“You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you. This I command you, that you love one another.” (John 15:16-17
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Journal,
Did you know that God works by appointment? Yes, He truly does. But before I get into the appointments of the Lord, please take time to listen to this song, ‘Little is Much’, by the Gaithers.
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Appointed and anointed…
Jesus told the disciples that He had chosen them and appointed them for a special fruit-bearing role in the kingdom of God. In fulfilling their role whatever they asked of the Father in His name, the Father would give it to them.
These men were the appointed ‘Apostles of the Lamb.’ Their appointment was exclusive to them. No one else was in the upper room. And no one else could take their appointment to themselves.
The Apostles of the Lamb would have a unique role in the kingdom of God. These men would have the responsibility the ability, and the authority for laying the foundation of the new covenant church. Each apostle would be given an arena of responsibility and ministry. Whatever they bound on earth would be bound in heaven. Whatever they loosed on earth would be loosed in heaven. (Actually all binding and loosing begins with heaven.)
Here is where we need to understand special ministry anointing. Out of their apostolic appointments these men would have all they needed accomplish their role for the kingdom. This is so important to understand.
Whereas all of God’s children do share equally in the life anointing of Jesus, not all God’s children share the same assignment anointing. The anointing to carry out an assignment comes with the assignment itself. (The anointing includes whatever gifts are needed.) Thus there can be various aspects of the of anointing.
From this alone we can see that the Lord does work by appointments and callings. Yet we must not make a mistake with regard to ministry appointments. The anointing is what equips us for our ‘good works’ assignment. It can vary. But the anointing or the appointment does not place us above any other believer in the realm of being God’s children. We must not forget that aspect.
Listen to the apostle:
“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” (Eph 2:10 NASB)
Then again,
“Now the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord, equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.”(Heb 13:20-21 NASB)
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Divine appointments did not cease with the apostles...
Did you catch it? These good works assignments are many. They were prepared for us to walk in before the foundation of the world. Every child of God will have ‘assignments’ or ‘appointments’ to work with. Not just one assignment. Our life will be filled with appointed works.
While we may have one special life-time appointment, we will also have many, many other assignments during our time on earth. All these assignments are for the kingdom.
Here is an example (I’ve shared this story in other journal entries):
We were on our way to a mountain village in Honduras. I knew my business was to preach the gospel. But I always ask the Lord for anything extra He would have me share.
The Lord spoke to my heart; “Tell them that you come as an ambassador from the kingdom of God, and that you have a message for them from the King.”
When I stood to address the people I said exactly what the Lord gave me to say. It was like the Holy Spirit settled down on the congregation. There was a holy hush.
I sensed a special grace for the service and we saw people birthed into the kingdom. What happened, however, is that the Lord gave the anointing or special grace for the appointed moment.
That is a simple illustration of how an appointing from the Lord can work. Each believer will have many appointed moments. The anointing to accomplish God’s will always comes with the appointment and with the moment. (You may prefer the term ‘assignment’.)
But there is another aspect of the Lord’s appointing. My primary appointing for the past 34+ years has been to raise up a ministry for training disciples. This kind of appointment takes on the measure of a ‘stewardship‘. (Oikonomia speaks of the management of a household or of someone else’s property.)
The ownership of Christian Challenge belongs to Jesus Christ. I was to be its caretaker. (Not owner.) And anything ever needed to accomplish the goal of this appointment would be supplied by the Lord. It has always been that way. The future of every ministry is always in the hands of the Lord. Over time much of the stewardship of Christian Challenge has been entrusted to my son, Nathan.
Listen to Paul:
“For if I do this voluntarily, I have a reward; but if against my will, I have a stewardship entrusted to me. What then is my reward? That, when I preach the gospel, I may offer the gospel without charge, so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel.” (1Co 9:17-18 NASB)
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What of the day of small beginnings...
Now you see why I wanted you to hear the song, ‘Little is Much,’ at the beginning of this entry. The Lord wants to speak to your heart. Why not listen to it again.
Friend, don’t be discouraged. It doesn’t matter if your ‘good work’ appointment seems so insignificant. He will bless you for your faithfulness to the task set before you. The Lord gave you your appointment for a reason. It fits perfectly into God’s plan for the ages.
Actually there is a principle at work when it comes to the appointing of the Lord. Jesus explained it:
“He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much.” (Luk 16:10 NASB)
Think about it.
In Christ always,
Buddy
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