Ephesians 4: 1-16 v 11 “Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the Church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. “
Paul begs for us to lead a life worthy of our calling, for we have been called by God. Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with one another, united in Spirit, together in peace. He has given each one of us a special gift, through the generosity of Christ. Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the Church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. To equip God’s people to do His work, to build up the church, to be united in one body, mature in the Lord. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us. Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing more like Christ who is he head, making the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy, growing and full of love.
My hope when you read this is that you are part of a network that does just that. Encourages your gifts from God, to help others around you to do their work, united in one body, growing perfectly fit together to be healthy and full of love.
Apostles = the God-given ability to minister trans-culturally or cross-culturally in pioneer evangelism
Prophets = the God given ability to correctly communicate the revelation of God.
Evangelists = the God-given ability to effectively communicate the good news of the gospel
Pastors = the God-given ability to shepherd the people of God to maturity and Christlikeness.
Teachers = the God-given ability to clearly explain and effectively apply the truth of God’s word.
These gifts are given by God. As we go about our daily lives, we need support from others to follow Gods calling. Those who will equip us and build us up, in peace, in love and unity. The future is always in God’s hands so make sure you are connected to the gifts that God gives to the church. To be part of trans cultural and cross cultural evangelism, to hear the revelations of God, to effectively communicate the good news, to grow in maturity, and explain about the truth of God’s word to be full of love.
Prayer: Heavenly Father who gave us Jesus so that we could be closer to understanding who you are, and gave others around us the gifts of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers open our hearts to receive the message of love in all we do today. Amen.
CrossWalk 