GIFTED (part ten)
We've looked at the motivational gifts in Rom. 12:6-8. Then we went to 1st Cor. 12:7-11 and looked at the manifestation gifts. Now we see another set of gifts in Eph. 4:11, "It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists and some to be pastors and teachers." Today we'll focus on the gifts of apostleship and evangelism.
1) Apostleship.
Apostle means messenger or one sent forth. Smith's Bible Dictionary, "In the New Testament originally the official name of those twelve disciples whom Jesus chose to send forth first to preach the gospel and to be with him during the course of his ministry on earth. The word also appears to have been used in a non-official sense to designate a much wider circle of Christian messengers and teachers."
Jesus designated 12 of his disciples to be specially commissioned to be Apostles. Matt. 10:2-4, "These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him."
We know mostly about Peter, James, John and Judas and not very much about the other eight. Peter, James and John were the most prominent of the group and Judas was known for less than stellar reasons. But there are more apostles than the 12.
After Judas betrayed Jesus and hanged himself, the Apostles prayed and asked God to reveal who would replace him. It was revealed that it would be Matthias (Acts 1:26). He had been with the group since the early days. He was a follower of Jesus, just not an apostle, until now. And then lastly, there was Paul. But Paul didn't even think he was worthy to be called an apostle because he had once persecuted the church (1st Cor. 15:9).
But beyond these 14 apostles, there are actually others. Barnabas is called an apostle. Acts 14:14 starts out by saying, "But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this". James, Jesus' brother. In Gal. 1:18-19, Paul is explaining how he went to stay with Peter for a couple of weeks and he states that he didn't see any of the other apostles-only James, the Lord's brother.
And speaking of the Lord, Jesus himself was an apostle. Heb. 3:1, "Therefore, holy brothers, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess." Notice how it refers to Jesus as the apostle. Obviously Jesus is the first and foremost of the apostles since he is the first and foremost anything!
And beyond this there is a good argument to be made for Paul's companions Apollos (1st Cor. 4:6-9) and Timothy and Silas (1st Thess. 1:1, 2:6). These three are listed by name and later in the passage Paul uses the phrases, "us" and "we" followed by, "apostles". Is he referring to himself and the original apostles or the men he mentions earlier?
Regardless, there are more apostles than just the original 12. However, especially when you're referring to those designated as companions of Paul, these are not on the level of the original 12 (Matthias, not Judas). Denver Cheedie, a Minister who holds a Master's degree in biblical studies, writes, "The original 12, and Matthias, were clearly distinct from other apostles.
They were granted special rewards in the New Jerusalem that no one else could attain-not even Paul. In Matt. 19:28 Jesus told the 12 that they would sit on thrones, judging the 12 tribes of Israel. And in Rev. 12:14 Jesus said the Holy City will have 12 foundations, each having a name of one of the Apostles. Clearly these 12 apostles were unique.
There is the office of apostle and the gift of apostleship. However, some understand the verses where Paul mentions the term apostle in connection with the gifts, (Eph. 4:11 and 1st Cor. 12:28) are actually referring to those who held the office of apostle, not a gift of apostleship.
The office was held by the 12, followed by Matthias and lastly, Paul. The qualifications for the office of Apostle: Easton's bible Dictionary, "It was characteristic of the apostles and necessary (1) that they should have seen the Lord and been able to testify of him and of his resurrection from personal knowledge.
(2.) They must have been called to that office by Christ. (3.) It was essential that they should be infallibly inspired, and thus secured against all error and mistake in their public teaching, whether by word or by writing. (4.) The power of working miracles.
The apostles therefore could have had no successors. They are the only authoritative teachers of the Christian doctrines. The office of an apostle ceased with its first holders." There is no longer any need for the office of Apostle because the foundation has been laid.
Denver Cheedie states that the apostles’ job was not to plant churches. This fell under their jurisdiction but was not their primary function. Their main function was to establish the faith. Jesus Christ died once and for all to become the chief cornerstone of the Christian faith (Eph. 2:20).
The purpose of the apostles was to establish the faith and build a doctrinal foundation on which the church would be based. They were commissioned by God to do this. In John 14:26; 16:12-14, Jesus promised the apostles that the Holy Spirit would come and reveal to them what they needed to know.
This promise was fulfilled when the Holy Spirit inspired the apostles to write what Jesus said and what was yet to be said. Thus it was important for them to have physically seen Him. Later Paul was commissioned as an apostle to the Gentiles in the same way Peter was apostle to the Jews.
