Philosophy of Ministry The outward expression of my inner convictions
The importance of a philosophy of ministry can not be overstated. It provides a set of principals which determines how one will function in ministry. It defines the why or the what you do, which translate into the how we do ministry. A Philosophy of ministry is an invaluable tool as it provides objective criteria for evaluating the scope of one’s ministry, the direction and effectiveness of the church’s ministries, which new ministry proposals to pursue and which ones to not. It is also helpful in determining the level of cooperation with other outside ministries.
My philosophy is born from a desire to be Biblical (Heb 8:5; 1 Tim 3:14-16; 1 Cor 11:2; 16; 14:33, 37-40; 2 Thess 2:15; 3:6), practical (1 Cor 9:26), efficient (Eccles 10:10;4:9-12; Acts 6:1-7)and effective (Ps 127:1; Eccles 9:10; Acts 9:31;14:21-24) in ministry. I believe this approach to ministry will glorify God and leave his servants fulfilled (2 Tim 4:7; Acts 20:24; 1 Cor 9:24-27), knowing what our task is and how we are to act upon it.
Four Foundations Stones for Ministry
My Philosophy to Ministry are build on four foundation stones. They are: A High view of God , A High view of Scripture, A Realistic view of Man and Godly, Qualified Leadership.
A High View of God
The chief end of man according to the Westminster Shorter Cathecisms is to glorify God and enjoy to him forever. God created the universe with all it contains for the ultimate purpose of bringing glory to Himself (Isa 43:7, 20; Ps 19:1). The church who are made up of those who Christ redeemed exists to glorify God (1Cor 10:31; Eph 1:6,12, 14; Heb 13:15); this our mission.
The motive, end and aim of all God does is not to bring glory to man, the pinnacle of His creation but for the glory of God. God alone is worthy and deserving of such single minded attention (2Sam 22:4; Ps 18:3; Rev 5:12).
It is therefore imperative that all ministry goals, plans and activities found in the local church should aim to bring the maximum glory due to His name. To glorify God defines the why of the ministry of the church as well as the individual. God is holy, just and righteous and the Church is to emulate His communicable attributes, be engaged in pursuing holiness (practical sanctification) and be the guardians and proclaimers of the truth which God entrusted to the Church (1 Tim 3:15).
High View of Scripture
The Bible is the Word of God and the Word of God in the original is inspired, infallible, inerrant, sufficient and authoritative for all of life (2 Tim 3:16; Ps 19:7-12; 2 Pet 1:20-21). The Scriptures are accurate coming from God, the one who cannot lie (Titus 1:2; Heb 6:18). It is sufficient for all things “pertaining to life and godliness” (2 Pet 1:3; 2 Tim 3:16,17). The sufficiency of Scripture warrants that it alone determines the principles of my philosophy of ministry by its explicit teaching and its implicit methods and patterns of ministry as found of the New Testament church.
A Realistic View of Man
Affirmation of the Word of God leads one to a realistic view of Man and it provides the godly qualifications required to be in leadership in the church. The Scriptures are clear in testifying against man that he is totally depraved (Rom 3:10-18), that his heart is deceitfully wicked (Jer 17:9-10) and that he is continually evil and wholly selfish (Gen 6:5). The consequence is that man will always seek his answers and fulfillment from the perspective of a fallen worldview and from an evil world system. It is important to recognize this in order to formulate a philosophy of ministry that seeks to understand man’s real needs and not just his felt needs. An accurate view of man will enable one to correctly understand the purpose of the church.
Godly Qualified Leadership
Ministry is by definition service which means every believer is a minister. Godly and qualified leadership in the church is the fourth foundation stone. Leaders must model the character of Christ to the flock (1Thess 2:4-12; 1Tim3:1-3; Titus1:5-9; 1Pet 5:1-5). This is essential in order to establish biblical discipleship and proper equipping of the saints.
Faithfulness to these foundation stones is the only true criteria to evaluate success in ministry. These foundation stones impact how we worship God, how we evangelize the world and how we edify and equip the saints for the work of ministry.
