Ministry and Service

Announcer: Welcome to Sword of the Spirit, written and presented by Colin Dye, senior minister of Kensington Temple and leader of London City Church. Sword of the Spirit is a dynamic teaching series equipping the believers of today to build the disciples of tomorrow. We pray that you find these programs inspiring, and a catalyst in deepening your knowledge of God, your relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, and your intimacy with the Holy Spirit.

Colin Dye: Hello, and welcome to The Sword of the Spirit, a school of ministry in the Word and the Spirit. Our topic this series is Ministry in the Spirit. Throughout the whole series of the Sword of the Spirit, we emphasize the sword of God’s Word—that is the Scripture—and the power of the Holy Spirit. The Word and the Spirit operate together. And in this topic, Ministry in the Spirit, we’re going to see how that works practically in your life as you begin the exciting adventure to become a servant of Christ, a minister in the Holy Spirit. Now in this series, we’ll be showing how that every single believer is called to serve Jesus. We have all received the Holy Spirit; we have all been equipped and empowered by the Holy Spirit, so that we can become servants of Christ and servants of one another. Ministry is really all about service, which means that we recognize, first of all, that we have been saved to served. We have been saved by grace through faith in Christ for the purpose of serving Him. Now our service is something so special to Jesus, because He was, and still remains, the greatest servant of all. Jesus said, “The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many. Now of course, Jesus’ death on the cross, His sacrifice, was His ultimate service to God. He surrendered His life for us that we might be saved. Now you and I are called to follow Jesus, to take up our own cross and to follow Him. That’s the life of a disciple. And it will mean that we will follow Jesus Christ in His ministry. We’ll want to be like Him. He’s the great Servant. He served others even right until the very last moment, when He washed His disciples’ feet. He served others by healing the sick, by sharing the Word and comforting the bereaved; doing everything that speaks of loving service and dedication of His life to others. You and I, as believers in Jesus Christ, have been called to lay down our lives in the same way. We can’t do this but by the Holy Spirit. Jesus said, “Without me, you can do nothing,” which implies that joined to Him, united with Him by the Holy Spirit, we can do all things. And so I invite you to join with me on this exciting adventure of discovery—a life of service in the Holy Spirit.

Hello, and welcome to this Sword of the Spirit training session. And the subject we’re going to be looking at in this part of the series is Ministry in the Holy Spirit. We have also got a session entitled Knowing the Spirit and that really should be watched and listened to in conjunction with this series on Ministry in the Spirit. Because if we know the Holy Spirit, then we’re going to be able to minister in the Holy Spirit. Now, I want to say something straightaway because it comes out in the manual in one of the sessions, but I want to bring it right up to the front here and say when I talk about ministry in the Spirit, I’m not suggesting that there’s ministry in any other way. All ministry must be in the Holy Spirit. So we come to this teaching series with a very clear dependence on the Holy Spirit—to touch our lives, to empower us, and to give us insights in how to minister like Jesus ministered in the power of the Holy Spirit. But let me say this first of all. God, it seems, has given human beings an innate sense of compassion. We have our hearts, which are so easily moved, particularly if we’re sensitive to the needs around us. When we see news of war torn Europe, great devastations, globally, locally, politically, spiritually, and in individual lives as well, and something in us as human beings, is moved with compassion. But we know Jesus Christ is the God of all compassion and His Spirit is the Spirit of compassion. And when the Holy Spirit’s upon us, that compassion as we see the needs around us, is deeper than ever before. Just as Jesus ministered in and out of compassion, so we, too, minister by compassion—the compassion of the Holy Spirit. Now when the anointing of the Spirit is on you and that compassion is within you, you have all the ingredients for ministry in the Holy Spirit. And so my encouragement to you, as we begin this series, is to open your heart to the Holy Spirit and open your heart to the compassion of the Lord Jesus Christ, because He’s going to anoint you and empower you and equip you to minister to those in need. And I want you to understand this from the very very beginning—we have been called to meet the needs of those around us, we have been called to minister in Jesus’ name and we have been called to minister in the power of the Holy Spirit. This is not teaching just for those who will consider themselves to be leaders in the body of Christ; this is teaching for all God’s people because we’re all called to be servants and all called to be ministers.