To put it loosely, the primary job of the apostles was to give us the NT. Every book in the NT was written by an apostle or a close associate of one. Jesus gave us the New Testament covenant through His blood, the apostles gave us the New Testament doctrine through their writings and teachings.
Once that foundation has been laid it's time to build on it. The foundation does not have to be laid again, anymore than Christ has to die again. Therefore there is no need for apostles today. Now it is time for pastors, evangelists and teachers to build. Paul planted the seed, he laid the foundation, but Apollos watered the seed; he built on it (1st Cor. 3:6).
People who establish churches, heads of denominations etc. may call themselves apostles, but they do not hold the office of an apostle. They cannot claim to be infallibly sent by God to bring new revelation to the body of Christ, as the major apostles of the Bible were.
So, even though in today's churches you may see someone with the title of apostle, there is really no reason for it. Even if they are looking at it in the sense of the definition-messenger/one sent forth, or in the understanding of being a church planter, there is really no valid reason to be given that title.
Although being someone who can establish a new church plant is a gift. In order to do this I need to be a visionary and see how this new church can be built from scratch. They come in and pick a leadership team. They may spearhead the purchase of land and building materials.
They may be able to develop plans for how the church should look. And many times they are the minister until the new church becomes established. That's how Cornerstone started. A man named Tim Guerino planted the church with Mr. Ahn and eventually John came down and replaced Tim.
Paul was a church planter. He went around establishing local congregations. Paul could also be thought of as a missionary and evangelist as well as a planter. Church planters today may also be gifted in being a missionary and evangelist as well. But Paul was a true apostle.
So, perhaps a church planter today may be given the title of an apostle but I think it can easily be a trap; it helps me to feel more prestigious, important or holy. There may be pride at work in taking on such a title because I may be putting myself on the level of the original apostles; which is dangerous.
W.L. Hasyden wrote, " The 13 apostles chosen, ordained and endowed by the newly crowned Messiah faithfully and fully executed their commission. When they entered into everlasting rest, the church was established, with all needful ministries to edify, extend and perpetuate it throughout all coming centuries.
Then the extraordinary, which was necessary to found a new institution, was succeeded by the ordinary, which is sufficient to teach, regulate and govern the subjects of Christ’s kingdom according to the laws that went forth from Jerusalem. The revelation of God was completed. The word of faith is henceforth nigh every believer, even in his mouth and in his heart.
The apostolic office ceased, and evangelists and pastors became the permanent teachers and superintendents of the church." So it seems clear to me that the original apostles were all that was needed. Now we build on the foundation that was laid by Christ and them.
2) Evangelism.
From Easton's Bible Dictionary, "a publisher of glad tidings; a missionary preacher of the gospel".
We should all evangelize in the sense of sharing the gospel with others, but there are those who have the gift of evangelism. They're able to passionately share the gospel of Christ with people; often complete strangers. They can just strike up a conversation with people and get around to asking them about Jesus.
Some evangelists are more comfortable doing this one-on-one or in small groups and then there are others, like the late Billy Graham, who primarily evangelized to large groups of people. Someone in the bible who had this gift was Philip. Acts 21:8, "Leaving the next day, we reached Caesarea and stayed at the house of Philip the evangelist, one of the Seven."
"One of the Seven". Philip was one of the original seven Deacons of the church. There were a number of widows who were being neglected so the Apostles designated seven men who could take care of the needs of the people while the Apostles gave their attention to prayer and the ministry of the word, as Acts 6:1-7 states.
After Stephen was martyred a great persecution broke out in the church and everyone except the apostles were scattered. After that happened we see Philip doing his thing. Acts 8:4-13, "Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Christ there.
When the crowds heard Philip and saw the miraculous signs he did, they all paid close attention to what he said. With shrieks, evil spirits came out of many, and many paralytics and cripples were healed. So there was great joy in that city.
Now for some time a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great, and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, “This man is the divine power known as the Great Power.” They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his magic.
But when they believed Philip as he preached the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw."
So Philip went from being a Deacon to being an evangelist. Based on what we see from Philip's case, an evangelist didn't have the authority of an apostle, nor the gift of prophecy, nor the responsibility of pastoral supervision over a portion of the flock. They were traveling preachers, having it as their special function to carry the gospel to places where it was previously unknown.
