Ordination

Thank you so much for coming to the ordination service of Elijah Watson.

An ordination service allows us to officially recognize and affirm a person’s call to ministry.

Some of you may be wondering why exactly we have an ordination service.

We did not have the same sort of thing for Glenn or myself when we started here.

The reason is that this is Elijah’s first full time ministry assignment.

Glenn and I had both been officially affirmed in the gospel ministry prior to starting here at Christ Covenant Church.

While it is an affirmation of Elijah’s calling to the gospel ministry, it is more so a worship service to God who graciously calls us to himself and His service.

Read:

Psalm 96:1–4 ESV

1 Oh sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth! 2 Sing to the Lord, bless his name; tell of his salvation from day to day. 3 Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples! 4 For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; he is to be feared above all gods.

Charge To The Congregation:

It has been a privilege to get to know Elijah over these past months.

I can affirm his love for Christ and his church, his love for worship, and his love for youth ministry.

Ephesians 4:11–16 ESV

11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

1. God Graciously Calls Each One Of Us To Different Areas Of Service In His Church And Mission In The World

Every time we gather, we are equipped by God’s word and God’s Spirit through the variety of gifts and callings God has placed on each one of us as members of his church.

A calling to full time ministry is always the coupling of two things.

Internal desire to give yourself full time to the service of God’s mission through his church.

The other is the external affirmation of the church body that sees the heart of service and gifting to minister to others.

I want to encourage you all to be thankful for your own call to service in your own realms.

And to be open always to the leadership of the Holy Spirit to what type of service God has for you.

2. Christ Is Growing Us All As One Body As He Builds Us Up In Love

Our calling as a congregation to a person who has been given this task is to encourage, support, and pray for their ministry.

It is also to love them enough to speak openly and honestly to challenge them at times, all with a spirit of humility and love.

It is to receive the ministry they offer as a gift of God to you, and offer your ministry of prayer and support back to them.

“Do you, as members of this church, affirm your confidence in this man’s calling and qualifications for the ministry of the gospel, and do you covenant together to encourage, support, and pray for his ministry according to the Word of God?”

Congregation: “We do.”