Call To Ministry

II Timothy 4:1-5 “1. I solemnly 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: 2a. Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; 2b. reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. 3. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, 4. and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. 5a. But you, be sober in all things, 5b. endure hardship, 5c. do the work of an evangelist, 5d. fulfill your ministry.”

The first thing I want to point out is the charge, otherwise known as a command, that is given.  It’s important that this charge was given in the presence of God to Timothy.  Why?  Well because if given in the presence of an eternal God, that leads me to believe that this is an eternal charge.  The charge is specific, too.  To “preach the Word” & constantly be prepared.  Part of this command moves from being a charge to being a challenge where it says to “reprove, rebuke, exhort” & to do this with patience & instruction.  Reprove & rebuke is the negative terms for reproof.  We could give those words a definition here of being “to show disapproval & correct.”  So in being commanded to preach, we are being told to do so in a manner of rebuking, while also exhorting with patience & instruction.  So it’s weird that in this scripture, Paul is telling Timothy to be harsh on the people, but forgive them as God will & counsel them to be better.  With this counsel, we should be urging people to recognize their false doctrines.  This… This takes a lot of patience.

So why are all Christians charged with this?  Because we are running out of time with a lot of non-believers.  Look at what verse 3 says about what time is coming.  This has two sides to it.  People want to listen – People will eventually stop listening.  The disposition of people will take over & they’re worldly wants will be put above their spiritual wants/needs.  This disposition is caused by the people’s desire to be pleased which is alluded to by saying “but wanting to have their ears tickled…” which lets us know that they’re not being pleased by the Word of God, they will find another way to please themselves.  This will cause them to direct themselves in other directions.  Instead of being directed by the disciples of God (us), which is supposed to be the direction of God through His Spirit, Paul is saying the non-believers will direct themselves in their own walk.  If someone isn’t walking with God, they’re walking from him & according to Paul’s letter to Timothy, they have started running from the truth because they like where they’re at.  Well why wouldn’t they like the way they’re going?  They don’t know any other way.  We must be the ones that help them in their direction.

Well how do we direct a non-believer that is following their world?  Careful preparation…  Verse 5 gives us two different things to “be sober” in all things is the first.  This means before we can go out & help anyone in their direction, we have to make sure we’re going in the right direction ourselves.  We have to be blameless & innocent of all charges so that our word will actually mean something to them.  We have to make sure our witness is something that they can look at & actually see from the surface that there is something different.  Otherwise all we’re doing is giving them yet another path that isn’t leading to God.  The second thing verse 5 gives us is to “endure hardships” which is pretty clearly said.  We’re not always going to be on top.  The Bible doesn’t promise us riches of this world.  The Bible has just as much scripture supporting Christians will lead a tough life on this world than they will lead an easy one.  We also can’t think that just because we’re trying to lead a non-believer that we will succeed everytime.  We can only do so much, & that’s what God has called us to do.

So what then is it specifically God has called us to do?  The last two parts of verse 5 to “do the work of an evangelist” & to “fulfill your ministry.”  In that, Paul isn’t making a claim that we are all to be an evangelist.  I know it seems that way, but the way it’s worded makes a world of difference.  It’s “do the work” of one, not become one…  There are many different types of “ministers” as we know them today.  Some are counselors, pastors, preachers, evangelists, missionaries, etc.  We’re just called to do the work of an evangelist.  What’s the work of an evangelist?  Merely to spread the Gospel.  I have never known an evangelist who tries to take over a church or preaches at specific locations.  Every evangelist I know of will be preaching the Gospel wherever he goes & that is the work of an evangelist.  That is what we’re supposed to do.  It doesn’t matter where we’re at or what job we hold, we are still to do the “work” of an evangelist.  I like the last part “fulfill your ministry.”  We have to realize here that ministry simply means “service” & that this is telling us we need to do this work… & in doing this work, we need to be pleased with our service to the Lord.  We have done what He’s asked.  Sometimes we can’t do anymore.  Like I said earlier.  There will be hardships.  Sometimes those hardships will be watching a person we’ve witnessed to many times still reject God.  Even though it’s a tough thing to go through, we’re still to be pleased in our service.  I can be pleased knowing that a non-believer friend of mine has a friend like me to continually show him the compassion & love of Christ, which just happens to be the biggest witness of all.

