![]() ![]() LAWSON: It’s a Word-centered ministry, and that’s saying the same thing in a slightly different way. We long for that, and for that we need to, as Acts 6:4 says, “give ourselves to prayer and the ministry of the word.” My own feeling is that even if we speak about means of grace ministry, we may not have caught sight of that vision of what’s it like when God’s Word does its work-when it floors us, prostrates us, transforms us, gives dignity to our lives, and means that what happens under the ministry of the word becomes visible in the community in the days that follow. Paul speaks to the Thessalonians about “the word of God, which is at work in you” (1 Thess. ![]() The Word of God increases, the Word of God prevails (Acts 6:7 12:24). If you read through the Acts of the Apostles, it’s interesting how on occasion the Word of God almost becomes like a person who does things. And perhaps that’s an indication that in our churches we see far too infrequently what it’s like when the Word of God, preached in the power of the Holy Spirit, itself does the work and changes people’s lives. I’ve become more and more convinced that the default among us evangelicals is that we do the work and the Word helps us. ![]() FERGUSON: An ordinary means of grace ministry is the thrill, from the point of view of those who share in that ministry, of the exposition of Scripture in different ways and at different levels and watching the Word of God work. ![]()
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