No wonder that God in His
special grace subjects the ministers of the Gospel to all kinds of afflictions,
otherwise they could not cope with this ugly beast called vainglory. If no
persecution, no cross, or reproach trailed the doctrine of the Gospel, but only
praise and reputation, the ministers of the Gospel would choke with pride. Paul
had the Spirit of Christ. Nevertheless there was given unto him the messenger
of Satan to buffet him in order that he should not come to exalt himself,
because of the grandeur of his revelations. St. Augustine’s opinion is
well taken: “If a minister of the Gospel is praised, he is in danger; if he is
despised, he is also in danger.”
The ministers of the
Gospel should be men who are not too easily affected by praise or criticism,
but simply speak out the benefit and the glory of Christ and seek the salvation
of souls.
Whenever you are being
praised, remember it is not you who is being praised but Christ, to whom all
praise belongs. When you preach the Word of God in its purity and also live
accordingly, it is not your own doing, but God’s doing. And when people praise
you, they really mean to praise God in you. When you understand this—and you
should because “what hast thou that thou didst not receive?”–you will not
flatter yourself on the one hand and on the other hand you will not carry
yourself with the thought of resigning from the ministry when you are insulted,
reproached, or persecuted.
It is really kind of God
to send so much infamy, reproach, hatred, and cursing our way to keep us from
getting proud of the gifts of God in us. We need a millstone around our neck to
keep us humble. There are a few on our side who love and revere us for the
ministry of the Word, but for every one of these there are a hundred on the
other side who hate and persecute us.
The Lord is our glory.
Such gifts as we possess, we acknowledge to be the gifts of God, given to us
for the good of the Church of Christ. Therefore we are not proud because of
them. We know that more is required of them to whom much is given, than of such
to whom little is given. We also know that God is no respecter of persons. A plain
factory hand who does his work faithfully pleases God just as much as a
minister of the Word.
