FIRST THOUGHT
It took a variety of leaders to conduct both the political and religious business in Ephesus. People were accustomed to leaders. Leaders provided guidance for the people. Without the people, the leaders would have been ineffective in their duties and useless in their purpose. The same was true for the church when it came to the need for leadership. In this passage, Paul describes some of the leaders called and gifted by God for the church. He emphasized the purpose of their calling.
Jesus is the ultimate leader of the church, but He has gifted others to provide leadership within the church here on earth, under His direction. These human leaders are not gifted to do all the work of the church. Rather, they are gifted to organize, administrate and equip the members the church so that all the members might do the work of the church together.
EQUIPPER GIVEN
Ephesians 4:11 (ESV)
11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers,
As Paul entered the second half of his letter to the Ephesians, he began to show how theology impacted daily life. He had talked about unity and diversity in the body of Christ (Eph. 4:1-6). He had emphasized that people were gifted with various gifts, but they served the same Lord (Eph. 4:7-10). With so many gifted people in the body of Christ, the church needed leaders to coordinate and encourage those gifted people in their growth into spiritual maturity. In Eph 4:11 Paul listed gifts of those who were called to build up the church
Apostles are “sent ones.” In the technical sense, an apostle fits a very strict definition: one of twelve chosen by Christ and an eyewitness of the resurrection (Mark 3:13; Acts 1:22–24). Matthias was chosen later to replace Judas. Paul also fits this category, though he did not meet Christ personally until after Christ’s resurrection and ascension into heaven. Apostle is used in a more general sense of other men in the early church: Barnabas (Acts 14:4), Silas and Timothy (1 Thess. 2:6), and a few other outstanding leaders (Rom. 16:7; 2 Cor. 8:23; Phil 2:25). These apostles were called “representatives” (literally, “messengers”) of the churches (2 Cor. 8:23), whereas the thirteen were apostles of Jesus Christ (Gal. 1:1; 1 Pet. 1:1). Apostles in both groups were authenticated by “signs and wonders and miracles” (2 Cor. 12:12), but neither group was self-perpetuating. Apostle is not used in the Book of Acts after Acts 16:4. As the apostles died out, it appears that the gift of apostle disappeared.
Prophets were also specially gifted people. They differ from those who had the gift of prophecy in 1 Corinthians 12:10. Their ministry went far beyond the ministry described in that passage. They sometimes spoke revelation from God (Acts 11:21–29) and sometimes simply expounded revelation which had been already given. In Ephesians 2:20, we read about the church “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.”
Evangelists, technically, are those who proclaim the good news, which is the meaning of “evangelize.” In the New Testament, when the message of the gospel was unknown outside of Jerusalem, these evangelists were traveling missionaries and church planters. They led people to Christ and then taught the new believers the Word, built them up, and moved on to a new territory. They would have many things in common with missionaries today.
Pastor-teachers most likely refers to one person since the Greek sentence here uses a different word for and between these words than the word used before the other offices. That is strong evidence to suggest that this is one and the same person. The pastor-teacher ministered as shepherd of the local congregation, teaching God’s Word and leading the church’s ministry. Congregations in a city such as Ephesus had several pastors
TO MOVE BELIEVERS FORWARD
Ephesians 4:12–14 (ESV)
12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.
Paul goes on to tell the Ephesians that it was not the job of these men to do all the work of the church. Unfortunately that is the thinking of many in the church today. “That is what we pay the pastor for” The role of these men were to equip the church to do the work that the church has been called to do.
The task these gifted men is to prepare God’s people for works of service. When believers are equipped and people accept the adventure of ministering to others, then the whole body is built up, matured, strengthened, and flourishes.
Paul goes on in Eph. 4:13 to describe what it means to build up the body of Christ. First, the body of Christ should desire that everyone would “reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of God’s Son.” The equippers want to see the church united so that they cannot be divided by false doctrines.
Secondly, building up the body of Christ involves growing into maturity. The equippers desire to see the church move out of infancy and into spiritually full-grown adults. The church should be characterized by maturity rather than childish behavior, and its leaders should equip the members of the church to move from infancy to maturity in their faith.
Thirdly, to build up the church means to aim for a stature measured by Christ’s fullness. The measuring stick for any church is not some other church or some objective standard outside of Christ. The measure of maturity in the church is how much it looks like Christ.
In Eph. 4:14 Paul writes the reason for equippers. “… we are no longer to be children, bossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming” The more mature you are in Christ the less likely you are to be deceived by false teachers. That is why church leaders must prepare the church to stand again false teaching.
One could say that the task of an equipper is to work themselves out of a job as they pass along what God has given them so that all of the other members can function as vital components of a healthy, growing body.
AS A BODY
Ephesians 4:15–16 (ESV)
15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.
Maturity involves teaching the truth in love. False teachers showed no love or care for the members; they simply wanted to get their own way. Mature believers search for the truth as a united body, loving and caring for the needs of each member. Such loving, caring search for truth allows them to grow as members of the body whose head is Christ, for Christ is the truth.
Evangelism is most effective when the truth is proclaimed in love. This can be accomplished only by the spiritually mature believer who is thoroughly equipped in sound doctrine. Without maturity, the truth can be cold and love little more than sentimentality.
Scripture often uses the human body to illustrate the church. The head allows each part of the body to mature and grow, not concentrating on special knowledge and growth for a favored few. Each of the parts of the body is needed to hold the whole body together in unity. The body is truly a maturing, loving body only as each part is encouraged to grow and do its part of the work.
As our head, Jesus is concerned with the total body, not just the more noticeable parts. Since there are no insignificant functions in the body, leaders and members focus on a full-body workout. The entire body benefits when every cell is properly nourished and exercised to its full capacity.
SUMMARIZE & CHALLENGE
What’s the take-away from this lesson for church leaders and members?
- Church leaders shouldn’t do all the work of the church; they equip members to do so.
- Church members should appreciate and learn from their leaders, contributing to the health of the entire church body by doing the work of ministry.
- When we all contribute in the unique ways God has gifted us, we all walk forward to maturity in Christ and together display Jesus to the world.
PERSONAL CHALLENGE
In what areas do you need to move forward spiritually? Don’t settle where you are, but use the gifts Christ has given you to help you and others walk forward into new dimensions of faith and service.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
- Max Anders, Galatians-Colossians, vol. 8, Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999)
- Jon Courson, Jon Courson’s Application Commentary (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2003)
- David O. Dykes, General Editor, Explore the Bible: Leaders Guide, Fall 2019 (Nashville, TN: LifeWay,Christian Resources, 2019)
- David O. Dykes, General Editor, Explore the Bible: QuickSource, Fall 2019 (Nashville, TN: LifeWay,Christian Resources, 2019)
- Grant R. Osborne, Ephesians: Verse by Verse, Osborne New Testament Commentaries (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2017), 135.
- John MacArthur Jr., ed., The MacArthur Study Bible, electronic ed. (Nashville, TN: Word Pub., 1997)
- J. Vernon McGee, Thru the Bible Commentary: The Epistles (Ephesians), electronic ed., vol. 47 (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1991)
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