Losing Effectiveness in Ministry

Luke 9:

1 "He (Jesus) gave them (the disciples) power and authority to drive out demons . . . to cure . . . to preach . . . and to heal . . . .

10 "When the apostles returned, they reported to Jesus what they had done . . . . Then he took them and withdrew by themselves.

40 (the father of a demon-possessed boy said to Jesus) "I begged your disciples to drive it out, but they could not.

43 "(after Jesus healed the boy) they were all amazed at the greatness of God.

46 "an argument started among the disciples as to which of them would be the greatest.

49 "'Master,' said John, 'we saw a man driving out demons in your name and we tried to stop him, because he is not one of us.'

54 "(concerning the Samaritan village) when the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, 'Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them.'"

Luke 10:

1 "After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him.

17 "The seventy-two returned with joy and said, 'Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.'

18 "He (Jesus) replied, 'I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven . . . . do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.'"

When Jesus called, equipped, and empowered his disciples, they were able to accomplish great things for the kingdom of God. Nevertheless, the disciples quickly lost sight of the true Power Source from which they were able to perform such great miracles. They reported to Jesus what great things THEY had done. Knowing their hearts, Jesus immediately took His disciples away to a remote place in order that He might teach them not to lose focus that they had been called by God to serve God.

Apparently, the disciples were too engrossed in their own accomplishments that they did not heed the warning by the Lord; and because they lost sight of their calling to serve the Lord for His glory, they lost the power of God to accomplish miraculous things for His kingdom. In 9:40, they were asked to cast out a demon, but they were unable. Jesus responded with the miraculous healing of the demon-possessed boy, and the witnesses were amazed at the "greatness of God." Notice that Jesus made certain that God the Father was glorified through the miracle; He did not use the opportunity to exalt Himself before the people.

Still, the disciples did not grasp their egregious, prideful condition; for immediately following Jesus' healing of the boy, a dispute arose among the disciples as to whom was the greatest. This struggle for prominence manifested itself in the disciples trying to stop others who were performing miracles for the glory of God. They seemed not to want others to infringe on their "miraculous healing" turf, because that would result in their losing the prestige that they believed was rightfully due them.

As the disciples walked through a Samaritan village (a people who were already treated with contempt by the Jews), two of Jesus' disciples wanted to call down fire from heaven to destroy them, since the Samaritans did not welcome Jesus and the disciples.

Jesus knew that the pride of His disciples resulted in the sterility of their ministry. They now were not performing miracles, nor were they bringing glory to God through their witness. To teach the twelve an important lesson, Jesus then called 72 more disciples and gave them power to perform miracles for the kingdom of God. I wonder what the 12 were thinking when they realized that the Divine power that had been given to them was not for them alone? I can see the 12 coming to a realization that the Kingdom of God and its power was not for their self-adulation; rather it was for the glory of God.

Interestingly, the 72 went out and performed great miracles for God; however, they too quickly returned telling Jesus that the demons submitted to them. Jesus quickly countered by saying that it was He who had seen Satan fall from heaven . . . not them. Jesus then told them not to rejoice that the demons submit to them, but to rejoice that their names were written in heaven. In other words, they were to rejoice that they had received mercy and grace from God, something that was undue them but had been granted them through Jesus Christ.

When we think about our own lives and our calling to ministry, we would do well to reflect upon the disciples in these passages. Whenever we lose the focus of ministry and start to think that the gifts we have received from God are to be used for our own self-aggrandizement, we will never be able to tap into the power that God has in store for us to use for His Kingdom. We will become ineffective, for God will never grant us His blessing if He knows we will turn it into the sin of personal pride. We must remember that we are mere conduits of His power for His purposes and ultimately His glory. When we look upon ourselves, we clog the flow of God's power through us to the world. Spiritual sterility sets in, inhibiting God's ability to use us mightily for His kingdom.