If You Go Into Ministry…

Posted on by Dr. Linda Agnes Knowles

IF YOU GO INTO MINISTRY expecting to make a great amount of wealth, then you do not understand what ministry is. Ministry is about reaching out to the hopeless, speaking for those who have no voice, and reaching the lost and dying by proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ so they may inherit eternal life. Ministry is about winning souls for Jesus Christ. “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost,” Luke 19:10.

IF YOU GO INTO MINISTRY expecting to make a great amount of wealth, then you have lost the purpose of what ministry is about. “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many,” Mark 10:45, Matthew 20:28. We lay down ourselves, our ego, our desires, our will in exchange for picking up our cross, dying to selfishness, and following His Will, giving our lives in service to Him, and going forth to tell others about Jesus Christ and who He is. “He must increase; I must decrease,” John 3:30. “And he said to all, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me,” Luke 9:23. Note the words “Let Him Deny Himself.”

THE WORD “MINISTER” on its own means “servant.” MINISTERING TO (SERVING) OTHERS is a calling.

IF YOU GO INTO MINISTRY JUST SO YOU CAN GET WEALTHY AND MILK PEOPLE DRY, then your ministry is built on the foundation of self and on things that will collapse when the storms come. IF YOUR MINISTRY IS BUILT ON SELF, THE LOVE OF MONEY, EGO, GREED, AND BUILT WITHOUT CHRIST BEING THE FOUNDATION, your ministry will eventually collapse.

“Jesus replied, ‘Foxes have dens and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head,” Luke 9:58. There isn’t a bible verse that says Jesus lived in mansions while He on earth, and there’s isn’t a bible verse that shows Him demanding payment before or after He ministered to people. There isn’t even a verse that shows Jesus demanding money for His ministry. You will find Jesus preaching repentance and bringing hope to the hopeless, healing the sick, teaching crowds of people, delivering those who were possessed. He is Savior and Lord, and we see Him in the Scriptures as ministering to those who cried out to Him, those who recognized their need for salvation. In those same Scriptures, we see Jesus overturning the table of the money changers for taking advantage of those who were purchasing animals they needed to make sacrifices, “Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. ‘It is written,’ he said to them, ‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you are making it ‘a den of robbers,'” Matthew 21:12-13.

I will end this post with these words from the book of Jude Verses 10 and 11 and 2 Peter 2:11-13, “These men, however, slander what they do not understand, and like irrational animals, they will be destroyed by the things they do instinctively. Woe to them! They have traveled the path of Cain; they have rushed headlong into the error of Balaam; they have perished in Korah’s rebellion,” and “Yet not even angels, though greater in strength and power, dare to bring such slanderous charges against them before the Lord. These men are like irrational animals, creatures of instinct, born to be captured and destroyed. They blaspheme in matters they do not understand, and like such creatures, they too will be destroyed. The harm they will suffer is the wages of their wickedness. They consider it a pleasure to carouse in broad daylight. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their deception as they feast with you.”

Linda A. Knowles

BEFORE You Turn Your Life Into A Mess

Posted on by Dr. Linda Agnes Knowles

King

“Then all of Adonijah’s guests jumped up in panic from the banquet table and quickly scattered. Adonijah was afraid of Solomon, so he rushed to the sacred tent and grabbed on to the horns of the altar.  Word soon reached Solomon that Adonijah had seized the horns of the altar in fear, and that he was pleading, ‘Let King Solomon swear today that he will not kill me!'” -1 Kings 1:49-51

