I first want to encourage you that if God has shown your purpose and given you instructions on what to do for His glory then I want you to boldly use whatever gift, talent, or platform God has given you to spread the gospel. Yes, you will face persecution and yes, it will hurt but know that God is with you. As long as you choose to completely surrender to God and allow Him to use you for His glory, you will always be under His protection. Even if people hurt you, you will be just fine so do not worry or be afraid.
“One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision and told him, “Don’t be afraid! Speak out! Don’t be silent! For I am with you, and no one will attack and harm you, for many people in this city belong to me.””
Acts 18:9-10 NLT
“Then some Jews arrived from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowds to their side. They stoned Paul and dragged him out of town, thinking he was dead. But as the believers gathered around him, he got up and went back into the town. The next day he left with Barnabas for Derbe.”
Acts 14:19-20 NLT
Now, let’s talk about something that comes with ministry that many of us don’t often think about. That, my friend, is being humble enough to listen to other believers and allow them to teach us a thing or two. The same way that God created you with a specific purpose and plan and wants to use you to spread the gospel is the same way He has called all of us. So if God gives you a Word to share with others, you must also be willing to hear and receive whatever another believer has to share with you through their God given platform. The character flaw that first needs to be broken for this to happen is pride and it must be replaced with humility. I know that the world loves to tell people that pride is a good thing but here are some Bible verses on what God thinks about pride and some verses on what He thinks about humility.
“The Lord detests the proud; they will surely be punished.”
Proverbs 16:5 NLT
“Pride leads to disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.”
Proverbs 11:2 NLT
“And he gives grace generously. As the Scriptures say, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.””
James 4:6 NLT
“Fools think their own way is right, but the wise listen to others.”
Proverbs 12:15 NLT
“He leads the humble in doing right, teaching them his way.”
Psalms 25:9 NLT
God will use other believers to encourage you and help stir up your faith. I believe this is one of the ways that He lets us know that we aren’t alone. This is why having a Christian community is also very important. It is not enough to stay at home and read your Bible. Also, do not deceive yourself into believing that you already know everything or more than other believers and end up missing out on the blessing that God has for you through another person. God knows our pain and sorrow and will use another believer to uplift us in some kind of way. The church is not a building, the church is the body of Christ and the same way God can use you to minister to people is the same way He can use someone to minister to you. There could be a new revelation that God has given someone and now He is using that person to reveal some things to you. If you are unsure about what they are teaching you, then simply ask God to reveal to you the truth and read The Word for yourself. It’s okay to be unsure and ask God for the truth because the Bible does say to test every spirit (1 John 4:1-6). A blessing is not just nice, uplifting words. Constructive criticism being said in a loving way purely out of just trying to help you is a blessing because now that you know better, you will do better. An example would be two people giving me feedback on this blog about a couple of things that I could change to make the blog more appealing or something that I posted on here that was incorrect information pertaining to the word of God. These two people came to me lovingly and rather than being prideful in not wanting to listen to them and what they had to say, I humbled myself by receiving what they had to say and making the necessary corrections. I understood that if they didn’t care about me at all then they wouldn’t have said anything. None of us are perfect, no matter if you are the world’s biggest and most famous pastor that has healed and delivered millions of people. It means nothing if you don’t know how to be humble.
“Meanwhile, a Jew named Apollos, an eloquent speaker who knew the Scriptures well, had arrived in Ephesus from Alexandria in Egypt. He had been taught the way of the Lord, and he taught others about Jesus with an enthusiastic spirit and with accuracy. However, he knew only about John’s baptism. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him preaching boldly in the synagogue, they took him aside and explained the way of God even more accurately. Apollos had been thinking about going to Achaia, and the brothers and sisters in Ephesus encouraged him to go. They wrote to the believers in Achaia, asking them to welcome him. When he arrived there, he proved to be of great benefit to those who, by God’s grace, had believed. He refuted the Jews with powerful arguments in public debate. Using the Scriptures, he explained to them that Jesus was the Messiah.”
Acts 18:24-28 NLT
Understand that because of your platform, God is using you not only to spread the gospel but also as an example to other believers. Living in a world so full of pride, if someone notices you being humble enough to accept constructive criticism, that might convict them to humble themself as well. You also have to be very mindful of the fact that many people are watching you to see if you walk by what you preach. If something does not seem authentic to them then it loses its credibility and once that happens, people are less likely to listen to you. In everything, always choose to walk in love.
“Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged.”
1 Corinthians 13:4-5 NLT
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