Now, I want you to begin in Part One, Ministry in the Spirit. Now we all know the term ‘ministry.’ It’s widely used today. We talk about Christian ministry, we talk about ministering, we talk about the ministry. Now in some traditions, this is so emphasized as being for those who are set apart, perhaps as ministers. You know what I’m talking about—ordained clergymen, dog collars, that kind of thing. And while there is a place, indeed, for those who are set aside for special works of ministry, such as preaching and teaching and church leadership, nevertheless, this term ‘ministry’ must apply to every believer. Now we’re going to begin the study of ministry in the Spirit by looking at several words for ministry in the New Testament. Now just in case you’re coming fresh to this kind of teaching, to this kind of approach, let me remind you that the New Testament was written in Greek and there are many Greek words that underlie some of the English words that we use. And there are three words in the Greek which are translated as ‘ministry’ or ‘ministering’ in one way or another. And we’re going to look at these three words. The first word—here it is—diakonos. Diakonos. And it’s the Greek word for an ordinary house servant—for somebody who would sweep the floor, prepare food, serve at tables, wash dishes and so on. Now you may be thinking straightaway, “But when I’m talking about ministry, I’m not thinking about washing up. I want to be a Mary, not a Martha. I want to sit at the feet of Jesus. I don’t want to be stuck in the kitchen.” And maybe you’ve come to the Bible college in order to escape the kitchen. But let me tell you, ministry, ministry is about practical, humble acts of service. Now in your manual, I’ve given you many scripture references to the word diakonos. It’s translated as ‘minister,’ for example, in 1 Corinthians 3 verse 5, and it says then, “Who, then, is Paul and who is Apollos, but ministers, servants through whom you believed?” Now if the word ‘minister’ is some great, self-exalting word, that verse wouldn’t make sense. Paul is writing to a group of believers in Corinth who have overemphasized ministers and had their favorite ministers. You know, it’s a bit like today in the charismatic movement. Everybody’s got their favorite minister, their favorite teacher, and they really overemphasize, I think, personalities. And Paul says, “Who, then, is Paul? Who is Apollos and who is the rest of us? We’re only servants.” And he uses the word diakonos, which means ‘we’re only waiters, table servants; we’re dishwashers, we’re floor cleaners. That’s what we are. And we are servants, of course, through whom you believed.’ He dignifies it. He doesn’t minimize it. But he says, ‘it’s a valuable ministry we have, but we are only servants.’ And so, in some Bibles, you find this word diakonos translated as ‘attendant’ or ‘deacon.’ It’s in fact, where we get the English word ‘deacon’ from and I’ll maybe touch on that a little later on. The verb diakoneomeans ‘to serve,’ and again it’s usually translated as ‘to minister.’ And we can see this word used in a host of practical ways, but it’s also used of spiritual ministry too show us that when we minister in the Spirit, we don’t have to be so spiritually minded, so totally unreal as if we’re floating six feet off the floor. No, ministry in the Spirit is about serving people with all the humility of a table servant. It’s the word used of Jesus in Matthew 20 and verse 28, “Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give His life a ransom for many.” Here we have it again in Romans 15 verse 25. The apostle Paul says, “Now I am going to Jerusalem to minister to the saints.” Now what is he talking about? Was he going to preach sermons? Cast out demons? Heal the sick? Well, I guess so; he had that on his mind, but we know in context that the ministry that Paul was going to engage in at Jerusalem was ministering to the poor saints. He was actually delivering aid. He was bringing financial assistance. Interesting, isn’t it, how this word diakonos and deaconeo can be used of Jesus Himself. The great ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ and the great ministry of the apostle Paul, but it actually means ‘somebody who waits at tables,’ serving. So this word describes the humble attitude that we should have towards ourselves and our service, or ministry. Just to complete the word group, we have diakonia, which is the noun form here, which means ‘serving,’ or ‘service.’  And it really is talking, again, about menial service. and this word is used of the apostles, great apostles, it’s used of every believer—you know, ordinary believers, it’s used of the Holy Spirit—the Holy Spirit ministers; it’s used of angels. Do you know that verse in Hebrews chapter 1 verse 14, speaking about the angels? It says, “Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?” You know, we are the object of angelic ministry. And characteristically, angels minister to us unawares. We don’t know it, but they do. And one day, we’ll see the video replays in heaven and we’ll see how much we were dependent upon angelic intervention in our lives in one way or another. Don’t get carried away with that, but it’s a fact. Preachers and teachers are also called ministers, and they are involved in ministry. So ministry of the Word, ministry of food aid, serving others in any capacity, describes this word diakonos. So it shows us that what should control our thinking in all ministry is not that we somehow are masters with great spiritual gifts and the whole world has got to sit at our feet; it means that we are anointed for humble acts of service. To minister does not mean to command; it means that ministry is not a high, exalted, high status, superstar office. No, no, no. It’s a humble doing what Jesus did. And so our thinking about ministry should begin with this word diakono—diakonos—deacon, servant—and that should control everything in our ministry.

