Ministry Gifts

Ephesians 4:11-13 (NKJV) 11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers,12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;

Each Christian has a spiritual gift, or "manifestation of the Spirit." The gifts differ, but have these common elements:

1) Each is a manifestation of the Holy Spirit's presence.
2) Each is "for the common good," that is, each is intended to build up the body of Christ.
3) Each is given "as God determines."

The ministry gifts serve to reveal the plan of God. They are characteristic of a full-time office or calling, rather than a gift that can function in and through any believer.

Apostle

Apostle literally means "one sent forth". A true apostle is a minister sent by God to accomplish a specific work. Apostles have the highest level of spiritual authority compared to all other gifts. Apostles are sent forth to establish and build up groups of believers in all areas of the believer's lives. Apostles become Fathers to their ministries. The apostolic gift includes the ability to do whatever is necessary to accomplish what God has sent the apostle to do. They release blessings through their words, prayers, and the laying on of hands. Apostles also strongly minister in the other four ministry gifts of leadership; Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor, and Teacher.

Characteristics: The apostolic gift includes the ability to do whatever is necessary to accomplish what God has sent the apostle to do. They release blessings through their words, prayers, and the laying on of hands. Apostles also strongly minister in the other four ministry gifts of leadership; Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor, and Teacher. Apostles attract leaders in a supernatural way with strong gifts of pastoring, teaching, evangelism, and prophecy. They may remain as heads of ministries they have founded or they may move on leaving the leadership to others. The legacy of a prophet is his words but the legacy of an apostle is his works. They see the overall ministry and are burdened for the churches and the people under their care. They know supernaturally when a part of their work needs help or when a minister under them is suffering. Apostles have big hearts and out of their hearts flow spiritual blessings and anointings for those under them. Often apostles are looked up to beyond their local church and they may find themselves connected with others, ministering to a group, association, or denomination.

Cautions: The biggest caution is that most churches function without an apostle at the helm. This seems to be a rare gift and limited to only a few. When an apostle is found, they need to surround themselves with strong leaders who can balance their opinions and strengthen their ministries.

Apostles need to remember that most under their care do not have the same spiritual passion and their expectations of others can be very high. For those who see this gift primarily as church planting, they may have the potential of always looking abroad and not developing the ministry of their own local church before handing it off to others.

Scripture Example: Paul's Missionary Journeys

Prophet

The divine enablement to proclaim God's truth with power and clarity in a timely and culturally sensitive fashion for correction, repentance, or edification. There is New Testament evidence which indicates that future foretelling may accompany this gift, although some caution needs to be exercised.

Characteristics: The focus is on correcting behavior and applying biblical truth to culturally sensitive issues. These people identify and try to correct deception and sin. They often seem blunt and opinionated. Generally they can cause one to be uncomfortable. There also may be the element of a flash of insight into what God is doing in another person's life and thus a "foretelling" of that person's future. The results of this gift cause strengthening, correction, encouragement, and ultimately comfort. It helps if the person using this gift has built up a credible reputation.

Cautions: These people can lack compassion and may not keep love, unity, and the building up of others as their goal. This leads to discouragement and disharmony. A person with the gift of mercy helps to balance the prophet.

Scripture Example: Agabus

Acts 11:27-28 (HCSB) In those days some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28 Then one of them, named Agabus, stood up and predicted by the Spirit that there would be a severe famine throughout the Roman world. This took place during the time of Claudius.

Acts 21:10-11 (HCSB) 10 While we were staying there many days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. 11 He came to us, took Paul’s belt, tied his own feet and hands, and said, “This is what the Holy Spirit says: ‘In this way the Jews in Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into Gentile hands.’”

Evangelist

The divine enablement to effectively communicate the message of Christ to unbelievers who respond in faith and discipleship.

Characteristics: This term literal means "messenger of good news". They have a strong desire to communicate the message of salvation to a lost world. A person with this gift often looks and prays for opportunities to work Christ into the conversation. They are regularly "harvesting" lost souls for the kingdom. An evangelist isn't concerned with imparting deep spiritual truths as the teacher is, but they are motivated to help people understand and respond to the basic biblical messages. The Holy Spirit flows out of them in a way that convicts people of their sins. Excuses for inactivity and indecisiveness are exposed by the light of the Spirit. Evangelists are active individual's motivating others to act. They are exciting to be around, like quick results, big crowds, fast change and are constantly moving.