In Philip's case, he was an evangelist who also performed miracles. But this doesn't mean that everyone who has the gift of evangelism can also perform miracles. This was more of a necessity then as the gospel was new and being preached to a people who were enemies of Jews.
But we see that Philip was persuasive with his words. It says they believed Philip as he preached the good news. Yes, the miracles no doubt helped them to believe but it was also the message of salvation and the way he presented it that compelled people and won them over. An evangelist is able to adequately explain the message of the gospel as well as defend against arguments against it.
After this, Philip encountered the Ethiopian eunuch. Acts 8:26-40, "Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Go south to the road—the desert road—that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians. This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the book of Isaiah the prophet.
The Spirit told Philip, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.” Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. “Do you understand what you are reading?” Philip asked. “How can I,” he said, “unless someone explains it to me?” So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
The eunuch was reading this passage of Scripture: “He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before the shearer is silent, so he did not open his mouth. In his humiliation he was deprived of justice. Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was taken from the earth.” The eunuch asked Philip, “Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?” Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.
As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water. Why shouldn’t I be baptized?” And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him. When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing. Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and traveled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea."
We first see Philip listening to God-first through the angel and then through the Holy Spirit who told him to go and stand by the chariot. Those who have the gift of evangelism typically don't hesitate when the Spirit says to talk with someone about Jesus.
Then, as he hears the Ethiopian reading, Philip starts with a clarifying question. "Do you understand the scriptures?" When we're sharing the gospel with someone, it's always good to see what their understanding of the bible is. What kind of attitude do they have toward the bible? What do they think of God/Jesus? What is their opinion of Christians?
If you just state that you're a Christian and their understanding is that a Christian is judgmental and critical of others then you have now been put in that category and therefore have already turned them off to anything you have to say from that point. However, if when asked, 'are you a Christian' and you answer with, 'what is your idea of a Christian', then you will be able to gauge what to say based on their response.
So Philip explains from the passage in Isaiah about Jesus. It's good for us to have some knowledge of OT prophecy concerning the coming of and sacrifice of Jesus to help support the gospel to others. And obviously the Ethiopian is convinced by Philip's evangelistic efforts because he brings the chariot to a stop as soon as he sees some water so he can become baptized into Christ. And Philip continued to share the gospel everywhere he went.
Another person who is mentioned as an evangelist is Timothy. 2nd Tim. 4:5, "But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry."
"Do the work of an evangelist". Here's a case where one of Timothy's jobs was to evangelize. This doesn't mean it was his primary gift or function, but simply one of them. "Discharge [fulfill] all the duties of your ministry". Timothy had other ministerial duties. In fact when we look at the beginning of the chapter read verses, we see what some of them were.
2nd Tim. 4:1-2, "In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction."
It seems that Timothy's primary function was as a preacher and minister. Evangelists could preach as well but as an evangelist is mainly focused on the gospel message, a preacher of the word would pertain to all of scripture. There are those who are evangelists first and foremost and then there are those who do the work of an evangelist but also work in other capacities, perhaps equally so.
An evangelist has the ability to be a motivational factor in leading others to Christ. They are motivated to share their faith. They have a burning desire to bring people to Christ and help the church to grow. They have a way of inspiring those around them to be more proactive about sharing their faith.
They may have a propensity to study apologetics so they can better defend the faith and be able to answer skeptical questions. They want to know why the bible is true and incorporate that knowledge into their evangelism to be able to win more people to Christ.
Evangelists have deep sorrow over the fact that people are going to hell and that compels them to be bold about their faith. In 2nd Cor. 5:14 Paul said that Christ's love compelled them (Paul and Timothy [1:1]). They were compelled to share the gospel and be 'ministers of reconciliation'. Those with the gift of evangelism are compelled to share the gospel with anyone who will listen.
We might not have the gift of evangelism but are we compelled to share the gospel?
An old man was walking down the beach at dawn one morning and he spotted a young man ahead of him picking up starfish and flinging them into the sea. Catching up to him he asked what he was doing.
"If the stranded starfish are left here the morning sun will kill them." "But the beach goes on for miles and there are probably a million of those things. How can your effort make much of a difference?"
The young man looked at the starfish in his hand and looked at the old man and said, "it makes a difference to this one." Then he threw it back into the safety of the waves.
There are many lost people in the world. But we don't have to worry about saving them all; just one at a time. You can make a difference for the kingdom.
