A MINISTER TO BE SUCCESSFUL HE MUST DO THESE FIVE THINGS!
We list five of the most important things a minister must do if he seeks to be successful in his calling. These can also be applied to the Christian who is seeking to have all that God has for him or her.
(Mat 14:19 KJV) And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the grass, and took the five loaves, and the two fishes, and looking up to heaven, he blessed, and brake, and gave the loaves to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude. (Mat 14:20 KJV) And they did all eat, and were filled: and they took up of the fragments that remained twelve baskets full. (Mat 14:21 KJV) And they that had eaten were about five thousand men, beside women and children. (Mat 14:22 KJV) And straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into a ship, and to go before him unto the other side, while he sent the multitudes away. (Mat 14:23 KJV) And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone. (Mat 14:24 KJV) But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary. (Mat 14:25 KJV) And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea. (Mat 14:26 KJV) And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear. (Mat 14:27 KJV) But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.
I. Learn to SIT.
A. When we wait on the Lord we should seek His face.
B. Hear His voice as He speaks to us through His Word.
C. Before God will move, work and supply our needs He wants us to sit before Him and learn of Him.
D. Simply wait on him. So doing, we shall be directed, supplied, protected, corrected, and rewarded. -- Vance Havner,
II. Jesus TOOK the loaves and fishes.
A. We must put ourselves in His Hands. We want to please God because of His mercies. Romans 12:1-2 1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
B. When we permit God to take us in His Hands we know we have come to full surrender. Gal. 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
III. Bless the Lord! Psalms 103:1-3 Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. 2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: 3 Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;
4 Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee
A. If we cannot bless the Lord our labor is in vain. Psalms 107:1 O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
1. It blesses the heart by making it receptive to God’s will.
2. It blesses the life by lifting it to a higher plane of grace.
3. It blesses the hands by making them willing to do God’s work.
4. It blesses the mind by giving it the satisfaction of doing the right thing.
5. It blesses the nine-tenths that remains because God has been honored.
6. It blesses the individual by giving him a part in God’s worldwide program of work.
7. It blesses the church by enabling it to carry out a greater ministry.
IV. He broke the bread before he fed the people. We are like wild horses that need to be broken. Mark 14:3 And being in Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he sat at meat, there came a woman having an alabaster box of ointment of spikenard very precious; and she brake the box, and poured it on his head.
A. The wonderful fragrance filled the air all around the room when the box was broken. (Luke 20:18 KJV) Whosoever shall fall upon that stone shall be broken; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.
B. Submit to His Will.
V. He Gave. God’s Kingdom Principle is Luke 6:38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.
B. We should be willing and ready to give to every opportunity God gives us. Read Acts 3:1-16
1. Giving a tithe means nothing if God has enabled you to give 50 percent.
2. We make a living by what we get out of life, but we make a life by what we give.
3. He who bestows his goods upon the poor shall have as much again and ten times more. -- John Bunyan,
4. If you haven’t got any charity in your heart, you have the worst kind of heart trouble. -- Bob Hope,
5. No man was ever honored for what he received. Honor is the reward for what he gave.
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