Closing this one out:  I want to make sure that no one thinks I’m saying everyone is called to pastor a church or travel the world as a missionary.  I don’t think I came off with that being the atmosphere of this quick study.  If I did, that’s not the case.  Being called to ministry or to minister is a call for all of us.  It’s not a call to pick everything up & leave because we read a verse of scripture & didn’t understand it correctly.  All it is, is a notification saying “in everything we do, no matter where we’re at, we should be ministering to people.”  Here’s an idea to go along with that.  In everything you do, no matter where you’re at, you ARE ministering to people (whether it be of good or bad witness).  That being said, what’s the basis of your ministry with conjunction of how you’re living?

God’s Compassion – Felt In The Liver

Being used twelve times, the most common verb used in the Greek New Testament referring to God’s compassion is splanchnizomai.  It’s used in Luke 10:33 with the story of the Good Samaritan & the compassion he had on the wounded man.  The other eleven uses refer to God’s compassion.  In Matthew 18:27 & Luke 15:20 we find two parables of which Jesus used this verb to refer to God’s compassion in saving & forgiving sinners.  All of the other uses of this verb refer to compassion as the major motivation for Jesus’ healing & miracles.  So nine out of the eleven times where this verb is used of God’s compassion, it is referring to the compassion of the Lord Jesus Christ as his motivation for healing

What is the meaning of splanchnizomai when referring to God’s compassion?  The minor form of this word originally alluded to the inner parts of a man (I.e. the heart, liver & so on).  It could be used of the inward parts of a sacrificial animal, but became commonly known as the lower parts of the abdomen, the intestines, & especially the womb.

Some theologians have felt this term was too graphic to use in reference to God’s compassion.  Using the word for “intestines” to refer to God’s Compassion is ideally parallel to us using the word “guts” for courage in modern English jargon; as to say, “He really has a lot of guts.”  However, I think the New Testament writers meant to do exactly this.  They were impressing on the readers the power & force of God’s compassion.  They may have also had a physical feeling associated with compassion.  Sometimes a sharp pain in the abdomen accompanies intense feelings of compassion for those we love.  The decision for such a graphic word served to emphasize to the New Testament Christians that God’s compassion for them was rooted in His deep love for them & His sensitivity to their pain.

Answering The Call…

Last night I was thinking of being called to the ministry & what it means for me as opposed to what it might mean for others.  I started thinking of scripture & the various things that I could see that we are all called to do so I started reading through certain scripture getting more ideas.  Then I started going through the parallel scripture that was marked on the page for more reference.  It quickly occurred to me that we’re all called for the same things.  Everyone of us are called to complete the same tasks as every other person that stands up & says “I’m a Christian.”  I didn’t used to think this, as it’s not the most popular idea that some people are called to minister, some are just called to witness, some might not be “called” at all… but when the Bible gives some sort of call for any Christian, it’s a call that should be considered on our own lives.  How else are we to live if we don’t live by example of Christ & His disciples?

So we come to the first call on the Christians life.  I believe every Christian that acknowledges Christ as their Savior, which should be all of them, is called to ministry.  Not saying everyone is called to be a preacher or pastor a church.  I’m going to take the majority of my message for this call from II Timothy 4:1-5 (NASB).  This is a charge from Timothy to preach the Word of God, to constantly be ready to share this Word, a warning of what will come with people no longer sticking to the doctrine of the Bible, to be sober (innocent) in all things so that we may preach & it be heard.  Not to say you have to pastor a church, but in whatever you do, you must preach  the Gospel along with it.  In Romans 10:14-15, Paul asks the Church how people will call upon the Lord if they don’t believe in Him?  How will they believe in Him if they haven’t heard the Gospel?  How will they hear without a preacher? And how will they preach unless they are sent?

