prepared for the ministry

I solemnly urge you in the presence of God and Christ Jesus, who will someday judge the living and the dead when he appears to set up his Kingdom: Preach the word of God. Be prepared, whether the time is favorable or not. Patiently correct, rebuke, and encourage your people with good teaching. For a time is coming when people will no longer listen to sound and wholesome teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever their itching ears want to hear. They will reject the truth and chase after myths. But you should keep a clear mind in every situation. Don’t be afraid of suffering for the Lord. Work at telling others the Good News, and fully carry out the ministry God has given you. (2 Timothy 4:1-5)

Someone was saying that a young minister quit a divisive church because he was not prepared for the ministry.

The problem is: no young minister is ever prepared for the ministry, no matter how much schooling or experience as an intern or anything else. It always comes as a surprise.

Even Jesus himself was caught by surprise at the beginning of his ministry.

In Matthew 13, the narrative said that Jesus came home to tell his people his message. He really thought they would look at his life and listen to him instead, they rejected him.

He returned to Nazareth, his hometown. When he taught there in the synagogue, everyone was amazed and said, “Where does he get this wisdom and the power to do miracles?” Then they scoffed, “He’s just the carpenter’s son, and we know Mary, his mother, and his brothers—James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas. All his sisters live right here among us. Where did he learn all these things?” And they were deeply offended and refused to believe in him. Then Jesus told them, “A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his own family.” And so he did only a few miracles there because of their unbelief. (13:53-58)

I don’t think Jesus expected this. He was, after all, human and the human side of his life learned obedience as the book of Hebrews says. If he was to be like us, he had to face the same problems as we do. And we, especially those who are ministers, are almost always surprised when people do not want to hear what we have to say.

The great apostle Paul was the same. He went into Athens in Acts 17 and I believe he fully intended to do a lot of good there. He was an educated man and this was an educated town. He would discuss logically and win over people by the sheer logic of the gospel.

The problem was, although this was an educated town, it was a town more in love with education than the truth and he soon found that although people listened to him, few received the gospel. I also believe it was then that he said, I will preach nothing but Christ and him crucified.

That is the thing. When people do not want to hear, they will not. And it always throws the new minister for a loop. Many times it will throw the old one too.

A minister has to be, as Jesus said, in Matthew 10:16: Look, I am sending you out as sheep among wolves. So be as shrewd as snakes and harmless as doves. You have to know that there will be people who oppose you.

God told Isaiah, at the beginning of his ministry, in Isaiah 7:9-10, Go, and say to this people, ‘Listen carefully, but do not understand. Watch closely, but learn nothing.’ Harden the hearts of these people. Plug their ears and shut their eyes. That way, they will not see with their eyes, nor hear with their ears, nor understand with their hearts and turn to me for healing.

In other words, they aren’t going to listen. But you tell them anyway.

That is a hard lesson to learn for a minister. No minister is ever prepared for what is about to happen.