Whether it’s sharing the gospel, counseling a friend, or rebuking a loved one, before we can speak truth, we must establish a loving relationship. In tonight’s lesson, we discuss…

• How discipleship is like gardening
• What are the features of the “ideal growing environment”?
• Find out who Paul called “one of a kind, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare.” What a compliment!
• The first step to a relationship with God
• The difference between justification and sanctification

Here’s the audio:

And here’s a copy of the handout:

Thanks for listening. This is week five in an 11-week counseling training class called “Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands.” If you found this talk helpful, please consider subscribing to my podcast.

Life is messy. Ministry is messy. Thankfully, we have a Wonderful Counselor who cleans up our messes and turns our worst splatters into a work of art.

Jesus can do in your life what he did in the Apostle Paul’s. Paul might seem like a spiritual superhero, but he too was a sinner, saved by grace. As he looks back on his life, he says, “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.” Paul became a trophy of grace as the Lord transformed him from a self-righteous abuser into a loving leader who would lay down his life for others.

As followers of Christ, we now become ambassadors of him, and can practice the same kind of ministry Jesus and the Apostle Paul modeled. There are four aspects of personal ministry: love, know, speak and do. Notice how all four were present in Jesus’ life:

Jesus Loved. “And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said, ‘You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven” (Mk. 10:21).

Jesus Knew. “But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, ‘Why put me to the test, you hypocrites?…render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.’ When they heard it, they marveled.”

Jesus Spoke. “And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying, ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.'” (Mt. 5:2-3).

Jesus Helped Others to Do. “Blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!” (Lk. 11:28).

As ambassadors of the Wonderful Counselor, we should practice these same four activities. Last night at Wednesday Night Discipleship, we spent time on a table group exercise, looking at several case studies in the Bible where Jesus dealt not merely with outward behavior but matters of the heart. (I didn’t record this part of the lesson, but you can find the exercise under #1 in the “Make It Real” section of Lesson Three).

We then looked briefly at Isaiah 9:6-7 and discovered…

• How Jesus is the “Great Physician”
• What it means that he is “Wonderful Counselor”
• Our role as ambassadors of Christ
• These four aspects of all personal ministry: love > know > speak > do

Here’s the audio:

And here’s a copy of the handout:

Thanks for listening! This is week four in our 11-week counseling series, “Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands.” Tonight’s lesson was a bit shorter, as we spent most of our time in table group discussion, then watched the training video. For a closer look at the concepts of being ambassadors of Christ, see Lesson Four in the Study Guide.