June 25, 2025 • 24 mins
Serving in ministry can be very hard some times. And the very people to whom we are trying to minister, are often the people who hurt us the most! But on the next Treasured Truth, Pastor Ford will explain that we need to decide that there’s no opposition—even from those who cause us the most pain—that will make us stop doing what God has called us to do. Learn more about ways you can have an effective ministry on the the next Treasured Truth.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
S1 (00:00):
And the very people that you try to minister to
often are the people that hurt you the most. But
you gotta man up. You got to woman up, and
you got to say that there's no opposition, even from
the ones that I'm trying to minister to, that will
make me stop doing what God has called me to do.
S2 (00:25):
You're listening to Treasure Truth with pastor and author James Ford,
junior senior pastor of the Christ Bible Church in Chicago.
I'm Steve Hillard. Glad you're with us. As today we
continue a message how to have an effective ministry. And pastor,
any time that you are in any sort of leadership
role and you're doing ministry, you're going to face criticism.
People are going to be coming at you because they
(00:47):
don't like something that you did. And as you said
very often, you're just going to have to learn to
man up or woman up through that. For the person
who's not encountered much of that yet, they don't have
real thick skin yet. Um, what what maybe helped you
early in your ministry days to when you encountered that opposition.
S1 (01:03):
You have to know the value of opposition. Paul said
in first Corinthians 16 he said, and a great effectual
door has been opened for me, and there are many adversaries.
Here's what Paul was saying. Man, look at this great
door of opportunity, and look at this equal opportunity, because
(01:24):
he uses not but he uses an, which is a
conjunction that shows continuity. What Paul is saying is that
the opportunity has equal opposition. Sure. So we you know,
here's what I tell our people all the time. Sometimes
you have to realize that there hateration can be used
(01:45):
by God for your elevation. Look, we said it. It's trite,
but true. New level, new devil. I changed it, Steve
did it. Yeah. I said.
S2 (01:55):
What's it.
S1 (01:55):
Now? New level. Stronger devils. True. Oh, yeah. I think
it's a truism, man. And so it's part and parcel
of it. If you're not ready for the opposition, you're
not ready for the opportunity. And so just pray to
God eases you into it like a tub of hot water,
you know, put your toe in. But generally you get
(02:16):
thrown in like, wow, I'm overwhelmed. This is too hot.
But you hang in there, baby. God will cool it
off for you.
S2 (02:24):
He'll cool off and that's where you're going to see
him step in and do something pretty cool.
S1 (02:28):
That's right.
S2 (02:28):
Well, we are in acts chapter 20, so join us
there as we continue a message entitled How to Have
an Effective Ministry. Here's Pastor Ford.
S1 (02:37):
Now motivation tells us why we serve. Manner tells us how.
Listen to what Paul says with all humility of mind,
with all humility of mind and many tears. Here's what
he's saying. Here's how I serve. realizing it was a privilege. Man,
(03:05):
that sure brings everything together. When we understand to serve
God is a privilege that God would use someone like me.
What an awesome God. So with all humility of mine,
I heard a story of a young man getting ready
to do his trial sermon. And he he just, uh,
(03:25):
was was like, fired up. And he was going to
get them straight. He had studied this message and he
was going to get them straight. So when it came
time to preach, he mounted up to the pulpit. He
stormed up. Tum tum tum tum tum tum. He looked
at him and glared at him. He's getting ready to preach.
And then he forgot his message and he forgot his notes,
(03:50):
and he walked down with his head down. He walked down.
And when he was on his way down, one of
the teenagers, one of the senior Saints met him and
this is what she said. She said, young man, if
you would have went up like you came down, then
you would have came down like you went up. Now
(04:14):
you think about that. That's powerful. If you would have
had humility that you had going down, coming up, then
you could have stepped down in boldness that God had
used you. And, uh. Wow, that's a powerful truth. You know,
too many of us are arrogant, but but let me
(04:35):
just tell you. Uh, you know, God doesn't need us.
He said I have 7000 that haven't bowed the knee
to Baal. And we need to understand. It's a privilege. Man,
I you know, I subscribe to the voice of the
Martyrs and Open Door Ministries. Uh, there are other ministries,
but those are the two that I felt led, uh,
to follow and to support, and I do. And let
(04:57):
me tell you, and I, when I read almost every
day about the Christians who are being martyred in other
countries just because they're believers. Uh, the things that we
take for granted, uh, where they count it a privilege
to come to church and worship, uh, without being threatened, without, uh,
(05:18):
being shot and all those kind of things. Man, we
just don't know what a privilege we have. And so
Paul says, yes. Listen, listen. You need presence. You need
to be with them. You need participation. You need to
be a worker. Here's the third ingredient that Paul says.
