Discerning God's Call series: Click | View Series

Getting Your Head in the Game

If you think ministry is all about the heart, then you better get your head in the game.

Many people have surrendered to ministry “in general” without any clue as to which ministry “in particular” they are called to serve. A genuine call to ministry goes beyond desire and emotions into thoughtfulness and planning. In other words, discerning your call is as much about head confirmation as it is about heart confirmation.

Head confirmation is an evaluation by the person who feels called to ministry as to what they are specifically called to do. Heart confirmation is more general and ethereal, whereas head confirmation is specific and practical. The heart confirmation rises up through your passions and cries out “I want to give my life to the church!” The head confirmation follows up on these passions and asks, “How specifically can I serve this church?”

Discerning What You Are For

One of the common errors of those who surrender to ministry is to simply adopt the model of a church that they have experienced or idolized. A similar mistake is to blindly adopt the ministry philosophy and practice of a ministry hero. But thoughtful ministers of the gospel will think about their own ministry philosophy, style, and theological beliefs, as well as their unique gifts, abilities, and dreams for a ministry future. It’s easy as a servant of the gospel to simply define yourself by what you are against, but head confirmation demands that you discern what you are for.

A minister of the gospel needs to be able to confidently say “God is confirming through my thoughts my specific ministry calling.”

External Call

A genuine call to ministry manifests itself not only in the thoughts and desires of the called person, but also in one’s gifts, abilities, and skills. This last aspect of confirmation fits into the category of the external call, because it is the one that is easily recognized by other people. In our final post, we will look at skill confirmation.

As you discern God’s call on your life, ask yourself:

• What am I for with my life and ministry?
• What are my specific burdens for the church?
• Has God given me specific convictions and thoughts about how I can best serve the church with my whole self, not just my heart?

To be continued.

Preaching & the Emerging Church

This ebook offers a thorough critique and evaluation of the preaching of four leaders of the emerging church movement. Get it here.

Discerning God's Call series: Click | View Series

Radical Insecurity

You can always count on ministry to do at least one thing: provoke radical insecurity.

Nothing provokes insecurity like signing up to follow God's call and doing God's work. Can I really do this? Can God really use me? What if I fail?

A man who is truly called may doubt and struggle with calling at times, but ultimately, he will not be able to walk away from it. His doubts may test his desire for ministry, but they will not destroy his desire to minister. It is important to recognize that doubts and feelings of insecurity are not signs that you haven't been called. People who are genuinely called often go through seasons of doubt and uncertainty. But over time, the sense of calling grows stronger, not weaker.

Ministry or Bust

1 Timothy 3:1 refers to those who "desire the office" of eldership. In fact, this desire could be considered the first qualification of an elder. The man who is truly called to ministry desires it—he does not enter the ministry grudgingly dragging his feet. He enters ministry because he wants to, and feels joy in pursuing his desire to minister. This doesn't mean there isn't appropriate caution because of the high calling of the office, but it means there is an excitement, a joy, and a sense of privilege to be able to serve God in this way.

A true call often comes with an insatiable desire to serve God and his people at all cost. There is a strong sense in the heart that it is ministry or bust.

In a heart call, there is a deep inclination in the soul that says, I must do this or I might die. The called man cannot imagine going into another vocation: he thinks about ministry, dreams about ministry, and cannot shut up about ministry. There is an abiding, relentless desire for the work of ministry that the called man cannot forsake, shake off, or ignore.

Fire in Your Bones

This heart confirmation goes beyond a mere passing whim or initial excitement at the prospect of going into ministry. It is what Spurgeon refers to as "an intense, all-absorbing desire for the work." It is what Newton calls "a warm and earnest desire to be employed in this service…he cannot give it up…the desire to preach is most fervent."

Simply put, the man who is called to ministry desires to be in ministry so strongly that he cannot hold back: it is fire in his bones, like Jeremiah (Jer. 20:7). It is a deep desire to protect and provide for the people of God, like Nehemiah. This heart confirmation is an essential component of the call. However, it is not enough to indicate a genuine call to ministry. A man who is truly called by God also experiences a head confirmation, but more on that in the next post.

