SetApart1

Church ministry is great to be a apart of and to do anything for God is always a plus. It is also great that God would allow us to serve others in His church. However there is a danger. The enemy is always coming up with interesting ways to halt the work of God. This is sometimes obvious in your face temptations many times its subtle enticements that lead us astray.

One of these subtle enticements came my way as I was busy doing what God had called me to do. I had been very busy. Every week more and more roles were put on my shoulders and even when I was home I still was doing something for the church. Little did I know that while I was focusing so much on the ministry that my time with the Lord was slowing down, and my family was being neglected. My wife voiced her concern for me and the family. Her concern was that though it was good to serve in the ministry and do a good work for God Our home still had to have priority per God’s word in Ephesians. Our home was being neglected. The kids and my wife were not being ministered to, or cared for. I quickly got defensive and in my mind I thought I am doing a work for God why are you trying to hold me back? The more I prayed and considered the scriptures I could see that I had fallen in love with the ministry, I had actually began falling away from the one true love of my precious Lord Jesus. Of course major decisions had to be made. Those decisions were very difficult and many disagreed with me. Many even told me that I was making bad decisions. I believe many of us involved in ministry many times lose their love of Jesus while their love for the ministry grows. We get so busy doing that it can even affect our time with Jesus Himself. It can become a driving desire instead of the love of Christ being the driving desire. Being involved in church ministry can be addicting!   If we look at the church of Ephesus in Revelation 2 that they were addicted to the ministry.

Rev 2:2 “I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; Rev 2:3 “and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name’s sake and have not become weary.

They loved the ministry. They were very good at it. They were gifted, theologically correct, and they even endured hardship and did it well. However Jesus says, they left someone out. Um JESUS! Why? How did Jesus get left out? Why was Jesus pushed to the side? He was replaced by the love of the ministry. Thats a weird thought that we can start off doing a work because we love Jesus but as we go along we somehow fall in love with the very thing that He has appointed us to. We can even get to the point of neglecting the very person who it is all about. Wether it be the thrill of speaking in front of others or the high esteem of hard work somehow we all get sidetracked at one time or another. The love of the ministry takes over. This love begins to overwhelm us. Just like any other bad relationship it begins to tie a noose on all relationships around us. Husbands began to push aside their children for the ministry. Many men in the ministry began to sacrifice their relationship with their wives for the sake of the ministry. Many of you even now are shaking your head in denial. Your saying, “no not me.” I challenge you to take a deep look at yourself and the ministry that God has called you to. Why do you do it? Why do you take the time to minister in your ministry? Is it the paycheck? Is it the people? Is it for a pat on the back? These are honest questions that we must answer. Throughout the scriptures we are warned “do not be deceived.”

The Pharisees also were ones who were in love with the ministry. They had even got to the point where they began to add to God’s law. They began to do works not because of the love of God but because they wanted to be noticed by men. They wanted high honor from people. Jesus voiced this problem in Matthew 23:

1Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, 2  saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses; 3  therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say {things} and do not do {them.} 4  ”They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with {so much as} a finger. 5  ”But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels {of their garments.} 6  ”They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, 7  and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men.

This is the danger. Doing ministry for the sake of glory to be recognized as special. Jesus said that they wanted “their deeds noticed by men.” What does God think of this? Listen to what Jesus says concerning these pharisees. In Matthew 23 he says they are hypocrites,  sons of hell, fools, blind men, serpents, and brood of vipers. I don’t know about you but its seems pretty obvious that Jesus is not very fond of these guys. It seems to me that God hates self glorification or anything that steals Glory that he deserves. When we become consumed with the ministry instead of Jesus its seems that it comes from wanting the glory of men. Jesus in His warning to the church of Ephesus says, Repent!

Rev 2:5 ‘Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place–unless you repent.

Repent or turn from your sin. Recognize your sin and turn from it. Yes this is sin. Also He says do the deeds you did at first. What we did first was serve for the love of Jesus. We served to lift His name up. We spent time with Him and were so in love with Jesus that all we could think about was Him. Everything we did was for that love. Jesus is saying get back to that love. How? Fall back in love with Jesus. Thats all I can say fall back in love with Jesus. You might do that by taking a trip alone to focus on Him. Or maybe you need to prioritize that time with Him again. I know that with me and my wife if we don’t make our relationship a priority then our relationship can become a distant friendship. So we have to make time to talk and go out on dates where we leave the phones at home and just focus on each other. I believe the same goes for our relationship with our precious Jesus. Take the time to talk with Him. Take time to just ponder His awesomeness. Remember why you first fell in love with Him in the first place. For those of us involved in the ministry Jesus gives us a little more insight in Matthew 23. Jesus hides a little biblical jewel right in the center of this passage.

11 “But the greatest among you shall be your servant. 12  ”Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.

If you want to avoid the sin of the Pharisees, and the Ephesians than here is your antidote. Be a servant! Humble yourself and serve Jesus. Do not be a “church celeb” but a servant of all. Go back to being a servant of Jesus and not of the church. When we do it unto Jesus everything falls into line. Our families get  the time they need. The church gets the minister that they need. We get the love that we need from a saviour that desires to have a relationship with us. Not because he needs it but because He loves us. I challenge you to be honest with yourself are you in love with the ministry or are you in love with Jesus.

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