We could not do anything in ministry without God’s help and His equipping us, so how does God equip believers and the church for ministry?

Qualifying the Unqualified

I can’t remember who said it, but someone once said, “God doesn’t call the qualified, but qualifies the called.” Think about this. Do you ever remember anyone in the Bible ever coming up to God or Jesus Christ and telling them, “Okay God, here I am. Send me. I’m qualified.” In the eyes of God, this would actually disqualify them because none of us qualify on our own. Only God can qualify us for whatever ministry He has in mind.

Enabling the Unable

Any time spent reading the Bible, you’ll very quickly come to see that God has a history of calling the lowly, the meek, and the humble; those who, in the world’s eyes, don’t amount to much, but God called people like shepherds who were among the most despised people in the ancient world. God called the least of the families and tribes, like Gideon, but this is exactly the point! What the world seems to despise, God uses. For those who the world thinks are nobodies, God equips. God calls the least of the world so that none can boast about it (1 Cor 1:27).

Equipping the Ill-equipped

Whoever does God’s bidding in ministry (i.e., Matt 25:25-36), God equips. He would never call someone to a task and not equip them or give them gifts of the Holy Spirit to do what He’s called them to do. Some people are better teachers, others are better at visiting the sick and those in prison, and others have gifts in other areas. Many times a person’s calling is matched to something they’re passionate about anyway. My wife loves children, so she naturally fit into the care of children in the nursery. It is something she loves…and is good at; that’s a sign of God’s calling!

Doing the Undoable

What we do on our own does not impress God. It might impress the world, but not God. If a person feels they are already gifted without the assistance of God or the Spirit’s gift, they are running purely on the flesh and it will not bear fruit. In other words, God’s Spirit will prompt us to do random acts of kindness that we normally wouldn’t do on our own or while living in the flesh. God’s Spirit will lead us into doing things we normally wouldn’t do, but it is through His Spirit, so He must receive the glory for anything good we do, as the Psalmist knows, “Not to us, O LORD, not to us, but to your name give glory” (Psalm 115:1).

Infinite Resources

Let me ask you a question? Who has more resources? Is it Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, or God? Obviously, no one in the universe has more at His disposal than God Almighty. He not only owns the cattle on a thousand hills (Psalm 50:10), He owns the hills. God doesn’t have to worry if He’ll have enough to provide for you or the ministry you’re doing. A man of God called to the ministry doesn’t have to worry about having enough money to pay for seminary if that’s God’s will for his life. God will provision for what He wills, so if you’re certain of a calling from God, it’s worth taking a risk on God because God owns everything anyway.

All Power

Don’t you grow weary sometimes? I mean, when things go wrong, things break down, relationships are wrecked, there’s trouble at work or with finances, it’s easy to grow discouraged; especially when you’re tired, hungry, and frustrated. But here’s something to think about; when we are weak, God can show Himself strong. The world can’t understand how a weakness can be turned into strength, but it’s not us really; it is of God. The Apostle Paul wrote, “For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2nd Cor 12:10).

All Knowledge

We often worry about tomorrow or about things that will never happen, so we’re worry warts in a sense. It’s too bad we forget that God already knows the future. Only God can look around the blind corners of time. Only God knows what’s ahead of us, even when we can’t see 10 feet in front of us. He alone knows what’s in front of us for the day ahead, for next week, next month, and next year. We can trust a God Who knows what’s coming, even when we don’t. We have faith “that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Rom 8:28), and “all things” include what’s yet ahead of us in life, so faith is like film; it is best developed in the dark.

All we Have

Everything we have is God’s, so we must remember that we’re only stewards with what God’s given us. Someday we will have to give an account about how we used these God-given resources. If you think about it, when we suffer some loss, it’s not our loss, but God’s loss. It’s as if we can say, “Okay God, the car you own that you let me use is broken down…so I am leaving this up to you since it is all yours anyway. I’ll do what I can, but otherwise, I will trust you to do what only you can do, and since all I have is yours anyway.” We can do all we can; and then God can do only what God can do.

Conclusion

People who wonder if God has called them to a task should just relax and let God work out all the details. I believe that 90% of serving is just showing up, so do what you can and then let God do what only He can. He will lead you to the work He calls you to and also equip and supply that call. If God has called someone to a task, He will qualify them, He will enable them, He will equip them do what they cannot do in their own strength (John 15:5), but only through Christ Who will strengthen them (Phil 4:13). God has all of the resources of the universe, God has all the power in the universe, God has all knowledge of the universe, so we know we can trust God and risk anything for Him, because He is faithful and able to do what we cannot.

Here is some related reading for you: How to Recognize Your Spiritual Gifts

Resource – Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version^® (ESV^®), Crossway Bibles. (2007). ESV: Study Bible: English standard version. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway Bibles. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Tagged as: Gifts of Holy Spirit, God Calls, God Equips, Ministries