8th May, 2022
Minister: Elder Tunde Adesida
Text: Acts 6:1-4
A time of celebration is a time of reflection, a time of evaluation. It is a time to look at the past and the present and see what the Lord will have for us in the future and eternity. Only thoughtful people appreciate God most; a lot of people are ungrateful. There is always a need for us to think deep so we can give our best appreciation to God.
The end of every ministry is the destiny that God has given to the Church in Jesus Christ. Just like a millipede that leaves a sign behind everywhere it passes, every ministry must strive to leave its mark on the sand of time. It is all about having and making impact. People should be able to know that you once passed through the earth.
There are four unavoidable stages every Holy Ghost movement will go through. All these stages are always at work in every movement.
Multiplication (Acts 6:1): There will definitely be a time of multiplication, both numerically and spiritually in every Holy Ghost movement. The problem with many ministers these days is that they measure their achievements by the number of people serving them rather than by the number of people they are serving and/or have served.
Note that there is nobody who is anybody’s convert; we are all converts of our Lord Jesus Christ. When we impact people’s lives, our ministerial work is multiplying (Matthew 28:18ff). A ministry is defined by its years of toughening experience. It is not an overnight matter but an overtime matter.
Holistic Ministration: As the movement multiplies, there will be increased need for holistic ministration to members in their spirit, soul and body. Any ministry that is not meeting the needs of its members can be likened to a gambling house or an empire.
When a member of a Holy Ghost movement suffers unnecessarily, it is either due to failure on the part of the member who feels too ashamed to make his needs known or failure on the part of leaders who care less about their members. God has placed different members of the Body of Christ in strategic places for the benefit of other members.
If the leaders cannot directly help members, they should at least be able to reach out to people who can help. If a member fails to make his needs known to the leadership, he will expose himself to the wrong people.
Murmuring (Acts 6:1): People murmured in the early church because some members were neglected in the distribution of welfare items. Sometimes, if there is no murmuring, the church might not know that there are issues to address. However, murmuring becomes problematic when it creates discord among members. As leaders, do not put aside any complaint because there could be a substance in it that can lead to new dynamics in the work that God as given to you. Always process complaints through the help of the Holy Spirit. Some leaders have lost their souls/anointing in the process of dealing with difficult members. Leaders need to learn to be patient with their members (Luke 21:19).
Ministry of the Word (Acts 6:4): There can never be a revolution in anybody’s heart without the word of God circumcising the heart. The ministry of the word must not be neglected in any Holy Ghost movement. Every Christian must go through the Bible at least once in a lifetime. Do not skip any part of the Scripture when reading it. We need to sit up and become real Bible students.
Backsliding is falling; apostasy is somersaulting over and over again. We must run away from churches that fascinate rather than vaccinate us.
There are many manipulative schemers today that hide under the Bible to propagate all kinds of atrocities. We should avoid them like the plague.
God is interested in the sustenance of whatever He starts and we need to always cooperate with Him so that the ministry He has entrusted to us succeeds.