Christ Jesus chose some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, some to be pastors and some to be teachers. The Holy Spirit empowered these individuals to share the gospel with people to enable them to experience a spiritual rebirth and to use the gifts received from God to build and strengthen God’s family, the Church. [Reflection is based on the Bible Reference – Ephesians 4:12]
Application: Two thousand years later, after the foundation of the church, does this model still exist? Following is an excerpt from “BIBLEref”: “In many modern churches, one pastor is expected to provide all or most of the ministry work for those in the congregation. When this takes place, others do not use their spiritual gifts. When the people do not serve, the congregation's growth stagnates. Instead of allowing this to happen, church leaders are called on to focus on training others to serve. In this way, every believer is growing in maturity and making disciples of others.” This article may be viewed at: What does Ephesians 4:12 mean? (bibleref.com)