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The Bottom Line of Christian Ministry

April 3, 2013 in Ministry, Pastoral Ministry, Pastoral Work, Preaching with 4 Comments

In the business world, the bottom line is the last line of a financial statement that shows profit and loss. It is about whether the company is earning or losing money. And, as they say, the bottom line is the bottom line.

Every field of life and labor has a bottom line. In business, it is making money, earning profits, and increasing revenue. In education, it is passing tests, making grades, or earning a degree. In sports, it is winning games, awards, and championships. Everything has a bottom line.

What is the bottom line of Christian ministry?

You would think the answer to this question would be assumed. A ground ball. A no-brainer. Unfortunately, many pastors and churches suffer from an identity crisis, a lack of gospel mission, and misplaced priorities. We need to get back to the basics.

In 2 Timothy 2:15, Paul says, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handing the word of truth” (ESV).

The bottom line of Christian ministry is to please God in everything you do. Ultimately, the only thing that truly matters is whether or not you will be able to end your ministry by hearing the Lord say, “Well, done, good and faithful servant” (Matt. 25:21).

God pleasing ministry requires personal earnestness.

Paul instructs, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved” (2 Tim. 2:15a). Christian ministry deserves your best. You should live and minister with the blood-earnest conviction that if it bears God’s name, it deserves your best. The goal is to present yourself to God as one approved. God is the final, ultimate judge of the success or failure of your ministry. He is our target audience.

Note that Paul did not challenge Timothy to be better than anybody else. He says, “Do your best…” You don’t have to compare yourself with others, compete with others, or come in ahead of others. Just give God your best – nothing more, nothing less, nothing else. If you give God your best, it will sustain you when the work is difficult, frustrating, and tiresome. And you will be an approved workman.

God pleasing ministry requires ministerial excellence.

As Christian workmen, we must be on guard against ministerial sloth. Ministers often fail not because of a lack of giftedness, opportunity, or resources. We fail many times because we are lazy about the things of God. Godly living, humble service, wise leadership, unconditional love, steadfast endurance, sound doctrine, intercessory prayer is hard work.

Paul exhorts Timothy to be “a worker who has not need to be ashamed.” The concern is about shame before God, not man. You can be a smashing success with man and a horrible failure with God. You can be a famous minister and yet stand before the Lord and have to introduce yourself (Matt. 7:21-23). So live and teach as a workman that can present his finished work to God without shame.

God-pleasing ministry requires faithful exposition.

The pastor’s primary and central work is stated in 2 Timothy 4:2a: “preach the word.” The imperative is all-important: “preach.” So is the object: “the word.” We must not preach personal opinion, trendy theology, political viewpoints, motivational speeches, self-help advice, popular psychology, or sociological theories. We are called to preach the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. To do this faithfully we must be “rightly handing the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15c).

God’s word is marked “Handle With Care.” The way you handle God’s word is the way God will handle you. Proverbs 30:5-6 says: “Every word of God proves true; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him. Do not add to his words, lest he rebuke you and you be found a liar.” So labor not to mishandle God’s word. Cut it straight. Don’t add to the word. Tell the truth on God! Fully give yourself to diligently explain and exhort the truth of scripture to the glory of God.

Well-Intentioned Dragons

April 21, 2009 in Pastoral Work, Quotations with 14 Comments

Dragons, of course, are fictional beasts – monstrous reptiles with lion’s claws, a serpent’s tail, bat wings, and scaly skin. They exist only in the imagination.

But there are dragons of a different sort, decidedly real. In most cases, thought not always, they do not intend to be sinister; in fact, they’re usually quite friendly. But their charm belies their power to destroy.

Within the church, they are often sincere, well-meaning saints, but they leave ulcers, strained relationships, and hard feelings in their wake. They don’t consider themselves difficult people. Often they are pillars in the community – talented, strong personalities, deservingly respected – but for some reason, they undermine the ministry of the church. They are not naturally rebellious or pathological; they are loyal church members, convinced they’re serving God, but they wind up doing more harm than good.

