William James said, “The deepest principle in human nature is the craving to be appreciated.”  Every intern should often express appreciation to the supervising pastor and the congregation for the opportunity to serve and grow.  There are certain principles that the intern must remember.

• We cannot underestimate the value of a person.
• Don’t take advantage of people.
• Give people the credit they deserve.
• Act quickly to make things right.
• Never embarrass anyone in any situation.
• Seek advice from others.
• Be fair and honest in everything.
• Do not show favoritism.

Most of our emotional problems and anxieties come from unresolved conflicts or failing to have developed right relationships with people.  “A forgiving spirit is the one basic, necessary ingredient for a solid relationship,” according to John Maxwell. The unfortunate truth is that many of us, instead of offering total forgiveness, pray something like this Irish prayer:

“May those who love us, love us; and those who don’t love us may God turn their hearts; and if He doesn’t turn their hearts, may He turn their ankles, so we’ll know them by their limping.”

John Maxwell said, “People who find it difficult to forgive don’t see themselves realistically.  They are either terribly arrogant or tremendously insecure.”  Forgiveness should be given as quickly and as totally as possible.

If you, an intern, are to live victoriously, you must quit keeping score of the injustices that have happened.  You must learn that in the ministry there will be many times when you will experience hurts and strained relationships.  People will curse you, tell you where to go, how to get there, and offer their assistance.  The man or woman of God must not hold any grudges or carry any resentments against others.  You must not let others control your emotions or what happens inside your mind.

The ability to listen to people and show an accurate level of empathy is a necessary skill in any helping ministry or profession.  As people advance in positions of authority, they often develop a lack of patience in listening to those under them.  A deaf ear is the first indication of a closed mind.  The larger a church and staff gets the less the senior pastor may listen to people.  Yet that is when he/she needs to listen to those on the firing line the most.  If leaders do not form the habit of listening carefully and intelligently, then they will not get all the facts they need and people will resent their decisions.

Communication is fundamental to understanding.  If you the intern want the supervising pastor to understand you, then you must be open and willing to communicate often and in an appropriate way.  Of course, the supervising pastor must show an interest in you and be a good listener, not just a good talker.

Remembering and practicing these principles will help you to develop the qualities that we all admire in others.  Important words which might be used with these five principles are:

• You can do it/you did a good job – encouragement.
• Thank you – appreciation.
• I forgive you – forgiveness.
• What do you think?  or What is your opinion? – listening.
• I want to know you better – understanding.

The intern and the supervising pastor are a team.  They should work close together to solve problems, care for people, reach the lost and build the body of Christ.

Flexibility involves learning to welcome newness.  Discipleship requires us to be flexible people who allow the fermentation of the Kingdom of God to shape us, as wineskins, rather than us trying to impose our willful rigidity on the Kingdom.

Kingdom strategy number two:  welcoming newnessmeans that citizenship in the Kingdom of God must be seen as an entirely new and unique life calling, not as something to be added to the old life.

Inflexibility is a symptom of spiritual unhealthiness.  Luke 5:31 says, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.  I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.”  According to Jesus, all humans are spiritually unhealthy and need a doctor.  The only ones who recover are those who confess their illness.  People generally take one of the first three following approaches to their spiritual illness, which do not work; however, there is a fourth approach which does work.

• DENY – First, you may deny your own disease of spiritual unhealthiness.  Secular humanism denies sin and leaves us with no basis for morality or ethics. This option will not work.
• IGNORE – A second response to your spiritual illness is to admit its existence, but ignore the need to treat it.  For these people, it is too painful or humiliating to deal with their sin.  Their major symptom is called pride.  This option will not work.
• EXCUSE – Thirdly, you may try to excuse your disease by saying, “It’s not so bad.”  Thus, we compare ourself to others who are worse than we are and thus take comfort in not being too badly infected.  This is unsound because God’s standard is perfection, absolute holiness, and spiritual wholeness, with no trace of disease.  All sin is to be eradicated and condemned. This option will not work.
• OBEY – We must be flexible because God demands that we change, learn, grow, become new and nothing like the old nature. This option will always work.

Supervision of the intern’s life and thinking gives opportunity for a spiritual transplant and constant treatment with a fresh application of the blood of Jesus, purifying us and forgiving us as we confess and trust in Him.

Flexibility, change and growth must be a part of our lives!  It has been said that, “Rigid, super-religious people take to change like fish take to mountain climbing.”  Do you know anyone like that?  Do you see someone like that in the mirror every morning?  Most of us are somewhat inflexible, and the sad truth is, the older we get the more rigid we become.  Our will becomes less bendable like our muscles.  Paul found the secret; he was pioneering into newness right up to his death.

Kingdom strategy number two involves daily renewal.  Daily renewal keeps us flexible, more willing to make positive changes in our mind-set and behavior.

Underlying all the Beatitudes is the Kingdom quality of humility.  David Schroeder said, “If we crave even-greater financial and social status, letting materialistic success symbols become obsessions to us, we will be of little value to the work of God’s Kingdom and poor representatives of what the Kingdom is all about.  While poverty, hunger, weeping and rejection may not be part of our life goals, neither should obtaining wealth, feasting lavishly, living as though life is always a party and seeking popularity.”

A big part of humility is contentment.  Contentment is the ability to rejoice even in adversity.  Kingdom strategy number three: rejoicing in adversity means that disciples of Jesus willingly accept and live by Biblical principles, values and morals.  This Biblical view of humility is contrary to the attitude of the world.

Ours is a day of self-promotion, defending our own rights, taking care of ourselves first, winning by intimidation, pushing for first place, and a dozen other self serving agendas.  Selfishness will destroy our joy and contentment.  People who live with a selfish attitude set themselves up for a grim existence.

The ministerial intern should always bear the character imprint of God in every aspect of thinking, attitude and behavior.  Every day Jesus modeled before His disciples God’s standards of purity and maturity.  The intern should see qualities of Christian character such as teachability, flexibility and humility modeled by the supervising pastor.

This character trait deals with how we treat people, especially in responding to rejection.  Kingdom strategy number four:  responding to rejection.  “In Kingdom living, disciples of Jesus Christ respond to hostility and rejection by treating their enemies as well as they want to be treated themselves.”  Dr. Lamar Vest made the statement that “the mark of a true spiritual leader is how he/she treats his/her enemies.”  Jesus blesses obedience, not excuses, in our responsibility to treat people with compassion.  Becoming godly in character and behavior must be our highest priority and lifelong calling.  The words of Jesus and New Testament Scriptures support the idea that Christians are likely to have enemies.  Jesus said, “Love your enemies . . .” (Luke 6:27).  James 4:14 says, “. . . friendship with the world is hatred toward God.”  Jesus said, “Pray for those who mistreat you” (Luke 6:28b).  Paul said that “everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Timothy 3:12).

