I believe over the past weeks you have been blessed by Forms and Patterns. It is a program that the Lord has prepared for you and I and it is essential that we have the right attitude toward it. It is not enough for God to prepare something fantastic for you, sumptuous and delicious meal, it is important that you sit down with the food to enjoy it. It is not enough to eat, you must enjoy what you eat, and I believe that you have been enjoying it.
Listen To Podcast: HOW MUCH BICEPS DO YOU REQUIRE TO FULFILL YOUR MINISTRY?
Today we will continue in the grace of God that has been released unto us and we are considering something that is very important. If you are a minister of the gospel or an aspiring minister of the gospel, if you have been called into the ministry or you are perceiving a call into the ministry, then I believe what we are looking at tonight is going to be of help to you. We are considering "How Much Biceps Do You Require To Fulfill Your Ministry." Fulfillment in ministry is the goal of everyone in ministry. Why should you serve if you do not desire to finish well, if you do not desire to serve excellently?
I am sure you remember the story that Jesus gave to us of the servants. You know, there is a good servant, a faithful and good servant, and there is an evil servant. The one that is good and faithful actually is the one that stands to be rewarded for the job well done. The one that is evil is the one that is punished. Nobody is in ministry for the sole purpose of being punished by God. In fact, if you are in ministry, it is because the fear of God is so much in you, that what you would rather want to live your life for, is to serve his purpose on the earth. So, fulfillment is our goal and towards getting to that fulfillment, we want to consider the role of biceps. Do you require it? If you do, how much of it do you require? And if you do not require it, what else do you require that you must appropriate your time into, lest you just get busy without being effective in the ministry that God has committed into your hands.
I want us to consider something in the book of 1 Timothy 4 which will form the basis for our discussion tonight. 1 Timothy 4:7-8, I believe we are familiar with this Scripture but let me just quickly go through it. The Bible says:
"But reject profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness. 8 For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come."
1 Timothy 4:7-8
I remember a time when the disciples of Jesus, led by Peter asked Jesus: "We have left all and we have followed you." In this ministry "we have left all and we have followed you. What shall we have?" And Jesus said "No one haven left this and that, who will not have a reward in this life and in the life to come." So, I believe what drives us as ministers is beyond earthly relevance or just the kind of relevance only for this moment. None of us desires a momentary satisfaction. We want perhaps, an eternal satisfaction. We want to please God now and continue to please Him. We want to do His will now and we want to continue to do it. We want to be rewarded by Him.
So, the Bible says "bodily exercise profits a little" and that we must agree. But godliness is profitable unto all things. All things including anything you could imagine. Godliness is profitable unto it. So, the question is: What is the biceps that we were talking about? You know we said what we are considering today is How Much Biceps Do You Require To Fulfill Your Ministry. Now, looking at the dictionary and looking up the word "biceps" online, I found out that biceps mean or could be referred to as a large muscle in the upper arm which turns the hand to face palm, uppermost and flexes the arm and forearm.
I am sure many times we have seen a lot of body-builders across the world, both blacks and whites alike, who love to showcase their biceps to the world. In case you watch football, you must have noticed that Cristiano Ronaldo always love to show off his biceps. He has so much of them. Now, he believes for him to become the world footballer of the year, he requires them. Now the question we are now considering is: How Much Biceps Do You Require as a minister of the gospel to fulfill your ministry. Now, we began from 1 Timothy 4:7-8 that concludes that godliness is profitable unto all things.
Now reading the Amplified Bible, I saw an example of godliness so, I would read verse 8 in the amplified version of the Bible. It says: "For physical training (which I am sure you know that it is what produce biceps) is of some value (C. Ronaldo is getting some value in it), but godliness (spiritual training) is of value in everything and in every way, since it holds promise for the present life and for the life to come." If we must accept this, when we are talking about godliness, the Bible is showing us that godliness means spiritual training, spiritual exercises. Things you commit yourself into towards your own spirituality, towards your own growth in the spirit.
Now, do you grow in the spirit and then accumulates biceps in the flesh? These are things that you must think about. Now, another side of it is this. Do you exercise yourself in the flesh? Do you engage in physical training or bodily exercises and then accumulate spiritual muscles? Do you grow spiritual muscles via bodily exercises? These are things that you must think about. But you must also understand that one has a value that is little, you could admit it has some degree of value or benefits to you, but one has a value beyond now. It is valuable now, it is valuable beyond now.
