Kingdom Work
Ministry is a privilege and a joy when it is done for the Lord and with the Lord. So many of us have it all confused and see it as a profession and miss the whole satisfaction that is offered by God. I have learned in Cuba that God is using laymen to do ministry in a whole new dimension because there are many more of them than there are pastors and professionals. When are we going to see this and equip the man and woman in the pew to do Kingdom work? Many see ministry as a task of something we do for God, how-ever, He does not need us. He could accomplish much more without us, but He has chosen to include us so we can see His glory. He wants us to experience the encouragement and fulfillment of God using us in making Him famous. He desires all to be saved and to worship Him, but often times we get caught up in manmade organizations, and carnal agendas only to miss God and His Kingdom Work completely.
- 1. We are workers for God. We never become CEO’s. (v.9) Each of us will have different responsibilities and roles. This can become an ego problem for us because we compare ourselves giving way to jealousy which causes us to think and feel more highly of ourselves than we ought to, or we feel inferior desiring someone else’s job. Rom.12:3
- 2. We work with God. (v.9) The whole idea from the Lord is that we experience fellowship with Him. We do not to go off and work alone in our own strength.
- 3. We and all that we do are owned by Him. (v.9) Your ministry, your church, your family all belongs to the Lord. Many begin to take ownership and believe the ministry cannot exist without them. Wrong! God wants to include us but He is the only owner. He does not do cosigning or partnerships.
- 4. Our work will be tested. (v.13) When we get to the end of life our work will either have been eternal or temporary. We must be careful how we build the ministry (v10). Our work will be revealed and exposed v.13
- 5. We are to be good at what we do in this work. (v.10) The Apostle Paul was an expert builder. We need to be good at what we do. If you mow grass do it for the glory of God. If you serve food do it as unto the Lord 1Cor.10:31
- 6. Jesus is the focus of our ministry. (v.11) I am so glad that Baptist, Methodist, or some other label is not the focus. It becomes hard as we become engrossed in our circles of influence. We become myopic and begin to believe that our little corner of ministry is the most important and no one else is as effective as we are. Be careful, because the kingdom is much bigger than it appears from our perspective. Some Corinthian believers were carrying the banner of Apollos, Peter or Paul, because they had been greatly affected by them. Possibly they had come to faith in Christ as a result of their ministry. They had lost their perspective and become followers of men rather than Jesus. Are you following a man or Jesus?
- 7. We will be forced to work with other people. (vs.4-5) Someone said that they loved the ministry, but people got in their way. God gifts us so that we need each other in order to accomplish the work. (1 Cor 12)
- 8. Any positive outcome will be the result of God doing the work, not us. (v.7) God will never share His glory with another. He is not Baptist, Presbyterian, Pentecostal or Non-Denominational (which is a de-nominational in itself). God stands alone. He desires for us to know Him and the power of His resurrection. He desires for the whole world to see His glory through us and our work.
Are you working for or with God? When you stand before the Lord will He say “Well done”? Will your work stand for eternity? Give all the glory to God.
