Ministering the Word with Proper Expectations

Photo Credit: nimittrivedi.wordpress.com

On July 14th Pastor Mike Fabarez delivered the afternoon session for the D. Min track in expository preaching.  His subject was ministering the Word with godly expectations.  J. I. Packer once wrote, "Low expectations become self-fulfilling.  Where little is expected from sermons, little is received."

Elihu's testimony in Job 32:18-21 is a good example of what we long to say and see week after week.  We need to long for the conversion and edification of our hearers.  In courageous faith we should "expect great things from God, attempt great things for God (William Carey)."  1 Cor. 3:5-9 is one of the most important passages in relation to  biblical ministry.  God calls us to serve him faithfully but the results are in His hands.

So how do we cultivate the right expectations?

1) Beg God to Utilize Your Preaching (though prayer)

"To pray well is half the study.  Putting aside the foolish confidence as though we had some ability to help the Word along in the hearer, let us rather engage in the hearer, let us rather engage in prayer..." Martin Luther.   We need to pray more and study less.  We should pray as a way of life throughout each day (1 Thess. 5:17-19).

How God Defines Success.

This Cripplegate article by Dr. Busenitz harmonizes quite well with a series of articles I wrote a few months ago on the subject of success.  Without a biblical perspective of what it means to be successful in the eyes of God discouragement will likely overcome you and you will be tempted to abandon a biblical philosophy of ministry in favor of church growth theory and pragmatism.

APRIL 7, 2015
How God Defines Success
by Nathan Busenitz

What does it mean to successful?  That is a vital question for anyone to ask – one that determines a person’s priorities and direction in life.

Whether you are a pastor, an accountant, a school teacher, a stay-at-home mom, an office manager, a construction worker, an engineer, or any other occupation – if you are a believer in Jesus Christ – this question pertains to you. What does it mean to be successful?

What does true success look like, not in terms of getting a new promotion or a raise, but in the highest and loftiest sense of that word?

Consider the “heroes of the faith” listed in Hebrews 11. From a worldly perspective, these individuals would hardly be regarded as successful.

- Successful people aren’t mocked and scourged.

- Successful people don’t get chained up in prison.

- Successful people aren’t stoned to death, sawn in two, or beheaded.

The Measure of Success (pt 2)

 

This is the unedited 'director's cut version' of an article I recently wrote for the Master's Seminary

How should we define "success" in pastoral ministry? In Christian parenting?  In missionary work? In the Christian life?

Take a look at the most-celebrated names in broader evangelicalism, and it would be easy to conclude that numerical fruitfulness is what defines ministerial success. But both Scripture and church history remind us that steadfast faithfulness is actually the true measure of success.

Consider the prophet Jeremiah, for example, whose tireless preaching was met with little to no visible fruit. Or William Carey, at the outset of his heroic missionary career, who waited years before there was any response to his evangelistic efforts.

In today’s post, I would like to consider some of the dangers that come from measuring success by the wrong standard.

The Measure of Success (pt. 1)

This is the "unedited director's cut" version of an article I wrote for the Master's Seminary 

Have you noticed?  Have you noticed that the list of plenary speakers at most of the major Christian conferences in America is typically compromised of well known ministers most of whom have also enjoyed abundantly fruitful ministries?  In light of this long-standing pattern it would be really easy to conclude that if a pastor/missionary/Christian parent labors long and hard in faithful service to Christ they too will experience similar blessings this side of eternity.  In other words, those who preach the Word with excellence, shepherd the flock with love, and lead God’s people with courage and integrity often come to expect like results.  If not Christian book deals, VIP status within the Gospel Coalition ranks, tens of thousands of Twitter followers; at least, a flourishing congregation and a growing church staff on the home front.  It’s the American dream and Christian ministry wrapped up in one.