Paul says that you need and I need if we're
(05:39):
going to have effective ministry proclamation, be a witness. So presence,
be with them. Participation. Be a worker. Proclamation. Be a witness.
Listen to this in in in verse 20. And how
I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but
have showed you and have taught you publicly, and from
house to house, testifying both to Jews and also to
(06:01):
the Greeks. Repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord
Jesus Christ. He says, man, you know, I shared the
good news and that's that's it. That's all we have
is the gospel. You know what I heard a preacher said?
If I knew who he was, I'd tell you, because
I know the ladies would want to get him. He said,
if you tell a woman something, it goes in both
(06:26):
her ears and out of her mouth. Uh, but if
you tell a man something, it goes in one ear
and out the other. Well, anyway. Well, you know, here's
what I want to say. If we would spread the
gospel as readily as we share the gossip, more people
(06:48):
would be saved. And so Paul says, I kept back nothing.
I evangelize, and that's what we're called to do. Uh,
we are to share our faith with those at our job,
at the, at the school, at the health club, wherever
we are in the supermarket, we're to share the good
(07:11):
news of Jesus Christ with our neighbors. And Paul said,
proclamation I was a witness. Now you're a witness. You're
either a witness or a good witness. And notice the
qualifiers here. Notice, first of all, the comprehensiveness of his proclamation.
Here's what he says and how I kept back nothing
that was profitable unto you. Guess what that is? He
(07:34):
said the comprehensiveness of my proclamation. I preached everything he
says and have taught you publicly and from house to house.
I have taught you everywhere, testifying both to the Jews
and also to the Greeks. I have shared with everybody.
Look at it. Everything everywhere to everybody. Evaluate your witnessing
(08:01):
because that's what he said. Acts one eight but you
shall receive power. After that. The Holy Ghost is come
upon you, and you shall be witnesses unto me in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria,
and the uttermost parts of the earth. Here we are
all demographics. What is Jerusalem? The place of their greatest failure.
What is Judea? Place of their greatest conflict. They were
(08:21):
getting ready to leave. Well, the grace of the place
of their greatest failure. Uh. They all denied Christ, uh,
and fled. And so go back there, witness. Place of
your greatest failure. What about Judea? Place of their greatest conflict. Uh,
they left ministry, went back, eight of them following. Peter
went to the fishing business, and Matthew knew he ain't
(08:42):
had no business fishing. He was a tax collector. Ain't
know nothing about no fish unless he fishing money out
of a men's pocket. And so here they went, back
place of their greatest conflict. How about Samaria, place of
their greatest prejudice. Because the Jews had no dealing with
the Samaritans. go there and witness, and then the uttermost
parts of the earth, the place of their greatest uncertainty.
(09:05):
We are called to those who go and share. And
then don't forget, the Great Commission has largely become the
great omission. Go ye, therefore in all the world preach
the gospel to every creature, baptizing them in the name
of the father, son, Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe
all things whatsoever I commanded thee. And lo, I am
with you always, even till the end of the age.
(09:26):
He says, I had a comprehensive witness. How about you,
my brothers and my sisters? Are you telling everything everywhere
to everybody? Paul said he did. How many? Won't be
like the Apostle Paul? I do. But then notice not
just the comprehensiveness of his proclamation. Notice the content of
(09:51):
his proclamation. Repentance toward God. Oh, I'm sorry to say
a bad word. Repentance. Yeah, it's inherent in the gospel.
If you are going away from him, it takes 180
degree turn to turn to Christ. What did I just do?
When I put faith in Jesus Christ, let's say behind
(10:14):
me here is all the things I did, uh, in
all of my sin. When I say I'm turning my
back on that and I'm having faith in Jesus Christ,
it's 180 degree turn. Okay, I hate to get the
Bible in this, but now word from our sponsor, second
Corinthians 517 therefore, if any man, woman, boy or girl
(10:35):
be in Christ, he's a new creature. Old things have
passed away. Behold, all things are become new. And so
it is repentance toward God, faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. Oh,
I love that Lord Jesus Christ. Maybe it tells us
that this content has to be saturated with Lord Jesus Christ. Straight,
(10:56):
no chaser, Lord, his deity, Jesus, his humanity, Christ, his sovereignty.
And so we want them to know the good news
of Jesus Christ about his deity, humanity, and sovereignty.
