Equipping for Service.

     And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fulness of Christ.
                                                       Ephesians 4:11-13 NASB

     We see here that the purpose of the ministry gifts to the church (apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, and teacher), is to equip the saints for service! It was never intended for the pastor to do all the work while the congregation sits and soaks it all in. Evangelists are called and gifted by God to win the lost in great numbers, yet each and everyone of us as born again Christians are called to "Go into all the world" as well. We all have a sphere of influence where God has placed us. We have families, friends, co workers, and neighbors, who all have the great need to be reconciled to God through Jesus Christ. We have the responsibility to reach out to them. Sadly, it seems that many sit idly by, either through ignorance, or fear, expecting the pastor to win the lost. We might muster up some courage, and invite a friend to an evangelistic service, but it is not just the evangelists job either.
     We need to do things according to God's word. Our Churches should be training grounds where people hear of missions and evangelizing. The church should be a place where people catch some zeal to reach the lost, a place where they actually are brought to a place where they can hear the call of God on their lives. The church should be a place where the presence and power of the Holy Spirit is active, where people are filled and sent out. It was never meant to be a place where we sit within our four walls waiting for the lost to come and find us. Yet that is what far too many of us expect. 
     You can read the stories of missionaries from the past, how they were burdened and received their calling as children; how they were trained in the home and in the church, and when they grew up they fulfilled the call of God on their lives and poured themselves out in a foreign field. History is filled with such stories. What has happened? We now have children growing up entertained in childrens church, youth groups focusing on pizza parties and lock-ins, and adults sitting Sunday after Sunday in their same comfortable pews.
     We have adopted the mindset that the church is little more than a hospital for sinners. We believe that we must spend our time patching people up, taking care of their faults and sins. True, we must have compassion, we are to encourage and do what we can to help the weak, but ultimately we are called to grow up into the fulness of Christ, to be mature, capable of hearing and answering the call of God on our lives. Our great need is to be equipped for the work of service; to be made ready to go wherever God leads us to go. Their is a lost and dying world out there, and they will not come to us, we are to go to them.
     

Living In Anticipation.

     Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming.
                                        Matthew 24:42 NASB

     Jesus exhorts us to live in anticipation of His coming. As we do not know the day nor the hour of His return, we are to live as if He could come at any moment.
     It seems that as time goes on, and He has not yet returned, many become careless and complacent. The tendency is to get caught up in the affairs of this life, and to take our eyes off of Jesus.


    Who then is the faithful and sensible slave whom his master put in charge of his household to give them their food at the proper time?
      Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes. Truly I say to you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.
     But if that evil slave says in his heart "My master is not coming for a long time," and begins to beat his fellow slaves and eat and drink with drunkards; the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour which he does not know, and will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
                                        Matthew 24:45-51 NASB

     Sadly this is what happens so often. As time goes on our anticipation of Christ's return diminishes. Maybe it is because our love grows cold (Matt 24:12; Rev 2:4). We see professing Christians begin to nit pick one another, rather than build each other up in the faith. We see our brothers and sisters fall into sin. We see churches and denominations tolerate and accept gross immorality within their ranks, in defiance to the Word of God.
     As Christ's body here on the earth, we need to be about His business. We have a charge to keep, souls to rescue, brothers and sisters to strengthen in the faith. Let us keep our eyes fixed on Christ, lest He come at a time when we do not expect Him, catching us unaware.