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King David was very old, unable to keep warm, and Abishag was taking care of him.  It was also around this time, Adonijah had taken it upon himself to begin boasting, “I will make myself king!”  Making a claim to the throne was an act of treason and was never taken lightly.  Adonijah got greedy, craving the power and wealth, and Kingship, and he made himself king when it was not his place to do so nor did he have the authority to do so.  Adonijah gathered together chariots, charioteers, and recruited 50 men to run in front of him (1 Kings 1:5). Adonijah then went further by having the best animals sacrificed, inviting his brothers, the other sons of King David, and all of the royal officials throughout Judah.  Adonijah had two people helping him become king as shown in 1 Kings 1:7-8(NLT), “Adonijah took Joab son of Zeruiah and Abiathar the priest into his confidence, and they agreed to help him become king. But Zadok the priest, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei, Rei, and David’s personal bodyguard refused to support Adonijah.”
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Adonijah did things HIS way, not God’s way.
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Can you understand the magnitude of the disaster Adonijah’s life was about to become? He commits an act of treason by claiming the throne which did not belong to him, betraying his own father.  He then proclaims and declares himself as king, going against King David who was still on the throne, appointing himself.  Then he finalizes it with a celebration.  However, Adonijah’s evil schemes were exposed, and it would cost him his life unless the King decided to have mercy on him.
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Nathan the Prophet went before King David when Bathsheba told him what was going on.  Adonijah’s act of treason had been found out and reported to King David who then immediately made his decree (1 Kings 1:33-35), “the king said to them, ‘Take Solomon and my officials down to Gihon Spring. Solomon is to ride on my own mule. There Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet are to anoint him king over Israel. Blow the ram’s horn and shout, ‘Long live King Solomon!’ Then escort him back here, and he will sit on my throne. He will succeed me as king, for I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and Judah.”
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Treason was punishable by death.  Simply put, by Adonijah’s foolishness in having to do things his way because his heart was not pure before God, he could now be put to death for treason.  He may have been King David’s son, but being King David’s son did not exempt him from the death penalty for the act of treason. 
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Had Adonijah sought God’s counsel before acting out and speaking prematurely, he could have avoided the disaster he made out of his life.
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REFLECTION:  We, at times, do things that we think we will not be caught doing, but that’s not the case. God sees everything we do and hears everything we say. There is no escaping His presence. Eventually, what is done in the dark comes into the light. He is the God who sees all, and everything is exposed before Him.

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“Then all of Adonijah’s guests jumped up in panic from the banquet table and quickly scattered. Adonijah was afraid of Solomon, so he rushed to the sacred tent and grabbed on to the horns of the altar. Word soon reached Solomon that Adonijah had seized the horns of the altar in fear, and that he was pleading, ‘Let King Solomon swear today that he will not kill me!’ Solomon replied, ‘If he proves himself to be loyal, not a hair on his head will be touched. But if he makes trouble, he will die.’ So King Solomon summoned Adonijah, and they brought him down from the altar. He came and bowed respectfully before King Solomon, who dismissed him, saying, ‘Go on home,'” (1 Kings 1:49-53NLT).
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Solomon had granted mercy by allowing Adonijah, giving him a reprieve by saying, “If he proves himself to be loyal, not a hair on his head will be touched.  But if he makes trouble, he will die.” Adonijah was given a chance to make things right.  Unfortunately, Adonijah fashioned another evil plot.  He committed another act of treason by requesting to have Abishag as his wife.  To ask for the King’s concubine was the equivalent to making claims to the throne (1 Kings 2:19-22).
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Adonijah had not learned his lesson the first time, and his sin made him pay far more than he ever expected to pay, “Then King Solomon made a vow before the Lord: ‘May God strike me and even kill me if Adonijah has not sealed his fate with this request. The Lord has confirmed me and placed me on the throne of my father, David; he has established my dynasty as he promised. So as surely as the Lord lives, Adonijah will die this very day!’ So King Solomon ordered Benaiah son of Jehoiada to execute him, and Adonijah was put to death,” (1 Kings 2:23-25).
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Grab on to the horns of the altar before going forward with your plans before you turn your life into a mess.  Seek God and consult God first.  Get His counsel.  Take a lesson from Adonijah’s evil scheme.  He didn’t grab on to the horns of the altar UNTIL he knew he had been caught.  Sometimes, a person has to get caught in the act before he/she gives up his/her sin.  Sometimes, a person has to get caught before he/she comes clean.  Just go before God and seek His face where you can find mercy.  Seek out God’s perfect will, His ways, and His counsel.  Consider what God wants rather than what you want.  When you do things your way, you will not succeed.  When you do things God’s way, you will be blessed, successful in your ways, and you will have peace of mind.  Before you go off on your own and do things your way, ask God what He wants you to do and how to do it.  Do not wait until after you’ve done things your way and created a disaster.
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PRAYER:  Heavenly Father, You are the God of All Wisdom and the God of All Truth.  I ask that You always help me to think before I act and speak.  Give me the understanding and insight to always look at the long-term consequences of my actions.  Empower me with the Spirit of the Living God to walk uprightly before You with a pure heart that I might bring honor to Your name.  Let me seek You out for Your counsel and give me your words to devour, guiding me in Your righteousness.  In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

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Linda A. Knowles

“Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.” –Proverbs 4:23