Here’s another very commonly held, and incredibly bad ideas:
Real ministry is only done under the auspices of established religion.
This message—that real ministry is only done under the auspices of established religion- is implicit on so many levels that it is almost impossible to be a churchgoer and not absorb this idea. Church buildings are often referred to as “God’s house;” pastors are often imbued with some special authority, and giving to the local church is held up as a prerequisite for the Christian life. All
these together combine to send the message that “real ministry” is only done under the auspices of the established institution.
The problem with it is twofold:
First, it is not biblical.
Second, the impact of believing it is devastating.
The Biblical Position of Ministry
The Scriptures teach that no work is better, more blessed, or more holy than any other. Whatever you do, whether it is under the auspices of organized religion or not, is important because of for whom you do it, not what you do.
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. (Col. 3:23–24)
Whenever we create a word to describe something, like “ministry,” by that simple act, we imply the existence of things that are not that thing. For example, if we say that we are “Americans,” that statement implies that there are other folks who are “non-Americans.”
When we hear pastors proclaim that the church building is “God’s house,” that implies that everything else is not. And therein lies the problem. When we hold some work apart as being a ministry, we are in effect saying that all other work is not ministry.
When we say that “ministry work” is special, we are, at the same time, saying that all other work is ordinary and not special. When we say that true ministry is only done within the auspices of the organized church, we say that it can’t be done outside of it. And when we do that, we remove God and his power from
all work that doesn’t fit established religion’s definition of ministry.
For a Christian, there is no such thing as work that is “non-ministry”—except that which is sin. Everything done in service to our Lord—every thought we think, every breath we take, every action we make—is either service to the Lord or sin.