And so, if you want to ask yourself, which one should you commit yourself into towards your own fulfillment in ministry? Then this is a guide to help you make you your decisions. Bodily exercises, physical trainings, things you do to build your physical muscles, things you do to make you strong enough to carry heavy weights, heavy physical loads. The Bible says when you commit yourself to those physical exercises, there are some values you will get. However, engaging in spiritual training and exercises has value that is so big and so much that it goes beyond this realm to the time to come. Do you understand that now?
I want us to read a place in look chapter 1, it is a familiar Scripture that many of us have read a couple of times. I will read look chapter 1 verse 80. The Bible says: "So the child grew and became strong in spirit, (and I want you to note that) and was in the deserts till the day of his manifestation to Israel", talking about John the Baptist. I begin to perceive in my spirit that God has a purpose and has a desire that you and I grow. And when we are thinking and talking about growth, God does not want us to be overly concerned and overly fixed on our physical growth because our physical growth has little value. However, our spiritual growth has value that is so much that it goes beyond now. Do you understand that now?
So, it says "So the child grew." So, when we are talking about growth, don't just think about growth when you eat well, eat wise, drink a lot of water, eat a lot of vegetables and I do a lot of exercises, carry a lot of weights and I jog around, No! The Bible is not talking about that. You see, many of us, including men of God, are guilty of overly focusing on the make-up of their physique. I am sure many of us, if we are to become panelists in an interview panel, perhaps a job interview panel into the church office, perhaps maybe we are looking for a new pastor. I am sure if there are six people that are filing up, trying to become pastors in a local church; there is a likelihood that you are going to favor a man who has a good physique, a man who is physically built.
And in case you are thinking it has never happen before, we can't make such a mistake, I am sure you remember the story in 1 Samuel, when the sons of Jesse came to present themselves before Samuel. And the Bible says when the eldest son came to Samuel, Samuel said in 1 Samuel 16:6, in case you want to read it up: "So it was, when they came, that he looked at Eliab and said, “Surely the Lord’s anointed is before Him!” 7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature." Hallelujah! This is important for the church to understand this. This error was so strong that a prophet of God; a man who was called in those days, a seer, could mistake a physical stature to spiritual stature. The Bible says God said; "do not look at his stature, for God does not look at the appearance of a man, God looks at the heart."
So, the question is: do you do physical exercises to the point that your heart becomes large? I am sure you don’t, because physical exercise has little to do with the heart and when God was talking about the heart, He was talking about the spirit of man. Now, in that Luke 1: 80, the Bible says "the child grew; lest you think the growth was about physical statue, the Bible says and become strong in spirit."
So when we are talking about how Much Biceps Do You Require To Fulfill Your Ministry, if you mix what we saw in 1st Samuel 16:6 with Luke 1:80 and 1Timothy 4; 8, you will discover that you actually require little or no biceps to fulfill your ministry, irrespective of that ministry. Because one of the things that I want you to understand is that your ministry is a spiritual work, a spiritual responsibility that requires spiritual stature, spiritual stamina for it to become actualized. In the book of John 17, Jesus said something that I want us to consider as I am rounding off. John 17:4, Bible says: I have glorified you on the earth, I have finished the work which you have given me to do. Another word for "I have finished the work" is I have fulfilled my ministry. Jesus fulfilled His ministry.
Apostle Paul also saying it that the time of his departure is at hand, that he is ready to be poured out as a drink offering. If you consider what Jesus said and what Paul said, you will know that when you are done with your work, it means you have fulfilled your ministry. Now, towards you fulfilling your ministry, you can see that you require no biceps because biceps only have value in the flesh and the things of the flesh are contrary to the things of the Spirit. If you consider the responsibility that God gave to Jesus, will you call it a physical responsibility or spiritual responsibility? While thinking of the answer to give, I want you to ask, if the responsibility of Jesus was so big that it took God to come down Himself in the form of man to do, how much biceps would He have required for Him to fulfill that ministry? Now, if He didn’t require any of those biceps, then I believe you do not require it.
So, how come your recent investment on you looking good or being built up, having a nice shape and figure, how come you are spending so much time and money on your physical build up? Now, while many people may think, this word is to men, I want us to also understand that women could also be guilty of this. As a woman that is called into the ministry, how much time do you use to invest on your body and how much time do you use to invest in your spirit? Would you say your beauty in the flesh is also reflected in your spirit? Jesus said you cannot serve two Masters, you cannot actually labor to achieve or maintain an equilibrium between your flesh and your spirit. Many are actually so beautiful physically but so ugly in the spirit. They are so strong in their bodies but so weak in their spirit and so, they become easy preys of the enemies.
