Many modern-day institutions that refer to themselves as churches will beat you around with their corrupted interpretations of the 5-fold ministry.
Mostly you will be told how this may impact on your life and what your obligations are towards these.
You will also be brainwashed and given an idea of the importance of some leaders with regards to their 5-fold ministry positions.
But
Let's encourage ourselves and rock the boat of religion and tradition a little.
You know how sometimes some things get lost in translation?
Or something is translated in one way while it could easily have been translated in another that will bring an all together deeper and clearer meaning?
... like the 5-fold ministry ...
You can't have it all?
Let's consider Ephesians 4:11 in the King James Version.
And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers
If you want to build an institutional church you will most definitely use this scripture to justify some kind of hierarchy (sic).
This will account for the many positions and levels and offices and degrees, buildings, accounts, etc. within your organisational structure - a pyramid scheme of sorts that continued from as early centuries and is evident even today in the majority of institutional churches. (And let's remind ourselves what exactly the ekklēsia is as I explained in this post)
But Paul is here talking to the Ephesians. He encourages them to work together and build each other up in Jesus.
Can you have it all?
Think about it. How many of the functions of the 5-fold ministry were resident in Jesus?
I submit to you that He possessed all of them!
And then, how much of the Spirit of Christ lives inside of you?
10%, 40%, 80% or all of Him?
Again, I submit to you that the fullness of the Spirit of Jesus lives in you with the fullness of the 5-fold mystery!
Mutilated body?
The institutional church perverted what are supposed to be functions in the body of Christ. It is not and organizational structure with levels and positions of office that forms a hierarchy with the one to submit to the other, the one being more important than the next and the commoner on the phew outside of office.
Can we read again?
Let's look at the verse again. This time let's use the same freedom of translation used by the initial translators.
From the Greek [in brackets]:
And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers
some [μέν men] rather meaning truely or indeed.
and [δέ de]rather meaning moreover, also or but.
Can we do a proper translation?
...so using freedom of translation otherwise, Ephesians 4:11 reads:
And he gave truely, apostles; moreover truely, prophets; moreover truely, evangelists; moreover truely, pastors moreover teachers
Feeling deceived?
Now that's a different picture all together!
It is a picture better in line with what God has in mind for His glorious church (true church - you), especially when reading within the context of the whole chapter.
His focus is every believer, the ekklesia (see here). The ekklesia are those called out from amongst, the true church being wherever, whosoever and whenever you open your eyes. The ekklesia is ever so happy to fellowship and have communion in the presence of His Spirit, whether it is one or many, whether in a building or not, the 5-fold ministry being ever-present in Christ and functioning through you!
Can we say AMEN?
I encourage myself today that we are all highly anointed in God and that I do not have to wait for church official or leader bring on the anointing or to bring the Gospel of my Jesus!
I am anointed with His spirit of Truth Who will bring to my remembrance all things Jesus taught and will show me even things to come.
I am His functionary!
I am
an apostle
a prophet
an evangelist
a pastor
a teacher
dipped in the Fountain of His love!