Christian Minister: Character and Attributes of
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Leviticus 10:3–11
Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the LORD meant when He said: ‘To those who come near Me I will show My holiness, and in the sight of all the people I will reveal My glory.’” But Aaron remained silent. / Moses summoned Mishael and Elzaphan, sons of Aaron’s uncle Uzziel, and said to them, “Come here; carry the bodies of your cousins outside the camp, away from the front of the sanctuary.” / So they came forward and carried them, still in their tunics, outside the camp, as Moses had directed.
Leviticus 21:6
They must be holy to their God and not profane the name of their God. Because they present to the LORD the offerings made by fire, the food of their God, they must be holy.
Numbers 16:9, 10
Is it not enough for you that the God of Israel has separated you from the congregation of Israel and brought you near to Himself to perform the work at the LORD’s tabernacle, and to stand before the congregation to minister to them? / He has brought you near, you and all your fellow Levites, but you are seeking the priesthood as well.
Deuteronomy 32:1–3
Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak; hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. / Let my teaching fall like rain and my speech settle like dew, like gentle rain on new grass, like showers on tender plants. / For I will proclaim the name of the LORD. Ascribe greatness to our God!
1 Samuel 2:35
Then I will raise up for Myself a faithful priest. He will do whatever is in My heart and mind. And I will build for him an enduring house, and he will walk before My anointed one for all time.
1 Samuel 12:7
Now present yourselves, so that I may confront you before the LORD with all the righteous acts He has done for you and your fathers.
2 Chronicles 6:41
Now therefore, arise, O LORD God, and enter Your resting place, You and the ark of Your might. May Your priests, O LORD God, be clothed with salvation, and may Your godly ones rejoice in goodness.
2 Chronicles 29:11
Now, my sons, do not be negligent, for the LORD has chosen you to stand before Him, to serve Him, to minister before Him, and to burn incense.”
Ezra 7:10
For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the LORD, to practice it, and to teach its statutes and ordinances in Israel.
Psalm 68:11
The Lord gives the command; a great company of women proclaim it:
Proverbs 11:30
The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he who wins souls is wise.
Isaiah 6:5–8
Then I said: “Woe is me, for I am ruined, because I am a man of unclean lips dwelling among a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of Hosts.” / Then one of the seraphim flew to me, and in his hand was a glowing coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. / And with it he touched my mouth and said: “Now that this has touched your lips, your iniquity is removed and your sin is atoned for.”
Isaiah 32:20
Blessed are those who sow beside abundant waters, who let the ox and donkey range freely.
Isaiah 52:11
Depart, depart, go out from there! Touch no unclean thing; come out from it, purify yourselves, you who carry the vessels of the LORD.
Jeremiah 1:7, 8
But the LORD told me: “Do not say, ‘I am only a child.’ For to everyone I send you, you must go, and all that I command you, you must speak. / Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you,” declares the LORD.
Jeremiah 3:15
Then I will give you shepherds after My own heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.”
Jeremiah 20:9
If I say, “I will not mention Him or speak any more in His name,” His message becomes a fire burning in my heart, shut up in my bones, and I become weary of holding it in, and I cannot prevail.
Ezekiel 34:1–31
Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, / “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Woe to the shepherds of Israel, who only feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed their flock? / You eat the fat, wear the wool, and butcher the fattened sheep, but you do not feed the flock.
Malachi 2:6, 7
True instruction was in his mouth, and nothing false was found on his lips. He walked with Me in peace and uprightness, and he turned many from iniquity. / For the lips of a priest should preserve knowledge, and people should seek instruction from his mouth, because he is the messenger of the LORD of Hosts.
Matthew 10:16–24
Behold, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. / But beware of men; for they will hand you over to their councils and flog you in their synagogues. / On My account, you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles.
Matthew 11:25, 26
At that time Jesus declared, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. / Yes, Father, for this was well-pleasing in Your sight.
Matthew 13:51, 52
Have you understood all these things?” “Yes,” they answered. / Then He told them, “For this reason, every scribe who has been discipled in the kingdom of heaven is like a homeowner who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.”