A Manual for Ministry 
Glory to God in Worship
God is exalted by the worship of true worshippers who worship Him in spirit and truth (Jn 4:23-24).The Word of God is central to the worship of God (Acts 2:42; 1Tim 4:13). As the truth of God is made known there is only one response from the Spirit regenerated heart and that is to worship God. God is worthy of our worship for He is the Sovereign Creator (Rev. 4), He is our Savior( Rev 5) and He is our Sovereign King ( Rev 19). Worship is therefore always to be directed to God ( Jn 4:24; Ps 96:8) and focused on who He is ( Ps 96:4; 99:9; Isa 6:1-9; Lk 5:8).
The Expression of worship are numerous, but can be categorized into a vertical, internal and horizontal expressions of worship.
The vertical expression: Directed to God
(i)Worship expressed through prayer (Acts 16:12 Acts 18:7, 11; 19:8-10). The ministry of prayer must have a place of primacy in the church and prayer has to have its focus on God and not on man. Prayers of adoration, invocation, intercession, confession and benediction should be all for the sake of God’s name and His glory and not be man- centered (Mt 6:9, 13; Jer 14: 7:21; Ps 25:11; 70:9).
(ii) Worship expressed through music and song (1Cor. 14:26; Eph. 5:19; Col. 3:16; Heb 13:15). Music and song should compliment and under gird, strengthen and support the teaching of Scripture. It should build up faith and as with prayer should be God focused rather than on man. Music and song is a beautiful way of exalting Christ and should not be prostituted for the sake of outreach and church growth. Music and song forms part of the corporate worship experience, but should not dominate it at the expense of the teaching and preaching of the Word.
The internal expression: Changed by God
The Internal expression of worship is manifested by the new creature one is in Christ (2Cor 5: 17) and are displayed through one’s new desires and attitudes.
(i) Worship expressed in holiness (Rom 12:1-2; 1 Pet. 1:13-16). Paul after a wonderful exposition on the Gospel of God begin his application with a call to offer up our bodies as living sacrifices unto the Lord and to renew our minds. We are to love the things God loves and distain the things God distain. In renewing our minds through the washing of the Word, God is exalted as the believer are conformed more and more into the image of Christ ( Rom 8:29).
(ii) Worship expressed in gratitude (Heb. 12:28; 13:15; Eph. 5:19-20; Col 3:16-17). Worship is a response to the truth and knowing the truth about our sinful condition, the wrath and justice of God, the salvation and our eternal future as found in Christ stimulate genuine and sincere worship from the soil of immense gratitude.
The horizontal expression: A Channel of blessing to others
Worship in its horizontal expression is found in the love the believer has for one another. This is an expression of obedience to the command of Jesus to “love one another” (Jn 15:17; 1Jn 3:18; 23). The “one another’s” as found in the Scriptures provide a rich expression of worship to God as we love those who God redeemed through Christ Jesus.
Glory to Go
d in Witnessing
Witnessing is all about God and not about man. The following powerful statement by Piper describes it well: “Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn’t. Worship is ultimate, not missions, because God is ultimate, not man.” To worship God, witnessing is to be done on two fronts. The godly lives of believers should testify to the redemptive work of Christ in them (Mt 5:16; Titus 2:10; Phil 2:15; 1 Pet2:11-12; 3:1-2) and secondly it is through the active proclamation of the Gospel of God (Mt 28:19, 20; Rom 10:14-17; 2 Cor 5:19-20; Jas 1:18; 1 Pet 1:23)
The great commission is to make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the
Father and the Son and the Spirit, teaching them to observe all Jesus commanded (Mt 28:19-20).
It is the duty of the church to evangelize the lost and the local church should be involve in its community with an active and sustained emphasis on local outreach. The test of the fulfilment of the great commission is the continual growth of the local church by conversions. A clear plan and strategy needs to be developed with the ultimate goal of church planting in the targeted area. Local outreach is essential but it should not be the exclusive focus of the church. There should also be a focus on the nations. It will be impossible for a local church to answer the call to evangelize all the nations but a commitment should be made to a nation or people group. This commitment should receive a continuous emphasis supported by an active and ongoing search to identify possible missionaries within the congregation, with the necessary support from a pre-determined missionary budget.
