Warren W. Wiersbe - 10 Power Principles for Christian Service

10
POWER
PRINCIPLES
FOR
Christian Service

Other Titles by Warren W. Wiersbe (Selected)

Being a Child of God

Be Myself (autobiography)

The Bible Exposition Commentary (2 vols.)

The Bumps Are What You Climb On

Developing a Christian Imagination

Elements of Preaching

God Isnt in a Hurry: Learning to Slow Down and Live

The Integrity Crisis

On Being a Servant of God

Prayer, Praise, and Promises: A Daily Walk through thePsalms

So Thats What a Christian Is! 12 Pictures of the DynamicChristian Life

Turning Mountains into Molehills: And Other DevotionalTalks

Victorious Christians You Should Know

Wiersbes Expository Outlines on the New Testament

Wiersbes Expository Outlines on the Old Testament

1997, 2010 by Warren W. Wiersbe and David W. Wiersbe

Published by Baker Books
a division of Baker Publishing Group
P.O. Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287
www.bakerbooks.com

Ebook edition created 2011

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meansfor example, electronic, photocopy, recordingwithout the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.

ISBN 978-1-4412-3462-9

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible, New International Version. NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com

Scripture marked KJV is taken from the King James Version of the Bible.

Scripture marked Message is taken from The Message by Eugene H. Peterson, copyright 1993, 1994, 1995, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. All rights reserved.

Scripture marked NASB is taken from the New Century Version Copyright 1987, 1988, 1991 by Word Publishing, a division of Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture marked NKJV is taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Contents

A new edition of any book usually means that its message continues to be valuable. We want the next generation of pastors and Christian workers to benefit from this second edition.

As the speed of change increases, churches and their leaders need a stable foundation from which to evaluate and respond to ministry opportunities. Principles provide stability and perspective. We believe the couplet

Methods are many, principles are few;
Methods always change, principles never do.

We have followed these ten principles in our own ministries and have applied them to test each new method that has been recommended to us. They have helped us pursue eternal goals and avoid current trends.

We reviewed the principles in this book in light of presentday challenges to American (and global) economics and culture. While ministry methods must be adapted to a constantly-shifting culture, we know from experience that these ten biblical principles are still supremely effective. Pastors and leaders are called to build Christs church for eternity. Techniques can build a crowd but only sacrificial service will build a church. Ministry that costs nothing accomplishes nothing, says John Henry Jowett.

Our prayer is that the Holy spirit of God will give all of us eyes to see the truth, hearts to love the truth, wills to obey the truth, and courage to stand up for the truth, until our Lord returns. His purifying fire will test the quality of our work, revealing if our ministry produced ashes or merited reward (1 Cor. 3:13). At that time each will receive their praise from God, (1 Cor. 4:5).

May we all end well!

Warren W. Wiersbe
David W. Wiersbe

I n 1983, we published a book for ministerial students called Making Sense of the Ministry. Its success was modest, and in 1989, Baker Book House issued a second, enlarged edition. The response from seminary personnel, pastors, and students was encouraging, but we discovered that chapters 3 and 4 (Some Principles of Ministry) were considered by many to be the best part of the book.

When Chuck Swindoll read these ten principles over his Insight for Living radio program it created new interest in the book, but by then it was out of print and not scheduled for reprinting. Our friend and editor, Jim Weaver, at Baker Book House suggested a book expanding on each of the ten principles designed for both ministers and ministerial students.

Since we represent two different ministerial generations, we tried to achieve some sort of balance in an age when churches seem to be going from one extreme to another. We hope we succeeded. This is not a time for generation bashing.

Both of us are busy in ministry, so it wasnt easy to find time to share ideas, write, and assess our work. But thanks to telephones, computers, machines, and the blessing of the Lord, and a lot of patience on the part of our publisher, we have completed the book.

We trust that what weve written will not only help Gods seasoned servants as they minister in an age of change, but will also encourage ministerial students and younger pastors as they get started in their work. In spite of the bad press the church occasionally receives, there are some great things happening among Gods people, especially pastors, and we rejoice in it. If we build on principles, our work will endure. If we embrace every new idea that comes along, without reflection, we will find ourselves only trying to hug the wind.

The stories about pastors and churches used in these chapters are fictional. If you think weve written about you, your church, or somebody you know in ministry, please be sure that youre mistaken. Unfortunately, the bad situations we describe frequently occur in churches because people are people, and the good situations we write about dont occur enough.

Over the years, we have both been helped by reading books about ministry, so if this book brings encouragement to other ministers, we are grateful. This is one way to repay the great debt that we owe to others.

Warren W. Wiersbe
David W. Wiersbe

Introduction
The Tale of Two Churches

T his will probably be our last pastorate, John Chandler said to his wife as they unpacked the everyday dishes and put them the dishwasher. But I think it will be our best.

I agree with you, Martha replied encouragingly, as she always did. To her, John Chandler was the greatest preacher who ever lived, and the thirty-two years theyd served together had been exciting and enriching.

John went on. The Lord willing, Im good for the next six or seven years. And then its off to that little house in Colorado, where Ill have lots of time for reading and fishing and doing whatever pulpit ministry the Lord opens up for me.

Well, you certainly have plenty of experience to draw on from our last three churches, Martha said. Your ideas have always worked and theyll work here at Briarwood. This is our first suburban church, so lets enjoy it. They wouldnt have called you if they didnt think you could do the job.

But Pastor Chandler didnt do the job. After eight painful months as pastor of Briarwood New Life Fellowship, he was ready to quit. In spite of his excellent track record in previous pastorates, almost every idea John had suggested at Briarwood had been turned down by the members of his young suburban congregation.