PERSONAL LETTERS

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of recommendation to you or from you? You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everyone. You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.

2 Corinthians 3:1-3

This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

How can you validate ministry work?

There are a lot of people looking for a church to connect to but the problem is that there are so many and not everyone is credible in how God’s word is used and applied. With this, how could someone navigate through church waters and drop anchor at the right place, a place that adheres to the word of God and focuses on the Gospel and the disciple making calling of the Great Commission?

The answer is found in the opening three verses of chapter 3 of 2 Corinthians. Look again at the words of the Apostle Paul:

Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of recommendation to you or from you? You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everyone. You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.  2 Corinthians 3:1-3

Paul and the missionaries who joined him were on the road constantly, moving from place to place as the Lord led them and sharing the good news of Jesus while planting Christian churches. As they came into a new place, surely people wondered whether the preaching and teaching they were hearing was legitimate. They may have even asked Paul or one of his associates for letters of recommendation from other churches or one of their members.

But Paul didn’t worry about obtaining such letters. Rather, he pointed to the success of the Christian churches like the one in Corinth he wrote to. The Gospel work he did in bringing new believers to Christ was validated by the Christians themselves who became personal letters from Christ. Each of these personal letters was written by the very Spirit of the living God who penned the message of salvation through Jesus on every human heart that was saved. The vast number of those who found eternal pardon through their belief in God’s one and only Son became the impressive collection of personal letters from Christ, written for others to “read” and find their own way to eternal life, to become a personal letter from Christ themselves.

As we are looking at the church we belong to and other Christian churches around us, we must always be checking to see how we are doing. We need to check our effectiveness in helping bring people to salvation and develop as strong disciples of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. One way to check is through the new believers and how well they are developed to go forth and carry out what Jesus called them to do.

For it is these new believers who need to be personal letters from Christ that can be read by others, letters that will affirm the work of the church in such a way that others will want to come and be a part of the same Gospel mission in their own lives.

This begs the questions...

How well is your church doing in this area? What improvements can be made to ensure that people are being reached with the Gospel so the Spirit of the living God can begin making them a personal letter from Christ for all to see and read?

The answers to these questions will go a long way in determining the effectiveness of your ministry.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com