Exploring Ephesians: Gifts (4:11-12)

This is a continuation of my Exploring Ephesians series. See the first one for an overview of the goal of the series and an index of the other entries.

So-called "Christianese" is the specific language that only occurs in the Bible or at church, and often involves words that have totally different (or no) meaning in the broader culture (for example: gospel, evangelize, sin, atonement, trinity, repentance). Like any jargon, it has its strengths in distilling a complex and nuanced idea into a single word or phrase that can carry a lot of weight with only a little speaking. But it also has its drawbacks, namely in confusing new or non-believers, or wallpapering over what is actually a fuller truth that goes beyond the walls of "church stuff".

Why am I mentioning this while exploring a couple verses in my study of Ephesians? Let's look at verses 4:11-12 for an example of a list of gifts that Christ gave the whole body of the church, and the purpose for those gifts:

And he himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, to build up the body of Christ,

Someone might read this list whose life and skills entirely revolve around raising their children, or is working one or two or three jobs just to pay the bills, or is studying to become a nurse or an astrophysicist, or is totally ungifted in public speaking, or simply has zero aspiration for "church ministry", and think: "none of these are me."

Maybe we think that way because that's how we use Christianese words like "evangelist" and "pastor" in church, and perhaps there's an element of truth to that understanding. Some would argue this list of gifts is narrowed by its purpose "to equip the saints" and "to build up the body", so it only refers to leaders in the church who are equipping and building up the members of the church. Thus these aren't the gifts of the general congregation (and you can find different lists of gifts elsewhere in the New Testament).

However, the letter to the Ephesians goes on to describe what this equipping and building up will look like among the general church body. See verses 15-16:

But speaking the truth in love, let us grow in every way into him who is the head ​— ​Christ. From him the whole body, fitted and knit together by every supporting ligament, promotes the growth of the body for building itself up in love by the proper working of each individual part.

If all of the body is to "[speak] the truth in love." If every part is to be "fitted and knit together". And if the whole body promotes its own growth and builds itself up. Then it involves the whole body and is reflexive: the equipped saints and built-up body promote their own growth and build themselves up, so they're doing the very things for which these specific gifts were intended. The only "head" or center we are growing toward is Christ. There's not a sub-head that is the church leaders who have gifts no other church member has, who then carry along the rest of the body (notwithstanding that there are gifts the leaders must have in order to be called as leaders, and there is an orderliness in members of a church submitting to their leaders). But when each part (leaders and laity alike) are growing into Christ, then each part must be enacting at least some aspect of these gifts. So I think limiting these gifts only to leaders and not the general church body is greatly reducing the extent of Christ's gifts to His people.

This is where I suspect many are tripping over Christianese by stopping at formal church duties for these gifts. The writer of Ephesians didn't make up these words, even if we now through two millennia of tradition and translation have built a cultic meaning around them in English. These were everyday words from the common speech of the day that were repurposed for a church setting. And this list, while by no means exhaustive, was also not meant to preclude the vast majority of church-goers who are not on the payroll of the church nor named on the church website. But I suspect many readers think that.

Before we dig into each gift separately, let's first revisit another well-known passage, from the words of Christ in the last two verses of the Gospel of Matthew. Jesus' final command to His disciples before He left the earth is what is often called (again, in Christianese), the "Great Commission." This is just a fancy way of saying, "the important duty or activity" of followers of Christ:

“Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. (Matthew 28:19-20a CSB)

Now compare how Jesus' command maps onto the gifts of Jesus written to the Ephesians. I'll offer an even simpler name for each gifting to further reduce the tendency for Christianese, alongside the relevant snippet from a Greek lexicon definition (entirety linked on each word) if you want to dig in more.

apostles → sent ones

apostolos - "a delegate, messenger, one sent forth with orders"

This is the "Go, therefore" part. You are being sent. Many interpretations reserve the title "apostle" only for those original few who saw the resurrected Christ and then went out to tell others. If that's true, and we remove this one from the list of options for a modern reader, there are still four others to consider.

