LIVING WATERS
For the proclamation of the Gospel and the edification of the Body of Christ
All Can Serve
Paul enunciates two great spheres of service for all the saints, of whom none are exempt, not even the smallest.
Rubén Chacón
"And he gave some to be apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ." (Eph. 4:11-12).
The apostle Paul says in Ephesians 4:11 that the Lord Jesus Christ himself, resurrected and exalted, has constituted in his church, some to be apostles, others as prophets, others as evangelists, and others as pastors and teachers, "for the perfecting of the saints." The task of the apostles, of the prophets, of the evangelists - and notice that it also says of the evangelists, although it seems to us that they have to preach the gospel as their first calling- is to perfect the saints.
"To perfect" means "to capacitate", "to train", "to equip" the saints. The question is clearly: for what reason do the saints have to be built up and perfected? Paul says: "For the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ."
It is very clear. It is as if the Lord Jesus Christ has recruited these, his ministers, of the word and has told them: "I want you to go and capacitate my saints. Train them, equip them, perfect them." And here is the point, brothers and sisters, because -according to Paul-it is the saints who must do the work of the ministry, those who must carry out the edifying of Christ's body.
Unfortunately, what has happened in the Christendom has been totally the other way around. It has been the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers who have done the work of the ministry, those that have taken the edification of Christ's body forwards. And what has happened to the saints? They, in general, have been observing how a few individuals serve God. And it has not been their fault; the sin has been primarily ours.
Brother Watchman Nee, in his book "Matters of the Church" challenges the workers time and again to encourage the service of all the saints: "If when we come down off the mountain (the workers were in a retreat), we are not able to lift up each one of the children of God so that they get up to serve, we will have failed." And he makes a special call to make sure the brothers and sisters with one talent, those that are the anonymous, those that are hidden, that maybe think in their heart that they don't know how to do anything and that they are not good for anything, to serve the Lord.
Because, dear brothers and sisters, Christ's church is composed exclusively for priests. There are no two classes of Christians in the church. The church doesn't consist of a few individuals that serve God and a majority that don't. Nee tells them something else: "From now on, we should not think that the church is composed by the total number of people that attend our meetings. From now on, the church is composed by the number of priests that it has." However many serve God, those are they that compose the church. Because there cannot be a member of Christ's body that doesn't have a function.
Dear brothers and sisters, I believe that this is a word that we still need. We need to continue working on this. The ministers of the word need to continue concentrated on perfecting the saints, in correcting our ministry, in focusing our mission properly. And our task consists in making absolutely all the children of God -children, youngsters, adults, the elderly-, get up to serve God.
Two areas of service
In English, just like in the Greek text of Ephesians 4, the expression 'for' appears twice: "... for the perfecting of the saints for the work of the ministry", and "... for the edification of the body of Christ." The edification of the body of Christ clearly has to do with the internal edification of the children of God, just as the term "for the work of the ministry" has to do with the action of the church toward the outside world. Paul said: "Perfecting the saints for the work", in singular; for the work of the service, for the work of the ministry.
I wouldn't say that this is the most exact interpretation, but I believe that it has to do with what Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:18-20.
I will therefore refer to the two great areas in which God's priests - which includes all the children of God-should get up to serve. The first is "for the work of the ministry"; and the second is "the edification of the body of Christ."
The ministry of the reconciliation
In 2 Corinthians 5:18-20, the apostle says: "Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation." Here "ministry" is also in the singular form. It is the ministry common to all the children of God, even though not all have the same gifts or the same measure of grace. Nevertheless, a single ministry has been given to all, something that is common to all the children of God: the ministry of reconciliation. What does this ministry of reconciliation consist of? "...that is that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation..."
Of course when using the form "us" here, he is referring to the apostles, but brother Nee in his book says: "what we now have to do is to put the responsibility of the work on the whole church." And that doesn't mean that the workers won't do their work; but rather, their work will in fact consist of putting the responsibility of the work on the whole church.
The whole church must do evangelistic work. Not all are evangelists, but the whole church must do this work. The ministry of reconciliation, in verse 19, is translated as we have been given the responsibility of the word of reconciliation. And this it is not a complicated word that requires months of study. The following verse says that it is a very simple word, but what is important is that the word of reconciliation was given to us as a responsibility. It is a word that God has put in each child of God's lips, of each priest of the Lord. What does that word consist of? Verse 20: "Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us; we implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God."
God has placed the responsibility of carrying this word on their lips, and they must go out on Christ's behalf, and tell their neighbor, their co-worker, friends at school and at university: "Be reconciled to God! On Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God!" The whole church must proclaim it.
Our first ministry, dear brothers and sisters, is toward those that are not children of God. Therefore I ask: Are there any children of God who have nothing to say to those that are without Christ? You may say: "I don't know how to preach." Perhaps it is true, but we are speaking about you and of him who doesn't know the Lord. You have riches that he doesn't have; you have a word of God that he doesn't have. And you have to communicate it in your own measure, in a natural way, without making things too complicated.
Don't go out to tell lies. Don't say to your neighbor: "Turn to Christ and all your problems will disappear", because it is probable that with Christ their problems will increase; but yes you can tell him that going through problems with Christ is not the same as going through them without Christ. And that is true, proclaim it. You don't need to know much of the Bible, or take a course on preaching. Open your mouth, give testimony and share what you have.
Recently a visitor arrived at a church meeting. When being presented, she said: "Since the moment I entered this room, I felt peace." Then, I shared the word, and I said: "The same thing that you said here, can also be said to others; go out and tell others what you said here." Because out there, there is no peace. It is good news that you can tell somebody: "I was in a place where I felt peace." So, if there is some place where there is peace, who would not be interested in going there?
