Greetings again my Brethren. Let us continue to look at the qualified witness in God’s call to ministry. In the 10th Chapter of Mark some of the disciples asked the LORD for a favour, “And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, come unto him, saying, Master, we would that thou shouldest do for us whatsoever we shall desire. 36And he said unto them, What would ye that I should do for you? 37 They said unto him, Grant unto us that we may sit, one on thy right hand, and the other on thy left hand, in thy glory.” (Mark 10: 35-37) The disciples were always trying to find out who Jesus loved best or who would be exalted above the others. A few days before Jesus was to be crucified the disciples got into a big argument about who would be the greatest in the kingdom. And here the disciples wanted to know who was going to sit on the right hand (a place of great honor) and on the left (a place of honor, but less). Jesus knowing their hearts replied, “Ye know not what ye ask: can ye drink of the cup that I drink of? and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? 39And they said unto him, We can. And Jesus said unto them, Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized: 40But to sit on my right hand and on my left hand is not mine to give; but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared.” (Mark 10:38-40) Did you get that? Jesus told them He could not choose someone for this place of honor by Him, but this place is reserved for “them for whom it is prepared.” In the Greek it reads, “to them who have qualified or been approved. This place is reserved for those who have done the things they needed to do to receive this honor. Nothing is free in God. Now some would say our salvation is free well for us yes, but not so for Christ for Christ it cost Him His life, a very high price to pay indeed. My friend everything we get in God will cost us something nothing is free. Everything we get from God we must qualify for or be approved in it, so too in our call to ministry. If we go too bank and ask for a loan of money the bank is not going to say, “okay you look like a nice guy here is the $300,000,” oh no the bank manager will say, “what do you have by way of collateral?’ What assets do you have to guarantee this loan? What is your credit history? What education do you have? Are you faithful in paying back your debts? In God there is no difference. In God to go and speak for God we must qualify, we must be approved, we must be trained, we must learn the lessons God has for us to learn so that we can go and speak for God. Without learning these lessons we will not be able to be productive or useful to God, but if we learn the lessons and then apply them to our lives and the ministry God has called us to we will yield fruit and it shall remain. In our call we must be a qualified witness of the things of God if not we are only passing on things we personally do not know anything about. Jesus then brought them down where he lived, “Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them. 43But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister: 44And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all. 45For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:42-45) The disciples were floored, the greatest must serve the least? The chief call in and to our ministry is being a servant to the least among us. This is a lesson many Christians seem not to have learned. Paul tells us, “Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 4Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.” (Romans 6:3-5) Oh we want to walk in “newness of life,” but not too many Christians want to be baptized in to the death of Christ. The requirement to be called in ministry is found in our ability to be a qualified witness of God. Have you qualified for His call?
Next month we will learn we have not been sent by ourselves or others. Do you hear Him now?