S2 (11:11):
And as Pastor Ford, talking about how to have an
effective ministry, really a study from acts chapter 20, verses
17 through 28. And this is a message we're bringing
you today that actually was part of an instructional video
for Pastor Ford's leadership team. But we felt this content
was so good, we had to make sure that it
made it on the radio. So if you don't hear
(11:33):
all the noise in the background, that's why this content
is so rich though. We wanted to make sure that
you had the chance to hear it. If you want
to hear it again, you can always come to our website.
Treasure Truth radio.org order copies of the broadcast on CD.
You can download MP3's for free, or you can simply
stream this broadcast through your computer or mobile device. Another
(11:55):
way to listen is to download the Moody Radio app. Now.
It makes it really convenient for you to listen to
Pastor Ford's teaching whenever it fits your schedule. But not
only can you listen to this program, but other moody
produced radio programs. You'll find links to the app when
you come to our website. Treasure Truth radio. Back to
the message. Here's Pastor Ford.
S1 (12:16):
That we have to be like those children in the play. Ah,
I love this little story. I tell it often. They
were going to do a play and, uh, come that
that evening up the middle aisle with a big paper
mache cross that they had made singing onward Christian Soldier.
The adult that was over it said, no, that's too weighty.
(12:36):
It's not. No, no, no, put it behind the door.
And so they put it behind the door and they
came ready. They opened the double doors. The kids began
to sing. Onward Christian soldiers marching as to war with
the cross of Jesus. Then they all stopped and pointed,
(12:57):
hid behind that door. They would not allow Christ to
be hid. How about you? Can people see Christ in
you and be drawn to him like a moth to
the flame? Here's the fourth mark. Here's the fourth mark.
Almost done. Hang in there with me. The fourth mark. Perseverance.
(13:21):
Be a warrior. See the first three. Talk about the
commitment we must have. The last two talk about the
cost we must pay. Now, when you start talking about cost,
folk begin to drop off like flies. Because we want
(13:43):
a gospel. That's all honey, all ease, all flowers. No bees.
But notice what he says. Let me just walk through
and show you in verses 22 through 25, the price.
Paul says it's a sermon all by itself. But let
me give you what he says. And now, behold, I
(14:04):
go bound in the spirit. Here's the first thing he
says the first cost. Have determination. Persevere. Have determination. I
go bound in the spirit. Now my Bible spirit is
small s which is human spirit which means. Then he's saying, listen,
in my humanity, I am not going, uh, to, uh,
(14:26):
do anything but serve Christ. And so I will have determination. Lord,
is this, he says, not knowing the things that shall
befall me there. He's saying, expect the unexpected that that
that the Bible tells us trials and tests, they just come,
we fall into them. We're not expecting them. And so
he says, if you're going to pay the price, you
(14:46):
have to have determination. Expect the unexpected notice. The third
thing he says here, he says, save that the Holy
Ghost witnesses in every city that bonds and afflictions abide. Me.
Know what he's saying? Be ready to suffer for Christ.
Because remember what Jesus said, that we have to pick
up our cross, die daily and follow him. There's a
(15:06):
cost to follow Jesus. Salvation cost us nothing. Discipleship cost
us everything. Notice what else he says. He says, but
none of these things move me. In other words, be
independent of circumstances. Then he says. He says, neither can
I my life dear unto myself. Be ready to die.
Isn't that the same thing as what no one is?
(15:27):
Be ready to suffer and be ready to give the
ultimate commitment to Jesus Christ. Be ready to die. Then
notice what he says. He says, uh, that I might
finish my course with joy. What's he saying there? Keep
your eyes on the prize that your ministry. You want
to hear Jesus say. Well done, thou good and faithful servant.
(15:48):
You want to finish what you started because God said
you were going to finish it. Where did he say
that pastor for? Glad you asked. You ask intelligent questions.
Philippians one six. He says, being confident of this very thing,
that he who hath begun a good work in you
will perform it until the day of Christ Jesus. And
then notice what else he says. He says, think of
(16:09):
the impact on others. He says to testify the gospel
of the grace of God. He's saying, listen, as you
testify the gospel of grace, people are going to come
to it. Think of the impact on others. So as
we begin to minister, there are people that are going
to come, and the very people that you try to
minister to often are the people that hurt you the most.
(16:32):
But you gotta man up. You got to woman up,
and you got to say that there's no opposition, even
from the ones that I'm trying to minister to, that
will make me stop doing what God has called me
to do. Here's the last one. I'm going to drop it.
