The Benefits of Church: The Gift of God for Your Life
“And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.”
(Ephesians 4:11-12 NKJV)
“Do not neglect the spiritual gift you received through the prophecy spoken over you when the elders of the church laid their hands on you.”
(1 Timothy 4:14 NLT)
“Paul and Barnabas also appointed elders in every church. With prayer and fasting, they turned the elders over to the care of the Lord, in whom they had put their trust.”
(Acts 14:23 NLT)
I want to make a few observations from the passages above. In this teaching, we are discussing the importance of going to church. For that reason I want to focus on one ministry gift in particular, the gift of the pastor. Your pastor's job is to equip you for the work of the ministry and for building the body of Christ. This means that the gift and grace that you need, in order to fulfill God's mandate on your life, is found in your pastor. You will only ever receive that gift and grace by sitting under the anointing that God has placed on them and receiving impartation from them. Many people have the mindset that they don't need anyone or that everyone is equal spiritually. That is a fool's way of thinking. That is why you have people referring to ministers of God as “bro” and “buddy.” How does God get His power, grace, gift, and anointing to us? The gift that God has for you will come from the ministers over you. In the passage above, how did God get the spiritual gift into timothy? Through the prophecy and the laying on of hands by the elders. How did the leaders of the newfound churches receive the grace to become pastors and shepherds? Through Paul and Barnabas praying and fasting, then commissioning them into their high calling. The examples go on and on. Moses to Joshua. Elijah to Elisha. Jesus to the disciples. The gift God has for you is already in another person. It is your job to find them and sit under their ministry in order to receive it. A major benefit of church is the minister God has appointed there. The outcome of your destiny will be determined by the way you serve the one God has called you to. The people that think that church is the same in their living room as physically sitting under the ministry gift, will never receive the grace they need in order to carry out the purposes of God for their lives. A person who has not yoked themselves together with a physical ministry and appointed pastor will NEVER accomplish much for the kingdom in their lifetime. I challenge you today to begin to treat your church and pastor as a gift that Jesus has given to you. Learn to serve humbly and commit faithfully and you will receive the gift God has for your life.