John 3:27 -“A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.”
This verse accentuates God’s sovereign authority in granting ministry opportunity. When God determines what He wants, He consults with Himself as He did in Genesis 1:26 when He desired to make man. “Let us make man” (let us refers to the unity of the Godhead – The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit who are one).
He consulted with Himself. He did not ask for Gabriel and Michel’s opinion. Nor did He need their approval. If God has called you to promulgate His unadulterated word and has anointed you with power, then you do not need anyone’s approval to be a witness for God. For if God called you and anointed you, He will speak it also to His servant (your pastor) to confirm what He spoke to you concerning the ministry or responsibility given.
Paul, who was known as Saul prior to his conversion, can bear witness to this. For Acts 9:3 states, “Suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven.” The light this verse of scripture is referring to is the appearance of Jesus Christ. Here Paul during that moment was bestowed an opportunity to convert his life by accepting Christ as his Lord and then sequentially minister to those who were stranger’s to the Jewish population or remain the same individual, a murder destined to hell. Thank God, for Paul’s obedience to the High Call.
This leads me to my first point. But first let me remind you, you cannot receive anything except it be given from heaven; for there are some essential qualities that you must posses by prayer and supplication in order to receive what God has for you to impact a generation of scattered and lost people.
1. You must posses an obedient and receptive spirit:
Acts 9:6 Christ told Paul to, “Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do.”
After you hear the call on your life as Paul did, you must receive it and be obedient to its demands. 1 Samuel 15:22 declares, “To obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.”
2. You must posses a spirit of humility:
Acts 9:9 states, Saul “neither did eat nor drank.”
After you adhere to God’s voice and submit to His direction, than you must go and consecrate your self so that God can prepare you. You will never be trusted with ministry until you separate your self from worldly things. When Paul refrained from eating, it denoted humility before God.
Then in Acts 9:15 Christ said to Ananias, “Go, this is my chosen instrument to carry my name.” Here is God’s servant, Ananias, receiving a message to confirm God’s word that was spoken to Paul.
If you believe in your heart that God has called you for a special purpose, and you prepare yourself by living an obedient life that is consecrated to God, then He will send a messenger, an Ananias, to confirm what He has spoken to you.
3. You must posses a committed attitude:
Acts 9:19 states, “Then was Saul certain days with the disciples.”
Here he is, no sooner changed Paul commits his life to Christ by changing his company and acquaintances. After some time fasting, praying, and studying verse twenty of Acts nine says, “Straightway he preached Christ.”
This thing cannot be earned, pursed, or worked up. It takes the anointing of the Spirit, an obedient life stile, and a humble spirit. If you do not posses these essential things, then you will need man’s approval. And if you seek for man’s opinion, then you nullified God’s advancement in your life. For Psalms 75:6 declares, “For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south, but from God.”
Therefore, seek God’s will, way, and purpose for your life. And if you do, you can say to the opinions of others concerning your destiny, “I don’t need your approval.”