Questions to Ask Yourself

As you discern the heart confirmation of God's call in your life, consider the following questions:

• Is God's call in my life internally audible? Do I sense his voice bidding me to serve him vocationally?
• Do I strongly desire pastoral ministry? Is the thought of doing something else with my life unimaginable?
• Do I want to go into ministry in order to make a name for myself, to prove that I am somebody, or to atone for past failures? Am I testing my motives for ministry and asking God to refine my desires and thoughts?
• Do I love people? Do I want to help people? Is my desire to go into ministry mainly about me, or mainly about helping other people by pointing them towards Christ?

To be continued.

Acts 29 Network

A network of churches planting churches for the glory of Jesus. Get more info.

This is a series on 11 Leadership Lessons from 12 Disciples, based on the recent sermon Jesus Calls the Twelve, on Luke 6:12-16.

Lesson #8: Big teams need a smaller team within the team

Mars Hill Church is a big team. Ten campuses, a couple dozen services, forty-something elders and growing. I don't know how many hundreds of deacons, hundreds of community group leaders. There are a lot of big teams that need smaller teams within the teams.

Jesus has the seventy. They're mentioned as a number in the Bible. There are twelve that he's appointing as apostles, and within that team he's got Peter, Andrew, James, and John. Peter's the senior leader, but the inner team of leaders is Peter, Andrew, James, and John. They're listed together. They get special access to Jesus. They get special training from Jesus, and they make certain decisions that others don't get to make. So big teams need teams within the teams.

To be continued.

The Prosperity Gospel

Prosperity theology is a marketing scam. Learn about prosperity theology's dirty little secret.

Discerning God's Call series: Click | View Series

Pastoral Ministry

Ministry is more than hard. Ministry is impossible. And unless we have Holy Spirit-inspired fire inside our bones compelling us, we simply will not survive. Pastoral ministry is a calling, not a career. It is not a job you pursue to advance a career or a position that is preferable because you like attention. You don’t go into ministry because you liked your youth pastor or because your mom thinks you’d be good at it or to avoid manual labor. I am continually shocked at how many people are trying to do ministry without a clear sense of calling.

So what is a call? What does it look like?

To begin, let’s learn from those who have gone before us.

8 Qualities of a Minister

Martin Luther, the 16th-century church reformer and theologian who helped spark the Protestant Reformation, listed eight qualities that a minister must have:

• Able to teach systematically
• Eloquence
• A good voice
• A good memory
• Knows how to make an end
• Sure of his doctrine
• Willing to venture body and blood, wealth and honor in the work
• Suffers himself to be mocked and jeered by everyone

3 Indications of a Call

John Newton, the 18th-century Anglican clergyman and writer of the famous hymn “Amazing Grace,” noted three indications of a call. First, a call to ministry is accompanied by “a warm and earnest desire to be employed in this service.” Second, a call to ministry is accompanied by “some competent sufficiency as to gifts, knowledge, and utterance.” And third, a call to ministry is accompanied by “a correspondent opening in Providence, by a gradual train of circumstances pointing out the means, the time, the place, of actually entering upon the work.”

Is Ministry Your Calling?

George Whitefield, the 18th-century evangelist, gives this advice for those considering a call: “Ask yourselves again and again whether you would preach for Christ if you were sure to lay down your life for so doing? If you fear the displeasure of a man for doing your duty now, assure yourselves you are not yet thus minded.”

Qualifications

Charles Hodge, the 19th-century Reformed theologian, distinguished between intellectual qualifications, spiritual qualifications, and bodily qualifications, all of which must be present in a genuine call.

Robert L. Dabney, another 19th-century Presbyterian theologian, lists these qualifications:

• A healthy and hearty piety
• A fair reputation for holiness of life
• A respectable force of character
• Some Christian experience
• An aptness to teach

Though these men’s perspectives are culturally conditioned, you get the point: Examination is imperative. Confirmation is required. Calling matters.

As you discern God’s call on your life, consider the advice of those who have gone before. In the next three posts, we will look at three areas that I believe are crucial for discerning God’s call on your life: heart confirmation, head confirmation, and skill confirmation.

To be continued.

Vintage Church

In this book, Mark Driscoll and Gerry Breshears discuss the essentials of what it means to be a biblical church. Find out more.