I'm not going to push it. He says, wherefore I
(16:53):
take you to record this day that I am pure
from the blood of all men. Listen to what he says,
verse 27. For I have not shunned to declare unto
you all the counsel of God. Here's verse 28 take
heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock over
which the Holy Ghost has made you overseers, to feed
the church of God which he hath purchased with his
own blood. For I know this, that after my departing
(17:14):
shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things,
to draw disciples after them. Therefore watch and remember. By
the space of three years I ceased not to warn
every one night and day with tears. Now get this
first mark presence. Be with them. Second mark participation. Be
(17:38):
a worker. Third mark proclamation. Be a witness. Fourth mark perseverance.
Be a warrior. Fifth mark protection. Be a watcher. He says, man,
you gotta watch. Now, there's some words in here that
I want you to see. Because there there are those
who think that elder, bishop and pastor are three different persons. No. uh,
(18:00):
he's talking to the elders. Verse 17. Now he uses
the word overseers, which is the word bishop to feed,
which is the word pastor in one passage. He's speaking
to the same individuals, and he uses all three terms.
And the reason being, because the elder speaks of the
person and, uh, pastor speaks of the performance and, uh,
(18:23):
Bishop speaks of the position. Uh, and so it's one person,
three aspects of that one person. Uh, so but he says, listen,
you have to watch. Be on guard. Now, remember, the
Jews had three watches in the night and the Romans had, uh, four, uh,
started 6 to 10, uh, 10 to 2, 2 to 6.
(18:47):
That was Jewish. Uh, Romans 6 to 9, 9 to 12,
12 to 3, 3 to 6. They thought that four
hours was too long for anyone to be on guard
and so hear what they're saying. What is our job
to watch? He says don't only watch inside. Watch outside.
(19:10):
I'll never forget we were having prayer and a person
that joined us, uh, that just came from the outside.
And of course, we're always welcoming people. We thought, what
an opportunity. And everybody's trying to share the gospel with
the lady. We get in our prayer circle, and we're
praying it's her turn. And she prays, Lord, help me
because I'm a kleptomaniac. You should have saw the eyes open.
(19:32):
Matter of fact, I opened mine. That's how I know
everybody had their eyes open. And so I open up
my eyes and. And then I did what the scripture says.
Watch and pray. I had one eye on the woman,
and I had one eye closed in prayer. And I
watched the women as they were grabbing their purses, and
men as they were holding on to their back pockets
(19:53):
and their wallets. And it was like, wow. We had
to watch and pray And Paul says, listen, let me
tell you why. Because there are those who are on
the outside and we see it all the time, especially
with doctrines that are detrimental to the gospel of Jesus Christ.
(20:13):
Paul said it's another gospel, but it's really not another gospel.
Paul said it is heretical. You know, like, dare I
say it, uh, a prosperity gospel. Don't throw out the
baby with the bathwater. But you know, Jesus never promised
we'd be healthy, wealthy and wise. He didn't say we
couldn't be. He never promised that because he said, John
(20:36):
1633 in the world you shall have tribulation. But be
of good cheer. I have overcome the world. So he
promised us we'd have tribulation. Promise us there'd be trouble,
you know. And so here, now, uh, we've got to
be careful. We've got to watch. And then he said,
there are wolves in sheep's clothing, that there are people
who come in. You know them, uh, as those who
(20:59):
worship with you, but you better be careful because many
of them as well are are like individuals in the Bible, like, uh,
diotrephes who love preeminence and would not allow itinerant preachers
to be ministered to by the church. And so how
have you done in this little exam? How to have
(21:20):
an effective ministry? Because you need presence. Be with them.
You need participation. Be a worker. You need proclamation. Be
a witness. You need perseverance. Be a warrior. You need protection.
Be a watcher. And if you do those things, one
day you will hear God say, well done, thou good
(21:43):
and faithful servant, enter thou into the joy of the Lord.
S2 (21:52):
You're listening to Treasure Truth with Pastor Ford, and it's
our hope that as you listen to this program, you'll
be encouraged and equipped with tools that you need so
that one day you'll hear God say, well done. Well,
of course, God's Word takes root best when it has
a nurturing home environment where you can share what you're learning,
(22:13):
where you can get shaped by feedback. Unfortunately, many homes
are shaped by marriages that lack that biblical foundation. And
maybe that's where you're at today. You long for spiritual
intimacy with your spouse, but you're not on the same page,
and you don't know how to get to that next
level in your relationship. We'd like you to have a
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(22:37):
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(23:00):
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(23:21):
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Join us again tomorrow for more Bible teaching from Pastor
(23:43):
Ford here on Treasure truth. A production of Moody Radio,
a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.
And the very people that you try to minister to
often are the people that hurt you the most. But
you gotta man up. You got to woman up, and
you got to say that there's no opposition, even from
the ones that I'm trying to minister to, that will
make me stop doing what God has called me to do.
