Blog In Audio:
Greetings,
Today I am continuing to address the role of leaders in the church. The first was that of being an example to others in word, conduct, love, spirit, faith, and purity. Leaders inspire those they lead by the example of their own personal testimony.
A second role of leaders is that of being servants. Leaders are not better than those they lead. They have been given a grace from God to assist others in living and growing into maturity in Christ. Paul wrote concerning what manner of attitude a leader should embrace.
Philippians 2:5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, 7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.
Although Jesus was equal to God, He served mankind in the form of a man. He didn’t make Himself of any reputation but served those that He led with a face like that of every man. As leaders, we must humble ourselves and give our lives to give life to others. Although we too are members of the body of Christ as sons and daughters of God, we choose to serve others by giving our lives to give life to them. All that we do we do for the wellbeing of others. This is the true heart of a leader.
True ministry is to love others. It is not about anointing and power. It is about powerful love and being able to love others powerfully. All believers are to give life to others. They are to do the work of ministry. The true work of ministry is to give love as who we are for the sake of others. We have each been given a grace from God to give life to our world. For this reason, a third role of leadership is to equip believers for the work of ministry.
Ephesians 4:11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry.
The equipping gifts of leadership serve to activate, facilitate, and release the characteristics of the apostolic, prophetic, evangelistic, pastoral, and teaching testimonies in the body of Christ. I believe that the body of Christ is filled with diverse members that exhibit the actions and testimonies of these attributes found in Christ. God has given equipping gifts in Christ that are sent to release and facilitate a culture where the maturation of these attributes can come about in the body. As those characteristics and attributes are made manifest the members of the body will be edified and will edify one another. There will be an increasing unity of faith, knowledge of the Son of God, increasing perfection, and continued development in maturation among the members of the body.
The apostolic gift is a gift that is ‘sent’ to ‘send others’ in establishing the things of God. An apostolic body of believers are believers who each know they are sent by God for a purpose, and they assist others in knowing who they are so they too can be sent for their true purpose of establishing others in Christ. A prophetic gift sees what God sees and activates a prophetic spirit in the body that sees what they could not see before. True prophecy is to speak as God’s voice whereby – life happens! God wants a prophetic body where the voice of God is spoken, and life happens. The evangelistic gift causes those who did not know faith to know faith in Christ and the salvation of Jesus’ name. God wants an evangelistic body of believers that brings the life of God’s salvation to many. The pastoral gift is a grace of caring for others. God wants a pastoral body of believers that cares for one another. This is not one pastor over many, but a pastoral spirit that empowers everyone to know the names of one another and to care for them as an expression of our chief shepherd – Jesus Christ. The teaching gift is not about information but is a true grace of mentoring that brings an understanding of God to the hearts and minds of men. God wants a body of believers with a grace of discipling others in understanding and knowing God in all things. For these reasons, leaders lead others to equip others for the work of ministry.
Food For Thought,
Ted J. Hanson
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House of Bread Ministry
3210 Meridian St.
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