By Jared Cowgill, Bethel Baptist Church
I can readily recall my call to ministry. It was Summer after my freshman year at Atlanta High School and my home church just got a new pastor, Claude Crocker. I remember being excited to both return to church and to meet our new pastor. After several sermons something began to stir up in my heart. I had this insatiable desire to jump in the pulpit and proclaim the kingdom of God. After a few months of denying this call I finally caved in and my dreams of going into the medical field went out the window. I quickly confided in Claude and he began to mentor me and test this apparent call into ministry. It’s been over 4 years since that day that I surrendered to God’s call and the fruits of it have been incredibly evident.
Thankfully, this call is not just limited to pastors. Yes, even you are called to a ministry. I say “a ministry” because this is a broad term. Not everyone of God’s children has the same call on their lives; however, we all are called to certain tasks as believers. In the second letter to the Corinthians chapter 5 verses 17-21 Paul gives a very clear charge to his brothers and sisters in Christ.
“17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”
Specifically in verse 18 we are given the Ministry of Reconciliation. Yes, you read that right you are called to ministry. This ministry is to proclaim the reconciliation Christ offers. Our sins separate us from God but Christ’s life, death, and resurrection reconcile us to God bringing us back into his love and grace. This is our message to the world in our ministry.