They can drive pastors crazy… or out of the church.

– Well-Intentioned Dragons; Ministering to Problem People in the Church, Marshall Shelly, p. 11

Leading the Way Jesus Led

December 2, 2008 in discipleship, Pastoral Work, spiritual leadership with 3 Comments

Many spiritual leaders find themselves trapped in a church dominated by the surrounding culture of success. Nothing fails like success and that is so true of spiritual leaders who have mimicked models of leadership other than that of Jesus. The leader gets trapped in the “church world’s” version of success with its rewards and punishments. The great temptation is to climb the ecclesiastical ladder, but then you find yourself standing on the top of a very short wobbly ladder, and you are sure to fall because there is nothing dependable to hold onto. If the proper markings of success are not present in one’s life, consequences follow. Jesus is our leader, and inherent to following him is leading the way he led. Jesus was irrelevant and unnecessary to his culture. And by taking a servant’s role, even though it cost him everything, he became the most relevant and necessary man in history. – Bill Hull, Choose the Life, p. 20

A Minister’s Evils

October 4, 2008 in Pastoral Work, Prayer, The Valley of Vision with 5 Comments

Blessed Spirit of God,

Four evils attend my ministry –
The devil treads me down by discouragement and shame
    arising from coldness in private meditation.
Carelessness possesses me from natural dullness and dimness of spirit;
    because in the past I have met with success
        and have been highly regarded,
    so that it does not matter if I have now failed.
Infirmities and weakness are mine
    from want of spiritual light, life and power,
    so that souls have not been helped,
    and I have not felt thee to be near.
Lack of success has followed even when I have done my best.

But thou hast shown me that the glory of everything
   that is sanctified to do good
       is not seen in itself,
       but in the source of its sanctification.
Thus my end in preaching is to know Christ,
    and impart his truth;
My principle in preaching is Christ himself, whom I trust,
For in him is fullness of spirit and strength;
My comfort in preaching is to do all for him.

Help me in my work to grow more humble,
    to pick something out of all providences to that end,
    to joy in thee and loathe myself,
    to keep my life, being, soul, and body only for thee,
    to carry my heart to thee in love and delight,
    to see all my grace in thee, coming from thee,
    to walk with thee in endearment.
Then, whether I succeed or fail,
    nought matters but thee alone.

The Valley of Vision, pp. 336-37      

Pastoral Vision vs. Vain Self-Image

July 23, 2008 in Books, Calvin Miller, Pastoral Work, Quotations with 4 Comments

It struck me one day in a Christian bookstore that most of the “church growth” books I picked up in that store were not books on vision but on image. They hadn’t been published to help me see the world in a particular way but to help the world see me – were I a megachurch pastor – in a particular way. They were books that enticed the pastor of limited self-image to be like somebody else the world admired. What a cul-de-sac of emotional poverty this is. These books were published to serve the idolatries of megapastor wannabes. – Calvin Miller, O Shepherd Where Art Thou?, p. 4

The Pastor’s Public Ministry

February 8, 2008 in Book Review, Pastoral Work with 0 Comments


I have just finished one of the most helpful and challenging little books on pastoral ministry that I have ever read (For the record, it always seems that whatever I just finished reading is the most important book I’ve ever read.): The Pastor’s Public Ministry by Terry L. Johnson (published by Reformed Academic Press). Terry Johnson pastors the Independent Presbyterian Church of Savannah, Georgia. I first heard of Johnson when I was given a free book he had written at a conference I attended several years ago (Footnote: For a bibliophile like me, there are few things in the world that are more wonderful than receiving free books!). Afterward, I picked up several other works Johnson had written.