But I'd add for consideration, that anyone who after putting their faith in Christ and seeking to follow him, feels led by the Spirit to go somewhere specific -- that could be to your local community center, to the college campus, to areas in your town where homeless congregate, to travel or even move across town or across the country to be closer to your unsaved or struggling sibling or parent or friend, or to any place where people have needs (what we call in Christianese, "the mission field") -- then you probably have the gifting of apostle or sent one.

prophets → interpreters

prophētēs - "to speak forth, speak out; hence, properly, 'one who speaks forth' [...] therefore properly, equivalent to interpreter, Exodus 7:1, cf. 4:16; hence, an interpreter or spokesman for God; one through whom God speaks"

Christ didn't command us to only baptize in His name, or in the Father's name, but also in the name of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit grants insight and wisdom and the words to say that are necessary for the other gifts of evangelizing and pastoring and teaching. But the gift of prophesy is likely a tricky term for Evangelicals, especially non-Charismatics. That includes me; I wrestle with comprehending this gift.

There is some parallelism to this list of gifts that can help us. Apostle (sent one) and evangelist (good news sharer) are related in their outward (from the church) focus the way prophet (interpreter) and pastor/teacher are related in their inward focus (or as I've named these, caretaker/instructor--these two share an article in the Greek grammar, so while likely distinct gifts, teaching is a subset of or partially overlapped with pastoring). So where the gift of prophesy is less clear we can compare to the counsel and instruction aspects of the paralleled gifts for some insight. The prophet hears and interprets and speaks out the word of the Spirit the way the pastor/teacher studies and applies and instructs in the word of God in scripture.

One key aspect of prophesy in this definition and found in the other letters to the early Christian church is interpretation. I attend a bilingual church where the entire worship service and sermon are conveyed in two languages via an interpreter. Given these reflections, that is one form of the prophet gift.

More broadly, if you find yourself routinely listening to and observing your fellow Christians, and in certain moments you sense the leading: I'm supposed to say this to this person. And it's not just my own words, but in my careful contemplation of what I've seen and heard I sense the Spirit trying to teach me something specific; and which I'm not supposed to keep for myself, but I'm supposed to speak it also to this person. And when doing so you find concurrence in one or more other siblings in Christ. Then that is likely the gifting of prophet or interpreter.

evangelists → good news sharers

euangelistēs - "a bringer of good tidings, an evangelist"

In Evangelical church circles (and places, *ahem* America, where that name carries particular notoriety), this one is probably most well-known, if often for the wrong reasons (street corner "preachers", hateful judgment, etc.). But Christ's command for his followers to "make disciples" is where Evangelicals often first turn in summary of why sharing the good news of Jesus is so critical (and I agree). The Bible frequently emphasize that wherever you are and whatever you're doing, if you are one of God's people, then you are to be His ambassador or witness.

So if you have a knack for seeing all of life, the good and the bad and the mundane, as a pathway of God's abundant grace and mercy and forgiveness--in your life or in the lives of those you meet and share in each other's stories--and you feel capable of connecting in those stories to what is truly good news (not just the usual cliche "gospel tract" of sin, repentance, and forgiveness, but something that sounds actually good and not judgmental to your listener), then you may have the gifting of evangelist or good news sharer.

pastors → caretakers

poimēn - "a herdsman, especially a shepherd; properly: [...] in the parable [about Christ], he to whose care and control others have committed themselves, and whose precepts they follow, John 10:11, 14; metaphorically, the presiding officer, manager, director, of any assembly"

This isn't only for certain men who are on salary from the church institution to spend their week managing the church's board (aka "elders"), counseling church members, overseeing other ministries, and writing sermons. If you feel capable of taking charge over the care of anyone in the church -- whether that's just your own children or other kids in various children's ministries, or a friend or family member (or client) who needs the wise counsel of another Christian -- then you likely have the gifting of pastor or caretaker.

teachers → instructors

didaskalos - a teacher; in the N. T. one who teaches concerning the things of God, and the duties of man

That word translated in the phrase "teaching them to observe" [didaskō] in Matthew 28:20 is of course the thing a teacher does (here our modern understanding actually matches pretty well). This doesn't only mean standing up on at the pulpit on Sunday and delivering a prepared sermon. If you feel capable to give instruction to anyone in any setting about the way of Jesus from His word, you probably have the gifting of teacher or instructor.

The "work of ministry" to which we are equipped and built up is also often also translated "work of service". The word "ministry" is yet more Christianese that can distract us from the also legitimate service we have been gifted to do in this world that isn't part of direct "churchy" activities. Christ gives gifts to His people freely, including gifts of being sent and interpreting and sharing and caretaking and instructing, for good works to serve the church itself and the community within which the church is placed.

Within this proposed paradigm, which do you relate with most?