But as for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. 2 Timothy 4:5
I’ve read this verse MANY times but this time I considered something I hadn’t before, when Paul asks Timothy to “do the work of an evangelist”. What is the work of an evangelist specifically? And then does each gift from Jesus for the Body of Christ each have a different focus and work in equipping the Body of Christ? We then have to look at Ephesians 4:11-12.
And He gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ,
Of course, this will not mean much to those who have been taught that these ‘gifts’ no longer exist in the modern-day church but were just for the first century church. Or they will dismiss several of the gifts and explain through scriptural gymnastics and personal interpretation or academic scholarly teaching that it can’t be what exactly the verse states because of ‘time’ or history. They would like to erase the ‘work’ of the gifts of the apostle and prophet. Most have learned to tolerate the work of the evangelist. The ‘Pastor’ has become the sole source of all 5 of the gifts to the Body of Christ. But I obviously don’t agree with that interpretation. Why?
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Hebrews 13:8
And Jesus is STILL giving gifts to His ekklesia (Church) Body. Not just one but all five. Modern American Christianity has basically eliminated teaching about the first two gifts, which has created a vacuum and allowed the enemy to come in and counterfeit and malign those titles and positions with great abuse, making it very difficult to discern what real ones look like or act like and what actually they are called to do. What their actual work is – has been twisted by the enemy so that many have become deceived by those taking the title for their own greedy financial gain. We’ve been done a disservice by those saying these gifts no longer exist.
From my perspective I see the specific ‘work’ of these gifts needed greatly in each gathering of the Body of Christ. And these gifts are more prevalent than we think. This is how I see each gift working out their gifting.
The apostle is one to speak to the greater community, top civil leaders, and top business leaders in each community. These leaders are naturally drawn to the gift of the apostle. The apostle speaks to the clarity of the Kingdom of God and who Jesus Christ actually is. The apostle is immediately brought in by these leaders to discuss things – because of the Lord’s calling on them. The apostle is able to speak to kings, presidents, mayors, and the top leader of any group they are in front of.
The prophet is the one to speak about the heart of God and the Holy Spirit. The prophet understands the spiritual realm and is a type of translator explaining the significance of the spiritual realm. They often are God’s mouthpiece and preachers declaring God’s heart to a community or Body. They are best suited to equip the Body of Christ to know and understand the voice and work of the Holy Spirit. They understand prayer and teach others how to approach God in prayer. The prophet is about equipping others in the knowledge and intimate relationship with the Holy Spirit.
The evangelist’s work is outreach. They are to equip the Body to learn to share the gospel. This usually means going with the evangelist into all the highways and bi-ways of the community and preach and teach the gospel. People learn by watching this gift in action as they encounter every form of human interaction. Evangelist’s make wonderful mentors for disciples.
The pastor / shepherd is the one who cares for the people with specific heart understanding of EACH person in their care. They know the idiosyncrasies of each member and is able to help them grow in their strengths the Lord has gifted them with. The shepherd role is really about intimate care for each individual member. The real pastor / shepherd’s love is obvious to anyone under their care.
The teacher is one who makes things understandable. Jesus used simple parables to teach others. Teachers use examples that can help each stage of development for each individual growing them into maturity of understanding. Teachers LOVE to receive and ask questions. They thrive in environments that allow vigorous dialogue and conversation. The lowest learning type of setting for the teacher is the ‘lecture’ hall. The highest learning type for the teacher is in the small group setting or one on one.
Now ALL of these gifts MUST rely on the Holy Spirit to carry out their tasks and work to have any real eternal spiritual impact in the lives of the Body of Christ. All of us are called to be ambassadors of Christ while we are living on this earth. The great commission is for the entire Body of Christ (Matthew 28:16–20) not just these five gifts mentioned here. Currently we seem to all have knee-jerk reactions to ANY of the titles of these gifts mentioned in Ephesians 4:11-12 save probably the teacher role. I’m ALL for NOT using any of these ‘titles’ in the community, but focusing on what their ‘work’ should be in equipping the local Body of Christ. These gifts naturally slide into doing these works because that’s what Jesus has made them to do, but many have suppressed their gifting because of many factors. Spiritual warfare. Religious persecution. Betrayal. Mockery. And some of the worst offenders use the title “Christian” to back up their despicable behaviors. Many so called “American Christian Leaders” have greatly dismissed the very ones Jesus has sent to them to help them. Do you recognize some of those around you doing the ‘work’ of some of these roles? Can you encourage them by telling them you ‘recognize’ them?