Supernatural Life and Ministry

Intellect and natural abilities are viable tools, but they will only take a minister so far. For ministry to be effective and lasting, a minister must have total reliance on the power and ability of God. We were never intended to carry out God’s work in the finite limitations of our own wisdom and strength.

Supernaturally Called and Equipped

Christianity is a supernatural faith. Every true Christian has been born from above—by the influence and work of the Holy Spirit. Likewise, the call to ministry is supernatural in origin, and ministers can only carry out their assigned work effectively by the enablement and empowerment of the Spirit of God. The presence of the supernatural, though, does not negate natural factors in our lives and ministries. For example, Timothy was no doubt influenced by the faith of his mother and grandmother (2 Timothy 1:5), but they could not save him or call him; only God could do that.

Paul reminds Timothy that it was God who “saved us and called us with a holy calling…” (2 Timothy 1:9 NKJV). It is important to remember that salvation was God’s idea, not ours. It is true that we responded, but it is also true that God initiated the entire plan of salvation. God foreknew each of us, and Jesus had already died for our sins before we were even born. Likewise, he is the author and the initiator of our calling. That is why the Lord told the twelve, “You didn’t choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit…” ( John 15:16 NLT).

God’s supernatural involvement in our lives continues into the way he equips and empowers us for service. Paul makes two specific references to the spiritual gifts Timothy received for use in ministry:

 Do not neglect the spiritual gift you received through the prophecy spoken over you when the elders of the church laid their hands on you (1 Timothy 4:14 NLT).

 …I remind you to fan into flames the spiritual gift God gave you when I laid my hands on you (2 Timothy 1:6 NLT).

 In Timothy’s situation, an impartation took place when hands were laid on him and a prophetic word was spoken over him. Though people were involved, this was something far beyond the will or working of people. God supernaturally called and equipped Timothy, but he used others in the process. I have no doubt that God could work in a variety of ways in the spiritual journeys of different people, but this is how he worked in Timothy’s life.

 Perhaps no one ever prophesied over you regarding the call or the gifts that God has given you, but that does not mean God has not initiated such works in your life. It is good when people recognize and acknowledge God’s working in your life, but what is most important is that you are faithful in using your gifts to serve others and to glorify God.

Supernatural Blessings

 Not only was Timothy supernaturally called, but Paul spoke words of supernatural blessings over Timothy. In the second verse of the first chapter of both epistles to Timothy, Paul states, “May God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord give you grace, mercy, and peace.” It was very customary at the beginning of his epistles for Paul to speak a blessing using the words grace and peace, but to Timothy, Paul adds the word mercy. Perhaps I’m reading too much into this, but it makes me wonder if Paul didn’t expand his normal greeting in writing Timothy because he knew that ministers need all the help they can get!

 Supernatural Communication

 As a child and servant of God, Timothy had both the privilege and the responsibility to pray. Paul admonished him:

Most of all, I’m writing to encourage you to pray with gratitude to God. Pray for all men with all forms of prayers and requests as you intercede with intense passion. And pray for every political leader and representative, so that we would be able to live tranquil, undisturbed lives, as we worship the awe-inspiring God with pure hearts…. Therefore, I encourage the men to pray on every occasion with hands lifted to God in worship with clean hearts, free from frustration or strife (1 Timothy 2:1-2, 8 TPT).

 Prayer was addressed more thoroughly in chapter five, but it is always important to remember that personal communion and fellowship with God is spiritual oxygen to our souls.

Supernatural Empowerment

We already saw that Timothy received a spiritual gift (or gifts) when Paul and the elders of the church laid hands on him (1 Timothy 4:14; 2 Timothy 1:6). It was never God’s intention that this impartation simply give Timothy a momentary feeling, but rather, that it would be a wellspring of divine ability throughout his entire life. The Amplified Bible indicates how perpetual this gift was to be in Timothy’s life. Paul admonishes Timothy “to stir up (rekindle the embers of, fan the flame of, and keep burning) the [gracious] gift of God, [the inner fire] that is in you…” (2 Timothy 1:6 AMPC). The anointing of the Holy Spirit was to be a continuing source of power in Timothy’s life.

 In the very next verse, Paul elaborates on what God had placed on the inside of Timothy. “For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline” (2 Timothy 1:7 NLT). Surely, Timothy was meant to use all that God had put on the inside of him. Timothy was never meant to be launched into ministry in the Spirit, only to fulfill his assignment in his own strength and through mere self-reliance.

 On the contrary, everything Timothy did for the Lord was supposed to be through the Holy Spirit’s enablement. Paul instructed him, “Timothy, my dear son, be strong through the grace that God gives you in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 2:1 NLT). He did not tell Timothy to be strong in himself or to simply have willpower; he taught Timothy to rely on the grace of God that was in his life.

Clearly, Paul wanted the Holy Spirit to be integrally involved in every aspect of Timothy’s life and ministry. He proceeds to admonish him: “Through the power of the Holy Spirit who lives within us, carefully guard the precious truth that has been entrusted to you” (2 Timothy 1:14 NLT). Ministry was not something Timothy was supposed to do in the limitations of his own natural resources and abilities. He was to carry out his work for God with the strength that God provided.