Ephesians 4:4-6 (NKJV) says 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you[a] all. – Gifts and talents are given in the body of Christ for the developing, maturing, and the equipping of the saints. God thinks of the body of Christ when he gives out offices and functions in the church.
Evangelist
This is a person described as a bringer of good tidings. An Evangelist is a preacher of the gospel.
Phillip was an Evangelist. Acts 21:8 (NKJV) says 8 On the next day we who were Paul’s companions[a] departed and came to Caesarea, and entered the house of Philip the Evangelist, who was one of the seven, and stayed with him. – The bible refers to Phillip as an Evangelist.
Timothy 4:5 (NKJV) says 5 But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an Evangelist, fulfill your ministry. – Here Paul tells Timothy to do the work of Evangelist.
In both scriptures, mentioned above, we see both the office and the function of an Evangelist. As an Evangelist, you are supposed to go around telling people what God has done in your life.
As Evangelist, God places us in certain places so that we can tell people about God.
As an Evangelist, you are supposed to spread the word, but you have to be careful not to be too salty. This will make you ineffective. Ex – If you are at a ballgame or at the mall, you can’t be running around quoting scriptures to people that are trying to watch the game. Sometimes you are more effective by just telling your testimony as the opportunity arises or simply being that light that shines in a dark place.
The Office of Evangelist
There are some people called Evangelist that on a full-time basis, go from city to city, church to church, conference to conference, and tent to tent evangelizing. They do this both locally and
Pastors can be Evangelist, but not all Evangelists can’t be Pastors. For example, Bishop Walker is an Evangelist and a Pastor. He is an Evangelist in that he travels around the world spreading the word, however, he realizes that he is a Pastor first. We tell Pastor’s all the time that you can’t run around the country all the time and leave your church back home to die. Even though Bishop travels around the world spreading the word, he is back at his church on Sunday’s and Wednesday’s to work in his first priority which is his church.
Pastor
Jeremiah 3:15 (NKJV) says 15 And I will give you shepherds according to My heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.- God factors in what you need when he assigns you a Pastor.
A Pastor is assigned to your destiny. He is a Shepard. Like the sheep, we depend on the shepherd to guide us to where we need to go.
Acts 20:28-30 (NKJV) says 28 Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God[a] which He purchased with His own blood. 29 For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. 30 Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves. – God wants you to understand your Pastor. Your Pastor protects you from wavering wolves by empowering you and teaching the word of God. He also protects you from other members that might try to pull you away.
When you find a church you supposed to be in, you will recognize the Pastor’s voice as being one that should be significant in your life.
What caused you to join your church? (Write it down in one word or perhaps a sentence). In examining your answer, did it have something in that sentence that had something to do with the word of God? What should be critical in your list concerning finding and joining a church should be something along the lines of getting fed or understanding the word of God. It’s nice that the music is good or the singing is good, but what is critical is receiving the word of God.
Taking the previous sentence into consideration: People say they joined a church because of the word of God, yet they will leave because someone in the church upset them. Makes you wonder how important the word really was to them.
Ex- If you eat at the Waffle House, you put up with a lot. You may even wipe off our own table, because we like the waffles so much. This same principle applies to the church. When you want this word, you’re not going to let anyone else run you away from it!
1 Peter 5:2-4 (NKJV) says 2 Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly,[a] not for dishonest gain but eagerly; 3 nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; 4 and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away. – God tells the Pastors not to lead by an iron fist. A Pastor should leac in love.
Pastors lead by:
Nourishing – They provide a balanced diet spiritually. That means you get the messages you don’t like as well as those you do like. It’s good to hear a prosperity message, but it is healthy to hear one that scolds you for not doing what you are supposed to do.
Protects – They protect a flock from false doctrine and erroneous teaching
Seeking – Wandering sheep must be sought and found. A Pastor will check on you when you are a no show for a period of time.
Sacrificing – A Pastor will sacrifice themselves for their sheep.
Knowing – A Pastor knows his sheep.
Praying – A Pastor covers his sheep in prayer. God puts what you are going through on your Pastor. This then inspires sermons from the pulpit that are relevant to your situation.
Managing – Managerial skills are necessary. A Pastor must be able to manage the church. It takes good management to bring all the ministries together in order for the church to function.
Healing- Life’s wounds are inflicted in many ways. A Pastor knows when his members are hurting.
Loving – A Pastor needs to try and maintain good relationships. You can’t be a Pastor and not love your people.
Leads – A Pastor sets the pace. You don’t want a Pastor that don’t have a backbone. If you are Pastoring and no one is following you, then you might to reevaluate what you are doing.
Uniting – A Pastor has the ability to bring people together.
The Role of a Bishop
Some people ask why you call your Pastor, Bishop? Well, why then one could also say, why do you call your Pastor reverend which was never in the bible as a title? We said this to say, there has been controversy over the title Bishop. Hopefully we can clear this controversy up within the next points.
Bishop comes from the Greek word Episkopos ( ?p?s??p?? ) meaning overseer. 1 Timothy 3:1-7 (NKJV) 3 This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a bishop,[a] he desires a good work. 2 A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach; 3 not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money,[b] but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous; 4 one who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence 5 (for if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God?); 6 not a novice, lest being puffed up with pride he fall into the same condemnation as the devil. 7 Moreover he must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil. – Things that we bring out of this is you have to have a good reputation, be sober, hospitable, able to teach and etc… You can’t be a rookie in ministry and then the next day call yourself a Bishop. It also says a Bishop rules his house. That means his house is in order and his kids are in order. How can you run a church, if you can’t run your house?
A Bishop is really a Pastor’s, Pastor. He is the person your Pastor would sit under and go to as a shepherd.
You must be consecrated by a group of people. In other words, you can’t just say that you are a Bishop. There should be a group of people that believe the same about you that will consecrate you.
A Pastor ought to:
Give you exposure – A Pastor ought to expose you to the word and to greatness that you’ve never seen before. This includes showing you vision.
Empowers you – A Pastor ought to empower you, but not enable you. He empowers you to empower yourself. You take what you are taught at church and then you apply it to your situation. If your Pastor is unable to pray over your house, you are empowered to know that you can pray over your house yourself.
Encourages you – Sunday is when we got our game face on, but the Monday through Saturday is the part of the week that kills us. You need a word to help you make sense of hopeless situations.
Teaches – Teachers play a powerful role in your spiritual growth. They help us maintain sound doctrine.
i. Titus 2:7-8 (NKJV) says 7 in all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works; in doctrine showing integrity, reverence, incorruptibility,[a] 8 sound speech that cannot be condemned, that one who is an opponent may be ashamed, having nothing evil to say of you.[b] – When you are a good teacher, people might not like you, but they can’t deny that you are bringing forth the word. – Every Pastor has to be teacher, but every teacher doesn’t have to be a Pastor. e.
2 Timothy 2:15 (NKJV) says 15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.- Rightly divide the word of truth is the key phrase here. Your Pastor wants you to know something that you didn’t know when you came to the service. After you hear the word, you must study it, because a test is coming! We all need to develop greater study habits.
