I often find myself in conversations with other Christians about the ministry they sense God calling them to in their daily lives. Sometimes it is new believers, who are learning to listen to God’s voice for the first time through intentional practices like reading scripture daily, focused prayer, and fasting, and who are beginning to understand how God has uniquely equipped them for service in the church. Other times it is maturing Christians who seek prayer and discernment about a specific burden God has laid on their hearts to enter into a new type of ministry. Occasionally I speak with my graduate students, who are all training for vocational ministry of one sort or another and who are seeking to better understand what shape that vocation will take.
My role in these conversations is to listen, to pray, to encourage, and when prompted to offer words of discernment to help guide trajectory and next steps. I consider it a great privilege to walk alongside others as they seek to understand and to faithfully follow God’s call to full surrender.
Lately, I find myself again and again offering the same encouragement mixed with caution as I am approached for these conversations. Interestingly, both the encouragement and the caution are the same.
The Encouragement
Paul tells us that all Christ followers are gifted with the Holy Spirit’s presence with us, and that he imparts gifts to us individually for service within God’s in-breaking kingdom as part of the church (1 Cor. 12). All spiritual gifts are important, though some have greater visibility or responsibility within the church and in the church’s public witness.
This means everyone who calls Jesus Lord has a vital role to play in God’s kingdom. There are no throwaway jobs, only fulfilling and necessary work that expresses both our gratitude to the God who loves us and has given himself for us, and our unique gifts, abilities, and experiences.
When I am approached by a fellow believer to talk about their unique calling, I am able to enthusiastically give thanks and praise to God, because he is the one who calls and equips his people. As such, the best encouragement I can give someone is to continually offer thanks, to persist in seeking the Lord’s will, and to follow where he is leading without fear. If God is calling you to serve his kingdom purposes, and you continue to rely on his wisdom and strength, then you cannot fail. Even if you never see the full realization of your work in this lifetime, you can trust that God is using it for good and that you are investing in eternity.
Then I remind them that all ministry belongs to Jesus. It is for him, it is about him, and it is by him. One of the riskiest claims we can ever make is that ministry is our ministry. I don’t have a ministry as an educator or pastor. Jesus alone is Lord of these ministries, and my role within them is subject to his authority and direction, not my own. When we learn to live within this promise we have the potential to experience great joy and fulfillment as we serve in God’s kingdom. When we mistakenly see ministry as our own, we risk missing out on the blessings of serving in the King’s household, and risk harm to those we seek to serve.
The Caution
You can probably see already how the encouragement and caution are the same. The encouragement is to give thanks and make sure you are always directing others to Jesus. The caution is to remember that ministry belongs to Jesus and no other. Here is why I think this is important.
There is an ongoing tension between the cultures of the church and the society within which the church gives witness to the good news of Jesus. Sometimes the disparity between these two cultures is clearly laid out, but at other times the lines become blurred and the church begins to take on characteristics which subtly inhibit or damage that witness. This has been as true in every age of the church as it is today.
When blurring of cultural lines occurs, it is often most evident in ministry leadership at first, before it trickles down to the church body as a whole. This is one reason all ministry leaders should surround themselves with other mature Christ followers and seek accountability for their words and actions, and why all Christians should seek to learn from the saints who have come before us. We are not paving new roads in ministry. While methods for communicating the gospel might change over time, we are still traveling the same well-known and secure pathway to God’s kingdom as the early church and inviting others to join us on the journey.
There is a particular type of cultural desire that has always seemed to affect church leaders the most, but which is now seeping into the lives of Christians generally, regardless of their gifts or where God has equipped them to serve. It is particularly insidious, because it is often disguised as something intended for good. This desire has previously been known as fame. Now we call it influence.
I recently watched a message from Francis Chan, who was speaking at a large Christian conference. Most of the audience appeared to be young people in their 20’s or 30’s. He began by saying that a stage is a dangerous place for Christians. That the allure of seeking praise and accolades from a crowd, rather than from Jesus, is like a drug, both intoxicating and addictive. And then he proceeded to make an appeal to this younger generation to step away from their desire to increase their influence through TikTok, YouTube, and other social media platforms, and instead begin seeking the approval and affirmation of Jesus. He implored them to stop trying to make a name for themselves under the guise of spreading the gospel through their influence, and instead make the name of Jesus great through the witness of a quiet and holy life.
