No Exemptions

One of the temptations thrown in the way of every preacher like the one thrown out by the serpent in the Garden or the tempter in the wilderness not far from the Jordan River is the one about circumventing the plan of God.  Most preachers at one time or another get so caught up in their own sense of greatness that they begin to actually believe the church is all about them.  While none of us wants to confess it, there are those times when we figure the church will not survive without us.    

Over the course of forty years I went to and left ten different churches and not a one of them closed when I drove away for the last time.  While they may have depended on me for leadership, they did not depend on me for survival.  The Word of God points to something far different when it speaks about the functioning of the church.  The preacher at the church where I worshipped this past Sunday morning preached about spiritual gifts which is the life blood of the church.  The Spirit can be counted on to equip the church with people who are spiritually gifted to fulfill its ministry.   I Corinthians 12:5-7 points the way, "...there are varieties of services, but the same Lord, and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone.  To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good."   And later the Apostle goes on to say that the Spirit, "...allots to each one individually as the Spirit chooses."  (vs. 11)   

The church needs good preachers.  I will never fail to argue for that need.  But, as much as it might need good leadership, it also needs people who sense their own calling to pick up their spiritual gift and use it for the good of the whole church and even beyond so that the work of the Kingdom of God in the world is strengthened.  The Word makes no exemptions.  We are each gifted with at least one spiritual gift.  Any preacher who thinks the success of the church is all about the preacher needs to do some ear cleaning so the Word of God can be heard more clearly.