Matthew 20:25–28
But Jesus called them aside and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their superiors exercise authority over them. / It shall not be this way among you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, / and whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave—
Matthew 23:8–11
But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers. / And do not call anyone on earth your father, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. / Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one Instructor, the Christ.
Matthew 24:45
Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of his household, to give the others their food at the proper time?
Luke 6:39
Jesus also told them a parable: “Can a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit?
Luke 10:21
At that time Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and declared, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was well-pleasing in Your sight.
Luke 12:42–44
And the Lord answered, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their portion at the proper time? / Blessed is that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. / Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.
Luke 22:27
For who is greater, the one who reclines at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines? But I am among you as one who serves.
Luke 24:49
And behold, I am sending the promise of My Father upon you. But remain in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”
John 3:27, 34
John replied, “A man can receive only what is given him from heaven. / For the One whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit.
John 4:36–38
Already the reaper draws his wages and gathers a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may rejoice together. / For in this case the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. / I sent you to reap what you have not worked for; others have done the hard work, and now you have taken up their labor.”
John 10:2–5, 11–15
But the one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. / The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen for his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. / When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice.
John 13:13–17
You call Me Teacher and Lord, and rightly so, because I am. / So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. / I have set you an example so that you should do as I have done for you.
John 15:20, 21
Remember the word that I spoke to you: ‘No servant is greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you as well; if they kept My word, they will keep yours as well. / But they will treat you like this because of My name, since they do not know the One who sent Me.
John 17:16–18, 20
They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. / Sanctify them by the truth; Your word is truth. / As You sent Me into the world, I have also sent them into the world.
Acts 1:8
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Acts 4:8, 31
Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and elders of the people! / After they had prayed, their meeting place was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.
Acts 6:3, 4
Therefore, brothers, select from among you seven men confirmed to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will appoint this responsibility to them / and will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”
Acts 20:22–24
And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. / I only know that in town after town the Holy Spirit warns me that chains and afflictions await me. / But I consider my life of no value to me, if only I may finish my course and complete the ministry I have received from the Lord Jesus—the ministry of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.
Romans 2:21–23
you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? / You who forbid adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? / You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law?
1 Corinthians 1:23, 27–30
but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, / But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. / It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God: our righteousness, holiness, and redemption.
1 Corinthians 2:2
For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
1 Corinthians 3:7–10
So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. / He who plants and he who waters are one in purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor. / For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building.
1 Corinthians 4:10–13
We are fools for Christ, but you are wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You are honored, but we are dishonored. / To this very hour we are hungry and thirsty, we are poorly clothed, we are brutally treated, we are homeless. / We work hard with our own hands. When we are vilified, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it;
1 Corinthians 9:16–23, 27
Yet when I preach the gospel, I have no reason to boast, because I am obligated to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! / If my preaching is voluntary, I have a reward. But if it is not voluntary, I am still entrusted with a responsibility. / What then is my reward? That in preaching the gospel I may offer it free of charge, and so not use up my rights in preaching it.
1 Corinthians 15:10
But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace to me was not in vain. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.
2 Corinthians 2:15–17
For we are to God the sweet aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. / To the one, we are an odor of death and demise; to the other, a fragrance that brings life. And who is qualified for such a task? / For we are not like so many others, who peddle the word of God for profit. On the contrary, in Christ we speak before God with sincerity, as men sent from God.
2 Corinthians 3:6–10
And He has qualified us as ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. / Now if the ministry of death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with such glory that the Israelites could not gaze at the face of Moses because of its fleeting glory, / will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious?
2 Corinthians 4:1–10
Therefore, since God in His mercy has given us this ministry, we do not lose heart. / Instead, we have renounced secret and shameful ways. We do not practice deceit, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by open proclamation of the truth, we commend ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God. / And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing.
2 Corinthians 5:11, 18–20
Therefore, since we know what it means to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men. What we are is clear to God, and I hope it is clear to your conscience as well. / All this is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: / Therefore we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making His appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ: Be reconciled to God.