At the recent AMBITION Boot Camp, I sat down with A29 vice president Darrin Patrick to talk about what wisdom he had for church planters and his tips for preaching. I believe he offers some invaluable counsel. Listen. Learn. Tweet.

Darrin Patrick's book Church Planter: The Man, the Message, the Mission will be out this August from Crossway.

How Jesus Made Disciples

Reflections from the book of John on How Jesus Made Disciples.

This is a series on 11 Leadership Lessons from 12 Disciples, based on the recent sermon Jesus Calls the Twelve, on Luke 6:12-16.

Lesson #4: Train the called; do not call the trained

Jesus called his leaders. He didn't get a committee. They didn't take a congregational vote. They didn't do nominations. Jesus called them. Jesus still calls people into ministry. We believe that. Acts 20 says that the Holy Spirit chooses the leaders in the church, he appoints the overseers. So God still picks leaders. Jesus still picks leaders through the indwelling, empowering, calling of the Holy Spirit, and Jesus trained the called. We don't make leaders, God does. We recognize them, and then train them.

Find your calling

Some of you will have a calling, and sometimes your calling will be like mine. Mine was obvious. God spoke to me, "Marry Grace, plant churches, train men, preach the Bible." Okay, that's what I'm doing. For some of you, you'll be reading the Bible, and you'll see something or somebody, and it's all of a sudden like that just leaps out at you, you're like, "That's it. That's what I want to do. That's what I want to give my life to." Or you meet somebody in the Bible, you're like, "I'm like them. I want to do what they're doing. That's what I need to do." That could be your calling. And sometimes it's trial and error, you're like, "I tried that, I'm no good at it. I tried that, I'm no good at it. I tried that. Hey, that actually works. I'm pretty good at that, and I like that. God seems to bless it when I serve in that area."

Calling also can be just that deep-rooted sense of "have to" in your gut. It could be the Holy Spirit. So you say, "I have to help abuse victims. I have to help the poor. I have to help single moms. I have to help kids. I have to help men learn to be fathers." Right, there's something in your gut, and it's there from God. It's the beginning of a calling, and it starts with a real passion. Maybe there are certain things in life, you kind of ebb and flow, and the enthusiasm is hot and cold, but this is something that's consistent.

Delight in the Lord

See, for me, I see it this way: how do you know you're called to something? Well, part of it is God gives you an innate desire. That's why it says in 1 Peter 5, "Don't lead because people made you lead, lead because you desire to, that you want to." That's why Paul says elsewhere, "If anyone desires the office of overseer, it's a noble thing they desire." It's a good thing to have a desire. So I was talking to a new Christian recently and they were unsure about God's calling on their life. "I don't know what God wants me to do. Got all these new decisions to make in life now that I'm a new Christian." And they were very kind of panicked about it, "What do I do?" I said, "Don't worry about God's calling, first worry about God. The Bible says, 'Delight yourself in the Lord, and he'll give you the desires of your heart.'" I said, "Are you enjoying the Lord?" They said, "Yeah, I'm reading my Bible. I'm praying. I'm in a community group and reading good books, and I'm repenting of sin, and I'm seeing the ways that I'm not like Jesus, and my life is changing and yeah, I feel like there's momentum, and I'm really excited about Jesus, and I'm growing." "Great."

This person looked at me and said, "Well, what do I do?" I said, "Do whatever you want." They're like, "What? Do whatever I want?" "Yeah, because if you delight yourself in the Lord, he'll give you the desires of your heart. He'll put desires on your heart, so that God's desires become your desires." Augustine said it this way, "Love God and do whatever you please." I said, "Well, what do you like?" They're like, "Well, I like serving people, and I'm pretty extroverted and, you know, I like welcoming people." "So you want to be a greeter?" "Yeah, I'd love to be a greeter. And I love hospitality and I love getting people together." "So someday you'd like to be a community group leader?" "That'd be great. I'm not ready yet, but maybe I could apprentice and get ready." "Yeah, that'd be a great idea. How does that sound?" "That sounds really fun. Should I do it?" "Do you want to?" "Yeah, well, how do I know if it's God will or my will?" "Well, if you're enjoying the Lord, his will becomes your will. He's glorified, you're satisfied, other people are helped. Everybody wins, that's ministry." It's more about our heart enjoying the Lord, and then we'll want to do what he wants us do.

