Apostolic Team Ministry- Outside the Sanctuary! Chapter 1 We have a Vision! We have a vision and goals for teaching this course. We want to help equip those who have heard the call of God with the right tools to answer the call to His ministry. The results we see in ministry can be multiplied by sowing the seeds of truth that we have learned in the lives of those to whom we minister. We want to encourage those who learn these principles to in turn teach them to those to whom they minister. That is why we are recording these lessons in book form and making them available on the internet. We are purpose driven and we want those who take this course to also be driven by purpose! Souls are dying every day without Jesus- outside the sanctuary! The majority of them will never come into a church sanctuary to hear the good news of what Jesus has done for them. Jesus said to go into all the world (outside the sanctuary), and preach the good news to every person (Mark 16:15). The apostle Paul said that God has given unto us the ministry of reconciliation and committed unto us the word of reconciliation (II Cor, 5:18-19). This establishes our purpose for all that we do. If we are kingdom-minded people, we will not live unto ourselves, but unto Him who loved us and gave Himself for us. There are those who are not established in righteousness and are unskillful in the Word of God. They need to be taught the foundational truths, be discipled and mentored. There is much work to be done. Jesus said that the harvest is great… but the laborers are few! If you are taking this course it is because you are serious about the call of God and the task that is before us. Most of us are not able to attend a traditional Bible school or a theological seminary because of our work and family situation. But nevertheless, even though you are working full time jobs to provide for your families, you sacrifice your time and juggle your schedules to prepare for ministry. You are demonstrating by your effort that you are serious about God’s work. We believe that God is going to greatly reward you for your effort! Your reward will be the fruit that you see in the lives of those who are impacted by your ministry! The Seeds that we Sow • The results that take place in ministry are the results of the seeds that we sow. They are the results of what we teach and preach. They are the results of the seeds we sow in the lives of people. • Words from God are the stimulus to which people respond. If we want to see salvations, we have to preach salvation. If we want to see healings and miracles we have to preach healing and miracles. If we want to see financial blessing happen in the lives of the people we have to preach giving, receiving and abundance. If we want to see sanctified people we have to preach consecration, dedication and commitment. • The Bible says to write the vision, make it plain upon tables so they may run that read it! (Habakkuk 2:2) (Tables are the hearts of men and women.) When the vision becomes plain in the hearts of people they will run with it! If we make the message of salvation clear, people will respond and will run to the Lord for salvation. The word, “salvation” denotes deliverance, soundness, wholeness, preservation and healing. The Power of Two • Whether we work at the altar in church as an altar worker or if we go outside of the sanctuary to minister to the sick or unconverted, we should do so as a team. A young Christian should always go with an older and more experienced leader for several reasons. Most importantly, the younger, or less experienced person can learn from the more experienced leader. The more mature and experienced leader can use the opportunity to teach and train the younger. • The Bible says that one can chase a thousand, but two can put ten thousand to flight! Wow! There is great power available when we team with another believer and go to do ministry outside the sanctuary. • When Jesus sent out His first disciples, He sent them out two and two into every place where He Himself would come. He sent them out in teams of two but they were part of a bigger team- His team! Discipleship- Mentoring, Coaching Any time we teach we are mentoring. The apostle Paul wrote letters to Timothy, a young pastor that he was mentoring and helping to prepare for ministry. Perhaps he wrote from his prison cell. If that were the case we can see that he was not going to let his lack of mobility stop him from doing what was in his heart to do. It may have been that he just could not be with him at the time so he chose to write the letters. I like to think that he wrote because on parchment he could take the time to make his thoughts clear and leave a lasting record that Timothy and others could refer to for clear instruction. Because he wrote down his thoughts and instructions instead of simply speaking them, we can still learn from his writings to Timothy to this day! Every Team needs good Coaching! I am not an avid sports fan but I always enjoyed the game and the completion when we played sports in school. We try to be at as many of our grandson’s games as possible when they play. Over the years as we have watched and cheered for them we have seen the value of good coaching. Some seasons it seemed that their coaches were better than others. When they had good coaching they won most of their games. When they had coaches that seemed to be a bit less skilled, they didn’t seem to do as well. Our grandsons are much more serious about sports than I ever was. If Glenda or I want to know anything about the game of football, all we