Matthew 22:37–40 tells us the foundational commandments of ministry:
Jesus said to him, “ ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” (Also see colon mark 12: 30–31; Luke 10:27)
To summarize these four verses, we are told to love God and love others and everything we do because every soul is important to God!
As a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ, I will share the vision that God has laid on my heart, teach the principles of Christ and give direction to the body of Christ. I believe that God has called me to first minister to the broken, wounded and discarded of the body of Christ, and equally to evangelize – spread the
good news space - proclaim the gospel of Christ – to the lost.
Individually and as a ministry, we are to have a great commitment (to engage oneself) to the great commandment (to direct with authority the commandments of Christ) so that the great commission (the authority to act) can heal, mend and grow the body of Christ!
In other words, we are to engage ourselves in directing, with authority, the directions/commandments of God by the authority given to us in and by Christ so that the body of Christ can grow. With this in mind, we are to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ first to those around us, then to surrounding areas, then to the nation and finally to the world. In doing so, the body of Christ will grow. And as it grows, we will teach, educate, train, and equip the body to know the Word of God line upon line, precept upon precept.
As a local body, we are called to evangelize and in doing so we are to meet the needs of the people. What are the most compelling passages of scripture is Matthew 25: 31-46:
“When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’”
“Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’
‘“And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’”
“Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’”
“Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
One of my prayers for myself and this ministry that God has entrusted to me is found in Ephesians 1:15–23:
“Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.”
May God richly bless you and keep you as you walk in the truth of His Word. Amen.