Now, the second word, leitourgos—leitourgos. Now this is used only occasionally to identify a minister—one who ministers. And it carries a different meaning from diakonos. Leitourgos is the Greek word for ‘an important public servant,’ for ‘someone who carries out a public office.’ And characteristically, this person did it at their own expense. But it was a high position, public office, which they voluntarily performed. Now diakonos, diakonia, describes full time, low status, low paid, private serving by someone who is directed by their employer. Now leitourgia refers to part time, high status, unpaid public service. And we need both these words to balance our understanding of ministry, because ministry is, at the same time, both a lowly thing that we do as we wash people’s feet, as we care for the needs of others. It’s the work of a servant, but on the other hand, it is a high and exalted privilege and we need both these words to get a full picture of ministry. This word is used of Christ, it’s used of Paul, it’s used of Epaphroditus, it’s used of prophets and teachers at Antioch, it’s used of the Gentile churches and their attitude towards Jewish believers, it’s used of the practical responsibilities of believers to each other. So it seems to be used in the full way that diakonos is used, but it’s hinting at something slightly different. Okay. What is it hinting at? I don’t think it is trying to puff us up with self-importance and high status. That would be contradicting the use of the word diakonos. No, it’s associated, actually, with another key thought for ministry. Let me pause and say to you, what a tragedy today that in the minds of so called official ministers and also ordinary congregational members, that the attitude towards ministry is much more dominated by the idea of leitourgos—high, important status—‘look at me, I’m a minister. You better call me Reverend,’ and the rest of it. What a pity! That’s not what this word really is wanting—or God wants this word to convey to us. This word, in the New Testament, I believe, wants to convey to us that when we minister, we don’t minister for our benefit. It minds us also, that ministry is important. It’s very important. It’s a high privilege to minister, whatever it is; even handing somebody a cup of water in the name of Jesus. It also can be public. And I think another key thought is that a leitourgos minister is one who is representing the public. They are a public servant. So it has a representative nature, so that when we are serving, we are representing others [stutters] so it’s public service, representative service.

