Jesus is only manifested in dead people. As Paul explains, "For we which live are away delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh" (2 Corinthians 4:11). This message is not just for pastors—it is for every Christian.
The people who shook the world with the message of Jesus were those who understood death. They had already considered themselves dead to this world. That is why they could face persecution, imprisonment, and rejection without fear. They knew what it meant to carry the sentence of death in themselves, just as Paul said, "...I die daily" (1 Corinthians 15:31). These are the kinds of Christians through whom the life of Jesus is revealed—those who no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.
If you are "enjoying" ministry, you may be doing the wrong ministry. True ministry is not about comfort or convenience; it is about carrying your cross and following Jesus, as He said, "...if any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me" (Luke 9:23). Until we embrace this sacrificial life, we will not see true results.
Apostle Paul told Timothy, "Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier" (2 Timothy 2:3–4). The Christian life is like that of a soldier on active duty. A soldier does not get distracted by civilian matters; his only focus is to please his commanding officer. Likewise, the committed Christian must understand what it means to die to the world—to live for the cause of Christ alone.
Christianity without sacrifice is powerless. Until you embrace the cross, the life of Jesus cannot be made manifest in your body. True Christianity is a life that dies daily so that Christ can live fully through you. Let death to self, comfort, and worldly desires become your way of life, for only then will the power and glory of Jesus be seen in you.