Three pre-requisites for church planters

1. First pre-ministry requirement: Water baptism.

LK 3:21-23> Are you bapt in water? Have you made a commitment and declaration that your life is dead, and from this day on, you will only live for Jesus? Have you consecrated yourself for His use?

2. Second pre-ministry requirement: Spirit baptism.

Are you baptized in Spirit? Have you been drenched, saturated, filled to overflowing, and immersed in Spirit? This is the intent of the language here. Here are some evidences:

• Do you experience a passion for Jesus, for worship, for radical surrender? Do you hunger for secret times, for intimate adoration?
• Have you been consumed in the fire, purged from the self-life, ruined for living a materialistic world-view oriented life?
• Have you been empowered with a supernatural dynamism unexplainable in the natural? Is there a boldness, an ability to hear his voice and understand revelations of truth? Are you exercising supernatural powers – like miracles, healings, praying in tongues, prophesying in the congregation?

Look at your experience with God - if this is not your experience, you need to seek God for this baptism before you proceed with trying to be a factor in this Jesus movement.

Here is what it looked like for Jesus:

• Lu 4:1  And Jesus being full of the Holy Spirit returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit…
• Lk 4:14  And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee…
• Lk 4:18 The Spirit of the Lord [is] upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach…
• Ac 10:38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.

The purpose of the Spirit is to empower for service:

• Lu 24:49  And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but wait ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.
• Ac 1:4 Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, “Which,” [He said,] “you heard of from Me;  …
• Ac 1:8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

Other verses you may want to look at concerning being baptized in the Spirit:

• Ac 2:1-4
• Ac 2:38
• Ac 8:14-17
• Ac 9:17
• Ac 10:44-46
• Ac 19:2-7

3. Third pre-ministry preparation – Testing our dedication. Lk 4:1-13

Who leads us into this kind of test? Who is the one who tests us?

Three tests:

1.     Test of making Bread = Material comforts, sensual enjoyments, appetites.. eg – food, sex, comfort, home, plasma screen, BMW, family life, etc.

a.      Php 3:18 I have often told you, and now tell you with tears in my eyes, that many live as the enemies of the cross of Christ. In the end they will be destroyed. Their own emotions/appetites (lit – bellies) are their god, and they take pride in the shameful things they do. Their minds are set on worldly things”

b.     Key word = FLESH

c.      Mt 13:22 The seed planted among thornbushes is another person who hears the word. But the cares of life and the deceitful pleasures of riches choke the word so that it can’t produce anything.

d.     Will you settle for dabbling in sensual and material enjoyments, when you could enjoy the fullness of a life of following Jesus into the unknown? Are you willing to surrender all?

2.     Test of making a convincing public miraculous entry into his ministry in the center of the Temple = wanting the approval of men, wanting glory, popularity, acceptance, prestige, appearance.

a.      Key word = EYE or appearance

b.     Mr 12:38 In His teaching He was saying: “Beware of the scribes who like to walk around in long robes, and [like] respectful greetings in the market places, and chief seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets, who devour widows’ houses, and for appearance’s sake offer long prayers; these will receive greater condemnation.”

c.      Do you want your ministry to validate your self-worth? Is the approval of men more important than the approval of God? Are you willing to accept the ridicule of men for the sake of the Name?

3.     Test of receiving authority to rule the world apart from God’s plan = wanting power without the cross, authority without submission, the easy route to fulfill personal ambition apart from God’s route of self-denial and patient dependence.

a.      Key word = BOASTFUL PRIDE OF LIFE

b.     Ac 8:18 Simon saw that the Spirit was given to the Samaritans when the apostles placed their hands on them. So he offered Peter and John money and said, “Give me this power so that anyone I place my hands on will receive the Holy Spirit.” (see thru v23)

c.      Do you want to climb the ladder of power and authority for personal ambition? Do you want to hang with the big names? Are you eager to rule over people? Test yourself. You must be willing to be the least and servant of all – only then will you be the greatest in the Kingdom.

Before you are ready to invest yourself in this Jesus movement work, the Spirit wants to test your motives and dedication. God wants you to decide in advance that you will be his servant, with no rights, no power, no ambition, receiving no glory to himself, willing to be the least, willing to be the servant of all, willing to deny all things for the sake of Christ.

Take 30 minutes to yourself;

• Write the things you would like in life – family, ministry, home.
• Write the things that tempt you most – lonely for a love, hungry for sex, for cars, for acceptance, for recognition.
• Read some verses: Mt 19:21, 29, Mrk 8:35; 9:35; Jn 12:24; Phil 3:8; Rom 12:1; Lk 9:24; Gal 2:20; 5:24; 6:14
• Dedicate your life wholly to God.