Supervising pastors must help interns in their goal of Christ-likeness by teaching them how to respond to mistreatment.

Ministerial interns need to develop and be exposed to the highest levels of integrity and fair-mindedness.  Mature disciples of Christ will frequently engage in healthy self-evaluation and self-examination to assess their own spiritual status.

Integrity relates to how we treat people who disagree with us.  Many people, even Christians, have a tendency to write off anyone who does not think as they think, and then justify this by looking for a spiritual inadequacy in that person.  Ministers must not manifest a critical or unforgiving spirit.  We must not turn a person with an opposing view into an adversary.  Thus, we must temper our judgmentalism and realize how hypocritical it is to find fault with others while remaining blind to our own shortcomings.

Integrity relates to how we treat our sin.  There are many ways we sugar-coat our sins.  Christians play not only mind-games, but also spirit-games.  For example, Christians gossip under the guise of sharing a prayer request.  The quality of integrity is essential in all spheres of our lives, and in all our relationships.

Integrity relates to how we judge others.  Ministers, of all people, must remember that judging others is sin (Luke 6:37).  Few commands of Jesus are stated so simply and so clearly.  The positive role we play in a person’s life by not being judgmental is a very powerful motivator.  Instead of looking for the bad in a person, we choose to expect the best.  Our attitudes toward others and our treatment of others have power to transform.  We bring out the best in people by encouraging them and praising them for every positive improvement.

Integrity relates to how we work with others.  Here are some suggestions for interns and supervising pastors in their working relationships and in their ministry.

• Look for the best in others.
• Be persuaded that everyone can do better.
• Demonstrate confidence in your leaders, staff and congregation.
• Maintain dialogue, open communication and feedback.
• Set high, yet achievable standards.
• Outlaw “put-downs” even if meant in jest.
• Control and correct prejudices which warp our perception of potential:  culture, appearance, male/female, age, etc.

The principles of integrity demand of Christians that we work at building up one another rather than tearing them down by judgmentalism.  Kingdom strategy number five:  self-examination.  Instead of focusing on the failures and inadequacies of others, we should engage in meaningful self-examination and spiritual assessment.  We must refrain from destructive criticism through the modeling of character, integrity, and self-examination.

If the intern does not possess teachability, flexibility, and humility, no amount of modeling will make him/her a leader.  If a supervising pastor is not selfless, courageous, caring, and highly competent in ministerial skills, no amount of motivating will make him/her an effective trainer.

The supervising pastor and intern must see themselves as part of a team with specific roles to be carried out with mutual respect and commitment, bringing about a life-changing experience for both of them.

There is no discipleship without Strategy #1: teachability.  But this teachability is more than a person’s willingness to enroll in a self-improvement course.  Rather, it is a constant readiness to learn in every situation of life.  Real teachability involves a willingness to obey God even if our logic would call something absurd.

Strategy #2 in modeling discipleship requires us to be flexible people who allow God’s will to shape us rather than us trying to impose our will on God.

Strategy #3 calls for us to model the ability to rejoice in adversity and to humbly follow a standard of life which may often be contrary to human inclinations.

Strategy #4 challenges our courage and inner strength as Christ calls us to respond to hostility and rejection by treating our enemies as well as we want to be treated.

Strategy #5 is a Christ-like virtue which calls for self-examination, evaluation and assessment.  We are to refrain from destructive criticism, which focuses on the failures of others, and carefully look deep within ourselves and demonstrate ethical responsibility to those who would train us for effective ministry.

Pluralism is the view that there is no one truth. 2
Truth is different for every person.
Belief systems are constructed by cultural, serving the purposes of the society from which they emerge.
Reality is created by the people.
Tolerance is the highest virtue, and intolerance is the cardinal sin.
A belief system is simply like a “spiritual cuisine.”
Absolutism is the view that there is there is one truth.
There is an overarching explanation of reality based on central organizing truths.”
There is a big story that makes sense out of life, history and the universe.

v There is only one religion, the religion of God.
v All the great religions of the world are divine in origin.
v All Divine Religions (through their Nine Prophets) teach the same truth, which is not absolute, but relative.
v There is one God known by many names.
v Man is basically good and not a product of original sin.
v The doctrines of resurrection, judgment, Heaven and Hell should not be taken literally.
v Religion and science must agree, else one of them is wrong.
v Bahá’is stress world peace, unity of nations and language, education and sexual equality. 4

v The revelations of Bahá’u’lláh (over 100 books) supersede the sacred books of the major religions, yet these other religions’ books are revered as part of the progressively revealed truth of God.
v Bahá’u’lláh was greatly influenced by the Bible and quoted the New Testament extensively in his writings.

v The role of religion is to enable people to achieve a true understanding of their own nature and of God’s will and purpose for them.
v The cultivation of life’s spiritual side enables a person to develop those innate qualities that lie at the foundation of human happiness and social progress, including faith, courage, love, compassion, trustworthiness and humility. As these grow, society advances.
v Humans were created to carry forward an ever-advancing civilization, a unity of humankind.
v Life is an eternal process of joyous spiritual discovery and growth. The soul develops through the individual’s relationship with God and is fostered through prayer, meditation, worship, knowledge of the scriptures revealed by the Prophets, love for God, moral self-discipline and service to humanity. This is what gives meaning to life.

v There is no hierarchy of demons, angels and archangels; these terms are symbolic of varying stages of human development.
v Whatever promotes our spiritual development is good, and whatever hinders it is bad.

v After physical death, one’s everlasting soul lives on, embarking on a spiritual journey toward God through many “worlds” or planes of existence.
v Progress on this journey is likened to “heaven.” Failure to develop keeps one distant from God, this distance being “hell.” 6

Ø 563 B.C. – Siddhartha Gautama born in India to a rich ruling father named Suddhodana and mother named Maya. He was born under the Kshatriya caste system. A seer gave a prophecy to his parents he would help mankind “find” salvation.
Ø 547 B.C. – At age 16, he married Yasodharma who bore Rahula, their son
Ø 534 B.C. – At 29, various sights of suffering –sickness, old age, death and poverty with bliss affect Siddharta. He renounces the throne to discover the reason for the suffering.
Ø 528 B.C. – After six years of searching through the teachings of Hinduism and then ascetism of the monks, he attained Nirvana after sitting under a Bohdi tree in the city of Bodh Gaya for an extended period of time (49 days???)
Ø 483 B.C. – Siddhartha dies at age 80 probably as a result of food poisoning. His last reported words were, “Be ye lamps unto yourselves. Betake yourselves to no external refuge. Hold fast as a refuge to truth. Look not for refuge to anyone besides yourselves. Behold now, brethren, I exhort you saying: Decay is inherent in all component things! Work out your
salvation with diligence.”