have to do is ask our nine year old grandson and he will tell us anything we want to know! When I played in school I was not a serious player. We were playing for fun and I had no goal of ever becoming a professional athlete. I believe that I could have done very well if a coach would have taken an interest in me and encouraged me to pursue the game. I was pretty good at catching a football and tackling the ball carrier. But I don’t even remember having a coach (other than our gym teachers) or ever having a one-on-one conversation with an actual coach. With our grandsons it is an entirely different situation! They are serious about their sports and it would not surprise us at all if either of them ended up playing professionally someday. They seem to eat and drink sports! They play, practice and train continually. I think their parents have spent a small fortune buying them the latest and best sports equipment. When their coaches speak, they listen and apply what they are told. The need for Assessment Occasionally it is good to assess the results that we are having. What happens at half time when the teams come off the field and they meet in the locker room? I am sure that their coaches tell them how they are doing and what they need to do to improve their game! If we were to think about the state of the church today and the results that we are seeing, with as many Christians that are in the game, is our team working together efficiently? Are we working together to accomplish the goal of winning the lost? Are we really putting forth enough effort and putting much of a score on the board? I think that Team Jesus could use some serious help at this stage of the game! Team Satan seems to be dominating more unbelievers than we are winning to Jesus! The Basics Perhaps we need to review the rules of the game and study the basics a little more diligently! In sports the players of every team learn basic techniques and practice them constantly. They learn certain plays and practice them until they are perfected. When all is said and done, it seems that the most successful teams that win the championships are those who do the basics better than anyone else. Study the Playbook! Is our lack of success at winning the lost because we are part of a losing team, or could it be for a lack of training and good coaching? Our Coach, King Jesus, was the most successful leader that ever lived in the history of man! He has given us the best training manual that the world has ever known! In this manual all the plays and techniques that He ever used are well documented. Perhaps we need to go back to the playbook and begin to study it a bit closer! If we think about the original 12 disciples and their experience in following Jesus, and then think about their success, the results are pretty impressive! The team that Jesus put together was remarkable with the exception of one of its players that had to be thrown off the team! Jesus did not put together a dream team! He chose a group of individuals who had no experience at all in what they were about to undertake! Yet when the records began to be kept, their scores were amazing! That in itself speaks volumes for the One who trained and coached them! Some interesting Thoughts Here are some interesting thoughts for us to contemplate: • From the first day, all they had ever known was team ministry. • As a team, all they ever knew was ministry outside the sanctuary. • During their practice games leading up to the time when the church would actually come into existence after the resurrection, the only people that they ever ministered to were unbelievers. • After Pentecost the majority of their ministry was done in the streets and outside of the synagogues- out where the people are! From the beginning, the disciples were part of a team of twelve that was broken down into smaller teams of two. Later, Jesus called an additional seventy and sent them out just as He had done with the original twelve. When Jesus sent out His disciples He told them to do certain things that He knew would win the hearts of the people to whom they were sent to minister. He said, “As you go, preach, saying, The kingdom of God is at hand! Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, and cast out devils; freely you have received, freely give!” God’s plan and purpose was not to win a Super Bowl. His objective is to win the world! For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. (John 3:16-17) When He gave us His ultimate game plan He said, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature!” Teach them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you! I will be with you always! Whatsoever you command in my name, that will I do that the Father may be glorified in the Son!” (Mark 16:15, Matthew 28:19-20, John 14:12-14) • We teach by what we say and by what we do. • We lead by example. • We instruct by demonstration. When writing to the Corinthians Paul reminded them that when he came to them he did not come with eloquent speech declaring unto them the gospel, but he came in demonstration of the Spirit and of power so that their faith would not stand in the wisdom of men (as the bulk of religious theology does today) but in the power of God. I want to put my faith in the wisdom of one man and His name is Jesus! Principle #1 Let’s assess the results we are having, go back to the basics and learn from experienced leaders who can give us good coaching so we can improve the areas where we are lacking.
Posted on: Tue, 20 Jan 2015 02:40:36 +0000
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