In this series of postings, I’m slowly working my way through Charles Bridges’ classic book Christian Ministry.
.
Christian Ministry (Charles Bridges) – Chapter 3
In Chapter 3, Bridges writes about the purpose or aim of Christian Ministry. He discusses the various metaphors used in Scripture to describe the people of God and relates these to the work of ministry.
.
The Dignity of our Calling
Christian Ministry, writes Bridges, has a two-fold aim – 1) to honor God and 2) to save men and women. Put another way, the “ministry of the Word” is aimed at both evangelism and establishment. Bridges expresses this using the Biblical metaphors of “planting” the Church and “watering” of the Church (1 Corinthians 3:6). “There is both a foundation to be laid and a building to be raised.”
The ministry of the Word is God’s provision for “perfecting what was lacking in the faith” of young believers. Peter wrote his second epistle to those that were “established in the faith” encouraging them to “add to” what they already possessed spiritually. Christian Ministry, he argues, is God’s appointed means of initially imparting spiritual life and nurturing it on to maturity. The various metaphors for the Church help us understand the role of Christian ministers.
Body – the “appointed channel of communication from the head to the body, by which the spiritual life is first imparted and subsequently maintained
Flock –the one who “seeks that which is lost, strengthens the diseased, heals the sick and brings back that which was driven away
Household – the faithful and wise steward who dispenses the provision of the house according to the necessities of its occupants
City – the watchman who wakes and warns sleeping people of their peril
Field – the laborer who plans, waters and weeds the field, watching over the growth of the plants up until the harvest
Building – the “master-builder” to build upon the “sure foundation” living stones for a habitation of God through the Spirit
Treaty of Peace – the ambassador, entrusted with the “ministry of reconciliation” and begging them, in behalf of Christ, to be reconciled to God