Apostle Paul says the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, not physical. So, engaging in physical training has little or no value to the fulfillment of your ministry. So if you must fulfill your ministry, then you must understand that what you require to fulfill that ministry is not biceps, but spiritual exercises, spiritual stature and spiritual stamina. The word of God gives us a picture of what to desire, what to strive for as we desire to become strong towards fulfilling our ministry.
In the book of Ephesians 4, and I will read from verse 11-15 very quickly.
"And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the [e]edifying of the body of Christ, 13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, (we all come to a perfect man) to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;
So, you will understand that while we must not have a focus on building up our physical stature to become like another man; strong like another man physically, the Bible says our goal must be our attainment unto the fullness of the stature of Christ Jesus and Christ is Spirit; Christ is God. So if we must become a spiritual entity that the devil will say, Jesus I know, Paul I know, then you must become strong in the spirit.
You must attain a measure of Christ-likeness that when the devil sees you, he doesn’t see physical biceps but the devil sees the fullness of Christ in you. So, towards you becoming a minister with a good stature in the spirit, you must engage yourself in a deliberate walk with Christ, so that you can be exercised in your spirit unto Christ-likeness, and that you might be matured enough to handle the demands of your ministry. The truth is for everyone that is in ministry, your ministry is in layers and stages, even though the biceps might be carrying you now, a time is coming they will fail you because physical strength cannot carry on in the spirit.
Remember when Jesus was to be arrested at the Gethsemane, you know, the Bible says He said the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. You do not want to have an experience where the Bible says "If you faint in the days of adversity it is because your strength is little." You don't want to have a little spiritual strength thinking that your biceps are enough. Your muscles can only appeal to men. If you must overcome your spiritual enemies, if you must have a spiritual authority, then you must grow in your spirit. You must wax strong in your spirit. Strength in your spirit is not a luxury, it is a necessity. It is a requirement for the fulfillment of your ministry.
When God said He has reject Eliab the first son of Jesse, God said to Samuel, there is one that is not around. I have found a man after my heart, a man whose spirituality is beyond the realm of his peers, a man who is waxing strong in the spirit, that is the man who would become a leader over those who are waxing strong in their physical strength. Your physical strength can only get you some little positions of authority. If you must attain territorial authority and become an entity that demons and even men respects and values and follows, then you must become and develop a spiritual stature.
Enough of telling yourself "I am okay, I am doing fine, as long as I am physically okay." Physical exercises does not produce the capacity that is required for your fulfillment, and I pray that the grace of God would be released unto you this very hour, and you will settle down with Christ Jesus, because your stature is to the degree of your growth in him. you remember the seven sons of Sceva, they do not have any stature in Christ Jesus and they say "we exorcise you in the name of Jesus whom Paul preaches." And the demon said "Jesus we know, Paul we know, who are you?"
I believe the devil will know you, I believe the demons will be very much aware of you because we will not become a prey in their hands. You see, nobody really remember the name of their preys. The animals you have been killing since you were born, I am sure you don't know their names. Everything you prey on, you care less about who they are. But when you cannot prey over a thing, then you take a good consideration of who they really are. So, if you would become an entity that the demons and Satan would really know, then you must become a man, a woman who is strong in the spirit.
Don't settle for physical beauties, become beautiful in your spirit, become strong in your spirit so that you would be able to stand against the wiles of the devil, and so that you will be able to finish strong what the Lord has called you to do. It is not enough to start great works, it is enough that you finish it and if you must finish those works, then you must increase your spiritual strength and become more like Jesus because the more the devil see Jesus in you, the more he fears you. Enough of looking for academic attainment, the devil does not fear your degrees, your masters and your certifications. What they fear is that spirit that you carry, and I pray that God will help us. We will really settle down at His feet, to learn at His feet, to draw from Him, to become like Him and to taste of the life that only Him can supply, only Him can give; for with Him is the fountain of life and in His light we see light.
I pray that God's grace will be multiplied unto us and we will be rooted and established in Christ Jesus towards fulfillment of our ministry on the earth and the glory of the Lord shall be exalted and magnified among the nations. Thank you for the gift of your time, my name is Gboyega Adedeji and you have been listening to Forms & Patterns™. I hope to connect with you again next week Friday, stay at His feet, learning at His feet, feasting at His table, becoming like Him. For in Him we live, in Him we move and in Him we have our being.
God bless you!