2 Corinthians 6:3–7
We put no obstacle in anyone’s way, so that no one can discredit our ministry. / Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships, and calamities; / in beatings, imprisonments, and riots; in labor, sleepless nights, and hunger;
2 Corinthians 10:1, 2, 8
Now by the mildness and gentleness of Christ, I appeal to you—I, Paul, who am humble when face to face with you, but bold when away. / I beg you that when I come I may not need to be as bold as I expect toward those who presume that we live according to the flesh. / For even if I boast somewhat excessively about the authority the Lord gave us for building you up rather than tearing you down, I will not be ashamed.
2 Corinthians 13:10
This is why I write these things while absent, so that when I am present I will not need to be severe in my use of the authority that the Lord gave me for building you up, not for tearing you down.
Galatians 2:8
For the One who was at work in Peter’s apostleship to the circumcised was also at work in my apostleship to the Gentiles.
Galatians 6:17
From now on let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus.
Philippians 3:17
Join one another in following my example, brothers, and carefully observe those who walk according to the pattern we set for you.
1 Thessalonians 2:3–12
For our appeal does not arise from deceit or ulterior motives or trickery. / Instead, we speak as those approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, not in order to please men but God, who examines our hearts. / As you know, we never used words of flattery or any pretext for greed. God is our witness!
1 Timothy 3:1–15
This is a trustworthy saying: If anyone aspires to be an overseer, he desires a noble task. / An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of but one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, / not dependent on wine, not violent but gentle, peaceable, and free of the love of money.
1 Timothy 5:17, 21
Elders who lead effectively are worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching. / I solemnly charge you before God and Christ Jesus and the elect angels to maintain these principles without bias, and to do nothing out of partiality.
1 Timothy 6:11, 13, 14, 20, 21
But you, O man of God, flee from these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness. / I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who made the good confession in His testimony before Pontius Pilate: / Keep this commandment without stain or reproach until the appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ,
2 Timothy 1:6–8, 13, 14
For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. / For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and self-control. / So do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, or of me, His prisoner. Instead, join me in suffering for the gospel by the power of God.
2 Timothy 2:1–7, 14–16, 20–26
You therefore, my child, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. / And the things that you have heard me say among many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be qualified to teach others as well. / Join me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.
2 Timothy 3:14, 16, 17
But as for you, continue in the things you have learned and firmly believed, since you know from whom you have learned them. / All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness, / so that the man of God may be complete, fully equipped for every good work.
Titus 1:5–9, 13, 14
The reason I left you in Crete was that you would set in order what was unfinished and appoint elders in every town, as I directed you. / An elder must be blameless, the husband of but one wife, having children who are believers and who are not open to accusation of indiscretion or insubordination. / As God’s steward, an overseer must be above reproach—not self-absorbed, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not greedy for money.
Titus 2:1, 7, 8, 15
But as for you, speak the things that are consistent with sound doctrine. / In everything, show yourself to be an example by doing good works. In your teaching show integrity, dignity, / and wholesome speech that is above reproach, so that anyone who opposes us will be ashamed, having nothing bad to say about us.
Titus 3:1, 2, 8, 9
Remind the believers to submit to rulers and authorities, to be obedient and ready for every good work, / to malign no one, and to be peaceable and gentle, showing full consideration to everyone. / This saying is trustworthy. And I want you to emphasize these things, so that those who have believed God will take care to devote themselves to good deeds. These things are excellent and profitable for the people.
Hebrews 5:1–3, 12–14
Every high priest is appointed from among men to represent them in matters relating to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. / He is able to deal gently with those who are ignorant and misguided, since he himself is beset by weakness. / That is why he is obligated to offer sacrifices for his own sins, as well as for the sins of the people.
Hebrews 13:6, 7, 9, 17
So we say with confidence: “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?” / Remember your leaders who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith. / Do not be carried away by all kinds of strange teachings, for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace and not by foods of no value to those devoted to them.
James 3:1, 13, 16, 17
Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. / Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good conduct, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. / For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every evil practice.
1 Peter 4:10, 11
As good stewards of the manifold grace of God, each of you should use whatever gift he has received to serve one another. / If anyone speaks, he should speak as one conveying the words of God. If anyone serves, he should serve with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen.