Perhaps you read the quote of Spurgeon and you began to be defensive in your own mind.  I know I did.  I love to preach the gospel!!  Jesus death on the cross and His resurrection are the center piece of all of scripture.  Yet in youth ministry we get sidetracked by how many of our kids smoke pot, have sex, or do other things that are not approved of.  While it is true that these things do not honor God, it is also true that without a commitment to Jesus there is no spiritual reason for any person to avoid such behavior.

Love is one of those words that brings all kinds of different thoughts to mind.  Sometimes I begin to think about Beau Jo’s Pizza and how much I love it.  Other times I think about my wife and kids, they are amazing!!  I also think about the ultimate message of love found not in what Jesus said, but in what he did.  Too many people look for words of love when they should be looking for deeds of love.  What Jesus did in coming to earth, dying, and then going to Father to be our mediator (Hebrews 9, Phil. 2) is what defines true love.  How could we as ministers of the gospel not preach of such love?

Ephesians 4 speaks of the calling which God has placed on people’s life.  I am not gifted like Billy Graham, and I will likely never see thousands come to Jesus they way he did, Spurgeon did, or many of today’s evangelists.  I do not believe I have that gift, certainly not in that measure.  On the other hand the most loving thing I can do is tell people of the love of Jesus.

What if I was faithful in telling others of the love of Jesus and never saw anyone come to saving faith?  Then I would be a faithful worker whom God has gifted to other things besides preach.  Being called to the ministry is not about putting out a good effort; it is about whether you are designed to do God’s work in that specific context.  It is about whether you would bring more honor to god by doing something else.  How should we measure our calling in this area?  Here are a couple of thoughts:

• If a person is called, they must be able to clearly and effectively present the gospel.
• If a person is called they should understand the purpose of preaching is spiritual.  Though there are times to deal with drugs, sex, and rock n roll in a message, those should be dealt with as an application of a spiritual and biblical truth, not as the primary purpose of a message.
• If a person is called they will see people come to Christ as a result of their ministry.  I don’t know how many, and it would be presumptuous of me to throw out a number.  It may not be every time they preach and it may not be every other, but it should be noticeable and regular.
• If a person is called they should have a desire and even a passion to see people come to Jesus.

What if you are not called?  If you are not called, figure out what God has gifted you for and go do that whether it is in or out of the church.

Teach This

“In the second place, combined with the earnest desire to become a pastor, there must be aptness to teach and some measure of the other qualities needful for the office of a public instructor.”  -Charles Spurgeon, Lectures To My Students

I remember the first time I walked up on stage at church to do anything.  I had done virtually no public speaking of any kind.  All I had to do was get up and read some scripture.  I was in high school, and to be honest I don’t know why I was asked.  I thought I was going to be really nervous, but as the time grew closer I grew more confident not less.  There were no butterflies, sweaty palms, or anything.  I went up there and read the scripture and sat down.  Over the years I have absolutely been nervous from time to time, I have messed up, I have done well, and everything in between.  Nervousness is not a measure of a person’s talent when it comes to teaching, there are many factors of which this may or may not be one.  For me though it was one of the clues that maybe I could teach and preach some day.  There have been several clues over the years.  Some however think they can teach when in fact they should not.

Over the years I have heard a lot of people who thought they could teach but in reality could not.  I have also heard some people who thought that they were not very good at teaching or preaching and still do a good job of that very thing.  Perhaps there is much more to determining our own ability to teach than our own thoughts and feelings about the issue.

I have watched the first couple shows of American idol for the last couple of seasons.  I always wondered why some of those people who were trying out didn’t first sing for a friend who would be honest with them about their own ability to sing and perform.  Perhaps it would have saved them a lot of trouble.  Sure it is entertaining for us, but I would think it is embarrassing for them.  Some of them just think the judges (especially Simon who is actually my favorite) are stupid and don’t know a good thing when they see it.  Maybe some of them go away and realize they are not as good as they thought they were and find something more productive with their life.

Scripture makes this demand for those who would be elders or “overseers” in 1 Timothy 3:2.  Of course a person can develop their ability to teach, but this is an important part of determining calling.  So how do we measure that?  I don’t know that I have a definitive answer, but here are some things to consider:

• Is the person able to understand Scripture
• Can this person help others understand scripture
• Can this person help others apply scripture in their life
• Humor and storytelling doesn’t necessarily make someone a good teacher
• Can this person keep the attention of the audience