Johnson has written a series of books that I really appreciate: When Grace Comes Home (which explains the practical implications of Calvinism for Christian living), When Grace Transforms (on the Beatitudes), and When Grace Comes Alive (on the Lord’s Prayer). And when I found an article on public prayer Johnson had co-written on public prayer in the February 2008 9marks newsletter (click here for article), I began digging for more material by Johnson. This is how I got my hands of The Pastor’s Public Ministry.

The Pastor’s Public Ministry is the publication of a series of lectures Mr. Johnson delivered, which were later published as magazine articles. In this short book (only 82 pages), Johnson carefully and passionately exhorts pastors to make a renewed commitment to three basic, fundamental pastoral responsibilities: (1) leading corporate worship, (2) leading prayer in worship, and (3) biblical preaching. I have read quite of few books on pastoral ministry over the years. (In fact, I have already read four books on pastoral ministry from cover to cover so far this year.) But so many books that are written by pastors for pastors really have nothing to do with what it really means to be a pastor. I think this one of the reasons why I found Johnson’s Public Ministry to be so refreshing – even revolutionary. So many – too many – so-called experts promote various, competing programs, techniques, and gimmicks for pastors to use in church growth. Of course, “church growth” is usually measured in purely numerical terms of bodies in the seats or dollars in the plate, rather than developing fully-devoted followers of Jesus Christ (Matt 28:18-20).

With all the books, conferences, and websites promoting different theories of pastoral work, it’s easy for pastors to become confused about what a pastor is to be and do. For the reason, Public Ministry is a much needed call for pastors to be actually be pastors – not CEOs, administrators, motivational speakers, or any other worldly offices imposed upon unsuspecting churches. The title of John Piper’s book for pastors says it well: Brothers, we are not professionals! We are pastors. And our public ministries should be concerned about ensuring that the worship assemblies of our congregations focus on the ministry of the word. And not just at preaching time, but also in the music that is sung and the prayers that are offered.

Johnson not only calls pastors to renewed diligence in overseeing the music, prayers, and preaching of our worship services, but he makes a sound and compelling argument – from both scripture and church history – that these are the proper priorities for the pastor’s public ministry. And he fills each section with practical advice for starting where you are and taking small but definite steps to watch out for your congregation’s souls in and through corporate worship. I warmly commend this volume to every pastor and every congregational leader and member who truly desires their church to be a biblically functioning community of believers.

2008 State of the Church Address

February 4, 2008 in Corporate Worship, MSMBC, Pastoral Work, Preaching with 1 Comment

I usually give a “State of the Church Address” each year at Mt. Sinai, during the first midweek service resumes. We call it our “Vision Night” service. But I chose to delay that message this year, not really knowing if I would ever actually get to it. Our congregation is in the midst of a relocation process. The Lord has been answering our prayers and doing great things on our behalf. But these first weeks of the new year have also been rather challenging. We delayed our final planning that would have been completed in October or November, trusting that there would be more clarity in the new year. Well, the new year came. And things have remained very fluid. So I questioned whether or not I should do the state of the church message this year. But I decided to do this message yesterday, in our Sunday morning service, to help give our congregation a sense of direction amidst all that changes that are taking place.

I was quite nervous about doing this “special message” yesterday. I believe that Sunday mornings are times for preaching. So I really didn’t know how comfortable the congregation would be with me doing so different. But the Lord helped me in a great way. I was able to share my heart, cast vision, and point the congregation to several passages of scripture that have meant much to me in this process. And our congregation received the message warmly. I was very encouraged to hear members share with me how it provided the clarification, direction and confirmation that they needed to go forward. God be praised!

The title of my message yesterday was “Great Expectations.” And it accurately reflects my attitude toward the days to come. I am blessed to pastor a great church! It is my joy to minister to them and serve Christ with them. Mt. Sinai has a great history and legacy. But our dreams are even greater than our memories. We confidently expect great things from God. And we are committed to attempt great things for God. Please pray for us that the Lord will fulfill every holy desire we have and fulfill every deed prompted by faith to his glory.