Do you have a ministry call on your life? If you’re a disciple of Yeshua, then you should. Yeshua has commissioned every saint to help fulfill the great commission to spread the gospel to the world. Below are some basic guidelines on how to know that you’re in the perfect will of Elohim for the ministry to which he has called you.
Matthew 10:5ff, Yeshua sent out. The Commissioning of the Twelve Disciples.
There are several steps one must go through when receiving a ministry commission from Yeshua. The following steps are based on Yeshua’s commissioning his disciples in Matthew 10. As modern-day disciples of Yeshua, we need to take these into consideration when assuming a ministry role. These are the requirements of his laborers who will work in his harvest field (see Matt 9:37 for context).
- Yeshua calls one into the ministry (Matt 10:1). Some people go into the ministry as a career like any other job by their own choice. This is unbiblical. Involvement in Yeshua’s ministry is by his invitation only.
- After calling one into the ministry, there is a time of training. This is the biblical norm. For some, it was five years (e.g. the Levites), or forty years (Moses and Joshua). David had a period of training before becoming king, as did Paul the apostle and Elisha. For Yeshua’s disciples, it was three-and-one-half years. The Matthew ten account is part of the disciples’ training program.
- After calling them, Yeshua gives his disciples their marching orders by telling them where to go and not to go (Matt 10:5–6). They were to go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, although, later on Yeshua instructed them to go the Gentiles. Paul even taught in several places that the lost sheep of Israel were to be found among the Gentiles, as the ancient biblical prophets predicted they would be.
- Yeshua then instructs them what their ministry was to be (Matt 10:7–8). They were to do exactly as Yeshua himself did: preach the gospel of repentance and the kingdom of Elohim, and to heal the sick.
- He then gives them instructions pertaining to travel arrangements — what they were to take on their journey, where they were to stay, and how to act when encountering resistance (Matt 10:9–15). This includes lodging, food and financial remuneration. On the latter point, today many itinerant evangelists flagrantly violate Yeshua’s strictures in this regard and have become nothing more than travelling salesmen and peddlers always with their hands out for financial gain. They have simply become merchandisers of the gospel, sadly.
- Next, Yeshua warns his disciples against persecution (Matt 10:16–26). He assumes that persecution would be a natural result of preaching the gospel. Conversely, it could be assumed that something is out of spiritual order when one preaches the gospel and persecution doesn’t occur.
- Yeshua then instructs his disciples about fear — who to fear and not to fear. They are to fear YHVH, not men (Matt 10:27–31). This is an important point, since preaching the gospel to the lost can be intimidating, which is why so few do it. Yeshua promises divine protection for his disciples who preach the gospel as he has instructed (Matt 10:29–30).
- The workman is worthy of his hire. Yeshua promises spiritual rewards to those who preach the gospel (Matt 10:32–33).
- For those who are called into Yeshua’s ministry, he demands total commitment. One must put Yeshua first above all other human relationships. For this, expect rejection from family and friends (Matt 10:34–39).
- Again, Yeshua holds out the promise of spiritual rewards for those who heed his call to become a disciple who works in his spiritual harvest field (Matt 10:39 cp. Matt 9:37).
Hallelujah.
This is amazing and another example of why I find it so important to come here and learn with you and from you my brother. Just yesterday, on Sunday I was going to call you and ask some advice on a new ministry that a brother of mine is trying to start. I was delayed in calling. I think it was a demonic delay now. To make the story short, we called a meeting and right from the start,there was a lot of opposition and a lot of confusion. We had four men there and one contentious brother. Elohim had given me a platform and a structure that simply consisted of the what where when and how.
It was both comical and distressing. The group jumped around from when to how and where and there was no Focus whatsoever.
Then I realized we hadn’t even started the meeting with a prayer. This was being driven by human strength. I seen how unequipped each of us really were. Save for one man who had experience in feeding the less fortunate or the poor. Which is exactly the outreach that my brother believes he is lead to. So what did we do? Yes we prayed and the man with the experience in feeding the poor led the prayer. It was one of those beautiful prayers where are you seeing somebody’s heart come out in words. This man has truly wanted to do something, to quote him he was “looking for an outreach that would tickle our Hebrew Roots movement with”. Something to get us more involved in Outreach.
I spoke to the group about the importance of letting the spirit guide us and Yeshua lead us. I also had in my heart, the focus of Outreach which is to go and make disciples. But this meeting was about feeding the poor.
This is the scripture that was on my mind:
Those who do not carry their own cross and come after me cannot be my disciples. If one of you is planning to build a tower, you sit down first and figure out what it will cost, to see if you have enough money to finish the job.
Luke 14:27-28
Although you should read all the way through verse 33.
Our hearts were in the right place and we all share a vision of Outreach for our community Of Hebrew Roots.
I always knew the first and foremost Outreach was exactly what you’ve outlined in this article. As I look and see what father is molding in me. I see how this feeding ministry could bring our community in the Northwest together.
I say this to say that this will go a long ways in helping me to help us to stay aligned biblically. I have sent this article to my brother who is leading in the efforts.
I could go on about the vision. How I shared that the image that we portray of who exactly is doing this must be different. How it can’t be just another feeding Ministry.
That the people have to have the Wilderness experience. Because all too often people get fed and they go away feeling starving spiritually. The only thing I will say is that we will be handing out the tract you gave me which has the language necessary to create the proper image of who is actually feeding them and why.
I really love the language in that track. and as a side note we do need to do our part to restore His image.
Blessings and thank you so much for your labor of love.
Talk to you soon Natan!