Competitive Ministry

by Chadwick Brewer

The fact of the matter is that Christians struggle not to be competitive in their righteousness. There is also a strange competitiveness between preachers and members concerning which preacher they have. This is not at all new. Paul tells the Philippians to do nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit (Philippians 2:3) and rebukes the Corinthians for boasting about different preachers (I Corinthians 1-4).

We, as ministers, tend to compare ourselves and our ministries to one another. We fall into the same trap the Corinthians did in II Corinthians 10:12, where we compare ourselves by ourselves and prove ourselves to be without understanding.

Ministry is not a singular task. It is not just public speaking, teaching Bible classes, having home studies, or evangelizing. There are dozens of aspects of ministry. It may be true that I am better equipped in one or two areas than the average bear, but to boast in that which the grace of God has given is foolishness. Not to mention, there are more areas in which I will be subpar than areas in which I excel.

We all share in the work. We are on the same side. We are not in competition with one another (I Corinthians 12). I am thankful for all those who spend and are spent for the sake of the gospel.