Organization Is Spiritual

“And he said to his disciples, ‘Make them sit down in companies, about fifty each.’ And they did so, and made them all sit down” (Luke 9:14, 15). Luke provides a very administrative view of Jesus and the disciples feeding thousands without the necessary supplies. It was a miracle to be sure; however, there is a very non-miraculous element to what happened. In the midst of Luke’s story he reveals that Jesus not only multiplied the food, but planned the logistics as well. It appears that He organized the work to be done, assigned specific tasks, and guided the overall project. Organization was important enough to garner Jesus’ leadership. If Jesus took time to organize His ministry, we should diligently organize that which God is asking us to accomplish.

Building Codes

At a recent conference the well-respected theologian and pastor, R.C. Sproul, shared what he considered to be the scariest passage in the Bible. As he read the words of Jesus, the Holy Spirit settled them uneasily in my mind; the implication was painful and left its mark on my soul. The message recorded in Matthew 7: 21-23 is an unambiguous judgment; not upon evil emperors, adulterers, and thieves, but on preachers.

It appears the final judgment will include many ministers standing as strangers before Jesus; some will tout outstanding resumes with name recognition. Others will have long lists of accomplishments, decades of ministry, signs and wonders, great songs, teachings, deliverances, and prophetic words. Evidently, a significant number will be shocked and dismayed as they are ordered to depart from the presence of Jesus Christ.

Immediately following this somber unveiling, Jesus continues to unpack the passage by guiding His listeners through some basic building codes everyone understood. A summary might read something like: If you don’t build on a solid foundation your building will fall down and cause no small catastrophe.

Jesus is linking two fundamental truths: the collapse of an unstable building may cause physical injury and death; how much greater the spiritual implications when ministers disregard Kingdom building codes? To quote Jesus’ words in Matthew 7:27, “…great will be the fall.”

The human and spiritual carnage resulting from substandard ministry foundations has been evident and often over the last few decades. Can we understand what is happening? With careful inspection, using scriptural forensics, the damaging evidence emerges and cries out for our verdict. The foundations were flawed.

Go For the Best

To Solomon, the most skilled and competent king, wisdom was his most valuable possession. He saw wisdom as a must for success in life and meticulously recorded his life principles in accordance with the Holy Spirit’s prompting. The first Book of Kings informs us that Solomon spoke 3000 proverbs and 1005 songs.

Solomon’s wisdom in Proverbs is a kind of personal journal chronicling his intriguing romance with this mystical woman of charm, influence and power. So enamored was Solomon with wisdom that His only request from God was for a greater measure. What a choice! I wonder how many Christian leaders would have the insight and understanding to make that qualilty seletion?

The English word wisdom is from the Hebrew word “hokmah.” It has to do with skill in living. Wisdom was not merely an intellectual philosophical exercise, it was practical. In the western world we usually think of wisdom as primarily cerebral--the Hebrew understanding had a handy dimension; it was very blue collar.

Why did Solomon view wisdom as such a treasure?

* Someone with hokmah had a leg up on others.
* A man or woman with hokmah honored God with their lives.
* A man with hokmah had good relationships within his community.
* Hokmah shaped all of life’s experiences.
* Hokmah had moral and ethical implications.

"Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom."
(Proverbs 4:7)