Five Things that Matter in a God-Honoring Ministry

My father recently spoke at a church conference just south of Nashville. One of his talks centered on the fourth chapter of the book of Jonah, when the prophet is upset—upset, mind you!—that the city of Nineveh has repented of their sins and begged for God’s mercy. Jonah wanted them smashed, and God uses much of chapter 4 to chisel away at Jonah’s spiteful attitude and conform him to God’s will rather than Jonah’s own.

Using a delightful turn of phrase, Dad said,

“God doesn’t just want a successful mission…He wants a sanctified missionary.”

In short, what matters is not ultimately whatever flavorful pizzazz you can bring to your calling. What is critical is being holy, blameless, and exhibiting a heart of honor, truth, and purity. That might be rather vanilla to many, but God loves vanilla if it’s shot through with holiness.

The Scottish pastor Robert Murray M’Cheyne once said,

“My people’s greatest need is my personal holiness.”

The message that M’Cheyne and my father have offered generations apart might have trouble getting through some platforms. A couple of weeks ago, the investigative findings into the double life of the late apologist Ravi Zacharias left devoted followers of Jesus and skeptics with a number of questions, to put it mildly. Yes, there were queries about oversight and organizational culture; such matters arise in response to such sad revelations (which you can find anywhere on the Internet…I find no reason to go through the sordid mess in this post). More importantly, one should be crying out for those who were victims of Zacharias’ immoral actions and abuse.

But this also brings to the fore a critical question that must ever be front and center: What good is a visible ministry if the leader has neither the humble desire for nor consistent pattern of holiness?

Mr. Zacharias brought great benefit to many people with his rapid-fire ability to dissect faulty thinking and to give razor-sharp answers to life’s most perplexing questions about faith and meaning. That’s the ministry we saw for many years. And yet below the surface of these actions was a roiling level of unchecked and ungodly behavior that leaves people wondering: Who was he? Or even more chilling: How can I believe God if His servants are so fallen?

I don’t pretend there are easy answers to these questions. I cannot speak to the condition of Mr. Zacharias’ heart last year when he died. But I want to offer some suggestions in response to this sad news.

The Five Things That Matter

1. Structure matters.

   Organizations that allow their leaders to roam free-range with little or no oversight and accountability are asking for it. No matter how good we might think someone’s heart might be, if they resist accountability, they are headed for a fall.
   

2. Approach matters.

   While there may be a place for larger ministry organizations, people who are curious souls and wish to ask real questions about faith might find more benefit in a local church that takes those questions seriously and will connect relationally with such people. Especially in a COVID world where many are starved for connection, churches should think about training their people more deeply and intentionally to journeying with their friends on the seeker’s path. You might be surprised in the power of “local over global”.

3. Courage matters.

   The board of the Zacharias Trust in the United Kingdom has acted bravely in the face of these sad realities, expressing their sorrow for sin and a desire to make amends and restitution to those who have been wronged. This might well bring down the organization in its wake, but the response of devoted followers of Jesus may just sow seeds of Gospel healing in the lives of others for years to come.

4. Holiness matters.

   I do not mean sinlessness; that’s impossible. But there’s a reason why the Apostle Paul tells Timothy that overseers in the church should be “above reproach”, where their lives are so consistent in their devotion to Christ that they are practically blameless. There is a reason why Paul tells the church at Corinth that, regarding ministers, “they be found faithful. But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. For I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am not thereby acquitted. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore, do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart.” (1 Corinthians 4:2-5a, ESV)

5. Hope matters.

   Ravi Zacharias, by his predatory actions, caused damage to his victims and to the kingdom of God. He caused countless followers of Jesus to be disappointed and disillusioned. And this is tremendously sad in the wake of such horrible actions. Yet, sin and tragedy do not have to have the final word. The biblical hope that leaps from the pages of Scripture, through the work of the Holy Spirit, overpowers any disappointment we might experience with His leaders. Our ultimate hope is in Christ, not in the ones who lead ministries that profess Him. The Baptist theologian and ethicist Russell Moore gently reminds us, “Your salvation and discipleship are not dependent on whether the preacher from whom you heard the gospel is genuine, but rather on whether the gospel itself is genuine. It is.” 

And if we bear forth a true, lively, and holy faith devoted to Christ above all, then we will exhibit what truly counts. And that’s what matters more than the extent of any ministry organization, to be a sanctified missionary more than having a successful mission.

For more from Rev. Luke Davis, check out his latest book Tough Issues, True Hope: A Concise Journey through Christian Ethics

If God rescues us to be his people, then how can our lives demonstrate our love for him? Luke Davis takes us on a journey through some of the big questions in the arena of Christian ethics, highlighting why our ideas matter. He helps us to have a firm grasp of what the issue is, what God’s Word has to say about it, and what practical impact that has on our lives.