Chan was speaking from a deep well of his own experience. He resigned from pastoral leadership of the megachurch he planted in California at what many would consider the height of his success and popularity as a preacher. And this is precisely the point. I saw an interview with him that was recorded maybe a year after his resignation, and the interviewer asked him why he would do such a thing. His answer was that he began to notice a subtle shift in the way people within his church were talking about it. He said he was beginning to hear the name Francis Chan more than the name Jesus Christ, and he know something needed to change. The ministry to which God had called him was not supposed to be about him, but about Jesus. The risks were far too great for him to stay in that position of influence.
This has always been a challenge for people who God has placed in such roles. And while Chan’s response seems extreme to some people, he was only following the example set for him by John the Baptist.
John 3 recalls a moment when his disciples approached him with a concern. Up to that point, John had been gathering quite a following and a great deal of influence. As he preached the good news of the kingdom of God, he called people to repentance, and many responded and were baptized. But since Jesus had showed up on the scene, his numbers were taking a hit. They were concerned that John was losing influence. People were beginning to unfollow him and follow Jesus instead. Wasn’t he worried?
John’s response to his disciples’ concern contains a vitally important truth, and is the example we all should follow:
“You yourselves know how plainly I told you, ‘I am not the Messiah. I am only here to prepare the way for him.’It is the bridegroom who marries the bride, and the bridegroom’s friend is simply glad to stand with him and hear his vows. Therefore, I am filled with joy at his success.He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less.” (John 3:28-30, emphasis mine)
Jesus must become greater. I must become less. Jesus must receive the glory. All ministry belongs to him.
Because this is true, I can confidently claim that all faithful ministry actually happens at the periphery, or margins, of what God is saying and doing. Even when that ministry work is public or influential, it still occurs alongside the work of Christ, not in front of it. This doesn’t make our Christian service unimportant or irrelevant. It puts all ministry in the proper place alongside—and in the shadow of—God’s work.
When we fail to understand and acknowledge this, we not only risk ineffectiveness, we also risk missing out on the blessings of serving in God’s kingdom.
Jesus directly calls out glory-seekers, who fail to recognize this in his Sermon on the Mount.
“Watch out! Don’t do your good deeds publicly, to be admired by others, for you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven.When you give to someone in need, don’t do as the hypocrites do—blowing trumpets in the synagogues and streets to call attention to their acts of charity! I tell you the truth, they have received all the reward they will ever get.” (Matt. 6:1-2)
“When you pray, don’t be like the hypocrites who love to pray publicly on street corners and in the synagogues where everyone can see them. I tell you the truth, that is all the reward they will ever get.” (Matt. 6:5)
“And when you fast, don’t make it obvious, as the hypocrites do, for they try to look miserable and disheveled so people will admire them for their fasting. I tell you the truth, that is the only reward they will ever get.” (Matt. 6:16)
These verses are a caution against displaced ministry. Ministry that seeks to step into the limelight and take center-stage. That position belongs to Christ alone. He is the one who raises up church leaders for a purpose, and sometimes that means placing Christians in highly visible or influential roles in the church or in society. But these positions should not be sought because they are visible or influential. They should be entered into only with great conviction, humility, and maturity, and with godly accountability, lest they become a snare leading to the trap of self—self-promotion, self-importance, and self-deception.
If God calls you to such a ministry, I hope you will respond with a resounding “Here I am Lord, send me.” But with the same breath may you also proclaim, “He must become greater and greater; I must become less and less.”
It isn’t our ministry to begin with. The kingdom, the church, God’s people, and ministry all belong to Jesus. And only He is worthy of praise.Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when published
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slaughtered—
to receive power and riches
and wisdom and strength
and honor and glory and blessing.
Blessing and honor and glory and power
belong to the one sitting on the throne
and to the Lamb forever and ever.” (Rev. 5:12-13)
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