Bible Reading: II Corinthians 10:7-13
Key Verse: Verse 7 - "Do ye look on things after the outward appearance? If any man trust to himself that he is Christ's, let him of himself think this again, that, as he is Christ's, even so are we Christ's.”
Key Words: as he is Christ’s, even so are we Christ’s
Life is not about you; life is not about me; life is all about Jesus Christ.
Some time back a young pastor asked me how to go about evaluating the church, its ministry, and even how to go about evaluating himself. The following is a portion of the letter I sent to him.
Have definite goals for your church. The achieving of these goals will be an indication that you are making progress. The pastor who simply lives from week to week will always stay discouraged because he doesn’t know where he is going.
II Corinthians 10:7-13 is a clear warning against the wrong kind of self-evaluation. It is easy for a church to become a mutual admiration society. The true measure of a church’s success is not what it is doing compared to other churches, but is it fulfilling its own potential?
Don’t forget that churches go through stages of growth, not unlike the human body. The babyhood stage of the church is new and exciting, much like having a newborn baby in the house. But then things settle down and you reach childhood stage. This is the stage when people seem to manufacture problems. Next is the spiritual maturity stage. This is when the church sees the importance of soul-winning, faithfulness to God’s house, and they come for God’s glory.
One word of encouragement: the Lord rarely lets a pastor see how much good he is doing. When you feel the most discouraged, God is probably using you in the greatest way. Be faithful!! God will take care of the rest (I Corinthians 4:2). Always remember, it’s not a popularity contest.
- Preach the Word.
- Be instant in season and out of season,
- Reprove,
- Rebuke, and
- Exhort… with all longsuffering.
This young pastor now pastors a growing church and God, indeed, has been good to him. Praise the Lord! I occasionally pull this letter out and read it just as a reminder that I am here for God’s glory, and that it is all about Jesus, not about me. Should that not be your motto for 2019?
What to do:
✞ Put Christ first, that’s what life is all about.
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