God’s Call to Ministry - Part Three: Spiritual Maturity
- In 1 Timothy 3:6, Paul exhorts Timothy to avoid seeking spiritual leadership prematurely; this is the first step toward spiritual maturity. Spiritual development is necessary for leading God’s people. Worldly success needs to be overlaid with a biblical worldview. Too much responsibility too early breeds pride and conceit, a “look what I am doing for God” attitude rather than humbly confessing that God is working through me for His glory.
- Second, we must be successful in the little things, the details of life, before we can handle the great opportunities God brings along. The apostle Paul knew that information and opportunity that have not been tested by experience can set us up for failure—failure by becoming puffed up with pride because of what we are doing for God, and failure because our character has not been developed so we can handle success and/or adversity in a gracious, persevering, and Christ-honoring fashion.
- A third step toward spiritual maturity is faith. Can the depth of your faith withstand the breadth of the uncertainty and ambiguity that lies ahead as you launch a new ministry—or begin a new initiative within your ministry— for Christ?
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God’s Call to Ministry - Part Four: Spiritual Maturity
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