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Ministry according to 1 Corinthians 13

Nils Langhjelm

The problem with ministry is that it can be dispensed without any passion or concern for the one being ministered to. The Old Testament prophet Jonah preached to Ninevah, and then sat down hoping for judgement to fall. Similarly, in the New Testament, Ananias and Sapphira gave, not to bless, but to gain social advancement. Their deceit cost them their lives (Acts 5:1-11). As for Jonah, I am convinced that he received no reward for his ministry because he did it neither willingly nor with any concern for his audience. I sometimes wonder how things would have gone if Jonah had put his heart into his ministry to the Ninevites. What would have been the outcome if he had stayed among them, mourning with them over sin and teaching them about his God, who had had mercy on someone as sinful as himself? Jonah forgot that he was just as capable of doing evil as the Ninevites.

Attitudes like Jonah’s are one of the core reasons why people don’t come to Christ. To a large degree, the church has forgotten that although it is the communion of saints, it remains a collection of sinners saved by grace. The church is to present its message with true humility towards everyone, as one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread. When Christians forget where they have come from (being dead in sin) and no longer view themselves as being just as capable of doing evil as those outside Christ, their attitudes drive people away rather than attract them.

Christian ministry, whether it is speaking the truth of Scripture or performing acts of charity, can be done in a cold, annoying, unattractive way, having all the loveliness of someone driving by your house at 3:00 in the morning with a car stereo blaring. To put it another way, ministry can be performed with all the sensitivity of a drive-by shooting. Bullets are fired, and the shooter drives away with no concern for the harm that has been inflicted. When concern for others is not central, ministry is an insult.

The truth of Scripture and love for God and people are never to be separated from one another. We should ask ourselves a few questions before performing ministry: Do I care about those I am intending to minister to? What is my motive? For whose honour am I doing this? Am I abiding in Christ, or am I merely performing my religious duty?

The Church at Ephesus had been instructed by the very best teachers of the day. The members were well informed and were commended for being able to expose error – but they lost their love, and Jesus would no longer tolerate their ministry (Revelation 2:1-7).

The devotional experience is where it all begins – Jesus and I alone together speaking as friend to friend. To be near Him is to see myself and my need for further grace. Only life will impart life. True ministry is the overflow of abiding in Christ.

1 Corinthians 13, the great chapter on love, is sandwiched between two chapters regarding spiritual gifts. Without the tempering of grace, these gifts become an end in themselves. They destroy relationships, contaminate the gospel, incite people to extremes and cause factions to form (as was made obvious earlier in the letter). Giftedness without godliness likes to strut, and in the process tramples people under foot. Gifts will draw attention away from Jesus if the one performing the ministry has not been abiding in Christ. Ministry is seeking the highest good of another – and without the life of the Spirit, ministry will not happen.

Someone once said that the Christian life isn’t difficult; it’s impossible. There is no middle ground. Either we are being controlled by the Spirit or we are being controlled by the sinful nature. Either way, there is an overflow that has a profound effect on others. One is attractive, the other repulsive. One gives life; the other is the stench of death. One seeks its own; the other seeks the highest good of another.

Imagine how powerful and attractive it would be if all Christian ministry was performed out of the overflow of believing hearts abiding in Jesus Christ. Did Jesus say without purpose that without Him we can do nothing? Was He joking when He said that if anyone abides in Him, he will bear much fruit (John 15:5)?

Nils Langhjelm is a member of Yarrow (B.C.) MB Church.

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Last modified May 23, 2001.

© 2001 Mennonite Brethren Herald.
Published by the Canadian Conference of MB Churches.
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