Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards… 1 Corinthians 4.1 KJV

The term minister is usually said with an air of pride, superiority and arrogance. Every so often we see people, mainly Christians, linking the word minister to a prominent job or position.

This misconception may come from associating ministers of Christ with a minister in the government, the head of a ministry of government with a great deal of power, a position just below ambassador in diplomatic rankings.

The following titles are common among evangelicals: worship minister, minister of dance, children’s minister, youth minister… We quickly realize that minister has become a tool for self-promotion.

This reminds me of a conversation I had. My neighbor, a Presbyterian elder, came to me one day and said that he had just been consecrated as a minister of the gospel by the laying on of hands. He was beaming. He was so happy to have “moved up,” but he didn’t understand the real meaning of this title. I almost burst out laughing, but out of respect controlled myself and said, “Congratulations! You’ve just been demoted.”

The Greek word Paul uses in 1 Corinthians 4:1 for minister, in some contexts literally meant “under-rower,” a term used for the lowliest sailor on a boat, not a seaman. Their job was to row.

Usually the oarsmen in a boat were not hired hands, they weren’t paid, they were slaves. These men were given nothing but food and water. They had to row constantly. They were whipped, tortured, were covered in sweat, and were hungry and thirsty.

These men’s job was to row till they died, hoping for a little bit of sunlight, some rest, food and water. Nothing else.

“Row, row, row till you die.”

No problem. Death is profit for a rower in Christianity’s boat.