So we look at the meaning of “ministry” from the origin, & that actually means to serve or “in service for” which is interesting, because then that means we are called to serve.  It seems Christianity has become a “serve us” industry as opposed to the other way around.  So how must we serve?  Well, the best answer is selflessly & the scripture to back that up is John 13 when Jesus washed the feet of Peter.  The scripture I want to use is a bit long for this post, but I will look more into it in an expository way when I elaborate on it.  There are several wonderful parts in this scripture.  Verses 6-9 is symbolic of spiritual cleansing & verses 12-17 is a model of Christian humility.  Through this action Jesus taught the lesson of selfless service that was supremely exemplified by His death on the cross.

One of the big reasons I picked the service scripture from John 13 (besides it being a favorite) is because it moves on to my next point on what we are called to do.  We are called to love.  John 13:31-35 is the specific scripture I’m looking at & in verse 34 it calls to love one another a “new commandment.”  After announcing His departure & having insisted His disciples could not come with Him, Jesus began to lay out what He expected of them after His leaving.  Love is to serve as the distinguishing characteristic of discipleship.  The “12 disciples” are not the ones being talked about here.  We are all disciples of Christ so this scripture applies to us as much as anyone & should be our defining characteristic as a Christian.

Compassion is what I’d like to list as the next call on our lives.  I Peter 3:8 says “Now finally, all of you should be like-minded and sympathetic, should love believers, and be compassionate and humble” (HCSB).  It goes on to say that we should not return evil with evil & insult with an insult, but instead give blessings to the ones who curse us.  What a scripture…  That to me sums up a majority of Christ’s witness while He was on this Earth.  Matthew 9:36 “Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them…” Matthew 20:34 “Moved with compassion, Jesus touched their eyes; and immediately they regained their sight and followed Him.”  (NASB)  How many people would “gain sight” & follow Jesus if we were to regularly show the kind of compassion Jesus showed?  The cool thing, He is still showing compassion on us without being physically present.

The next call seems to be one of the most mistaken calls of the Church; it’s the call to worship.  My experiences in leading worship in smaller & bigger elements has led me to study worship.  The Book of Psalms is filled with worshipful scriptures & was in fact written as poems & songs in worship to God.  Psalm 95:6 says “Come, let us worship and bow down…”  That’s one example of worshiping in showing reverence to God for His holiness.  Well what is worship?  Worshiping something is showing how much “worth” it has to you.  In a sense, worship could also be said as “worth-ship.”  In Acts 17:22-25 Paul exclaims to people that they are worshiping in ignorance to “AN UNKNOWN GOD” (as is the inscription on an idol).  Paul goes on to say that God, who made everything, does not dwell in human temples (talking what is man-made) & God is not served by the hands of humans “as though He needs anything.”  All of this gives way to God being eternal & holy & for that reason He is worthy of any & all worship & praise.  Sometimes I wonder how many “unknown gods” that we have in our lives that takes away from seeing God more worthy than what we do.

The last call I want to talk about is the call to be transformed.  Romans 12:2 tells us to not be conformed, but “be transformed by the renewing of your mind…” (NASB) so that we will know what the will of God is.  I find it interesting that the “mind” is specifically said here.  To me it seems that a lot of people, including me, are content with “following their heart” to the point that we fall back on that statement.  It’s Biblical that the heart should not be what we think with.  Well why is that?  That’s because the heart is emotion.  The heart thinks with the world.  However, the mind is where knowledge is contained & is where the Holy Spirit takes affect, thus transforming our mind to the will of God & the Holy Spirit being able to take better effect in our lives.  This kind of transformation can occur only as the Holy Spirit changes our thinking through consistent study & meditation of scripture.  The renewed mind is one saturated with & controlled by the Word of God.