You need to know this: I like my job. I love to preach and teach the Bible. There are, quite frankly, a lot of things that I get excited about, that I lose excitement for; studying the Bible, teaching the Bible, my whole life, ever since I got saved at age nineteen I've been pretty fired up about that. People ask me all the time, they're like, "How do you study that much?" I like it. It helps. Alright, unlike some jobs, which you're like, "I don't like it," that's hard, and maybe God's called you to a hard job, but when it comes to ministry, particularly for those of you who are volunteering, it's a great opportunity to say, "I want to do something that I like and I'm good at, and helps people and glorifies God, and I just get to pick something that fits." That's all.

Jesus trained the called

Jesus trained the called. These twelve were already part of his ministry, they're already serving. They're already following him. They're already responding to him. They're already submitting to him, so he starts training them. "All right, we're going to teach you guys, open your Bibles, we're going to have some discussion. We're going to run some classes. You're going to do some experiences. We're going to let you go out and pray, cast out a few demons, help the sick. You kids are going to get your feet wet now. It's going to be busy time."

He doesn't call the trained, and this is where ministry's gone wrong in the modern era. Jesus didn't go to where they trained the scribes, or up to the temple where they trained the priests. He didn't go to the equivalent of the Bible college or the seminary and say, "Alright, who's head of the class? Alright, who's Pharisee of the month? I want that kid, that's who I want." He didn't do that, because you can be trained but not called. You can go to school for something that God hasn't asked you to do, and you've got all the credentials, but you don't have any of the courage.

And I'm not against training. I've got a master's degree in theology, and I'm not against seminary or Bible college. We've got a school, Re:Train, we love to train people, but calling precedes training. Has God burdened you for something? Do you want to do it? Will you do it? Great, we'll help you do it. But see, people can help train, but only God can call. If God hasn't called you, we can't call you. Many of you need to be careful. You'll think, "I'm going to go get a degree for ministry." Do ministry, volunteer, check it out. Let us then help train you, and find a slot to get you developed, but it may not be your thing. There was a controversial report some years ago that said that upwards of three-fourths of those who graduate from Bible college and seminary go into ministry and leave within the first five years, never to return. It means they spent years training for something that they're not going to do, why? Because there's a difference between calling the trained into ministry, and training the called for ministry. It starts with a calling.

To be continued.

R.C. Sproul Interviews

Has R.C. Sproul ever been on the internet? What is the biggest upcoming theological battle? Dr. Sproul answers questions like these in this special interview series.

This is a series on 11 Leadership Lessons from 12 Disciples, based on the recent sermon Jesus Calls the Twelve, on Luke 6:12-16.

Lesson #3: Past results often reveal future performance

Jesus looks out across his ministry, and he picks leaders who are already doing stuff. If you've never done anything, something radical could change, but the odds are tomorrow, you're not going to wake up and start doing a lot. If you're not faithful, you're probably not going to be faithful. There's something to be said for consistency, what Eugene Peterson calls, "long obedience in the same direction."

Some people walk into Mars Hill and say, "Okay, I want to do this." "Okay, have you ever done anything?" "Nope." "Okay, then why in the world would we give you this great opportunity? Shouldn't you first do anything? Humbly serve, find something to do, show us that you can show up two weeks in a row, find your pants, you know, just knock a few things off your to-do list, and then we'll talk about making you a leader." Because people walk, in they're like, "I want to be in charge of something." "All right, you can be in charge of you. We're going to start there, and if you nail that, we'll move on, okay?"

But Jesus doesn't just pick people who have never done anything. Some of these guys have run businesses. They're all following him in ministry. They're serving informally. The ministry's grown, now it's time to officialize the leadership, and he picks those who have already performed, they've already done something. You need to know this at Mars Hill, the best way to rise up in leadership is to be getting things done. Become a member, join a community group, lead a community group, lead a worship team, lead a serving team. Move up through deaconship, move up through eldership. Whatever God has for you, you've got to start by doing something. There are a lot of people who walk in, and they're totally fired up for two weeks, and then it's over, you never see them again. Past performance indicates future performance. We want to see somebody who's been doing something before we unleash them to do something else.