The death of Siddhartha resulted in no successive leader, as he would not appoint one. Over the next three centuries “Four Major Counsels” shaped the belief system and wrote the beliefs down at least 200-300 hundred years post his death. Out of this struggle, 18 substantially different sects originate with only one of the original 18 remaining today. Today, there are two
main branches of Buddhism: Theravada (the way of the elders) and Mahayana (the Great Vehicle). Although, these two branches share a common founder, the divide in beliefs is vast.

Four Noble Truths
1) Dukkha – Life is suffering.
2) Samudaya – All suffering is caused by ignorance of the nature of reality and the craving, attachment and grasping that result from such ignorance.
3) Nirodha – Suffering can be ended by overcoming ignorance and attachment.
4) Magga – the path leading to the cessation of dukkha – this occurs through the Noble Eightfold Path: right understanding, thought, speech, action, livelihood, effort, mindfulness 8 and concentration. These eight are usually divided into three categories that form the cornerstone of the Buddhist faith: morality, wisdom and samadhi (concentration).
Anatman – denial of a permanent soul looking at human existence in five bundles (shandhas): the material, body, feelings, perceptions, predispositions or karmic tendencies and consciousness.
Kharma – consists of a person’s acts and their ethical consequences. Human actions lead to rebirth wherein good deeds are rewarded and evil deeds punished. Thus, there is no unwarranted pleasure or suffering, but rather a universal justice.
Nirvana – the ultimate goal … release from the round of phenomenal existence with it’s inherent suffering; in other words, an enlightened state in which the fires of greed, hatred and ignorance have been quenched.

1. Human Suffering
2. Soul
3. “Emptiness”
4. Salvation
5. God

Inception ~3000-1500 BC; 4 main stages:
1. Tribes in Indus Valley practiced animism.
2. Tribes conquered by armies from central Asia who introduced polytheistic Vedic religion; 5- level caste system.
3. Rebellion against the caste system. Development of the Upanishads; philosophical writings, which focused on one single principle to tie all reality together (karma, dharma, transmigration/reincarnation, samsara, moksha, Brahman).
4. Revival of Vedantic Literature. Old theology and new theology mixed.
Ø Formation of the Trimutri: 3 major gods take prominence over lesser deities:
· Brahma (creator)
· Vishnu (preserver); has the most followers; Sri Krishna (incarna ted Vishnu) has become the main deity of Hinduism.
· Shiva (destroyer)
Ø Bhagavad-Gita: Portion of larger work called Mahabharata. Most revered book in Hinduism.

Hinduism encapsulated: Atman achieves Moksha by breaking free of Samsara, detaching from Maya, and uniting with Brahman.
Some unifying beliefs but no universally binding doctrines. One of most inclusive of all religions.

Brahman is Ultimate Reality; an impersonal force beyond distinction; undifferentiated, matterless, omnipresent, objective oneness; the Universal Soul; the All. Deities are physical manifestations of Brahman. All paths lead to Brahman.

Life and individuality are illusion (Maya). There is a ‘beyond within’ the individual (Atman) that seeks union with Brahman.
Life is a hierarchy; time is a cycle (samsara). Actions determine position in the hierarchy (karma). Good karma is gained by adhering to yogas (disciplines, “ways”), categorized mainly as knowledge, works, and devotion. One’s karma, good or bad, is inevitable, inescapable,
unforgivable.

The aim of life is enlightenment/deliverance from the illusionary/finite realm (moksha); Expansion of being and consciousness to the realization that atman is one with Brahman. Accomplished by passing ever higher through the hierarchy until one breaks through the wheel of life/death/reincarnation.

The obvious ones…
1. Monotheistic vs. pantheistic.
2. One way vs. many ways.
3. Depravity vs. ignorance.
4. Grace vs. effort.
5. Linear time vs. cyclical time.

The not so obvious ones…
1. Public revelation vs. private mystical experience.
2. Will vs. consciousness.

Due to its eclectic nature, Hinduism has potential for uniting much of the non-Christian religious world. It easily meshes with:
Ø Modern natural science: emphasizes spiritual evolution.
Ø Modern psychology: emphasizes mankind’s essential divinity, consistent with basic goodness and unlimited potential of human nature.
Ø Modern philosophy: emphasizes broad tolerance of seemingly contradictory beliefs, consistent with the relativity of all truth claims.
Ø Spiritual seekers: emphasizes the primacy of spiritual over material reality, appealing to those disillusioned with strictly material pursuits.

1. Pray. Praying is fundamental. You cannot convert another. They are drawn by the Spirit.
2. Love. Acts o f inconvenient love not only commanded by God but curious to the Hindu.
3. Invest. First relate, then differentiate. Build a friendship before exploring deep differences. Read, ask questions, share, hang out. Then discuss the evidence.

The Koran (Quran) means “recitations” of Mohammed’s visions. It consists of 114 chapters.
The Hadith is a collection of early Muslim traditions which record the words and deeds of Mohammed according to his wives, friends and Muslim leaders. 18
Islam accepts Genesis 1-16 as divine revelation, but focus on the line of Ishmael not Isaac.

1. Allah is the one true God.
Connection with the Moon God of pre-Muslim Arabia He is all-powerful but unknowable, unfeeling. He never comes personally to any human. He hates sinners.
2. Allah has many prophets, including Moses and Jesus, but Mohammed is the last and the greatest.
3. The Koran is the supreme religious book.
4. There are many intermediaries (spirit beings called jinns) between God and man. Some are good and some are evil.
5. Each man’s deeds will determine if he goes to hell or heaven.
Heaven is a place of sensual gratification for men.

Repetition of the Shahadah (“There is no God but Allah, and Mohammed is his prophet.”) several times a day
Prayers facing Mecca, 5 times a day. (Salat)
Almsgiving (Zakat)
A month of fasting (Ramadan)–daylight only (Sawn)
A pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in lifetime (Hajj)
Death in a Jihad (holy war) is the any exception to the five pillars of Islam.