S2 (00:25):
You're listening to Treasure Truth with pastor and author James Ford,
junior senior pastor of the Christ Bible Church in Chicago.
I'm Steve Hillard. Glad you're with us. As today we
continue a message how to have an effective ministry. And pastor,
any time that you are in any sort of leadership
role and you're doing ministry, you're going to face criticism.
People are going to be coming at you because they
(00:47):
don't like something that you did. And as you said
very often, you're just going to have to learn to
man up or woman up through that. For the person
who's not encountered much of that yet, they don't have
real thick skin yet. Um, what what maybe helped you
early in your ministry days to when you encountered that opposition.
S1 (01:03):
You have to know the value of opposition. Paul said
in first Corinthians 16 he said, and a great effectual
door has been opened for me, and there are many adversaries.
Here's what Paul was saying. Man, look at this great
door of opportunity, and look at this equal opportunity, because
(01:24):
he uses not but he uses an, which is a
conjunction that shows continuity. What Paul is saying is that
the opportunity has equal opposition. Sure. So we you know,
here's what I tell our people all the time. Sometimes
you have to realize that there hateration can be used
(01:45):
by God for your elevation. Look, we said it. It's trite,
but true. New level, new devil. I changed it, Steve
did it. Yeah. I said.
S2 (01:55):
What's it.
S1 (01:55):
Now? New level. Stronger devils. True. Oh, yeah. I think
it's a truism, man. And so it's part and parcel
of it. If you're not ready for the opposition, you're
not ready for the opportunity. And so just pray to
God eases you into it like a tub of hot water,
you know, put your toe in. But generally you get
(02:16):
thrown in like, wow, I'm overwhelmed. This is too hot.
But you hang in there, baby. God will cool it
off for you.
S2 (02:24):
He'll cool off and that's where you're going to see
him step in and do something pretty cool.
S1 (02:28):
That's right.
S2 (02:28):
Well, we are in acts chapter 20, so join us
there as we continue a message entitled How to Have
an Effective Ministry. Here's Pastor Ford.
S1 (02:37):
Now motivation tells us why we serve. Manner tells us how.
Listen to what Paul says with all humility of mind,
with all humility of mind and many tears. Here's what
he's saying. Here's how I serve. realizing it was a privilege. Man,
(03:05):
that sure brings everything together. When we understand to serve
God is a privilege that God would use someone like me.
What an awesome God. So with all humility of mine,
I heard a story of a young man getting ready
to do his trial sermon. And he he just, uh,
(03:25):
was was like, fired up. And he was going to
get them straight. He had studied this message and he
was going to get them straight. So when it came
time to preach, he mounted up to the pulpit. He
stormed up. Tum tum tum tum tum tum. He looked
at him and glared at him. He's getting ready to preach.
And then he forgot his message and he forgot his notes,
(03:50):
and he walked down with his head down. He walked down.
And when he was on his way down, one of
the teenagers, one of the senior Saints met him and
this is what she said. She said, young man, if
you would have went up like you came down, then
you would have came down like you went up. Now
(04:14):
you think about that. That's powerful. If you would have
had humility that you had going down, coming up, then
you could have stepped down in boldness that God had
used you. And, uh. Wow, that's a powerful truth. You know,
too many of us are arrogant, but but let me
(04:35):
just tell you. Uh, you know, God doesn't need us.
He said I have 7000 that haven't bowed the knee
to Baal. And we need to understand. It's a privilege. Man,
I you know, I subscribe to the voice of the
Martyrs and Open Door Ministries. Uh, there are other ministries,
but those are the two that I felt led, uh,
to follow and to support, and I do. And let
(04:57):
me tell you, and I, when I read almost every
day about the Christians who are being martyred in other
countries just because they're believers. Uh, the things that we
take for granted, uh, where they count it a privilege
to come to church and worship, uh, without being threatened, without, uh,
(05:18):
being shot and all those kind of things. Man, we
just don't know what a privilege we have. And so
Paul says, yes. Listen, listen. You need presence. You need
to be with them. You need participation. You need to
be a worker. Here's the third ingredient that Paul says.
Paul says that you need and I need if we're
(05:39):
going to have effective ministry proclamation, be a witness. So presence,
be with them. Participation. Be a worker. Proclamation. Be a witness.
Listen to this in in in verse 20. And how
I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but
have showed you and have taught you publicly, and from
house to house, testifying both to Jews and also to
(06:01):
the Greeks. Repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord
Jesus Christ. He says, man, you know, I shared the
good news and that's that's it. That's all we have
is the gospel. You know what I heard a preacher said?