Cherubim/Seraphim

So in the Verge last night, my church’s college/career group, we were talking about Isaiah 6 & Isaiah’s commission to becoming a prophet and take God’s word/plan to a specific people. It’s a great chapter & a wonderful part of scripture for teaching a few different aspects & the only other chapter in Isaiah I would say compares to it is Ch. 40.

Anyway, the question arose about the seraphim & the significance of them having six wings with four of them being used to cover themselves (two covers their face & two covers their feet) while only two of these six wings are being used to fly. I thought it was interesting enough that once my Bible study was done on the specific subject from that part of scripture (which was about leaving the comfort zone), that I started studying it on the side. It’s wonderful & actually goes so much more toward the story than I had originally imagined. So to start out here, I’m going to explain the angelic beings the seraphim & the cherubim. Now what I’m going to write below DOES have a point. Just read through it because it’s not all facts about these angels. It’s actually wrapped up with something I think is pretty important.

Cherubim – These are the angelic beings that we now depict as the “little baby,” but interestingly enough, in their true Biblical sense, they are anything but little, cute babies. In Ezekiel they are shown with the likeness of man, but with the qualities (or faces) of four different creatures. These creatures are a lion, ox, eagle, & man. So the cherubim have four “faces”, they’re not cute little babies, AND these are the known “guardian angels.” In Genesis 3:24 it says after driving out Adam & Eve from the Garden, cherubim were sent with a “flaming sword” as to guard the tree of life. The irony here, Satan himself was a guardian cherub before being cast out (Ezekiel 28). That’s not really much to go toward my thought right now, but I could think of several thought-provoking ideas that would make good discussion. I just like how God casts Satan out, His right hand “man” & top guardian angel of all angels, & when Satan tempts man to sin & succeeds in this temptation… God guards the Garden with very angels that used to serve right beside Satan when he was known as Lucifer. So reading through scripture & seeing the attributes of the cherubim, these beings, these angels, were made to worship & serve God through actual service. The cherubim were created by God to DO work for God. They are the workers that go out & guard & “take care” of things in full service, obedience, and worship toward God’s glory essentially being the “doers” of the angels.

Seraphim – I will probably take everything right out of the scripture I was recently on. There is much more about them but it’s summed up good with Isaiah 6:2. First off, I love the meaning from the Hebrew for the word seraphim. Seraphim, as defined in the Catholic encyclopedia, is “The name, Hebrew masculine plural form, designates a special class of Heavenly attendants of Yahweh’s courts.” This is important… “Yahweh’s courts” … It could have said “God’s courts” but with that we could just think that these angels are residing in Heaven. However, saying Yahweh’s courts puts these angels right in the midst of the throne of God (in the very “room” of God & all of His presence & glory). These angels are being described as having six wings, unlike the cherubim and their four wings. In Isaiah, he describes seeing the seraphim with two of their wings covering their feet and two of their wings covering their face. The reason two wings cover their feet is in recognition to their lowliness compared to God. They know they’re not worthy to stand in His presence, therefore covering their feet a lot like some cultures in the world might bow for a king or a leader putting that leader above them & of lifting him up. The reason two wings cover the face is because they can’t gaze on the glory & holiness of God. That’s pretty simply said. The facts about the four wings being used like that is VITAL to the point of the seraphim. They are using four of their six wings in worship to God. This is the vital part because that emphasizes not only their worship, but the importance of worshiping God.

This is the cool part to me… Cherubim are made to be the “doers” & seraphim are made to merely stand in the presence singing praises to God. All of this is to be done in worshipful reverence of God’s power, glory, & holiness & is to be done obediently. So God has made angels to do separate parts of worship, however, God made man to do ALL parts of worship. The Bible tells us in everything we do, we should do it in worship. We should do all things for the glory of God. I’m not sure Isaiah would have been so willing to go had he not seen the image of the seraphim exalting God in that way. Unfortunately, we don’t have that luxury. I say luxury, but I can’t even think of a better word for it because it’s completely indescribable. The fact remains, though. We were made to exalt God in every thing we do. Unlike the angels having specific reasons, we were made for all reasons.