When I was a young minister, my pastor tried to serve as the senior pastor of three different churches–simultaneously. Notice, I said he tried. The truth is, he was doing a little more than preaching on Sundays and performing funerals, weddings, and baptisms when needed. At least that was true about the local church I was a member of and that he was the “pastor” of.
My pastor could not possibly perform all the duties of a pastor for any of those three churches. One benefit to me was that his situation afforded me opportunities to assist him in his preaching obligations. Since I was a young preacher looking for opportunities to preach, this was good for me.
My pastor was not alone in this practice. Several of the more popular preachers back then did the same. The local churches they served preferred having these popular preachers at least sometime as opposed to not at all. And I guess those ministers found that quite flattering.
But here is what Paul the apostle admonished Timothy regarding the ministry: “But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry” (2 Tim. 4:5, NASB). That latter phrase, “fulfill your ministry,” means to fully carry out your ministry or to completely accomplish it.
Several aspects of the ministry are referred to in the verse: be sober, endure hardship, and do the work of an evangelist. Of course, the work of a pastor involves more than these, but these are relevant objectives.
This call to “fulfill your ministry” is not limited to pastors. In this post, I am speaking specifically to those of you who are involved in the more visible aspects of ministry. They include preachers, teachers, singers, musicians, deacons, elders, and the like.
Three Essentials to Fulfill Your Ministry
Referring to the verse I quoted above, I will briefly expand on the three essentials Paul mentions with regard to fulfilling one’s ministry.
1. Be sober. The word that renders sober denotes soundness of mind and temperance. The work of the Lord requires us to remain properly grounded. The Lord’s minister cannot effectively fulfill his calling if he allows himself to become spiritually intoxicated. He should always be grounded in his thinking and judgments.
2. Endure hardship. Regardless of what office in the ministry we operate in, we must “endure hardship” when it comes. And believe me, hardships will come. “Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Tim,othy 3:12, NASB).
The ministry God has given us requires more than exercising our gift(s). We must also become living examples of the gospel. It is commendable, for instance, that a singer can captivate the congregation with his rendition of, “Trust God When Trouble Comes.” But fulfilling one’s ministry requires the singer to exemplify that very trust in God when trouble comes in his or her own life.
3. Do the work of an evangelist. We are all evangelists in some form. This word literally refers to someone who shares the good news. All of us should be proactive in doing that. Sharing the good news resides at the very core of our divine mandate. We don’t have to get preachy about it. Our life is filled with opportunities to reach out to the lost for Christ. We must be willing to seize those moments.
God Has Equipped You
This call to “fulfill your ministry” is not an unreasonable request. God has not left you ill-equipped for the task. For implicit in Paul’s words to Timothy is this truth: God is faithful to equip us to fully discharge the ministry He commits into our hand. If you have been called to do what you do for the Lord, He has given you everything you need to succeed. So, are you striving to fulfill the duties of your ministry?
Copyright © 2022 by Frank King. All rights reserved.