If I knew who he was, I'd tell you, because
I know the ladies would want to get him. He said,
if you tell a woman something, it goes in both
(06:26):
her ears and out of her mouth. Uh, but if
you tell a man something, it goes in one ear
and out the other. Well, anyway. Well, you know, here's
what I want to say. If we would spread the
gospel as readily as we share the gossip, more people
(06:48):
would be saved. And so Paul says, I kept back nothing.
I evangelize, and that's what we're called to do. Uh,
we are to share our faith with those at our job,
at the, at the school, at the health club, wherever
we are in the supermarket, we're to share the good
(07:11):
news of Jesus Christ with our neighbors. And Paul said,
proclamation I was a witness. Now you're a witness. You're
either a witness or a good witness. And notice the
qualifiers here. Notice, first of all, the comprehensiveness of his proclamation.
Here's what he says and how I kept back nothing
that was profitable unto you. Guess what that is? He
(07:34):
said the comprehensiveness of my proclamation. I preached everything he
says and have taught you publicly and from house to house.
I have taught you everywhere, testifying both to the Jews
and also to the Greeks. I have shared with everybody.
Look at it. Everything everywhere to everybody. Evaluate your witnessing
(08:01):
because that's what he said. Acts one eight but you
shall receive power. After that. The Holy Ghost is come
upon you, and you shall be witnesses unto me in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria,
and the uttermost parts of the earth. Here we are
all demographics. What is Jerusalem? The place of their greatest failure.
What is Judea? Place of their greatest conflict. They were
(08:21):
getting ready to leave. Well, the grace of the place
of their greatest failure. Uh. They all denied Christ, uh,
and fled. And so go back there, witness. Place of
your greatest failure. What about Judea? Place of their greatest conflict. Uh,
they left ministry, went back, eight of them following. Peter
went to the fishing business, and Matthew knew he ain't
(08:42):
had no business fishing. He was a tax collector. Ain't
know nothing about no fish unless he fishing money out
of a men's pocket. And so here they went, back
place of their greatest conflict. How about Samaria, place of
their greatest prejudice. Because the Jews had no dealing with
the Samaritans. go there and witness, and then the uttermost
parts of the earth, the place of their greatest uncertainty.
(09:05):
We are called to those who go and share. And
then don't forget, the Great Commission has largely become the
great omission. Go ye, therefore in all the world preach
the gospel to every creature, baptizing them in the name
of the father, son, Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe
all things whatsoever I commanded thee. And lo, I am
with you always, even till the end of the age.
(09:26):
He says, I had a comprehensive witness. How about you,
my brothers and my sisters? Are you telling everything everywhere
to everybody? Paul said he did. How many? Won't be
like the Apostle Paul? I do. But then notice not
just the comprehensiveness of his proclamation. Notice the content of
(09:51):
his proclamation. Repentance toward God. Oh, I'm sorry to say
a bad word. Repentance. Yeah, it's inherent in the gospel.
If you are going away from him, it takes 180
degree turn to turn to Christ. What did I just do?
When I put faith in Jesus Christ, let's say behind
(10:14):
me here is all the things I did, uh, in
all of my sin. When I say I'm turning my
back on that and I'm having faith in Jesus Christ,
it's 180 degree turn. Okay, I hate to get the
Bible in this, but now word from our sponsor, second
Corinthians 517 therefore, if any man, woman, boy or girl
(10:35):
be in Christ, he's a new creature. Old things have
passed away. Behold, all things are become new. And so
it is repentance toward God, faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. Oh,
I love that Lord Jesus Christ. Maybe it tells us
that this content has to be saturated with Lord Jesus Christ. Straight,
(10:56):
no chaser, Lord, his deity, Jesus, his humanity, Christ, his sovereignty.
And so we want them to know the good news
of Jesus Christ about his deity, humanity, and sovereignty.
S2 (11:11):
And as Pastor Ford, talking about how to have an
effective ministry, really a study from acts chapter 20, verses
17 through 28. And this is a message we're bringing
you today that actually was part of an instructional video
for Pastor Ford's leadership team. But we felt this content
was so good, we had to make sure that it
made it on the radio. So if you don't hear
(11:33):
all the noise in the background, that's why this content
is so rich though. We wanted to make sure that
you had the chance to hear it. If you want
to hear it again, you can always come to our website.
Treasure Truth radio.org order copies of the broadcast on CD.
You can download MP3's for free, or you can simply
stream this broadcast through your computer or mobile device. Another
(11:55):
way to listen is to download the Moody Radio app. Now.