Now I said there were three words. Here’s the third one. Huperetes. Huperetes. And again, that’s translated, often, as ‘minister.’ And it’s a very interesting word, again. It literally means ‘under rower.’ Under rower. I don’t know if you’ve ever seen the film, Ben Hur, when he is a rower. Have you seen that scene? And the man’s beating the drum and he’s having to row. An under rower. That’s a picture of ministry. Are you ready? Get the sweat rags out. It’s hard work. But the key thought about this word huperetes—under rower—[stutters] the key thought here is that you are ministering under authority. An under rower. You are a subordinate. All ministry must be conducted with this attitude of being under authority. Sometimes we think of ministry of exercising authority. The ministers are the ones who get to tell other people what to do. No, no, no, no. That’s not Jesus’ teaching. A minister—and all ministry, whether it is those who are selected for full time ministry and are anointed and appointed for full time preaching and teaching and so forth, or whether it is a ministry which is there for all of us as believers—whatever the ministry is, we are under authority. And so huperetes was used in a kind of popular and colloquial way in the New Testament times as a subordinate, or anybody who was under the direction of another person. So if you see somebody who is a subordinate under direction, just say, “There goes huperetes,” and they will look at you and say, “What are you talking about?” But you will know. You will know. And there’s a list of some of the people that are described as this in the New Testament. There’s the synagogue attendant, there’s Mark himself, there’s King David. Let’s turn to that scripture. Acts 13:36, it’s interesting to think of King David in this respect. Acts 13:36, “For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell asleep, was buried with his fathers, and saw corruption.” Okay. Basically, here’s the reference to David, saying he is an under rower. He served the purposes of God in his generation. So he wasn’t ruling. See, this picture of King David, who is the prototypical pattern for the Messiah. When Messiah came, He is known as the Son of David. That was a messianic description. And so King David, the greatest of all the Old Testament kings, is described as an under rower because he was serving the purposes of God. And here’s something I want you to grasp right away. When you minister, you are serving God. You are serving the purposes of God. It’s all about you being in submission to the Holy Spirit, and that should excite you because that a great opportunity. Then of course, it’s used of Paul himself in 1 Corinthians chapter 4 and verse 1. And don’t forget, I’ve already spoken to you about 1 Corinthians chapter 3, but 1 Corinthians chapter 4 is very much the same context. Paul is still speaking to the same people who were elevating ministers and servants of the Lord and putting them on pedestals. And he says, “Let,” 1 Corinthians 4 verse 1, “Let a man so consider us as under rowers of Christ, servants of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God.” And in both those words, the word for ‘steward’ and the word for ‘servant’ here, which is ‘under rower,’ both those words have this idea of being submitted to authority because a steward has to account for his stewardship. And so can you see? We are starting with a well-needed dose of humility. And let me just tell you something. And with this topic, I’m going to have to be careful because if I step aside, whenever I step to side of this podium here, you know that I’m stepping aside from some of the notes and things, and if I do this too much, we’re not going to get through it—got to get through the teaching. But I can’t resist this one. I remember the first time God used me to open the eyes of the blind. It was not in a big, spectacular, Hollywood production of a meeting. Hello. There were no violins and strings, there were no classical pianists. I was in a mud hut in the middle of the Rift Valley in Kenya, Africa. And yet, that woman’s eyes were opened instantly and perfectly by the power of God. Now that does something to you. That does something to you. It challenges you, blesses you, but you’ve got to remember in your mind always, you’ve got to keep yourself low. If you allow even the slightest hint of pride to enter in, you’re going to quench the Holy Spirit for good, really. So that’s why I’m saying all the glory goes to Jesus, because you are only doing what He is enabling you to do and you minister in total submission to the Holy Spirit. In fact, if you learn that lesson, you have mastered this whole course. So, huperetes stresses that ministers are not people in charge of their own ministry. Don’t ever talk about your ministry. You don’t have a ministry. The Spirit of God has the ministry. Jesus has the ministry. And you’re in submission to Him. So we’re not in charge of our own activities, we’re not ministering out of our own authority; we’re not doing our own thing. No, we are under rowers and we are under the leadership and direction of Jesus Christ.

So now let’s bring these three words together—diakonos, leitourgos, andhuperetes, and recap on what they teach us. Now, diakonos shows the link between ministers and their serving work. Leitourgos emphasizes the representative nature of our service and the high privilege that is ours to serve Jesus. And huperetes stresses our serving relationship with Jesus, who is our superior. We are under Him and in submission to Him. And so, we have to really begin our understanding of ministry in humble servanthood. It’s got to be that which dominates. Now there are a few other words I want to bring to your attention. Not every word that is related to serving or ministering actually is translated as ‘minister.’ You’ve got to understand that that’s why it’s good to know these words. So I’m giving you these words and it might be stretching some of you throughout this course to do that, but this is a Bible training program, and I want you really to learn some of these words. They’re not that difficult. Doulos. Doulos—servant. Now, this is contrast to diakonos, which also means ‘servant,’ because this one means ‘bondservant.’ ‘Slave’ is the best translation. A servant who is owned by his master is a doulos, a slave. Diakonos would get paid. Not much, but get paid. But a slave never got paid. And now what is the difference between these things—doulos and diakonos—what is the difference? The emphasis on doulos is relationship. It talks about a relationship in which the slave is owned by the master. And diakonos emphasizes the activity of service. So that’s a very good distinction to bear in mind. And we are both. We are owned and controlled by God. Now the apostle Paul makes this clear. He says, “Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ,” he uses the word doulos, “bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God.”

And that brings today’s teaching on Ministry in the Spirit to a close. I pray that over these programs, God has begun to show you what it means to minister for Him, to be a true servant of Jesus Christ, and to do so in the power and ministry of the Holy Spirit. Till next time, God bless you.

Recommended reading

Dye, Colin. The Rule of God
Kensington Temple, 2007