Plan of salvation
The God of the Bible reaches out to man.
Islam offers no hope of salvation, only guidelines for Allah’s favor. 20
Mohammed performed no miracles and made no future prophecies. Jesus did both.
Lifestyle
The last 10 years of Mohammed’s life were at war. Jesus was a man of peace.
Mohammed was a polygamist, exceeding the number (4) he prescribed for Muslims. Jesus taught against polygamy, adultery, and coveting another man’s wife.
He had at least 12 wives (some list as many as 16)
He had a personal harem of another six women.
Mohammed plundered caravans and Jewish settlements to build the treasury of Medina. Jesus’ life was so pure that even his enemies said, “I find no fault in him.”

1. Be a friend.
2. Pray for your Muslim friend
3. Invite them to your home.
4. Be sensitive to their cultural values.
5. Understand their basic beliefs.
6. Listen and seek to understand.
7. Welcome open and honest discussion of your different religions.

So that brings me to the next point and that’s who is the condemned? I want you to recognize that when Adam sinned, the consequence of his sin was passed to all of his descendants. Some people say, “Well, I don’t think that’s fair. He blew it, and why should I be held accountable for what he did?” Keep in mind God had a covenant with Adam. The covenant was simply this:
“Adam, if you obey me in this one simple thing – do not eat of that tree simply, because I ask you to. Will you demonstrate your allegiance and your faith and your trust in my command? And if you will obey me, then I will bless you. I will give all of your posterity, all of your descendants, access to the tree of life. But, if you disobey Me, you shall immediately die and that death sentence will be passed on to all of your descendants–spiritual death, physical death, eternal death.” You see, when Adam sinned, all of humanity sinned. Keep in mind, when Adam and Eve sinned, they were the totality of humanity. There was no one else. The whole human race fell at one moment. When they fell, we all fell. And we have inherited the consequences of that sin. Just as surely as you inherit physical characteristics, genes, DNA from your parents, you 3 also inherit something else–a corrupted nature. You inherit sin. You inherit a penalty. We all are under that penalty. This is why the virgin birth of Jesus was an absolute necessity. The virgin birth of Jesus was not just an amazing birth to astound us. It was a necessity insuring Jesus did not inherit the sin line from Adam. So he was the second Adam. He was the second representative of the human race. I want you to understand something – the whole human race can be divided right down the middle. You are either in Adam or you’re in Christ. We all start out in Adam. We are in that covenant. We are in that failed relationship. We are lost, but God offers the opportunity to change allegiances and we can move from being in Adam to in Christ.
But every human being in the world is either in Adam or in Christ. Now, so what did I inherit? The Bible says I inherited guilt (Romans 5:18-19).  Guilt means I stand condemned before God. The moment I was conceived in my mother’s womb and born into this world, I was born guilty. Before I committed one act of my own sin, I owed a debt because I inherited the debt of my forefathers, all the way back to Adam. That debt could never paid except by Jesus Christ. I owe a debt to sin, and the wrath of God is against me. The Bible says I inherited condemnation from Adam. He was condemned, and I am born a condemned sinner.
Now, we often think of guilt as an emotion like “Oh, I feel guilty.” I want you to understand this is not what this kind of guilt is. Whether you feel guilty or not, you are. There are many people who do things, but never feel guilty. That has nothing to do with guilt. This is a penal standing; this is condemnation. There is a legal sentence. There is a warrant out for our arrest. We are guilty. We are guilty, and the wrath of God is against us because the holiness of God is so offended by the sin of man.
The second thing w inherit is depravity. Depravity simply means I am a factory second. You see, Adam was first quality. You know what factory seconds are. They are sold the discount store because they are defective merchandise. You and I are born morally defective. I have inherited that defect from Adam. You’ll never have to teach a child how to lie. You will never see a college course entitled “Lying – 101” or “Cheating – 203”. We just know how to do such things and so much more. It’s inherent within us; there is a corruption within us. There is the inclination to choose wrong over right. This is the depraved nature. Paul said “In my flesh, that is in that depravity of my nature, dwells no good thing ” (Romans 7:8). We inherited a depraved nature. I am not only a sinner by condemnation; I am a sinner by act.
Here is the third thing I inherited – inability. That simply means I am incapable of effecting my own moral or spiritual renewal. Human beings cannot change themselves. Oh, we have a lot of self-help things. You can learn how to have more confidence, and you learn how to break a bad habit, but the bottom line is, you will never effect your own right standing before God. You will never effect a change in your moral nature because only God can do that. The Bible calls this being lost. Do you know what lost is? You can’t find your way out.
This is what we inherited. We have guilt, we have depravity and we have the inability to change ourselves. The wonderful message of God is this – God did not want to leave us in that condition. God chose to do something about it. For each one of these consequences of sin: guilt, depravity and inability, God has a marvelous work of grace. For guilt, he has justification.
For depravity, he has sanctification. And for inability, he has regeneration. God says, “I will take care of the problem.” We are going to talk about the other two in the next few weeks. But, today it’s justification we are discussing.
We’re guilty, and we are constantly under the accusation of both our conscience and Satan himself. In our conscience, we know that we’ve done wrong. You see, not only did I inherit the penalty, I have personally added to the debt. I’ve sinned. I’ve added to this accumulated debt of human sin. My conscience condemns me. Paul made this statement in Romans 2 when he said, “Even those who’ve never seen the Bible, never heard one law of God, know they have 4 sinned.” There’s a law in our conscience that makes us aware that we have sinned. Do you realize that every religion in the world is based on the idea that man is a sinner, trying to appease God? If you’re a Hindu, you’re working on your Karma so that one day maybe you can achieve Moksha and can break out of the constant cycle of reincarnation. You hope you won’t come back as a bug and that maybe you’ll come back higher and eventually, you will join with Brahman. If you’re a Buddhist, you’re working on trying to find Nirvana by good works. If you’re Islamic, you’re trying to go through the five pillars of Islam. You’re saying the Shahadah as many times a day as you can. You’re praying five times a day facing Mecca. You’re having Ramadan fasts. You’re giving ohms to the poor. You’re doing all of these things so that hopefully when you die, you’ve done enough that God will not condemn you. We could go on and on and on. All religions are about trying to appease God and trying to break out of the cycle of our own condemnation. The difference between Christianity and the others is God has provided a way by which it’s not us trying to do it. Do you realize, in all these other religions, there is no assurance that you’ve done enough? You have no clue if you’re really going to make it. You have no clue if you’re going to achieve Nirvana or Moksha or if you’re going to escape hell. You have no clue. You just hope that maybe, just maybe, you’ve got the God’s favor. But, Christianity says you can know, because God has made a clear pathway for you to be forgiven.
And then there’s Satan, pointing his finger at us, constantly condemning us. Imagine, we’re in the court of law. There’s the judge, God Almighty. His holiness is so radiant and we see our filthiness. There’s the witness for the prosecution. In fact, he’s the prosecuting attorney, Satan himself, pointing at us saying, “He’s a liar, a cheat, dishonest. Your Honor, sir, he deserves to go to Hell.” We know we do. Soon, we’re expecting to hear the gavel fall and hear Him say “Condemned”. But for those who put their trust in Jesus, the defense attorney steps up. We feel a sense of assurance when he speaks to the judge and says, “Hi Dad”. He says, “Everything
Satan said about this person is absolutely true. But this is one for whom I died, and he has trusted me. Would you take my blood and would you apply it to their account?” Paul said in Romans 5, “We have been introduced to this grace.” It is like Jesus brings us over and introduces us to the Father, and he covers us with his righteousness. Those filthy garments, he covers them. The stains are no longer seen. This is why the next time the enemy stands up and says, “I object!” you just turn and say, “Satan, the blood of Jesus is against you. The blood of Jesus is against you.” The next time you take communion, and we do communion a lot of different ways. Sometimes I’ll say, “Raise the cup”. Do you know what you’re saying? You are saying to the enemy, “The blood of Jesus is against you. No more lies, no more accusations.” That’s what it means to be justified.

