Corredera stresses faithfulness in God’s call to ministry

Maintain the faithful course of God’s call, preached Gilberto Corredera, pastor of Prestonwood en Español in Plano, Texas, to the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary community during his Feb. 1 chapel message.

In his introduction of Corredera, President David S. Dockery expressed his excitement to have Corredera speak at the Fort Worth institution.

“He is a wonderful friend of Southwestern Seminary and Texas Baptist College,” Dockery said. “We appreciate Gilberto’s love for the Gospel and his zeal for the church.”

Corredera preached from Hebrews 3:1-6 and Numbers 12 in a message titled “The Servant I Want to Be.”

“We want to try to connect two passages from the Old and New Testaments that help us to understand an idea of what the Bible is telling us,” he explained. “I don’t know what you are dreaming to be, but what I want you to be is who God calls you to be.”

Corredera acknowledged the pressures of social media to be “famous” and “fancy,” but he said God wants those in ministry to be “faithful.”

“When the assignment is bigger than your ability, the only thing God requires of you is faithfulness,” he stated. “He will fill the gap. If we want to be faithful, we need to start with Christ.”

Corredera reflected upon his upbringing in Cuba and how from a human perspective, the odds may have seemed unlikely to have a chance to preach the Word of God.

“You can stop, look at your life, and [wonder] how you got here,” Corredera questioned. “The only reason we are here together today from different nations, ages, generations, backgrounds is because of the faithfulness of God. The same God who brought us here will take us from here to wherever He is planning to take us.”

Corredera provided context for Hebrews 3:1-6. He explained that the Book of Hebrews was written for the Jewish people to understand that Christ is superior in everything.

“When I started to read this, I said it is hard for me to be faithful like Christ,” he admitted. “We’re talking about another level. But great news, it says you can be faithful like Moses. I want to be like Christ but maybe we can start being faithful like Moses.”

Corredera reminded the crowd that Moses struggled with God’s call to him as stated in Exodus 3.

“Maybe you are facing a challenge in the ministry, family life, marriage, student life, and feel [like Moses] that you don’t have it in me,” he said. “That is a good sign because God never calls someone to have it. God calls people who can depend upon Him to get [the work] done.”

To understand Moses’s faithfulness, Corredera referenced portions of the Book of Numbers. He said those in ministry will face adversity like in Numbers 11 where the people complained to Moses. He added in Numbers 12-16, Moses faced criticism, confusion, controversy, and rebellion while serving in ministry. He told the gathering to anticipate the same as they serve in ministry.

“God is not calling you to throw [in] the towel,” Corredera proclaimed. “He is calling you to be faithful.”

Corredera provided two biblical applications to help those in ministry stay faithful: “communion with God” and a “community of faith.”

“Faithfulness is the fruit of the Holy Spirit,” he stated. “The only way we can be faithful is by having time with the Lord. When you spend time with the Lord, the voice that you hear in the presence of the Lord will carry you through temptations.

He added that it is within the body of Christ that those serving in ministry “find support,” including from  “people who pray and encourage you.”

“But when you isolate yourself in ministry,” Corredera cautioned, “it is hard to be faithful by yourself.”

Corredera has been part of the pastoral team of Prestonwood Baptist Church since 2010. He has dedicated the last 25 years of his life to preaching the Gospel, planting churches, and training leaders. Before moving to the United States, he was assigned as vice president of International Evangelism Explosion in his home country of Cuba. He and his wife, Yana, have been married for 27 years and have two daughters who also serve the Lord. He earned a Master of Theological Studies degree from Southwestern in 2023.

Corredera’s entire message can be viewed here.

Chapel is held every Tuesday and Thursday at 10 a.m. (CT) in MacGorman Chapel on the campus of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and TBC. Chapel may be viewed live at swbts.live.