Me? Called? What?

 Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ. (Ephesians 4:11-13)

If you have been in church circles for any length of time, you have probably heard the term 'the five-fold ministry' of the church at least once or twice. Christ gave particular instructions as to how his body of believers would operate. The purpose of the five-fold ministry is really quite simple - to equip his people to do his work and build up the believers into a unified body of faith-filled, fully equipped disciples.

The apostles are sent out to establish new churches - helping plant new churches wherever they are called. The prophets are listening to God, foretelling or forthtelling whatever truth he reveals - helping to strengthen all believers as they seek to follow Christ. The evangelists take the good news and share it in a manner that those who have not believed in Christ yet may come into that knowledge. The pastors are key to shepherding God's people week after week - not so they can warm pews, but so they can grow in Christ and develop in their own ministry calling.

The teacher has the responsibility to help believers mature. They focus on seeing one's faith grow, developing a solid foundation upon which the believer may stand firm and grow in obedience to Christ. You might say the teacher has a mindset of seeing others develop a passion for Christ and a desire to be obedient to all he asks. Regardless of the 'ministry office', the purpose of the five-fold ministry has always been to EQUIP believers to DO CHRIST'S WORK. 

We might think we can be Christians without engaging in his work of discipling others, but truth be told, we are ALL CALLED and are ALL BEING EQUIPPED. No one is exempt from doing their part. All are called to obedience. All are called to unity. All are called to share in this work. Will you fulfill your calling? Just askin...