Fulfill Your Ministry

Jesse Schreck
7 days ago
7 min read

Watch Out for the Deviations

And say to Archippus, “See that you fulfill the ministry that you have received in the Lord.” - Colossians 4:17 (ESV)

At the closing of Paul’s letter to the believers in Colossae, he sends a message to his “fellow soldier”^[1]. We don’t know a lot about this man, but we do know, since Paul refers to him as a fellow soldier of the Lord, that he was living actively for the glory and honor of Christ. He wasn’t, in other words, comfortable on the sidelines or simply coasting through life trying to satisfy himself or accumulate endless riches. He was a person living rightly under the Lordship of Christ, as all Christians should, and part of the body of Christ. And yet, Paul felt the need to send him a message to encourage him to fulfill the ministry.

What was this ministry or service that Archippus was to fulfill?

The truth is, no one really knows for sure. It could have been a very specific project or service that he and Paul had already spoken of previously. It could have been a lifelong calling to minister to God’s people in his specific church context and region.

Either way, there is something here that all followers of Christ need to hear:

The Lord assigns each redeemed believer specific ministries to fulfill^[2], empowering us with His Spirit to succeed and bear lasting fruit, yet we can still become sidetracked; this is why we need to be encouraged to keep the course.

How does one get sidetracked from fulfilling his or her ministry?

It’s not hard, actually. Life is busy. Things get complicated. Illness, death, and countless distractions can derail our progress in the Lord. So many things call for our attention! Many seemingly good things call for our attention, but many of them—if not most—don’t deserve our time.

Only when we have confirmed and have conviction as to our God-given purpose can we learn to avoid distractions and say “no” to the many (often good) things that don’t help us fulfill our greater purpose.

Paul sends a message to Archippus because he wants him to keep the course. Distractions and disruptions will happen to each of us to some degree, but to fulfill our ministry, we must maintain a clear vision, purpose, and aim. Otherwise, the never-ending distractions and hiccups will just keep coming, and they will dictate and define our ministry more than Christ. We’ll find ourselves chasing and putting out fires rather than purposefully and strategically advancing the Kingdom in the ways God has called us.

Mind Your Company

As we go through life, it’s crucial that we pay careful attention to the company we keep.

You can be accompanied by Diligence and Discipline, or you can be accompanied by Comfort and Ease. Choose carefully.

Diligence requires focus and determination to work hard, but it will keep you from wandering aimlessly and missing your greater purpose.

Discipline requires a willingness to embrace difficulty and suffering, but ultimately it will free you to flourish.

Comfort, on the other hand, prioritizes self and will lead you to forget your higher calling and purpose—to glorify God by serving others.

Ease, like Comfort, will direct you to the path of least resistance where the cost to self is minimal. Ease wants you fat, lethargic, and weak, indifferent to the death and despair that still plagues the world. Ease will rely on others to get the work done. Ease wouldn’t dare allow you to get dirty.

Let us follow the way of Christ Jesus, who took the cross for us to redeem us. Let us keep company with Diligence and Discipline regularly, and only visit with Comfort and Ease on special, guarded occasions. The work that God has given His people to fulfill is of utmost importance. It requires careful consideration and determination.

3 Keys to Fulfilling Your God-Given Ministry

As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. - 2 Timothy 4:5

I. Be Sober-minded

To fulfill our ministries, like Timothy, we must be “sober-minded”.

To be sober-minded, it is paramount that you learn and know your strengths and your limitations. You live in a fallen world. You have been redeemed, but your flesh is still plagued by sin. Sin surrounds you. It wants to master you. The world is still fallen. Things don’t always go as planned. Thorns and thistles continually pop up and constantly need to be maintained. You have a world system that is against the way of your Lord. There is an evil one bent on seeing you fail. You must remain watchful. To not be sober-minded is a costly risk that you cannot afford.