Cautions: The evangelist has the tendency to project his gift upon all other Christians and he can see witnessing as the means of measure for everyone's spirituality and godliness. Although we are all called upon to witness, the evangelist may see God call upon him more often and more dynamically. However, he may also lose sight of the other purposes of the church and see "soul saving" as the end of spiritual growth instead of the beginning of a life with Christ. Often he may lead people to Christ and then abandon them. Nowhere in Scripture does an evangelist lead a church. They are left off the list of leadership gifts in 1 Corinthians 12 because they need to be free to be mobile and somewhat independent, going where God tells them, when He tells them, and not tied down to ruling positions.

Scripture Example: Philip

Acts 8:26-29, 39-40 (HCSB) 26 An angel of the Lord spoke to Philip: “Get up and go south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.”
27 So he got up and went. There was an Ethiopian man, a eunuch and high official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of her entire treasury. He had come to worship in Jerusalem 28 and was sitting in his chariot on his way home, reading the prophet Isaiah aloud. 29 The Spirit told Philip, “Go and join that chariot.”, 39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him any longer. But he went on his way rejoicing. 40 Philip appeared in Azotus, and he was traveling and evangelizing all the towns until he came to Caesarea.

Pastor

The divine enablement to lead, care for, and nurture individuals or groups in the Body as they grow in their faith.

Characteristics: This is one who guides, protects, and nurture's God's sheep. They provide oversight and feel the responsibility for individuals in their sphere. They teach and help others grow by serving as role models of faith and patience through hard times and mistakes. Their purpose is to disciple others in their personal, emotional, and spiritual growth. They have a divine anointing that breaks bondages off people, bondages that cause them to be independent, isolated, and insecure. The Holy Spirit guided words that come out of the hearts and mouths of pastors make their listeners able to relax, come together, and feel secure in the Body of Christ. They are excellent at one on one development over long periods of time.

Cautions: They may have the potential of taking on too much responsibility for the development of others, not leaving the Holy Spirit as the agent of change. The fact that they are good at one on one may be a liability when the care of large groups and large ministries is what is really needed. They also may devote too much time to trying to "save" the black sheep at the expense of the others. The fact that we title modern day church leaders with the term "pastor'' only serves to hurt the church. Many people expect the kind of treatment a spiritually gifted pastor shows from most of their church leaders. Instead, most leaders are apostles, prophets, or teachers, NOT pastors.

Scripture Example: John chapters 1-3

Teacher

The divine enablement to understand, clearly explain, and apply the Word of God to the lives of listeners. The Teacher explains what the Prophet proclaims.

Characteristics: The teacher is a good communicator. This person has a thirst for knowledge and loves to learn. He is generally self-disciplined and usually prefers to teach groups, more than one on one. Gifted teachers do not just teach Bible knowledge and doctrine, but when they explain God's truth, people are set free of sin, natural limitations, depression, fear, anxiety, and the anointing breaks bonds off the listeners, freeing them from Satan's lies and the world's deceptions. A naturally gifted teacher may be able to explain to people why they sin and what the Bible has to say about the sin, but a teacher who is spiritually gifted releases the Holy Spirit's power through the gift to set the other person free.

Cautions: The teacher may struggle to keep things simple because he is too detailed, not wanting to miss anything. He can be too profound, theological, and even esoteric. This can result in a sense of superiority and the teacher becomes unteachable. He can also get frustrated when others don't get it and can't keep up his pace for knowledge and insight. Teachers are often good communicators and lousy listeners.

Scripture Example: Timothy and others

2 Timothy 2:1-2 (HCSB) 1 You, therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, commit to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.

Identify Your Gift

If you believe you have been given the divine enablement to serve in one of the ministry gift offices. Do this self-evaluation from Church Growth Institute (Click Here for the link to the “Free Spiritual Gifts Analysis);

Pastor/Teacher — One who is supernaturally equipped to shepherd and feed the flock of God with the result of their growth and maturity.• Do you deeply love the people of God?• Do you feel a yearning to model the principles of Scripture and mentor others so that they can follow Christ also?• Do you feel God's calling to shepherd His people, tenderly nurturing and nourishing them?

Evangelism — The supernatural capacity to present the gospel message with exceptional clarity and an overwhelming burden for those who don't know Christ.• Do you find yourself in situations where the topics of Christ and salvation come up?• Do you gravitate toward relationships with non-Christians?• When others hear you explain the gospel, do they respond by trusting Christ?• Do you have a passion for the lost?

Teaching — The supernatural ability to explain clearly and apply effectively the truth of the Word of God.• Do you love the Body of Christ and desire that others know more about Scripture and how to apply it?• Do you love studying the Word of God?• Do you have a passion for sharing the insights and principles you have learned from the Word?• Do you find it a challenge to make complicated truths simple and understandable?

Discovering and exercising your God-given spiritual gifts allows you to experience maximum fulfillment with minimum frustration in your Christian life and ministry.