A well-dressed businessman was standing in line at the airport check-in counter. He, along with the others in line ahead of him, became quite concerned as they watched the door to the jetway close. When he realized what was happening and that the gate agent was going to have to rebook some of the people on a different flight, the businessman jumped out of line to take matters into his own hands. “Excuse me, Miss, but I need to get on this flight!” he said with more than a little urgency.
The woman replied, “Yes, sir, so do the rest of these people who are in line in front of you. Now kindly take your place back in line and we’ll help you when it’s your turn.”
Well, he didn’t like this at all, so he thought being a little more forceful might help his cause. He said, “You see, if I don’t get on that flight, I’m going to miss my meeting. And if I miss my meeting, I’m going to be very angry with you.”
The agent calmly replied, “Sir, we’ll help you when it’s your turn.”
The man, a prominent, wealthy and well-known businessman, had enough. He glared at the woman and growled, “Do you know who I am?!?”
Also having had enough, the agent picked up the microphone and announced, “Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention please. This gentleman at the desk does not seem to know who he is. If anyone can identify him, we would all greatly appreciate your assistance.”
Mr. Highfalutin Businessman huffed and puffed his way to his place in the back of the line.
Do you know who you really are?
I constantly see evidence that the average Christian is a victim of spiritual identity theft. That is, the average Christian has no biblical and meaningful understanding of who they really are in Christ. As Cadre missionaries, we’re out much of the year training volunteers to love and serve God effectively. (It’s our Ephesians 4:11-12 obsession.) During our training, we’ll often ask a room full of volunteers, “How many of you are full-time ministers?” Usually one or two volunteers raise their hands. Think about it. The overwhelming majority of volunteers have embraced a very unbiblical view of themselves, and honestly see themselves as “just volunteers.”
Let me clarify: I understand that most of us will never make our living as full-time ministers, but don’t miss my point: According to the Bible, if you’re a Christian, you really are a full-time minister, regardless of where you work or what you do for a living.
This “full-time-minister” identity is true for ALL followers of Jesus Christ: stay-at-home moms, students, factory laborers, entrepreneurs, educators, administrators, CEOs, sanitation workers, retirees, etc. Yes, I’m talking to YOU. If you know Jesus Christ as your Savior, YOU are a full-time minister.
I know what you’re thinking. When you hear someone say that a “regular” person like you is a full-time minister, you immediately start listing all the objections why that can’t possibly be true. That’s precisely why I want to take the ax of God’s Word and chop as hard as I can at the most common objections that keep volunteers like you from stepping into their biblical identity as full-time ministers. After all, the Christian life is the process of becoming who God says we are already.