That’s what the whole Christian experience is about. It means when I come to God covered in my sin, guilty from birth, guilty by the addition of all the stuff I’ve done, owing a debt I could not pay, the blood of Jesus covers me, and I can know that I know I stand in the court of God not as a condemned sinner, but a favored son and when the gavel falls, it will not be the pronouncement of condemnation; it will be innocent! Not guilty! That’s what justification means. God pronounces you, “Not guilty”. This is what the core of Christianity is all about. This is at the very core of our faith. Paul said in Romans 3:21-27:
But now a righteousness from God, apart from the law, has been made known. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ, for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, but we are justified freely by His grace through the redemption which came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood…he did it to demonstrate his justice, so as to be just and the one who justifies. A man is justified by his faith. 5

First, everyone is a sinner. That means none of us are going to get into God’s presence by being good. The second thing he says is that justification is a gift of grace. It is a free gift God gives you. It comes through God’s unmerited favor. Thirdly, redemption is through Jesus’ blood and this is the only means this free gift can be offered. Redemption is an interesting word. It literally means to pay a ransom. We hear of people kidnapping someone and holding them for ransom.
They say, “You pay the money, and we’ll let them go.”. The idea is we’ve been kidnapped by Satan. We are in the penal institution of Satan, but Jesus has paid the ransom. I want you to understand God could not have forgiven any of us were it not for the blood of Jesus. Jesus’ death on the cross was not a martyr’s death. Many don’t understand the centrality of the cross to our faith. Jesus wasn’t a martyr dying on a cross. He wasn’t a good man dying for a cause. It wasn’t just a horrible miscarriage of justice. This was atonement. This was God, laying on Jesus, our punishment. The punishment that you and I were supposed to receive was placed on
Jesus. God could not forgive any of us and be just without the payment of sin being made. You must understand that. This is why the cross is so central. This is why we sing songs like “I cling to the old rugged cross”. If we didn’t have the cross, we would all go to Hell! Sometimes when we tell people God’s forgiveness is free, we make it sound like it’s cheap. It’s not cheap. It cost God his Son. William Barkley said this “Divine forgiveness is costly.” God is love, but God is also holy. God cannot break the great moral laws on which the universe is built. Sin must have its punishment, or the very structure of life disintegrates. Only God alone can pay the terrible price
that is necessary before men can be forgiven. Forgiveness is never a case of saying “It’s alright; it doesn’t matter.” Forgiveness is the most costly thing in the world. When we came to God and said “Oh Lord, would You forgive me of my sins?” God did not look down upon you and say “Oh man, it’s alright; it doesn’t matter.” No, it is not alright, and it does matter. The only way God could forgive us was that the debt was paid by someone else. This is what justification is about.
The only way you and I can be declared not guilty was for Jesus to declared guilty in spite of his innocence, so that we, who were the guilty, might be declared innocent. That’s what it’s all about. When Jesus cried “It is finished!” he was declaring a legal end. He was declaring “case closed”. The verdict is in.
Several years ago, I watched a television program, a story of two Japanese soldiers on a remote South Pacific island. They were the only two remaining soldiers of their battalion, and they never got the word that the war was over. Ten to fifteen years had passed. They had lived on that island, without any other inhabitants, constantly thinking the Allies were coming. How amazed they were when finally, someone came to the island and found them. They literally thought the war was still on. What it must have felt like when they were told the war was over. A treaty has been signed. Hey guys, come home! How many people in the world are living just like that?
They don’t understand, the war is over. The treaty is offered through Jesus. That’s what Paul said. When we are justified by faith, we have peace with God. War is over. Come and put your name on the treaty with Jesus. The war is over.
My friend, are you afraid of God? Are you fearful of meeting God? Paul said you could have peace with God. The war is over. All of this was done so that God can be shown both as the just and justifier. That’s why God can forgive you from sin but be just while he’s doing it. And the bottom line is this – you can only be justified by faith, not by works. A lot of people have this crazy idea that only really bad people are going to hell, and, of course, they’re not one of those.
I talk to people and ask, “How do you know you’re not going to Hell?” Usually, a person will go through this whole line of reasoning that “well, I’m a halfway decent person; I’m morally upright.” I say, “So, you’ve never done anything wrong?” “Yes, everybody’s done something wrong.” I say, “So, how do you know you’re good enough to go to heaven?” The bottom line is they really don’t’ know. They’re hoping. Hoping against hope that maybe they have stacked up enough good works. But, God says, “I can give you assurance.” Stop trusting in your work and trust in Jesus. He paid the price. You know that scale over here that you could never balance? 6

Ephesians 5:25, Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.
A redeemed marriage is one in which the wife seeks to submit in humility, and the husband seeks to lead in love.

When he heard of the deplorable condition of his people he wept, mourned, fasted, and prayed.

He confessed that Israel had sinned, his father had sinned, and that he himself had sinned.

He left the safe and comfortable confines of the king’s palace. For twelve years he personally fed 150 Jews and rulers as well as others.

Nehemiah surveyed the land by day and by night to see first hand what the conditions were and to assess what was needed.

He continued his mission in spite of all the opposition and difficulties. He would not be stopped.

He was able to inspire men, women, and children to take their place around the wall and work for no pay.

