Ephesians 4:1-16
I hope you all understand by now that Christianity is not a spectator sport; that you are not invited to watch a game on Sunday and call in your opinions on Monday. You are actually invited to come out of the pews and join in the game; in other words, to become actively involved! I am convinced, if this church realizes it’s God given potential, it will be the direct result of you all becoming ministers, and I don’t necessarily mean the ordained kind, men and women, you and I becoming committed to building God’s kingdom and the whole congregation becoming an army for the Lord. Just thinking about it makes my spine tingle with excitement! Are you willing to join the team?
Paul said in Ephesians, “I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.” Let there be no confusion about this. There are certain qualities necessary for those who would be ministers in our congregation. “Be humble and gentle,” says Paul. When God calls you to minister, He is calling you to be a servant, not a big star
Humility, I believe, is the ability to know ourselves as God knows us. The word humble comes from the root word humus. Be down to earth versus putting on airs. Humble people neither exaggerate their goodness or their guilt. Just be who God has called you to be and always set your standard of life against the example of Christ who calls you into partnership of ministry with Him. Be gentle because gentleness is the ability to place each thought and each motive under the control of God.
“Be patient and loving,” says Paul. Patience is the ability to idle your motor when you feel like stripping the gears, something I have to remind myself of frequently! It is the ability to step back. Did you know that that love was such a unique Christian concept that they coined a new word for it in the first century? They called it Agape; the single minded determination to seek another’s highest good no matter what! Patiently, loving people are long suffering people. They persevere to the end.
Paul said, “To each of one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it.” And the Psalmist said, “I will praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” What God made you to be determines what He intends for you to do. You are something special. You are the only one of a kind. No one else is exactly like you. God has made you unique. You are uniquely shaped for ministry.
I believe there are sufficient spiritual gifts as well as practical giftings in every community of believers to do what God is calling that community to do in that particular moment of time. Most of us know what we are good at and where our passions lie. What do you feel passionate about? Where is your heart this morning?
God uses those who are willing to give their all to Him. Those who have a passion to serve others in order to grow His kingdom.
This morning I want to affirm those of you whom I am aware of, who have seen a need or followed a passion God has laid on your hearts and who have developed ministries out there in our community. Some of you may not even be aware it is actually a “ministry” because you are just doing something you love.
Karen, thank you for all you do at Churtonleigh Rest Home. Along with Rachel and other volunteers from our church, you have done the groundwork that has opened the door for my ministry in that place both to the residents as well as the staff.
Kas, your passion for bringing the Gospel to the Indian community has had a wide reaching effect, and you have not only experienced your father coming to the Lord but you have encouraged and inspired Raj to take up this ministry as well.
Sonia and Rodney, you saw the need and took up the opportunity to minister to those preparing for marriage. Not every couple who comes is Christian, so the way you minister will truly be a blessing to others.
Louise and Anne Allan, by following their passion, started a painting group in Churton Park which provides a ministry to Christians and non Christians alike.
Anne Jay, loves to read and saw an opportunity to form a book club for others in the community allowing all sorts of conversations to take place, including discussions about Christianity.
Wayne and Bronwyn over the years have developed a special prison ministry up at Arohata Women’s Prison, and we heard last week, how God is blessing them and opening more doors of opportunity that will possibly allow members of our church to become involved in the future.
Jim and his dog Jess do volunteer visiting to the children’s wards each week at Wellington Hospital and Jim tells me that … presence has a real calming effect, not only on the children but on their stressed parents. Jim also was concerned about people living on their own in the community and saw the idea of a travel club as a way of getting these people to come together to talk about and to organise trips together.
Phil and Kas heard of the organisation Drug Arm which ministers to those who work on the streets of Wellington at night such as the prostitutes etc. and became involved in that ministry.
Linda has a pastoral heart and works as a volunteer visitor at Keneperu Hospital through the Order of St. Luke.
Theresa, Louise, Karen, Anne, Daphne, and Vickie, have a heart for children coming to know the Lord and have committed themselves each week to teaching CRE.
Rachel has a passion for sign language and runs weekly classes for Christians and non Christians alike to pass on her skills under the guidance of Nicky.
Many of you, of course, have ministries here at church and I want to affirm all those of you who are involved in the children’s ministry: Anne Jay, roger Peel, Louise, Claire, Chi Wei, Peter, Karen, Rachel, Rodney, and Sonia.
Those who have a passion for our older youth and who are involved in that ministry are Roger Ellis, Ross, Rodney, Alex and Robyn.
Of course we couldn’t do without our music teams and Chris, Steve, Ross, Sharon, Anita, Marcus, Pepa, Jill, Robyn and Heather , Matthew, Anne, Dinesh and Caleb give very ably of their time and talents.
John Daysh’s passion to see others come to Christ sees him leading Alpha year after year. Thank you also to Dave Oldershaw whose passion for men in ministry has led him taking over the leadership of Promise Keepers in the church and the men’s four by four ministry that comes out of that.
Thanks to the commitment of those of you who lead Life Groups week after week, which are so vitally important.
Thanks also to the incredible engineering and practical skills of DaveMiddleton and because of their dedication we have a very workable sound desk. Our sound technicians are Dave Oldershaw, Dave Middleton, Matthew Peel, Anne Stainer, Andrew and Elmar who do a fantastic job in helping the service to run smoothly.
Of course we have those of you who are intercessors, greeters, servers at communion and those who serve and provide morning tea. Gosh, have I left anyone out?
What I have hoped to achieve this morning is to affirm all of you who are involved in ministry. You are truly helping to build God’s kingdom and He will bless you for it.
And lastly, but very importantly, I wish to affirm and acknowledge all the fathers in our church. Guys you do such an awesome job. Not only do you grow and nurture your own children but many of you are fabulous role models for other children in our community. May God bless you richly as we all celebrate Father’s Day today.
As members of the family of God we are all different. We have different strengths and talents and different passions. However, I don’t see our differences as a weakness but rather as our strength. I believe we need we need to see and affirm each other’s strengths, accept each other’s differences and celebrate our unity in Jesus Christ. May we as Church dare to be different as long as we are bringing glory to God.
What is your passion? Where does your strength lie? How are you using the talents God has given you for His service? God wants you to be fully involved in His game of life and you can do this by using both the talents and the passion you have for something to bring glory to His name.
Most importantly, remember, you cannot afford to stand on the sidelines and just be a spectator. God wants you in the game.