Brothers and sisters, the church of the Lord Jesus Christ is established in this people; but we cannot deny that there are thousands of inhabitants in this city that are lost, who don't know the Lord. And I do ask myself, who has the Lord charged to evangelize them? Is it not the church?
Roman 10:12 says: "For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek." For God there is no difference between rich and poor, between young and old, between man and woman, between educated and uneducated. "for the same Lord is Lord of all, and is rich unto all that call upon him."
Because our God is a rich, abundant God, full of mercy, desiring to save the lost and to reach those who don't know Christ. "For, Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." Look, how glorious: "Whosoever!" Like saying: "I don't care who it is: a drug addict, a drunkard, an atheist." He doesn't care: "For, Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."
So, what is our task? We have to make them call upon the name of the Lord. The Lord tells us: "If you achieve this, and they invoke my name, I will save. Do your part and I will do mine."
What does it mean to call upon the name of the Lord? In verse 9, the apostle Paul says: "because if thou shalt confess with thy mouth Jesus as Lord, and shalt believe in thy heart that God raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved." We have to make the sinners confess with their mouth that Jesus is the Lord, and believe in their hearts that God raised Him from the dead. Then they will be saved, For, Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."
This is the point where you and I come in, brother: "How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed?" Why don't people invoke the name of the Lord? Because they don't believe in the Lord. How will someone invoke the name of someone in whom they don't believe? It is true. People don't invoke the name of the Lord to be saved, because they don't believe in the Lord. "and how shall they believe in him whom they have not heard?" It is true that they don't call on him because they don't believe; but it is also true that they don't believe because they have not heard of Christ. And it continues: "and how shall they hear without a preacher?" Do you see the progression? And the last link: "and how shall they preach, except they be sent?"
Look at the order: The Lord has constituted us as his priests and his servants. Then his saints get up, are capacitated and trained. We have not been on that mountain with brother Nee, but we have had God's word for a long time. We are trained and capacitated to go out to minister to all the sinners that simply lack the calling.
The edification of Christ's body
According to Ephesians 4:16, "(Christ)... from whom all the body … maketh the increase of the body unto the building up of itself in love…" The phrases inserted in this verse that come between commas, shows how the body has to be so that, from the head -Christ-, receives growth and edification in love. The body has to be "..fitly framed and knit together through that which every joint supplieth, according to the working in due measure of each several part."
Notice the emphasis of this sentence: "according to the working in due measure of each several part." Not all do the same thing; but we all do something. Not all have the same gift, but we all have a gift. Not all have the same function, but we all have a function. And your contribution to the edification of the body of Christ consists in this mutuality in which we help one and other according to the activity characteristic of each member. Thus the growth of the head flows to the whole body, and the body is increasingly built up in love. We are speaking of the ministry among us, in how we are edified as Christ's body, how we help one and other mutually -each one according to their own activity.
In many verses of the New Testament we find the expression "one and other." That is where the mutuality is. Not that some do everything and others receive, but everyone together. This expression appears a hundred times in the Greek New Testament, and sixty of them refer to the relationship between the members of the body of Christ. As some of these phrases are repeated, if we only mention each one of them once, there are 27 expressions of different things that take place among believers.
For example: "Be at peace among yourselves." "Wash one and others feet." "in honor, preferring one and other." "Be of the same mind toward one and other." "Building one and other up." "Receive ye one another." (If you are my brother, I have to receive you). "Admonish one another." "Greet one and other with Holy kiss." (this is not a cultural issue; it is something of God). "Wait one for another." "the members should have the same care for one another." "Serve one another in love." "Bear ye one another's burdens." "Be ye kind to one another." "Forgiving one another." "forbearing one and other." "Subjecting yourselves one to another in the fear of Christ." "Consider others as better than yourselves." (How beautiful this is!). "Encourage one and other with these words." (Whose responsibility is it, brothers and sisters, to encourage others? It is the church's, not the pastors). "Exhort one another." (We need it. It is not just the person who receives the brothers and sisters at the door who needs to do this. You also must do it). "Always follow after that which is good, one toward another, and toward all." "Consider one and other." "Confess your sins one to another." "Pray for one another so that ye may be healed." "have fellowship with one another." "Gird yourselves with humility to serve one another." "Use hospitality toward one another without murmuring." And, the one that appears most- 17 times, "Love one another." All the other actions are contained in love.
That is the edification of the body of Christ. Do you realize? Each saint has their own activity. Your smile, brother, your good humor, your happiness, your peace, your seriousness, your formality, everything is needed. Everything gives a balance, everything creates harmony and everything creates beauty. According to the gift that you have received, minister to others.
Saints of the Lord, is there anyone among us who still doesn't get up to serve? If you are not serving, that means that you go to the meetings, you give some donation, and that is all your Christian life. This cannot be. Each child of God must get up to testify Christ to all sinners. And among the saints, it is all the saints' task to edify Christ's body. Contribute with your grace, contribute with your gift. Let God use you. Be natural, be spontaneous, give what you have. Give it over to the service of the Lord, so that Christ's glory, Christ's fullness appears among us.
The Spanish NIV Bible, in verse 13, after: "to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up", says: "this way we will all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God." I like how it says: "this way." Which way? Ministers of the word who perfect the saints and the saints who all get up to do the work of the ministry and the edification of the body of Christ. "This way", Paul says, we will all reach unity in the faith and knowledge of the Son of God; which means that if we don't do it this way, what is happening today will continue: a minority reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God, and the great majority do not.
But if we do it in this way, we will all reach it. From the first to the last, we will all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God. Because there is no growth if there is no service; and if there is no service, there is no growth.