Integrity is a state of uprightness and honesty. It includes self-honesty, honesty with God, and honesty with others. Integrity reveals itself in the decisions made, actions taken, and personal devotion. In this section we will review briefly the events in the life and leadership of Nehemiah which reveal integrity.

The fact that he was the cupbearer of the king is of itself a testimony to Nehemiah’s personal integrity. The title may not sound very glamorous but he must have been a trusted person. He had confidential access to the king. The king lived or died according to the integrity of the cupbearer.

That Nehemiah could not and would not abandon his brethren further illustrates his integrity. He was himself secure, comfortable, respected, and well compensated. On the other hand, his brethren were illiterate, unskilled, impoverished, and in bondage. Nehemiah remembered and responded.

His unwillingness to ignore social and economic injustice further demonstrate his integrity. He refused to tolerate brother taking advantage of brother and nobles taking advantage of peasants and servants.

Tobiah and his associates tried to induce Nehemiah to violate the temple by using it as a sanctuary for his own safety. At the risk of his own life he refused to violate the sacred house of God.

Nehemiah led his people to covenant with God to walk in God’s law. They agreed not to engage in marriages with the sons and daughters of peoples from other lands. They vowed to remember the Sabbath Day and to keep it holy. They made a covenant to bring the tithe of everything into the storehouse of God.

During the temporary absence of Nehemiah, his arch enemy was given residence in the economic sector of Jerusalem. When he discovered this, he threw Tobiah and his household out of the rooms. The rooms were then cleansed and rededicated to God. The Levites had been deprived of their portion. Nehemiah reinstated their ministries with honor and compensation. The Sabbath was reinstated as a day of rest and freedom from commerce.

The broken-down walls of the city of Jerusalem could have been restored by engineers and construction workers. But the broken down spiritual walls had to be reconstructed through leadership with an obsessive sense of righteousness. With the fear of God as first priority, this lay person led his people in rebuilding the walls literally and spiritually. Without strong personal integrity the latter could never have been accomplished!

The matter of Paul and personal integrity will be concluded by a reference to his personal defense when his right to lead was being challenged. His entire defense was based upon two factors. The first was his divine call to be an apostle. The second was the matter of his personal integrity. Paul did not use his divine call to cover for his lack of personal integrity. He was open and transparent with the life he lived in the open view of the Christian community. “My manner of life from my youth, which was spent from the beginning among my own nation at Jerusalem, all the Jews know. They knew me from the first, if they were willing to testify, that according to the strictest sect of our religion I lived as Pharisee” (Acts 26:4, 5). Paul’s commitment to personal integrity is expressed in these words, “I myself always strive to have a good conscience without offense toward God and men” (Acts 24:16).

Personal integrity is never evident in the brief history of this wicked leader. Unlike his father Gideon, Abimelech was devoid of conscience and cared only about his selfish ambitions and personal welfare. We hope that there are not many as cruel and wicked as he. Yet it seems that carnal ambition and personal gain prompts far too many to seek and obtain leadership. Gideon was a good man but miserably treated by the people. Perhaps the Bramble King was a form of retribution?

Let us focus briefly on Abimelech’s lack of personal integrity.

1. He abandoned all traces of the fear of God. I shudder at what happens when leaders do this.
2. He ignored and violated the design of God. Seventy people before him were entitled to sit on the throne. Unwillingness to bow to God’s plan and yield to His will courts disaster.
3. Self-aggrandizement was his sole objective.
4. He cared not for others and had no commitment to God’s kingdom.
5. He resorted to falsehood as a means of accomplishing his objective. He led the people to believe that all of Gideon’s sons were intent on becoming their king but only he was qualified.
6. He diverted sacred collections to his own campaign to trample over others to get his way.
7. He made unholy alliances with worthless and reckless men. Corrupt leaders associate with their own kind.
8. Murder became the low point in Abimelech’s display of a total lack of personal integrity. Not just murder but mass murder came easy for him.

He that sows to the flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption. He that lives by the sword shall die by the sword. He that exalteth himself shall be abased, and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

Abimelech rose to influence by putting forth false claims as an adventurer, and now it is by the setting forth of the false claims of another adventurer (Gaal), that the standard of revolt is raised against his authority.

In the house where he found the money that enabled him to execute the awful deeds, his subjects met to pour curses on his head and to plot his ruin.

The man who made it his boast to say, “My father was a king,” is at last rejected by his votaries for one who was the son of a slave (Ebed means a slave).

By a woman he rose to power (his mother; when the Shechemites said, “He is a brother”) and by a woman he met his death.

He slew all his brothers on one stone, and now by means of one stone he is slain. He sinned so much, that he might get the crown set on his head, and now he dies by his head being crushed.

His grand ambition was that his name might go down to posterity as “Abimelech the Invincible,” and yet the last thing the world hears of him is “A woman slew him.”

1. Regardless of the model, personal integrity becomes the primary factor. No particular model is sacred in and of itself.
2. Personal integrity is not a prerequisite for leadership. Many Biblical as well as contemporary examples prove that, even in the absence of personal integrity, gifted leaders attract a following.
3. Quantifiable success is insufficient to attest to the credibility of spiritual leaders.
4. No model or method of leadership can be better than the person who leads. The character of the leader is more important than the model or the method.
5. When I was a small boy these people were trusted, admired, and respected — medical doctors, school teachers, and clergymen. Now that I am older I regret to say that in many cases all three of the above have betrayed us.
6. Erick Erickson identifies his eighth stage in the life-cycle as being “ego-integrity vs. despair.” He makes a strong case of maintaining ego-integrity throughout life as the basis for facing death without fear, anger, dread, or resentment. If we are honest and live with a clear conscience, we have no need to panic when we see the end of our journey.
7. The apostle Paul lived with integrity. This fact enabled him to summarize his ministry, moments before he lost his life, in the following graphic way:

For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing (2 Timothy 4:6-8)

The Metro vision portrays a three dimensional picture of a LIGHTHOUSE, penetrating the darkness; a HOSPITAL, providing care and restoration; and a SPIRITUAL MOTHER, birthing ministries and nurturing believers.

We better be sure we know who we are and what we are about, if we hope to reach this world for Christ.  A statement of mission is philosophic.  It is a general statement of ministry objectives.  Vision is a part of our overall mission.  Vision is a specific, detailed statement of direction and uniqueness; it is strategic.

In those churches where a sense of God’s vision for ministry truly exists, the probability of growth and impact are high.  In churches where vision is absent, growth is thwarted by many roadblocks.  George Barna points out that mission and vision are not interchangeable terms.  They are not the same but they are incomplete without each other.  The mission statement is a definition of the key ministry objectives of the church.  The vision statement is a clarification of the specific direction and activities the church will pursue toward making a true ministry impact.

