LEARNING DAILY

 

Ephesians 4:11-12, And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body.

 

Kings would often give gifts after their victories. In the fourth chapter of Ephesians, Paul quotes Psalm 68:18, a Psalm of David which was written to celebrate the conquest of Jerusalem.  Paul is calling attention to the ascension of Christ and that He gave gifts to gifted spiritual leaders who would lead His Church following His ascension.  These gifts were given to help prepare God’s people for service and for the spiritual growth of the body of Christ as God intended.

 

Paul mentions four groups of people, each with a particular gift.  I would like to briefly examine each groups gift(s) to show their relationship to the Church.

 

Apostles.  The title apostle was given to leaders in the New Testament that generally applies to individuals specifically called, and given authority by the Lord Jesus Christ to be His representatives in proclaiming the gospel and establishing His Church (Life in the Spirit Study Bible).  Among them would be the twelve disciples, Paul, Barnabas, and others. Apostles in the first century were closely associated with eyewitnesses of Jesus or had personal encounters with the resurrected Christ.  They were called to write Scripture (Paul for example); they were recognized as one who had authority to do so.  They were also recognized as having authority to represent the Church and were sent out to spread the gospel or some other special responsibility.  Some sources I looked at compared apostles to modern day missionaries who go into the world in order to spread the gospel and to be church planters. 

 

 I did try to research regarding modern day apostles. Let me say that there are a lot of different thoughts on this.  I will go back on the definition that an apostle is called by Christ and is a personal witness of the resurrected Christ.  They will be known by the fruit they produce.

 

Prophets.  Prophets in the New Testament were those gifted spiritual leaders who were uniquely gifted in receiving and communicating direct revelation from God by the Holy Spirit. Prophets were raised up and empowered by the Holy Spirit to bring a message from God to His people (Life in the Spirit Study Bible). The Old Testament prophets were to speak the word God gave them by the Holy Spirit in order to encourage God’s people to remain faithful to their covenant relationship.  They would also give predictions for the future as they were given them by the Holy Spirit.  New Testament prophets were used to proclaim the Word of God, to warn, encourage, comfort, and edify others.  They were called to expose sin, proclaim righteousness, warn of coming judgment and to encourage others about being lukewarm. 

 

Prophets continue to be essential to God’s purpose for the Church.  By their character, prophets have a great concern for purity in the Church and a sensitivity to evil and unrighteousness; they are well aware of the dangers of false teaching.  They are essential as the church is drifting toward worldliness and compromise of Biblical truth.  They will bring words of rebuke and warning, as well as encouragement as the Holy Spirit leads.  Those wise enough to receive a prophet’s word will be motivated to seek a renewed life and fellowship with the Lord and the Holy Spirit’s presence will be seen in the fruit they produce.

 

Evangelists.  In the New Testament, evangelists were those God-called individuals who were especially gifted, anointed and commissioned to proclaim the gospel of Christ and His kingdom to cities and unsaved individuals so as to awaken faith.  When proclaimed, the gospel always carries with it the power of salvation (Life in the Spirit Study Bible).  The Church that maintains a love for the lost will support the work of evangelists as they proclaim the gospel. 

 

Pastors.  Pastors are those individual whose calling and ministry gifts cause them to devote themselves to shepherd, oversee and care for the spiritual needs of a local congregation (Life in the Spirit Study Bible). Their duty is to help believers grow up or mature in their Christian walk by teaching God’s Word and to be spiritual leaders.  They are to be examples of spiritual purity and sound doctrine and to be sure no false teaching or false doctrine enters the local church.  Failure to have a godly and faithful pastor will result in a church that is not led according to God’s Word.  It will be exposed to the destructive forces of Satan and worldly doctrines.    Godly pastors will base their work on sound doctrine for the purpose of godliness.

 

Teachers.  New Testament teachers who had a special God-given gift to clarify, expound and proclaim God’s Word with effectiveness and power in order to build up the body of Christ (Life in the Spirit Study Bible). Biblical teaching is preserving truth and producing holiness in God’s people.  They are to teach the truth of God’s Word so that believers will remain unwavering in it.  That is so important when the “winds of ungodly doctrine” come.  Knowing God’s Word will reveal false ideas and teaching that is man-made. 

 

Tomorrow I will try to explain how this is important to help the church function as designed.

 

If you would like to get this blog sent to you automatically when new posts are posted please leave your email address with “Follow by email.” Don’t forget to check Follow as well.

 

Remember – if you receive this blog through email, you can go to the regular blog page by moving your cursor to the top of the page and click on LEARNING DAILY header.  Then you can see the archived articles and comment section. You can also leave a comment by clicking on the date in the Comment Section.