Spiritual Formation Enabled By Spiritual Gifts
(Ephesians 4:11)
Now, at the heart of spiritual transformation into Christ-likeness
is Holy Spirit guided living, described by Paul as “attaining to the whole
measure of the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13b). In no way could this
“fullness” (Ephesians 4:9b) be achieved through human effort. It is God who
must “fill” his church in order that they may be “full”. It is the Holy Spirit
who does an “inside job” by “empowering a transformed people to live out “God
honoring lives within the context of community and healthy relationships.”[1] Christ’ desire is to see his people become agents of change
in the earth. In verses 11-12 Paul fleshes out the offices or functions through
which Christ’s mission would be accomplished:
“He Himself gave some to be
apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers” (Eph. 4:11).
These gifts/functions/office (five main functions) were given to the
entire church for the efficacy of Christ’s kingdom government. If anything is to be accomplished in Christ’s church, it
will be through divine enablement. That said, Paul further explains: “And God
has appointed these in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third
teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations,
varieties of tongues” (1 Corinthians 12:28). This was the work of God to spiritually
empower men and women within and for the enabling of these gifts within his
church. The first three gifts or offices that Paul numerated are sometimes
called “higher offices” (apostles, prophets and evangelists). An apostle “was
chosen and commissioned by Christ and were endowed through a special
impartation of the Holy Spirit for the work of establishing the church.”[2]
They played an authoritative role. “While they lived, they could provide
teaching in person, but also committed their inspired revelation to writing,
bringing into existence the New Testament.”[3]
Prophets “spoke the words and thoughts of God by
inspiration, no matter what the content of the message, whether the content
related to the past, present or future. The spoke to edify, to exhort and to
comfort” (Acts 15:32; 1 Corinthians 14:3). According to MacArthur (141), the apostle and
prophets were assigned three main responsibilities:
1. To lay the foundations of the
church (Ephesians 2:20)
2. To receive and declare the
revelation of God’s Word (Acts 11:28;21:10-11; Ephesians 3:5)
3. To give confirmation of that
Word through “signs, wonders and miracles”
(2 Corinthians 2:12; Acts
8:6-7; Hebrews 2:3-4).
In the 21st
century church, there has been an explosion of titles, especially that of
apostles and prophets. This author is of the opinion, as are many scholars that
“when the New Testament was completed, the office of apostle ceased.”[4]
One of the qualification of an apostle was that he be a witness of Jesus Christ
(Acts 1:22, Mark 3:3). Very few can make this claim. The function of the
apostles and prophets was to lay the foundation for the church (Ephesians
2:20).
The
Evangelists continue to play a key role in the formation of spiritual
communities. They are “heralds of Christ’s message,” some itinerant and others
working locally within the church and associated communities. [5]
We can find such examples in Phillip (Acts 21:8, 8:5-40), Luke (Acts 16:16,
20:16), Titus (Titus 3:12) and Timothy (Acts 20:17-38). Reese states that the
office of evangelist is permanent in the church as commissions are given from
churches “and not directly from Christ as did the apostles.”[6]
Perhaps a better description
of this role is “those whom God has especially equipped to travel from place to
place with the good news of peace through Christ.”[7] It is interesting to note
that in the New Testament, evangelists were “church planters much like the
apostles, who taught new believers the Word, built them up, and moved on to new
territory.”[8]
The office
of pastor-teacher is the most prominent role in the 21st century
church. The office of pastor is likened to that of a shepherd. They are to
“feed the flock, which is the church, to protect it from ravenous human wolves
attempting to destroy it, visit the sick and exercise sympathetic care for
those entrusted to their oversight” (John 21:15-17; 1 Peter 2:25).[9]
The titles of bishop, pastor and elders are often used
interchangeably and their function is described by the apostle Peter: “The
elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the
sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed:
Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by
compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; nor as being lords over those entrusted to
you, but being examples to the flock” (1 Peter 5:1-3). The teacher has a
special calling for this task and plays a key role in the edification of the
body. Not all pastors are teachers, although it would be of great benefit for
the one providing oversight to be skilled in the task of giving instructions
within the spiritual community.
In the Old
Testament spiritual community “God transformed the descendants of Abraham into
a covenant community to be characterized first and foremost by moral
righteousness.
The community was to center
around the presence of the holy God, expressing moral holiness in response to
God’s divine presence.”[10]
In the New Testament church God’s divine
plan would be achieved through appointed men and women working together to
achieve koinonia.
The New Testament lists some
twenty plus gifts given by Christ to his church, but it is the responsibility
of the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teacher to “equip the
saints” (Ephesians 4:12).
[1]. Darrell, L. Bock, “New Testament Community And Spiritual Transformation,” in Foundations
of Spiritual Formation, ed. Paul Pettit, (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel
Publications, 2008), 108.
[2]. Gareth Reese, New Testament Epistles, 149.
[5]. Gareth Reese, New Testament Epistles, 150.
[6]. Ibid., 151.
[7]. Benjamin L. Merkle, Ephesians, 128.
[8]. MacArthur, Ephesians, 143.
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