Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours forevermore from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. Welcome to another week of the month of December 2022. I pray that your heart will be kept humble always to receive the ministry of those sent by God to build you up, so that all that concerns your life will be perfected, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
As we are shown in the bible, there are people chosen and gifted by God in the church to build us up in His will (Eph 4:11-16). And how we receive their ministry will go a long way in determining whether our lives are perfected in God’s will or not. Truly, we may not have issues receiving their ministry, when they are doing or saying to us things that make us happy or that are pleasant. But what about when they are doing or saying things that do not make us happy but which are in line with the will of God? Are we still going to accept their ministry and relate to them with the respect they deserve?
It is unfortunate that many of God’s people think their church leaders are meant to always do and say only those things that make them happy. But that is not the will of God. The job of a church leader is not to do things that make anybody happy but things that will build them up.
Paul says to the Corinthian church, “…everything we do, dear friends, is for your strengthening.” (2Cor 12:19) Did you see that? The focus of every church leader must be to do only those things that will strengthen the brethren and build up their faith. And some of these things include rebuking, correcting and sometimes punishing the brethren.
Now we know that correcting, rebuking and punishing people are not always pleasant for those involved. But they have to be done for the health of the church of God. Therefore, whether those being rebuked, corrected or punished appreciate what is being done to them or not, what has to be done has to be done. And this is why every leader of God’s people must be bold and also possess adequate strength of character. Otherwise, he will not do what he has to do for the growth and establishment of God’s people. Instead, he will be like Aaron who, out of fear, allowed the Israelites to run wild in the wilderness and give themselves to idolatry, to their own destruction (Ex 32).
But what did God say to Ezekiel, when he was appointing him as a watchman over Israel? He said this to him:
“The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and stubborn. Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says.’ And whether they listen or fail to listen — for they are a rebellious house — they will know that a prophet has been among them. And you, son of man, do not be afraid of them or their words. Do not be afraid, though briers and thorns are all around you and you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say or terrified by them, though they are a rebellious house. You must speak my words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen, for they are rebellious.” (Ezek 2:4-7NIV)
Look at that. God told this man not to bother at all about the disposition of the Israelites to his ministry. Instead, he should keep declaring His word to them, whether they are happy about it or not. And that is how to get God’s work done. Our focus must never be on pleasing men but on pleasing God who has sent us.
If we, therefore, end up being hurt while our leaders in the church are doing what God wants them to do to us and for us, we should not get upset. On the contrary, we should humbly embrace the will of God for our lives, knowing that everything He does is for our good (Heb 12:5-12). And my prayer is that your heart will be kept humble always to be yielded to spiritual discipline, so that your life can be perfected by God in all ways, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Have a great week.
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