Metropolitan’s mission statement is very broad and really includes the specifics of their vision.  Usually your mission can be described in a sentence or two.  Sometimes you can use a slogan to capture its essence.  An example is “to reach the lost at any cost” or “to evangelize, exalt, edify, and equip.”

We must put feet on our mission philosophy for ministry.  We must discover practical and workable ways we can help hurting people.  When we really understand the mission God has for us and how we can begin to approach this challenge, we can then see our church as unique, special, and important to the Kingdom of God.  George Barna said that the purpose of vision is to create the future.  It is to make faith into reality.  All things are possible!  The future belongs to God and to those who follow and flow with what God is doing.

The mark of a great leader is the ability not only to capture the vision, but also to articulate it and to cause people to fully embrace it.  For our mission and vision to have an impact, it must be shared.  It must result in consensus.  If only the pastor is committed to the mission and can see and believe in the reality of the vision, all will be lost.  The pastor must communicate the mission and vision that God is orchestrating in a way that local church leaders can recognize in their spirits that this is of God.

Dr. Raymond F. Culpepper said, “True ministry is a spiritual phenomenon which supersedes systems, programs, formulas, and church growth tools.  True ministry is precipitated by spiritual incubation not unilateral human direction.”

If we are going to touch a hurting world through local church ministry, we must learn to walk through new doors of ministry as led by the Holy Spirit.  We must view the Word of God as central to discipleship and the accomplishment of ministry.  We must be committed to the personal work of the Holy Spirit as He directs our individual lives and ministries in supernatural ways.  Also, we must be possessed by a single, supreme passion.

Therefore, we must understand and be committed to the mission of effectively caring for our hurting world.  Concerning our personal commitment to the mission, we must remember that God will not trust long-term ministry to those who have short-term commitment.

Before God can establish a ministry to hurting people in your church, He must first grow the mission in you.  Jack Hayford said, “Church growth is . . . God growing something in me.”  Satan vehemently opposes true ministry, not just programs, because true ministry is an extension of the sovereign work of Christ.

We must resist temptations to follow fads and forms to achieve rapid growth.  We must patiently labor with God’s help and divine direction to build a spiritual foundation for ministry.

In order to capture God’s mission and vision for our ministry of care and counseling, we must not become distracted from a growing personal relationship with God.  We must reject resorting to human means rather than Holy Spirit vision casting.  The flow of the Holy Spirit in our ministry becomes blocked by negative power struggles, dead traditions, human manipulation, inept leadership, guilt-motivation, and a lack of relationship skills.

Seek God’s direction and mission. The Holy Spirit precipitates, participates, and proliferates ministry. Understanding your mission and seeing the unique vision requires trust, time, and tenacity.  Through faith and commitment, you will capture and experience God’s mission for your ministry and local church.

He had a quiet sense of confidence that grew from His relationship with His Father.  Irenaeus said, “He was made what we are that He might make us what He is Himself.”

Genuine leaders operate out of a sense of calling, not a sense of compulsion.

He had a great sense of purpose/mission.  Warren Bennis affirmed what was said earlier when he wrote, “Managers want to do things right — leaders want to do the right thing.”

Centered in any great leader’s soul is a sense of transcendent purpose.  A sense of divine mission coursed strongly through the arteries of Jesus’ forbearers.

• Abraham was called to go into the unknown and father a new nation.
• Joseph had a dream of greatness.
• Moses, at a burning bush, discovered his life’s purpose.
• Joshua led Israel into the promised land.
• David subdued a kingdom.
• Solomon built God’s temple.

All lived and died with a belief that through them God was working out a purpose greater than themselves.  Jesus had that same sense of destiny.  He often referred to the purposes for His coming “to call … sinners to repentance” (Luke 5:32); “to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10).  Christ came to bring truth, a sword, fire, division … He saw Himself as the Son of Man, fulfilling history.  When Jesus gave His inaugural speech at the synagogue in Nazareth, He read from the prophecy of Isaiah:

The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor (Isaiah 61:1, 2).

Then He said, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:18-21).

Jesus’ saving role was a strategy of suffering and glory.  The cross was pivotal to Jesus’ strategy.  The suffering and the giving of His life, a ransom for many (Mark 10:45), would lead on to glory — the glory of His resurrection and His final return.

As we follow Jesus’ ministry, we see that He preaches, heals, forgives, and challenges religious systems.  Jesus touches the problems of people with the power of God.  Also, He is creating a band of followers.  The aim of Jesus was and is to extend the kingdom of God to all the nations, and to set people free from all that binds them.  Jesus had called a committed minority who would change the world, not by frontal assaults, by force, or by slogans, but by infiltrating every nook and cranny of this world with God’s salt and light and leaven.  Jesus returned to heaven and entrusted His work to committed people.  Committed people are known by their love for one another. They serve the poor and help the suffering.  They preach the good news everywhere and invite everyone to come to Christ.

We will prevail, not in our own strength, but in the power of the Holy Spirit.  When we have finished the work, Christ will return; then, we will enter into His joy, and our everlasting celebration will begin.

Jesus lived by the unseen.  He knew that “what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal”

(2 Corinthians 4:18).  If only our vision were as Christ’s, a total and compelling vision of the largest and widest scope, with people always at the focus of His purpose.

If we are to follow the model of Jesus, we must learn to see as Jesus sees.

• We must observe carefully and prayerfully where people are hurting, suffering, and longing to see what God is doing in the world.  We must allow our hearts to be drawn to an area which may be God’s vision for us.
• We need to reflect on what we have observed, praying and reading, thinking and talking until our sense of call begins to emerge and we see what it is that God would have us do.
• Then we must begin to act on that vision, even if we begin in just small ways.

Jesus was gentle and compassionate; at times He was withdrawing, yet filled with power and authority.  Jesus was not passive; He was a “strong man.”  He was Christ the captain; Christ the victor; Christ the warrior; and was victorious even in death.

Jesus was not driven by His needs, but by His mission.  He was able to set priorities and timetables rather than reacting to pressure.  He did not permit others to set His agenda.  Jesus was not driven by compulsions for applause, recognition, or power.  He selected to do only those things He is called to do.

The admirable qualities of forcefulness and humility are rarely found in the same person.  But in Jesus, we see both at their finest and fullest.  A leader may appear strong in action and accomplishment, but the test comes when facing temptation and hardship.