It makes it really convenient for you to listen to
Pastor Ford's teaching whenever it fits your schedule. But not
only can you listen to this program, but other moody
produced radio programs. You'll find links to the app when
you come to our website. Treasure Truth radio. Back to
the message. Here's Pastor Ford.
S1 (12:16):
That we have to be like those children in the play. Ah,
I love this little story. I tell it often. They
were going to do a play and, uh, come that
that evening up the middle aisle with a big paper
mache cross that they had made singing onward Christian Soldier.
The adult that was over it said, no, that's too weighty.
(12:36):
It's not. No, no, no, put it behind the door.
And so they put it behind the door and they
came ready. They opened the double doors. The kids began
to sing. Onward Christian soldiers marching as to war with
the cross of Jesus. Then they all stopped and pointed,
(12:57):
hid behind that door. They would not allow Christ to
be hid. How about you? Can people see Christ in
you and be drawn to him like a moth to
the flame? Here's the fourth mark. Here's the fourth mark.
Almost done. Hang in there with me. The fourth mark. Perseverance.
(13:21):
Be a warrior. See the first three. Talk about the
commitment we must have. The last two talk about the
cost we must pay. Now, when you start talking about cost,
folk begin to drop off like flies. Because we want
(13:43):
a gospel. That's all honey, all ease, all flowers. No bees.
But notice what he says. Let me just walk through
and show you in verses 22 through 25, the price.
Paul says it's a sermon all by itself. But let
me give you what he says. And now, behold, I
(14:04):
go bound in the spirit. Here's the first thing he
says the first cost. Have determination. Persevere. Have determination. I
go bound in the spirit. Now my Bible spirit is
small s which is human spirit which means. Then he's saying, listen,
in my humanity, I am not going, uh, to, uh,
(14:26):
do anything but serve Christ. And so I will have determination. Lord,
is this, he says, not knowing the things that shall
befall me there. He's saying, expect the unexpected that that
that the Bible tells us trials and tests, they just come,
we fall into them. We're not expecting them. And so
he says, if you're going to pay the price, you
(14:46):
have to have determination. Expect the unexpected notice. The third
thing he says here, he says, save that the Holy
Ghost witnesses in every city that bonds and afflictions abide. Me.
Know what he's saying? Be ready to suffer for Christ.
Because remember what Jesus said, that we have to pick
up our cross, die daily and follow him. There's a
(15:06):
cost to follow Jesus. Salvation cost us nothing. Discipleship cost
us everything. Notice what else he says. He says, but
none of these things move me. In other words, be
independent of circumstances. Then he says. He says, neither can
I my life dear unto myself. Be ready to die.
Isn't that the same thing as what no one is?
(15:27):
Be ready to suffer and be ready to give the
ultimate commitment to Jesus Christ. Be ready to die. Then
notice what he says. He says, uh, that I might
finish my course with joy. What's he saying there? Keep
your eyes on the prize that your ministry. You want
to hear Jesus say. Well done, thou good and faithful servant.
(15:48):
You want to finish what you started because God said
you were going to finish it. Where did he say
that pastor for? Glad you asked. You ask intelligent questions.
Philippians one six. He says, being confident of this very thing,
that he who hath begun a good work in you
will perform it until the day of Christ Jesus. And
then notice what else he says. He says, think of
(16:09):
the impact on others. He says to testify the gospel
of the grace of God. He's saying, listen, as you
testify the gospel of grace, people are going to come
to it. Think of the impact on others. So as
we begin to minister, there are people that are going
to come, and the very people that you try to
minister to often are the people that hurt you the most.
(16:32):
But you gotta man up. You got to woman up,
and you got to say that there's no opposition, even
from the ones that I'm trying to minister to, that
will make me stop doing what God has called me
to do. Here's the last one. I'm going to drop it.
I'm not going to push it. He says, wherefore I
(16:53):
take you to record this day that I am pure
from the blood of all men. Listen to what he says,
verse 27. For I have not shunned to declare unto
you all the counsel of God. Here's verse 28 take
heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock over
which the Holy Ghost has made you overseers, to feed
the church of God which he hath purchased with his
own blood. For I know this, that after my departing
(17:14):
shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things,
to draw disciples after them. Therefore watch and remember. By
the space of three years I ceased not to warn
every one night and day with tears. Now get this
first mark presence. Be with them. Second mark participation. Be
(17:38):
a worker. Third mark proclamation. Be a witness. Fourth mark perseverance.
Be a warrior. Fifth mark protection. Be a watcher. He says, man,
you gotta watch. Now, there's some words in here that
I want you to see. Because there there are those
who think that elder, bishop and pastor are three different persons. No. uh,
(18:00):
he's talking to the elders. Verse 17. Now he uses
the word overseers, which is the word bishop to feed,
which is the word pastor in one passage. He's speaking
to the same individuals, and he uses all three terms.
