As you seek to help others pursue God, it is important that you know what your role in the process is compared to God’s role. There are some elements that only God can do, and others that he expects you to do. Learn not to confuse the two.

1 Corinthians 3:5-6 (NLT) After all, who is Apollos? Who is Paul? We are only God’s servants through whom you believed the Good News. Each of us did the work the Lord gave us. I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow.

Your role.

We are only servants. We don’t have the power to make anything happen in the spiritual realm or in anyone’s heart. We’re just called to be faithful to do what we’ve been assigned to do. Each of us will likely have a different role in the process. Paul’s role was different from Apollos’ role. In fact, different people are usually needed to bring someone to maturity in Christ. So we plant or water in people’s lives as we have opportunity.

God’s role.

By contrast, only God can actually produce spiritual growth. Everything we do is dependent on him. God isn’t going to do your part. He’s not going to make appointments, talk to people, or share truth with them. And you can’t do God’s part. You can’t fill anyone with the Spirit, convict them of sin, motivate them to obey, or change their heart attitude.

You need to do your part! But you can only do your part and no more.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Watch the video together or invite someone to summarize the topic.
  2. What is your initial reaction to this video? Do you disagree with any of it? What jumped out at you?
  3. What people had a role to play in your pursuit of God? How were their roles different?
  4. What did God do in your growth as a Christ-follower that only God could have done?
  5. Have you ever tried to do God’s part? What happened?
  6. Have you sat back and expected God to do your part? What happenened?
  7. How do you respond to the statement: “You can only do your part and no more.”
  8. Write a personal action step based on this conversation.

Ministry Tools:

Print Friendly, PDF & Email