I want to see if I can explain an opinion that I have on the 5-fold ministry mentioned in Ephesians. It says to put on the full armor of God: The helmet of salvation, breastplate of righteousness, the belt of truth and feet shod with the preparation of the gospel. Transferring the Helmet to the apostle, the breastplate to the prophet, the belt of truth to the evangelist and the feet covered with the pastor on one foot and the teacher on the other. I see a bit of a dynamic with the design: The helmet being the apostle protects (the head) and expresses the overall vision or the pattern. The breastplate protects the heart and cleansing organs. This person tells us what to avoid, to keep us healthy, when pursuing the vision. The belt of truth is reproductive. This is the evangelist. This person brings people in to the family. The role of the pastor or shepherd is one who goes after sheep which are straying away from the fold while the teacher brings into practical application the walk. Together, these two perform the duties ensuring that no one stumbles. Without the overall vision of (apostle and prophet) where to go and what to avoid in getting there, the people perish. They will walk aimlessly without Spirit-led direction. This concept works both in the Body as well as for the individual. Ephesians 4:11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. Heres something to ponder: Ephesians 6:14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; First of all: The shield of faith is position while the sword of the Spirit is expression. Our lives are hid in Christ and the Spirit gives gifts (several) to people as He decides to provide. The general accepted view of the apostle today is a church planter. I disagree. He doesnt plant he matures. In the early century, the foundation was already formed-up and laid, Built upon the foundation of the apostle and prophet, Jesus being the chief cornerstone. This is already done. What the apostle and prophet did then is not applicable to us today. We already have everything we need for a sure foundation. Looking back at Ephesians 6 listen to the wording and the sequence as in what manner this is being explained to us. We see the evangelist, the prophet, the pastor and teacher, standing on the foundation (shield of faith), then the apostle and finally the expressive of the manifestation of the gifts from each person working together. The church planters (seed) are the evangelist and the prophet. The evangelist brings people in while the prophet sets them in. Are you following me? Then the pastor and teacher develop an understanding of the experience, maturity and knowledge of what the cross means in each persons life. This is the foundation that has already been laid. They water the seed. Essentially, they teach and explain who we are going to become through the transformation of regeneration. Once there is a level of working maturity, the apostle explains the vision of God for having a family of which they are now an integral part of.He explains it according to the pattern, (as spoken to Moses concerning the Tabernacle). After all, the Tabernacle is a type and shadow of the heavenly reality of which we, as the called and chosen, are becoming the reflection of the heavenly reality. Have I lost you yet? Then the hands that were weak are able to wield the sword of the Spirit. As Christ, the Spirit, is formed in us we finally reach a point where together, we are moving as one, within the dynamic sphere of the Spirit of God with the expression of the various giftings and callings, in order to build one another up in the faith. We need apostles and prophets to explain to us what the foundation is supposed to look like and how we can move in that direction without getting egg all over our face.
Posted on: Mon, 07 Jul 2014 05:14:18 +0000
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