Ministering to the Saints

Good morning and welcome in everybody. Today, we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture from The Book of Matthew.

Matthew 20:25-28 But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them. But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

Jesus told His disciples that the greatest among them would be their minister. A minister in its most simplistic terms is somebody who attends to the needs of someone else. A woman might care for her aging dad by helping him out with the things that he might not be capable of doing himself. A mother will take care of the young children by clothing them, feeding them, and providing them with the basic things that they need to get by. A man of God is the servant of Christ, whose responsibility is to minister to God’s sheep by feeding them regularly with the truth of God’s Holy Word.

1 Peter 5:2 Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind;

To be a good minister requires being selfless, by putting the needs of others before yourself. Jesus was calling out to men everywhere to preach, but many of them were too caught up with the things of this world to do the things that God wanted to be done. In order to serve the Lord with a perfect heart, we must be completely selfless, by giving up any desires that we may have, so that we can focus on what God wants us to do instead. Many men will pray the Lord’s Prayer which starts by saying, “ Our Father.” Now, if God truly is your Father, you will submit to doing what He wants you to do, just as our precious Lord Jesus has always done.

Luke 2:48-49 And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?

John 6:38 For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.

God’s Word teaches us that we must become like Christ, which means that men need to rise up and preach! There are thousands of ministries that women can be involved with that show the love of Christ to others through their deeds, but unlike men, women are forbidden from teaching in any capacity, especially scripture. Men must rise up and teach their children, their wives, and others in the church. Most of you know that teaching was always something that I absolutely hated, and told my own family that it was something that I would never do. But when I became a believer, I knew that I would have to learn to do the thing that I hated in order to please God. To minister to the needs of others, especially when it comes to preaching, requires selflessness, because you are giving up your time to freely provide for the Spiritual needs of others. Jesus freely gave His time and wisdom to help us, and He wanted His disciples to do the same.

Matthew 10:8 Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.

The greatest person in the church is the one with a servant’s heart. One of the definitions that I found for servant, is someone who dedicates themselves to serving others, providing selfless assistance and support. A servant will prioritize the needs of somebody else above themselves. The King of Kings, who created the world and everything in it, came to this earth and walked amongst His own creation in human form. He wasn’t dressed in fancy robes, or clerics outfits, and they didn’t even know who He was when they came to arrest him in the garden of Gethsemane. He looked exactly like everybody else. He was not seeking fame nor glory, but came as a servant to help a sinful world find their way to eternal life. 

Philippians 2:5-7  Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:

When you take care of elderly people, or even the handicapped, it requires a person with a servant’s heart. It can be very difficult and requires great humility to provide for somebody else the tasks that nobody else wants to do. Some of those duties are far beneath some people, but it is a quality that we must learn in the church. Foot washing is something that was always considered a dirty and menial task, but yet our precious Lord Jesus washed His own disciples feet to teach them the lesson of serving one another in love. 

John 13:3-15 Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he was come from God, and went to God; He riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself. After that he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded. Then cometh he to Simon Peter: and Peter saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet? Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter. Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. Simon Peter saith unto him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all. For he knew who should betray him; therefore said he, Ye are not all clean. So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you? Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you.

Think about a dad who gets down on his knee to tie his son’s shoelaces before he leaves for school. The heart of a servant. Think of a mother who after everyone leaves the house, goes back inside and picks up the dirty laundry, makes the beds, and washes all the dishes. The heart of a servant. Ministry is about serving and helping others in their needs. As Paul ministered the Word of God to others, they would minister back to him and help him out with whatever he needed.

2 Timothy 1:16-18 The Lord give mercy unto the house of Onesiphorus; for he oft refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain: But, when he was in Rome, he sought me out very diligently, and found me. The Lord grant unto him that he may find mercy of the Lord in that day: and in how many things he ministered unto me at Ephesus, thou knowest very well.

Philippians 2:25 Yet I supposed it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother, and companion in labour, and fellowsoldier, but your messenger, and he that ministered to my wants.

Romans 15:27 It hath pleased them verily; and their debtors they are. For if the Gentiles have been made partakers of their spiritual things, their duty is also to minister unto them in carnal things.

The greatest thing that any man could do with his life is dedicate themselves to preaching and teaching God’s Word, but to do it requires becoming a servant of Jesus. We must selflessly give of our time and efforts for His sake, in order to further the things of the kingdom of God. 

2 Corinthians 4:5 For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake.

In our humility in serving others, people can see in us the qualities of our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 9:19 For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all, that I might gain the more.

The Christian faith is about helping others, in whatever capacity that you can do it. Make sure you do it in the name of Jesus and reach out to the needs of the suffering wherever they may present themselves.

Men must rise up to do the things that women are forbidden to do, by becoming a Soldier of Christ. So, when will you pick up your sword, and start preaching the things of God? When will you men finally decide to be about the Heavenly Father’s business? When will you become a servant of Christ, by continuing in His footsteps, and……

………Ministering to the Saints

Let’s think about these things for right now. We can be found on your web browser by searching, tlkjbc where you can find our diaries distributed through various platforms. We are not associated, nor affiliated with any other religious groups. You can get our entire podcast feeds directly, along with transcripts at tlkjbc.com or I suppose that you could find us somewhere up here, in the Great Northern Minnesota woods. Peace to you all, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody.

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