Thoughts from The Bible

Thoughts from the Bible

Tuesday, 25 February 2025 10:01

The Role of the Minister
by Sarah Wooten Corinth Missionary Baptist Church

“What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth,” (1 Corinthians 3:5-6, ESV).
Over twenty weeks have passed since we started this journey through First Corinthians. After a wonderful introduction where Paul reminded the Corinthians of what Christ does in the lives of believers, we were confronted with a problem – division in the church over their leaders. At the root of this problem was pride. Many of the congregants acted as if they forgot salvation was a gracious gift of God. Instead, the believers allowed the philosophical culture around them to influence how they conducted themselves within the church. So Paul had to address these issues. He explained that the gospel, as foolish as it sounds to the world, is God’s wisdom and power to save. True wisdom is not from the world; it’s from God. But God didn’t leave the Corinthians to guess between what was wisdom and foolishness. God gave them ministers of the Word who preached the truth to them. Moreover, God gave them His Spirit, which empowered them to discern what is right and what is wrong in the eyes of the Lord.

With a foundation of the gospel and work of the Spirit, Paul can now focus on the role and work of faithful ministers. But why would Paul do this? Why would he write about faithful ministers when the problem isn’t with the pastors, but with the congregants? Because the division showed that they did not have a proper understanding of faithful ministers. They were focusing on elevating one pastor over another, instead of realizing the reason God gave them pastors, evangelists, and teachers in the first place.

Ministers of the Word are to be servants. Unfortunately, most of us will have one of two responses when we read the word “servants.” Either we’re so used to it that we pay it little attention. Or we immediately demean the word to think Paul is describing a lower class of people. Therefore, let’s look to Christ as our perfect example of what a servant is.
On the night that He was betrayed, Jesus washed His disciples’ feet (John 13:1-20). This was usually done by a house servant, but on that night, it would be done by the Son of God. The disciples were confused, so Jesus explained, “I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you,” (13:15, ESV). The Son of God whom angels worship stooped so low as to wash filthy feet. Jesus’ act of service by no means demeans Him. He is God. But we do see His humility in serving and His care for the disciple’s faith. He’s teaching them God’s wisdom, which says, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all,” (Mark 9:35, ESV), while also giving them an example to follow of faithful service.

In a similar way, God gives ministers to His children who are to be humble servants as they work hard to foster faith in the lives of God’s children. Paul and Apollos were these servants to the Corinthian church, and they had the blessed privilege of seeing many people come to faith (1 Corinthians 3:5, ESV). Pastors today are called to do the same thing. They are to preach the Word faithfully, pray for their congregants, and expose the world’s lies that threaten their good. They serve by giving up their own rights and privileges for the needs of others. The congregation is to respect those who love and serve them in this manner (see 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13), but neither the pastor nor the congregant does well to forget that ministers are servants.

As we know, there is nothing new under the sun. The problem that the Corinthians believers had exists in many churches today. Many pastors wrongfully consider themselves to be elites, rather than servants. Believers act as if one pastor’s message is superior to another, when the reality is they are preaching the same faithful message. This causes havoc in our churches and in our spiritual lives. Anytime we stop looking at Christ and start looking toward man, pride begins to grow. When that pride blossoms, division begins. But when believers understand that the men God sends to teach the Word are servants, our eyes suddenly aren’t focused on the men, but on the Master who sent them.