Acts 20:28
"Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood."
For those who preach the word, we do well to remember that our calling was not only of the church's ordination, but of the Spirit at work within us. While a church affirms your calling, the real setting aside of a man to the gospel ministry is the Holy Spirit. This truth will hold you fast when the effort becomes tiresome or you face a withering opposition.
Paul warns the elders of Ephesus that wherever the church is preached, those opposed to the cause of Christ will come in and work to destroy the church. Often times, this opposition comes from within the church itself, even from those of the family of God. While these men and women may be well-intentioned, they are misled by Satan and used by the enemy to destroy the work of the overseer whom called has called.
I've often wished that these well-intentioned souls would give me the grace I need to fail at my ministry. Not every sermon will be my best, not every decision will be the right one, and I'll certainly not hear every word the Spirit has to say to the church. But still, I'm the one called by the Spirit to oversee the church. When someone tries to take this calling from me, the cause of Christ through that church is hampered and people suffer.
The good news is that the Spirit's touch builds up those the Lord has called to serve as overseers of the church. We never go at our work alone, for the Lord is always with us. Of course, this truth doesn't make the effort any less difficult, but it does assure of that we'll be victorious, for the gates of hell will not stand against the church.
LORD JESUS
Lord, I thank you for your Spirit within me to equip me to be an overseer of your church. Clearly, I'm not able to do this on my own, so I invite you to openly lead my heart. Amen.
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