“Of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God which was given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God.”
From 1:24 to the end of the chapter, Paul presents his ministry. After stating his two conflicting emotions of “suffering” and “rejoicing,” he gives his purpose of ministry.
“Of which”
This phrase points back to the church in verse 24. Paul became a minister to care for the church. The “of which” of verse 25 refers to the gospel. First, he was a minister of the gospel. Now he is a minister of the church.
Some people minister the gospel to the lost but do not minister to the church. To minister the gospel is indispensable, but that is only a start. Paul was an expert in the gospel (Rom. 1:1; 15:16). He would never step down from preaching the gospel to some secondary issue. Paul never postponed the preaching of the gospel to deal with secondary, incidental matters. He understood the difference between the good and the best. Not only was Paul a minister of the gospel, but he was a minister to the church. This dual ministry will separate the men from the boys.
Principle:
Ministry has a double-barrel shotgun: to the lost and the Christian.
Application:
A church that ministers to those without Christ exclusively has only half a ministry. A balanced ministry ministers to both.