And the reason being, because the elder speaks of the
person and, uh, pastor speaks of the performance and, uh,
(18:23):
Bishop speaks of the position. Uh, and so it's one person,
three aspects of that one person. Uh, so but he says, listen,
you have to watch. Be on guard. Now, remember, the
Jews had three watches in the night and the Romans had, uh, four, uh,
started 6 to 10, uh, 10 to 2, 2 to 6.
(18:47):
That was Jewish. Uh, Romans 6 to 9, 9 to 12,
12 to 3, 3 to 6. They thought that four
hours was too long for anyone to be on guard
and so hear what they're saying. What is our job
to watch? He says don't only watch inside. Watch outside.
(19:10):
I'll never forget we were having prayer and a person
that joined us, uh, that just came from the outside.
And of course, we're always welcoming people. We thought, what
an opportunity. And everybody's trying to share the gospel with
the lady. We get in our prayer circle, and we're
praying it's her turn. And she prays, Lord, help me
because I'm a kleptomaniac. You should have saw the eyes open.
(19:32):
Matter of fact, I opened mine. That's how I know
everybody had their eyes open. And so I open up
my eyes and. And then I did what the scripture says.
Watch and pray. I had one eye on the woman,
and I had one eye closed in prayer. And I
watched the women as they were grabbing their purses, and
men as they were holding on to their back pockets
(19:53):
and their wallets. And it was like, wow. We had
to watch and pray And Paul says, listen, let me
tell you why. Because there are those who are on
the outside and we see it all the time, especially
with doctrines that are detrimental to the gospel of Jesus Christ.
(20:13):
Paul said it's another gospel, but it's really not another gospel.
Paul said it is heretical. You know, like, dare I
say it, uh, a prosperity gospel. Don't throw out the
baby with the bathwater. But you know, Jesus never promised
we'd be healthy, wealthy and wise. He didn't say we
couldn't be. He never promised that because he said, John
(20:36):
1633 in the world you shall have tribulation. But be
of good cheer. I have overcome the world. So he
promised us we'd have tribulation. Promise us there'd be trouble,
you know. And so here, now, uh, we've got to
be careful. We've got to watch. And then he said,
there are wolves in sheep's clothing, that there are people
who come in. You know them, uh, as those who
(20:59):
worship with you, but you better be careful because many
of them as well are are like individuals in the Bible, like, uh,
diotrephes who love preeminence and would not allow itinerant preachers
to be ministered to by the church. And so how
have you done in this little exam? How to have
(21:20):
an effective ministry? Because you need presence. Be with them.
You need participation. Be a worker. You need proclamation. Be
a witness. You need perseverance. Be a warrior. You need protection.
Be a watcher. And if you do those things, one
day you will hear God say, well done, thou good
(21:43):
and faithful servant, enter thou into the joy of the Lord.
S2 (21:52):
You're listening to Treasure Truth with Pastor Ford, and it's
our hope that as you listen to this program, you'll
be encouraged and equipped with tools that you need so
that one day you'll hear God say, well done. Well,
of course, God's Word takes root best when it has
a nurturing home environment where you can share what you're learning,
(22:13):
where you can get shaped by feedback. Unfortunately, many homes
are shaped by marriages that lack that biblical foundation. And
maybe that's where you're at today. You long for spiritual
intimacy with your spouse, but you're not on the same page,
and you don't know how to get to that next
level in your relationship. We'd like you to have a
book by Pastor Ford called Seven Reasons Why God Created Marriage.
(22:37):
This in-depth resource will help you understand why God intended
the marital relationship, and it will help you grow closer
to your husband or wife. Request seven reasons why God
created marriage. When you give a gift of any amount
to this ministry, call us at 888644 7660 or go
online to Treasure Truth Radio.com. Org. If you'd like to
(23:00):
send a check in the mail or address is Treasure Truth,
820 North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 606 ten. You know,
Pastor Ford has been helping men and women grow in
their marriages for more than 30 years as a pastor
and a marriage counselor. And as you read his book,
you'll strengthen the pillars of your marriage and reap the
(23:21):
benefits God intends for you along the way. So give
a donation and request seven reasons why God created marriage.
Call us at 888644 7660 or go online to Treasure
Truth Radio. I'm Steve Hiller. Our producer is Amy Rios.
Join us again tomorrow for more Bible teaching from Pastor
(23:43):
Ford here on Treasure truth. A production of Moody Radio,
a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.
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