2 Corinthians 9:8 “8 And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work”
15. God is not happy with some of the ministers of the Gospel, and they must face his judgment because God’s word is not the word of a man. It has to come to pass. Pray against ministers who are more focused on themselves than the flock. Ask the Lord to deal with them: Ezekiel 34:1-3 “1Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 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? 3You eat the fat, wear the wool, and butcher the fattened sheep, but you do not feed the flock”. Jeremiah 2:8 “The priests did not ask, 'Where is the LORD?' The experts in the law no longer knew Me, and the leaders rebelled against Me. The prophets prophesied by Baal and followed useless idols”.