From the beginning to the end of His life, Jesus was tempted to take the path of least resistance.  In the wilderness, at His trial, and at the cross, Jesus showed strength in the last battle with sin and evil.  Dying for truth and for the world’s sin, He showed where true greatness lies.

Gerald Hartis said, “Ministry is what we leave in our wake as we follow Jesus.”  Jesus knew the price of leadership and He was willing to give Himself.  No one ever had at their disposal greater power than Jesus.  Jesus turned the power scale of the world upside-down.

Nothing will destroy a movement faster than disunity among those who are at the center.  Being around greatness may corrupt us if we grasp for the glory and fail to understand the spirit of the leader.  Our attitudes to the unimportant person, the outsider, and the other followers show our grasp of our leader’s mission.

“Who is the greatest?” argued Christ’s disciples.  The one who acts like Jesus, comes the answer.  Jesus taught that greatness is measured by taking the last place, by a total commitment to welcome the “little ones,” by a passion for personal purity, and by toughness with ourselves, yet gentleness with others.

He aimed to reproduce Himself in them. Walter Lippman said, “The final test of a leader is that he leaves behind him in other men the convictions and the will to carry on.”

The theme of enabling others to be all that they can be is at the core of genuine leadership.  Warren Bennis said, “Leadership is not so much the exercise of power itself as the empowerment of others.”  The leadership of Jesus was empowering and transforming.  Shepherding people should be a means of empowering them.

Jesus said, “I have called you friends, for everything that I have learned from my Father I have made known to you.”

Jim Kennedy said, “Train a man and he will become only what you are.  Serve and develop a man who is caught up with vision and is dedicated to God and the sky is the limit.”

Jesus was the great mentor, the great role model for ministry.  If we are to build a local church ministry of care, we must empower people and free them to work for God.  People can only perform excellently when they fully comprehend what they are trying to do.

A large part of leadership lies in “vision casting.”  Generally, people are drawn not so much to programs as to leaders who inspire.

He could articulate His mission and vision.  Jesus was a model communicator.  He taught His disciples simply and directly, yet He mystified the multitudes with His parables.  Jesus spoke reality!  His person, vision, and mission were all integrated in what He said.

There are certain lessons we can learn about communication from Jesus.

1. Clarity of speech comes from clarity of purpose.  Know where you are heading!
2. Believability comes in direct proportion to a quiet sense of confidence.  Know your source and your identity!
3. Words live forever, therefore they must be handled with care.  Know the power of language!
4. How others hear is as important as what you say.  Know your audience!
5. Knowing when to speak is as important as knowing what to say.  Know that timing is everything!
6. Simplicity means to say one thing well.  Know your point!
7. Face your calling and task with the utmost seriousness, but do not be anxious about yourself.  Know where your responsibility begins and ends!

He was gracious, courageous, and wise. Warren Bennis said, “As weather shapes mountains, so problems make leaders.”  To lead is to struggle.  “Leadership always involves change, moving people from one point to another, from the old way of doing things to the new, from the security in the past to the insecurity in the future,” according to Leighton Ford.

Since leadership involves change, and change precipitates crisis, a leader must expect resistance.  A major theme in the life of Jesus is that of a deep ongoing struggle with evil.  Jesus handled conflict, but He was uniquely free of inner conflict.  If we as leaders/models want to transform conflict, then we must overcome our own inner wars.  We must recognize the power of satan to cause conflicts in people and churches.  We need to know that the battle is on a spiritual level and that the weapons to use are divine not carnal.

Evil is not to be feared, ignored, or shrunk from, but to be exposed, confronted, overcome and used for God’s glory.

He was committed to the future. David McKenna said, “By the very nature of their role, incarnate leaders must plan to make an exit.”  A transforming leader must not only be an initiator but also a finisher, and not only a finisher but also a sustainer.  Jesus provided not only a legacy, but also a way of sustaining and renewing momentum.  As models, we must meet the challenge of the future by preparing people for the future.

What can we learn from Jesus (our model) about letting go and leading into the future?

• He led the way for others to follow.
• He shaped His people — for without successors, there is no success.
• He symbolized His values — the cross and the empty tomb were His greatest symbols.

If we are going to be the leader in local church ministry of caring, we must follow the example of Christ and His model of leadership and ministry.

• “Tell them what to do.”
• “Tell them why.”
• “Show them how.”
• “Do it with them.”
• “Let them do it.”
• “Deploy them.”

• Make sure you have a plan.
• Explain your plan.
• Present a model of how you plan to work.

Someone else’s vision will not work for you.  You must follow a method of ministry that fits your situation.

In care and counseling, we must remember that we are dealing with broken people who don’t know how to get along in relationships.

• Involve many people in ministry of care.
• Plan to disciple new converts.
• Teach dysfunctional people.
• Develop character in people.
• Help people discover their gifts.
• Build a community of love and support.
• Allow a diversity of ministries and methods.

• Stage 1 – Listening and understanding
• Stage 2 – Helping people rethink the problem(s)
• Stage 3 – Formulating workable action plans
• Stage 4 – Supporting people as they implement the action plans for growth and recovery
• Stage 5 – Follow-up with continued love and support

Most effective counseling is not done by professionals but by ordinary people.  When people have problems, they turn to their friends and family.  Training for lay counselors is important.  They need to gain experience under the supervision of a professional.

Training courses are available to help guide you in methods for care and crisis intervention.  Also, Level 2 in Lay Leadership Development has a manual entitled “How to Establish a Counseling Ministry in the Local Church.”

When you seriously start helping people get free and on-track for God, you can expect satanic espionage and interference.  Your ministry will survive only by maintaining anointing and Christ-like leadership.  Do not panic or give up when the ministry struggles.

Motivate ministry leaders by giving them ownership, authority with responsibility, forgiveness, patience, and a willingness to share your own personal failures.

Establish concrete lines of communication with ministry leaders and workers where you teach them, model maturity, and really listen to their ideas.

Maintain a climate conducive to ministry in your church.  Teach your people to love and help hurting people.  The life of your ministry of care will require patience from everyone involved, anointing of the Holy Spirit, skills development, and consistent leadership.

• “In theory there is nothing to hinder our following what we are taught; but in life there are many things to draw us aside.” Epictetus A.D. 50-120
• “We cannot become what we want to be by remaining what we are.”  Max Dupree
• “Make everything you do count.”  Paul L. Walker
• “You don’t attract what you want, you attract what you are.”  Curtis Hutson
• “Great pastors don’t build great churches; great pastors build great people and great people build great churches.”  Jack Hyles
• “Let the wind of the Holy Spirit … catch your sail and lift you over the waves to fulfill God’s mission for your church.”  Peter Wagner