Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Lead By Sacrifice Rather Than Success

2 Corinthians 4:10-12 KJV
Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.
For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.
So then death worketh in us, but life in you.


This is a preacher's passage. Oh, I am sure any and every Christian can apply the message of this chapter, but preachers had better apply them!

The lessons are multiple but I want to concentrate on this one. Paul says that "death worketh in us." He is speaking of himself and he is speaking by way of application to the preachers. The preacher offers his life to die.

He dies to worldly advances
He dies to selfish ambition
He dies to the pursuit of comforts


He may die emotionally through the trials of ministry
He may die physically through the persecutions for his faith


Death works in him. He bears the in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus Christ.

And he does it so that life may work in his congregation and in the lives of others he attempts to minister to. His goal is to give his life that others may live.

Would to God we would move back to the type of ministry where the pastor leads by his sacrifice rather than by his success.

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