Despite all this, however, there is a positive aspect of being sober-minded. The threats are real, but so is the reality of Christ’s power at work within you.

for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. - 2 Timothy 1:7

For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me. - Colossians 1:29

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen. - Ephesians 3:20-21

Embrace the reality of who you now are in Christ. Lift your eyes. In Christ, you are more than a conqueror (Rom. 8:37). You serve a victorious King who will not fail. He reigns even now. His plans cannot be thwarted.

II. Embrace Suffering

To fulfill our ministries, like Timothy, we must be willing to “endure suffering”.

Anyone who has ever accomplished anything of true value knows that it required sacrifice and fatigue.

Suffering is necessary. It’s unavoidable. Not all, however, are willing to suffer. Most of us run from it and any cost. Comfort and ease, unlike diligence and discipline, are aimed at keeping you from fulfilling your ministry.

The true Christian has repented of his or her sin and turned to Christ in faith for salvation, forgiveness, and eternal life. We are not saved just to coast and rest the remainder of our days. We are now enrolled as “soldiers” and “bondservants” of Christ. We no longer live to serve ourselves or our sins. We now live for God (Romans 6).

Living for Jesus requires self-denial and cross-bearing (Luke 9:23). We have been granted to believe and have eternal life, but also to suffer for Jesus’ sake and the advancement of the Gospel (Phil. 1:29).

Our slogan at Practical Missions Cohort embodies this call of the Christian. It comes directly from Paul’s letter to Timothy:

Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. - 2 Timothy 2:3

Be strong, fellow soldier. Endure. The Lord is with you.

III.) Keep Advancing the Gospel

To fulfill our ministries, like Timothy, we must “do the work of an evangelist”.

All Christians are called to know accurately and treasure the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ. Sadly, many professing Christians have believed in counterfeit gospels. It is of utmost importance that we rightly know and make known the true Gospel.

Timothy was called to the frontlines, where he was actively evangelizing and church planting. Few believers are called to serve God in this particular way. Those who are called and gifted to serve full-time in ministry, like Timothy, do so with the necessary support of other believers who fulfill their God-given calling/vocation, which results in excess money that gets shared with those dedicated to the ministry of the word and prayer (Acts 6:4). We’re all connected to this task of “doing the work of the evangelist.” Some go. Others support. Together we are the body of Christ, salt and light.

That being said, though we’re not all called or gifted to be sent to the frontlines and evangelize, we are all called to seek opportunities to evangelize those in our sphere of influence. We are given the joy and privilege to lead them to saving faith in Christ. The Spirit of God at work within us causes us to have compassion for those around us who are without God, without hope, far from Christ, slaves to sin, and in need of salvation. We pray for their eyes to be opened and their hearts transformed. We look for ways to testify to the gospel of the grace of God in Christ Jesus (Acts 20:24b).

Joyful Christian participation in God’s work in our world is realized when we know our role, play our part, and keep the gospel advancing wherever God has called us.

Keep the course, friend, and be the kind of person who encourages others to do the same! SDG

A Prayer

Lord God, thank You for how You have sought us out, called us from death to life, granted us eternal life, and given us a rich, meaningful life. So many wander aimlessly through life with no higher purpose. Yet for us, every day is full of important things that You have for us to do. Help us to see the world as You do. Help us take on the mindset of a diligent and active soldier of Christ, willing to endure difficulty. Help us to joyfully play our part so the Gospel keeps advancing and transforming the world. Make us able to avoid the deviations and instead fulfill the ministry You have graciously granted us. Amen.

Written by Jesse Schreck | founder, director, and missionary church planter in Italy with Practical Missions Cohort

Did you get anything out of this post? If yes, consider sharing it with a friend, buying me a coffee (link below), contributing to PMc, or subscribing to receive our newsletters. To receive Jesse's missionary devotionals in your email inbox, you can also subscribe to Jesse's Substack.

Buy Me a Coffee

Footnotes:

Philemon 2 - and Apphia our sister and Archippus our fellow soldier, and the church in your house (ESV)↩︎
1 Corinthians 12:4–7 - Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. (ESV)↩︎