Ministry is more than an organization or group that administers to others in a non-profit capacity or Church organization. It is a task wherein ministry, itself, expounds the will of God in all humanity based on His truth. [1] The task of ministry must be theological at its core or it misses its actual meaning. Four important theological tasks to consider while creating a God-centered ministry are discovery, discernment, innovation, and praxis.
Theological discovery is the pro-generator of tasking any ministerial effort. It is where our motivation and function meet the will and goal of God’s divine conspiracy. It is discovering where the ministry coincides with the actions of God by “speaking and acting within the framework of human history.”[2] We discover God’s theology in our ministry, aligned with His ministry.
Theological discernment is necessary to follow in the words of God while conducting ministerial logistics. It is the ability to know that “discernment is necessary to preserve truth from becoming folly.”[3] Our ability to decipher right from wrong, good from bad, evil from holy, undergirds the future success of any task. These theological arco-types pervade throughout ministry with a constant seeking emphasis on what God wills over what man wants.
Theological innovation is the driving force in ministry through an interchange of biblical doctrine promulgated out through time, human expansion, and scientific or industrial evolution. This can, and does, become tricky while we attempt to re-invent the wheel without losing the parameters of the circle. It is a gel of relativism shown through theological absolution that we create new dynamics in reaching different people with the truth of God’s word. The new wine is the dynamic power of the ministry of God revealed through God’s actions on behalf of the restoration of humanity into the fullness of the divine image and likeness.[4]
The final task of ministry is the “praxis of the Spirit of God.”[5] This is the gestalt of ministerial function mirrored in the discernment of God’s purpose. It takes on the theological accountancy of effect while examining the presentation. This is vital and what separates a non-profit ministry void of a religious institution and Judeo-Christian ministry that is based in the theological treatise. The effect, or intended outcome, is as important as the implied functionality of the practice. It outlines God’s ministry, extolled in our ministry, as a higher standard of the causal relationship between God’s grace and mercy from goodwill.
Understanding a ministerial project concerning a theological task is vital in differentiating between acts of goodwill and divine proclamation and promulgation of God’s truth acted out in humanity over time. It is the combining of discovery with innovation and the importance of using a theological acumen while presenting a functioning practice that extolls the virtues of our creator and the truth of Christ.
Bibliography
Anderson, Ray Sherman. The Soul of Ministry: Forming Leaders for God’s People. 1st ed. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1997.
Footnotes:
[1] Ray Sherman. Anderson, The Soul of Ministry: Forming Leaders for God’s People, 1st ed. (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1997), 6.
[2] Ibid, 3.
[3] Ibid, 12.
[4] Ray Sherman. Anderson, The Soul of Ministry: Forming Leaders for God’s People, 1st ed. (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1997), 21.
[5] Ibid, 26.
R-Rated Religion 