MORE ABOUT THAT FIVE-FOLD THING

Since the post about Paul being a pioneer for the Gospel by opening up new areas, I have come to consider the implications for the Five-Fold Ministry.

One aspect of this is the chronological appearances of these ministries within a given geographic or demographic area.  Once an apostle opens up the area, prophets then appear to support the Apostles' doctrine to give direction to the new disciples' assemblies.

Once a sufficient number of disciples have been trained, elders are appointed, or recognized, to shephard, or pastor the flock.  All the elders are pastors, and not a board that rubber stamps the actions of a single leader.

Of course, other people in the given area still need to hear the Gospel, the Good News of Jesus.  So, comes the need for evangelists.  I am not a Greek scholar, but I have looked into the meaning of evangelist.  The English word is taken directly from the Greek word.  The best I   can determine is that an evangelist is a Good Newser, someone who is full of good news, and not just a travelling preacher.

The new disciples need a foundation of sound doctrines.  The elders may not be able to explain the truth of Scripture to every new disciple, possibly because of the number of new disciples.

This might have been the pattern of the early disciples of Christ.

This chronological view might also apply the list of gifts at the end of 1 Cor. 12.

PAUL THE PIONEER?

Was Paul a pioneer?  We often think of pioneers here in America as those who moved into uninhabited places and settled there to start new farms or ranches and communities.  They could be those who landed on the east coast, and using hand tools, they built houses and tilled the land.  They also hunted and fished until they could establish livestock herds or flocks.  They could also be those who moved away from those early settlements in covered wagons to repeat what the earlier pioneers had done.

Well, Paul never wore a tricorn hat, or travelled in a covered wagon, built a log cabin, or grew crops, but he was a pioneer.

Pioneers open up new territory.  That's what Paul did for the Gospel.  But we don't call him a pioneer, and maybe we should.  Then, we might also gain a better understanding of what an apostle is in the New Testament.

Before Alexander expanded the Greek empire to the east, the Greeks had already established a commercial and cultural empire of sorts acound the Mediterranean Sea by sending out groups of people to start colonies on the islands and shores.  These groups would have a leader called an apostle.

So, apostles in the Body of Christ are pioneers.  Their job is to take the Good News of Jesus to areas where it hasn't gone before.  They are not only to proclaim the Gospel, but to make converts into disciples.  Then, when the local assemblies of disciples has grown in both size and maturity, he appoints elders and moves on to pioneer another area.

In Hebrews, Jesus is called the Apostle of our confession (3:1).  Could the Father have sent apostles before Jesus?

Abraham is a possibility.  So is Moses, and Joshua.  I'll leave it up to you to study out.

I believe apostles are needed today. Maybe not to open up new geographic areas, but demographic areas.

I don't see many apostles in action today.  Those who strut around calling themselves apostles probably aren't apostles after all.  The real apostles will be operating in areas unknown to the larger Body of Christ.