DEFINITION OF TERMS

THE CONCISE OXFORD DICTIONARY
SERVE:
SERVANT:
SERVICE:
MINISTER:

BIBLE DICTIONARIES
SERVANT OF THE LORD
MINISTER.
TRANSLATION OF 'SERVANT' FROM HEBREW TO ENGLISH
...EBED
...ABAD
...SAKIYR
...SHARATH

.....I am 2 days late. The internet has been a real challenge, but we are working on it!

The position taken by many pastors today, particularly in 'Spirit-Filled' situations is that they are the ones who hear directly from God for their church, so their word is law. Sadly, this is not an exaggeration, but a reality of today's church.

This problem is rooted in the worldly system of the domination of one human over another. This is reflected in the traditional, hierarchical management structure upon which the organisation of both the world and the church are based. But it is not God's way!

God's way is based on co-operation, not domination. Of one serving another. Indeed, the greater the level of responsibility, the greater the servant heart required. The more that others needs are to be placed ahead of ones own. This is precisely the opposite of what the world understands. Yet it was what Jesus set the ultimate example of.

Looking at the roles of the five ministry giftings, it is apparent that the primary responsibility for guiding the direction of the church should be in the hands of the apostles and prophets, for that is there gifting. Scripture confirms this logic.

This doesn't simply mean a change from pastors to apostles and prophets being the 'top dogs' in the church, radical though that might be in itself! But the true apostles and prophets will be imbued with such an attitude of servanthood, that they will flow as part of the team, recognizing the contributions made by all the members of it. This is beautifully reflected in Jesus appointment of the most effective apostle of them all, Paul, when He met with him on the Damascus road.

Paul was not appointed as 'boss' over the gentile churches, but to be their servant. And what a servant he turned out to be!

Paul and Silas in prison.

In the world, the workers are expected to serve the mangers. Unfortunately, this is the way of most of the church too. The congregation are encouraged to 'serve the vision' of the pastor. While each church needs a common vision, the primary role of the pastor is to help the people achieve their godly visions, for the 'many' people can collectively achieve far more than an 'individual' pastor can ever hope to. So the pastor should be pleased when one of the people he has shepherded rises above him or her in terms of their spiritual gifting. The reality in today's church however is, all too often, that the reverse is the case. For, due to worldly influences, true servant hearts are the exception, rather than the rule.

This is not letting others take advantage of you, which is 'submission' in a worldly sense, as is often practiced in the church, but helping each other achieve the individual ministry goals the Lord has given. It truly is, an attitude of heart.

The two primary servant roles of Jesus were in meeting the needs of the people and training His followers to do the same. Nothing has changed. Leaders are to be servants to their community and to train their own people to follow their example. This is the only way God's inverted pyramid organisation structure can function effectively.

The world cannot understand this nor, unfortunately, does most of the church, for it is based on worldly principles of authority and organisation structure. God is requiring His church to put worldly ways behind it, and return to the servanthood and team principles modeled by Jesus.

The People: As they pay the pastor, their 'worldly' expectation is that the pastor should do the work on their behalf. For this is what we would expect upon paying for other goods or services. Many pastors accept this as their role. But as we have seen in Ephesians 4:12, it is the people who are to do the work.

Evangelism is the classic example of this. Believers need to be convinced and trained, not to speak on street corners, for that is the evangelist's gifting, but rather, to be Jesus to others, so that others may be persuaded by our lives to seek the truth. We do this not by preaching, but by reflecting Jesus servant nature to those we come into contact with.

This needs to be taught by the leaders to the people, but most importantly, it needs to be modeled by leadership. For you cannot expect the congregation to be greater servants than their leaders.

WHERE IS JESUS?
How is it possible that Jesus could be at the bottom of the pyramid? It is simple really. For in God's economy, the bottom is the top! The one who is the greatest servant will be given the greatest place. An application of the principle, 'the first shall be last and the last shall be first'.

This is clearly set out in Philippians.

Jesus first made Himself nothing - then God exalted Him above all. And even though He has now been lifted up to the right hand of God, He is still acting as a servant as He intercedes for us.

as we radically challenge the principles on which the church is currently based.
Who is meant to be leading the church? Who should be doing the work?

The problems in today's church are primarily of our own making. Authoritarian leadership leads to the people leaving the work to the leadership.

But if we are to change the world, as God requires, we will need to get the people to do the work. For there are more people than leaders!

NEW ZEALAND BY THE SEA

In New Zealand, no one lives more than 100km (60 miles) from the sea! Swimming, boating and sailing are favorite activities. We have been particularly successful in the sport of Wind Surfing, winning numerous World and Olympic Championships.