To be continued.

Docent Research

Customized research for pastors. High-level exegesis, theological analysis, and cultural research as well as writing assistance. Learn more.

One aspect of my job that I really enjoy is getting on The City at least a few times a day to interact with the church planters in Acts 29. The City offers us a private place to ask questions, kick around ideas, seek prayer, and coach one another. One great brother recently posted a question about how he should respond to someone who had become quite a vocal critic all over the Internet and in relationships with church members, making wildly unfounded accusations and creating a lot of additional work. It’s a common question, particularly in the age of the Internet. Since I’ve enjoyed many critics and endured many seasons of intense criticism, I, along with some other church planters, offered him some counsel. I am passing on what I posted for him in case it can be of service to others.

1. Don't respond.

Do NOT respond to him publicly or privately. It will only empower him and it sets a precedent that if someone freaks out, they get you to respond. If you do respond, you will draw more attention to him and make him more powerful. As it escalates, if someone from your church does or says something in response, it will escalate yet again and end up in the media. We only consider charges with evidence, like the Bible says, not accusations that are unfounded (1 Timothy 5:19). Never post anything online or send anything via email to or about a critic or else it can and will end up in the media, court, or at least the court of public opinion. Call your leaders if you need to discuss this, and, if you have to send something, CC your attorney so it is not open to disclosure in a lawsuit.

2. Don't have contact.

Do NOT have any contact with the unreasonable critic. Hire an attorney, have the attorney send a letter, and file a restraining order barring him from X number of feet from you if he threatens violence or disrupts a meeting. If he shows up at your home or church, call the cops and have him arrested. If he wants to see you, he needs to schedule a meeting—in a safe place other than your home—and you need a witness.

3. Get someone else involved.

Have another elder or trusted staff member follow things online and don’t waste your time or emotional treasure. This is just one guy and not a big deal. I know it’s personal so it is taxing. Satan wants you to respond to this guy, not to the Spirit. Let others follow the garbage online and if there is a credible threat of violence or lawsuit, they should notify you, but otherwise not involve you or waste your energy. Don’t get sucked in. Don’t follow online. Don’t. If you have to, have someone keep an eye on your Facebook, Twitter, etc., and delete his garbage and report him to be banned so you don’t have to.

4. Protect your family.

Your wife and family should not read any of this garbage. If you have to screen her emails to ensure no one is forwarding links to her, then do it so she’s not getting shot in the heart every time she opens her inbox.

5. This is a test.

You are a good thinker and writer so this will only get worse. This is a Little League test and if you pass it you get to move up to the next league. Don’t freak out and don’t overreact, and praise God you have enemies because we worship Jesus, who had enemies. If you keep doing your job, you will have more enemies of greater power, so this is not a season, it’s your life.
Sorry, man. I get it.

Vintage Church Team Study Pack

Designed for church leadership teams. Includes study guides and DVD curriculum. Check it out.

Here is the full video of our interview with Dr. Michael Horton.

To watch or share shorter clips from the interview, use these links:

• What Is Moralistic Therapeutic Deism?
• Why You Can't "Be" the Gospel
• What We Should Learn From the Mainline Denominations
• Is the New Perspective on Paul Dangerous?
• Why Is the Resurgence of Reformed Theology Encouraging?
• Michael Horton's Advice to the Young Reformed
• What Is the Greatest Theological Challenge Facing the Next Generation of Pastors?
• Building a Kingdom vs. Receiving a Kingdom
• The Gospel-Driven Life

Re:Train

If you want to be in missional ministry, you need training. World-class theological and practical ministry training at four strategic locations: retrain.org.

Click through to the Resurgence if you can't see the video.

Mars Hill Pastor James Noriega recently led a training event for chaplains, teaching them how to emphasize the supremacy of Christ and his cross in counseling troops. Even though he is specifically speaking about the military chaplain, these are truths that all believers are called to live out.

Be sure to watch through to the end—you don’t want to miss the reasons why counseling is compromised when the cross of Christ is not at the front door.

Buy Books for Soldiers

Buy books for soldiers. Give to the Mars Hill Military Mission by choosing the "Military" fund. Be generous.