OPEN: Back in 1957 the 1st Brethren Church of Sarasota, Florida had a groundbreaking service. Ordinarily, a church will get a few shovels and certain people will turn over a few chunks of dirt. But recalling the words of Jesus, "Take my yoke upon you," this church decided to borrow an old one-horse plow and harness two of their strongest young men to it.
The signal was given and the men PULLED… but nothing happened. They strained at the harness, but they were unable to pull the plow even an inch.
So then the entire Building Committee of the congregation took hold of the rope, and they PULLED. But the plow wouldn’t budge. Even they couldn’t get the plow to move.
Other church officers were added, and the Sunday school officers and teachers, and they PULLED… but still they couldn’t get the plow to budge.
Finally every member of the congregation who was present each took hold of the rope. With every member pulling together, the plow moved, the ground was broken.
APPLY: Today we are having an ordination service.
Ben and Trampas are being set aside for works of ministry.
They are two of our most able bodied and ambitious young men and we’re hooking up to the plow… setting them aside to do the work of ministry.
But we need to remember: these young men are only going to be as good as we allow them to be. Their success in ministry will depend on our being willing to pull on the rope along with them.
Some have asked: “Why are we ordaining this young men?
o They’ve not been to Bible college.
o They’re not going to be preachers.
o Why not just hire them for the job that they are going to perform and let it go at that?
Well, the Elders will be laying hands on them to-nite because we’re a church. And ordination (the laying on of hands) is something the church has always done.
One of the reasons the church has always done this, is because - in that act - it declares that those who’ve been ordained have the confidence and commitment of the rest of the believers there.
In this act, we are declaring that we are going to stand behind these men and we are going to do everything we possibly can to make them successful.
Take, for example this story out of Acts 6
· The church “laid hands on” 7 men for a specific ministry
· These 7 men had NOT been Bible college trained
· And they were NOT being set apart to be preachers or teachers
They were being “ordained” to take care of the physical needs of certain widows in the church.
And notice the qualifications for these early “deacons”.
They were to be men who are “…full of the Spirit and wisdom.”
In other words, they were to be men who took their faith seriously.
They were to be men who could be trusted to do what the church needed done.
They weren’t being selected because of who they knew, or who they were related to.
They were chosen because they loved Jesus and were willing to do whatever was necessary to make Christ’s church successful.
Laying on of hands actually began back in the Old Testament.
In the book of Leviticus, we’re told that a priest would “lay hands on” the sacrifice.
In that action, the priest dedicated that which was offered to God.
In laying hands on the offering, the priest declared that the offering BELONGED to God. The offering was given to God as HIS personal possession.
In this ordination service tonight, we are dedicating Ben and Trampas to God.
They are NOT just hired help.
They are to be God’s personal possession.
They will BELONG to God in their ministries because we’re setting them aside for that purpose.
And we’re giving them to God in this fashion, because we have confidence in them.
Trampas and Ben have both shown that they are men who love Jesus.
They have shown a commitment to God, and to this church and they have shown the desire to go above and beyond what is expected
They’ve already begun their ministries
· Trampas has been teaching a Sunday School class, and has begun Monday nite Bible study In addition, he’s planning to start an Upwards Football program (expand)
· Ben has been working with the Jr. & Sr. High schoolers on Thursday nights (35 kids)
He’s been teaching the same group of kids on Sunday mornings
Helping out at JAM and running the sound booth
We’re also ordaining these men (giving them to God as His personal possession) because we believe this is the best way grow our church.
Notice in Acts 6: 6-7
“They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them. So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.”
When men such as deacons in Acts (and Ben and Trampas) surrender themselves to His service the word of God has the ability to spread to others and the church grows in ways we can’t even begin to imagine.
· Perhaps in the very confidence that was given those seven men by the church in Acts 6
· Or perhaps it was the very fact that these men now belonged to God in a very special way
But whatever it was, the ministry of these 7 led to dynamic growth and dramatic conversions.
In fact, two of the seven men ordained as deacons in Acts made a powerful mark on the church.
· Stephen stood up for Jesus and died for his faith - the 1st Christian martyr.
· And Philip went on to lead hundreds of people to Jesus… including a high govt. official in Ethiopia
The adventure Ben and Trampas and their families have begun at this church has the potential to change hundreds of lives. And because of that, we’re excited about the ceremony we’re taking part in this day.
One more thing… We need to realize the important value of their wives. Having been in the ministry for over 20 years, I’m fully convinced of the fact that a preacher, youth minister, or any one who gives themselves fully to the paid ministry for God can only be as successful as his wife allows him to be. Ben and Trampas have been blessed by having two of the finest wives in the congregation. They are women who set a good example and are truly dedicated to their husbands. We need to acknowledge and encourage these women because their faithfulness will make all the difference in how well Trampas and Ben accomplish their mission.
VOWS
Ben & Trampas: (Come forward)
1. Do you vow (as servants of Jesus) that you will protect His church
Ø that you will work to make each other’s ministry successful
Ø that you will respect the guidance of the Eldership and the preacher
Ø and that you will faithfully work at the responsibilities given you?
2. Do you vow that you teach those you work with to fully obey God
3. Do you vow to guard your lives against impurity, bitterness, and pride?
4. Do you vow that you will set the example by for this church by being good husbands and fathers?
Michelle & Tracey (Come forward)
1. Do you vow that you will fully support your husband in his ministry?
2. Do you vow to pray for them and encourage them?
3. Do you vow to protect Christ’s church refusing to allow others to hear or speak criticisms of others in the church, or engage in gossip?
4. Do you vow to live your lives in such a way as to set the example for other wives and mothers around you?
Eldership: (Come forward)
1. Do you vow to pray for these men and their families?
2. Do you vow to protect and encourage them in their ministry?
3. Do you vow to provide spiritual oversight and will you endeavor to guard their hearts, minds and souls from danger?
Church: (Stand)
1. Do you vow that that you will support the Bonsett’s and the Young’s in their work here?
2. Do you vow that you will not say anything against them behind their backs? That if you have a problem with them or their ministry you will speak to them directly?
3. Do you vow that you will do all in your power to make their ministries successful?
4. Do you vow to pray for Ben and Trampas, their wives Michelle and Tracey, and for their children?
At this point the Elders laid hands upon these two young men and each prayed for their ministry. After this, we signed the ordination certificates and closed with a final prayer. The congregation was then dismissed to fellowship and food.
