INTRODUCTION
This message holds the potential of changing your personal life — as well as the life of our church — forever. There is great excitement in the air as the Holy Spirit is releasing a breath of fresh air over the Church in the 21st Century. It is not a new revelation; it is a new revolution!
In today’s message, we are going to discover the keys that will open the door to revitalizing our church and releasing the hidden potential we have had for so long. The bottom line of my thought centers on this biblical truth: Every believer is a minister.
Life-giving churches today have discovered they could ascribe involving church members in the delightful work of the ministry as the number-one key to their success.
Churches on the cutting edge have discovered the pastor cannot do it alone. Not only is it impossible, it is blatantly unscriptural. A survey of 5,000 pastors across the U.S.A. asked the question, “What is your church’s greatest need?” Of these 5,000 pastors, 98% listed as the #1or #2 greatest need in their church: “To get the laity involved in the work of the ministry.”
Equipping the saints — God’s people — for their work of the ministry is the key of this century for the church.
“Jesus was not satisfied in having a succession of audiences to which He might proclaim His Gospel; He was interested primarily in having disciples in whom and through whom His ministry would be multiplied many times over.”
James D. Smart, “The Rebirth of Ministry”
“The Church should not run on the feet of the clergy, but on the feet of the laity.”
John W. Bosman
As your pastor, I gladly want to declare: We are the Church and we are on a journey! God is about to take us somewhere and I can hardly contain my excitement. There are some exhilarating things I want to share with you concerning the future of this church.
One of the things that has become a driving passion within me — and I know it has the blessing of the Lord upon it — is that we are going to become an army and no longer just an audience.
The greatest disaster . . . that ever came to the Church was when the ministry was moved from the people to the professionals — and from the pew to the pulpit.
That means that somewhere along the way the “hands on” everyday ministry of the church was taken out of the hands of the members and given to the career ministers! That was never God’s plan for the Church. All those who are part of the Body of Christ should be involved in the work of Christ.
Reasons why people are not involved in ministry:
1. Fear of failure. Nobody wants to get involved in something knowing they may fail. If people don’t know how to do ministry, they will never become involved.
2. They have never been trained. The traditional concept is that members are supposed to attend church and watch pastors do ministry. They have never been taught, “Every believer is a minister.”
3. Pastors are not trained to equip their people. Most Bible colleges and universities do not teach them how.
The magazine “Christianity Today” said that 85% of the things pastors learn in seminary, they never use in ministry. 85%!
Just like many members, pastors have bought into the traditional, erroneous mindset of thinking that they are the only ones to do the work of the ministry.
Is that the reason why:
• So many pastors quit the ministry;
• So few people are saved;
• So many church members are bored;
• So many pastors burn out;
• So many people feel they are not needed, and,
• So many people fall through the cracks?
4. Pastors are in the habit of doing everything. They have done all the work all of the time. They have known no other way. Many believe, “If you want something done well, do it yourself!”
Let’s say it over and over: The Pastor cannot — and should not — do ministry alone!
That is about to change in this church!
I invite you to go on one of the most exciting journeys we have ever taken together. Together, we are going back to the basics of the Word and I am going to equip you for the work of the ministry — like never before. This church is about to become a powerhouse because of YOU!
We understand that the love of God has to flow down the aisles of the church before it will flow down the streets of the city.
The True Application of Ministry
According to Ephesians 4, the pastor (as part of the five-fold ministry) has a two-fold purpose:
1. To shepherd the flock of God who is under his/her care; and,
2. To equip the saints (the church members) for their work of the ministry.
Let’s take a closer look at Ephesians 4:11–12:
11Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: "the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. 12Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ" (NLT).
Christ gave five very specific gifts to the Church with a very specific assignment. It says: Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. These verses make clear that the pastor’s responsibility (his or her job) is to equip God’s people to do Christ’s work and build up the Church. It describes a beautiful partnership between the pastor and the members.
It is very interesting to note what EQUIP really means. In Matthew 4, Jesus calls four fishermen to follow him and become His disciples, fishers of men. They had finished their catch and the Bible says they were “mending their nets.”
Now it is striking that the word “mending” here is the same word as the one Paul used for “equipping” or “preparing” in Ephesians 4:12. The Greek word he uses ("Katartismos") simply means to “mend,” to “prepare,” or to “equip” (i.e., make ready). Also, we use the same root word when a doctor “sets” a broken bone in order for it to again function properly.
• Mending the nets clearly describes the process of preparation — making sure that there are no holes in the nets, so fish will not get away (and the catch is lost). The church has worked hard in the past at catching fish. They get plenty of fish in their nets, but because the church has not worked as hard at “mending the nets” (that is, preparing the people), there are big holes in the nets and the church loses many of the fish they catch! Pastor Rick Warren says, “It’s like pastoring a parade!”
• Equipping people for ministry, therefore, is the process of preparing the congregation to function in ministry as they are supposed to. In doing so, it ensures that no one falls through the cracks or slips through the proverbial “back door” of the local church.
• Setting a broken bone, again, is describing to us the procedure of getting our people back into their rightful place of ministry to function as God called them to operate.
We are determined to keep what we reap and take care of the people God has entrusted to us. The truth is, if we are not taking care of those He has sent us already, why should He send us any more?
As your pastor, I am determined to equip and teach you in diverse ways to the point where, if you had to be stranded on an island, you won’t look around and need to see me or any of the other pastors on staff. My fulfilment comes not from what I do, but rather from what YOU do!
Our greatest joy in the future of this church will be to develop the belief, “Every believer is a minister!” I know there are scores of people sitting in our pews every week who have the ability, talents, and desire to do ministry — if only they had the opportunity.
Today, let me make it clear: I cannot do all the work of the ministry alone. I want you to be involved — and I want to give you every possible opportunity for ministry. We will train you and we will equip you.
The strength of this church is not in the number of people who come to hear me preach every Sunday. The strength of this church is in what you do with what you hear after you leave, to go out and minister to others in Jesus’ name.
CONCLUSION
• If we want to see more people saved — and our church becoming a healing place where people feel the love of God;
• If we want to stop seeing people falling through the cracks or slipping through the back door; and,
• If we want to see our church healthy and whole;
• Then we are going to have to expand our base of ministers — and effectively equip the believers! If the sheep multiply, then the shepherds have to multiply also.
I want us to become a congregation where every person uses his or her gifts to the glory of God! Not everyone has the same gift — and many may not even know WHAT their gift is — but don't pull way -- we are going to put every effort forward to help people DISCOVER, DEVELOP, and DEPLOY their gift. This is the time and this is the season!
We are going to raise an army — not just an audience! We are not looking for passengers on a cruise ship; we are enlisting warriors on a battleship!
This community needs you. This church needs you. Your pastor needs you. Most of all, GOD needs you!
Will you answer the call? Are you willing to give yourself away, so God can use you? Can you say like Isaiah, “Here am I Lord, send me!”?
LET US PRAY!