Glory to God in Working
The fellowship of believers: God saves us as individuals but then immediately incorporates us into the Body of Christ (1Cor 12:13). The fellowship of the believers are important and should not be neglected (Heb 10:24,
25). The Greek word koinonia, translated as fellowship conveys two related meanings. To share together, in the sense of joint participation and to share with, in the sense of giving what we have to others. The corporate gathering of the church, during the main worship service, serves as the main vehicle to share together the faith in Christ we have in common, with the coming together to the Communion table being the highlight of our sharing together. We also share with one another. We share our lives, our resources and prayers. There is also the sharing with one another in carrying one another’s burdens and in being accountable to one another (Gal 6:1-2). Smaller bible studies and prayer groups can serve as a wonderful way in fostering care for one another.
The equipping of believers: Eph 4:7-16 provides us with clear instruction as to the purpose of spiritual gifts to
individuals. It describes the different gifts to the church, which are to be used for the equipping of the saints, to do the
works of service and to properly build up the body of Christ by believers working together. So the purpose of spiritual
gifts are to edify and unite believers by increasing their knowledge of the Son of God and leading them to
maturity in the faith, being established in love.
Colossians 1:28 is a very important passage for my philosophy of ministry. This passage provides insight into how we can bring believers to maturity. Paul states that his goal was: “that we may present every man complete in Christ.” His plan was to “proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom.”
The Proclaimation of “Him” : Preaching with the focus on “Christ Jesus.” Preaching is to be done to increase the knowledge and understanding of the infinite God we worship. Preaching and teaching should always be God-centered and not man-centered. The whole counsel of God should be taught in a deep and meaningful way (Acts 20:27; Ezra 6:4; Neh 8:8), in order to effect transformation in the lives of people, giving them what they need to hear and not always what they want (2Tim 4:1-4).
Biblical Admonition and Encouragement : The individual, one on one, building up of one another forms a critical part of any church ministry. Discipleship and the biblical counseling of one another is a church effort. Every believer is to be in the process of duplicating themselves. Moses had Joshua, Elijah had Elisha, Jesus had His disciples and Paul had Timothy and others (Mt 4:19; 2Cor 11:1; 2 Tim 1:13). The principle of 2 Tim 2:2 are not only to be emulated in the leadership but in every believers’ life.
In all wisdom: God’s Word is His perfect gift for mankind (Ps 19:7-11; Ps 119). It is full of the wisdom of God and it provides us with the mind of Christ (1Cor 2:14-16). God gave us His Word which is sufficient for dealing with all aspects of man’s life, godliness and every good work (2 Pet 1:3; 2 Tim 3:16, 17). I therefore believe in the nouthetic model of counseling to bring to bear the counsel of God, as the only real solution to man’s sick and hurtful souls. This does require diligent study of the Scriptures (2 Tim 2:15, Ezra 7:10) to which I am committed.
Conclusion
This Philosophy of Ministry I realize is in many ways inadequate and incomplete, not dealing with the myriad of aspects involved in ecclesiology. I see this as a work in progress, to which I will gladly add to or subtract from as I am convicted by the Holy Spirit from the Scriptures to a fuller understanding of the aspects discussed here in. I do believe that Christ has left us an incredibly delightful task. It should give us no greater joy than to serve our Master in building His Kingdom. He has also given us an impossible task, one in which we are certain to fail, if we attempt it in our own strength and resources, but He has left us His Word and His Spirit through which anything is possible with God (Mt 19:26).
(The NT word often translated "ministry" (diakonia) is a word that basically means service. Although there are requirements for the office of diakonos (aka "servant-leader", cf. I Timothy 3), all believers are servants or ministers in the primary sense of the Greek word. Any right-hearted work of service Christians give to each other is ministry, including prayer, changing diapers, taking care of the facilities, running the sound board, working behind the scenes, etc. It is not necessarily helpful to see the pastor as "the minister" when every Christians is a minister biblically in a fundamental sense)