The Ministry Mirror
Welcome back. We can all be “gluttons for punishment,” returning to situations that are abusive. I’ll try not to abuse you today, as we read Luke chapters 10 and 11.
For the last six years, I have used my analytical skills and sales acumen to train agents for a leading software company. I learned that being right isn’t enough. You need to present the truth properly if you want to influence change. In the beginning, I’d say things that implied the agents were doing it wrong. Nobody likes to hear that. Instead, I learned to show them they were close to right—and here’s how to improve. Most people want to improve, especially if it increases their income.
We run into the same thing in ministry. Between denominations, there are subtle—and sometimes critical—differences.
Religion vs. Relationship
My limited exposure to religion growing up was through the Catholic Church. They pray to saints, believe in “works plus faith” (James 2:17), and teach confession to a priest. They have a pope placed on a pedestal, celibacy rules for priests, and many regulations that aren’t always scripturally sound. I know many people who leave Catholicism and become atheists. I did. It’s religion—man trying to reach God.
Later, I became a Christian, baptized in a Baptist church. But I don’t consider myself a Baptist. I’m a Christian. “Baptist” sounds like I follow John the Baptist. He preached repentance, which the Bible confirms is true. But I don’t follow John—I follow Jesus, who modeled baptism. Therefore, I am a Christian.
Baptist is a religion. It’s a set of tenets agreed upon by the Baptist convention. Rules are important—but I don’t follow rules. I follow Christ. Being a Christian is not a religion. It’s a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.
Pride and the Fall of Satan (Luke 10:18)
In Luke 10, Jesus explains that when we twist faith into pride, we lose sight of Him. He says, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven” (Luke 10:18). That fall was because of pride.
Jesus speaks throughout these chapters about the danger of busy religion. Martha was busy. Mary paid attention. Jesus says Mary chose the better part (Luke 10:42). When He sent out the 72, He told them to take no money, no bag, no sandals—just trust in the Lord (Luke 10:4). God gives us the words to say. Sharing our witness isn’t magical words we must say verbatim—it’s telling people what God is doing in our lives.
Don’t Carry a Scorecard (Luke 10:5–7)
Unfortunately, denominations like to quibble. It creates division and drives people away from Jesus. These verses say: take nothing with you. Don’t worry about keeping score. It isn’t you who saves anyone. When you meet someone God brings to you, don’t hit them over the head with a 20-pound King James Bible.
Charles Spurgeon once wrote:
“If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to Hell over our dead bodies. And if they perish, let them perish with our arms wrapped about their knees, imploring them to stay. If Hell must be filled, let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go unwarned and unprayed for.” (1)
Some assume we must ensure everyone we meet gets saved. But Luke 10:10–11 tells us that when someone is not receptive, God has not brought them to that place yet. Pray for them. Trust God’s timing. Move on until you find someone receptive. Stay with them. Pour your heart into those God has given you. They may be strangers—but He is the one we answer to.
The Good Samaritan and the Street We Cross (Luke 10:29–37)
If someone teaches something different from what we believe, show them what the Word says. But don’t avoid them. We are like the priest and Levite in the parable of the Good Samaritan—crossing the street to avoid the wounded (Luke 10:31–32). But we should not confront them in combat. Winning souls is not like winning a fight. You will argue no one into believing in Jesus Christ.
Tomorrow, we will read Luke 12-13.
Footnotes
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Charles Spurgeon, “The Wailing of Risca,” Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, 1861. Quoted in Mike Leake, “The Backstory to Spurgeon’s ‘If Sinners Be Damned,’” MikeLeake.net.
