Participants: Hal Steenson (Host)
Series Code: HPOV
Program Code: HPOV000013
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00:01 Hello, my name's
00:03 and I welcome you to Heaven's Point of View. 00:04 Today's program will conclude the doma gifts given by Jesus 00:08 at His ascension to be used for the perfecting 00:11 or the equipping of the saints so they could finish the works 00:14 of the ministry. The last three gifts are 00:16 the evangelist, the pastor, and the teachers. 00:20 I invite you to get your Bibles and study along with us today 00:25 from Heaven's Point of View. 00:49 The first thing we want to do on today's program 00:51 is look at our foundational scripture 00:53 which is Ephesians 4:11-13. 00:56 It says: 00:57 "And He gave some apostles and some prophets, some evangelists 01:00 and some pastors and teachers for the perfecting of the saints 01:05 for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the 01:07 body of Christ, till we all come into the unity of the faith 01:11 and of the knowledge of the Son of God unto a perfect man 01:15 unto the measure and the stature of the fullness of Christ. " 01:19 When Jesus ascended, the Bible tells us, "When He ascended 01:23 up on high, He led captivity captive and gave gifts 01:28 unto men. " Please be aware that these gifts were not given, 01:32 WERE NOT GIVEN, until Jesus ascended. 01:35 Not before He ascended. This fact will change some 01:39 erroneous thinking and teaching. According to scripture, 01:43 Jesus was the five-fold doma ministry 01:47 while He was here on earth. However, at His ascension, 01:50 He broke down what He was and dispersed it to man. 01:57 Jesus the apostle, according to Hebrews the 3rd chapter 02:02 and the first verse says: "Wherefore, holy brethren, 02:05 partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the apostle 02:09 and high priest of our profession Christ Jesus. " 02:13 And then there is Jesus the prophet. 02:18 says: "And the multitude said this is Jesus the prophet 02:21 of Nazareth of Galilee. " 02:24 And third is Jesus the evangelist. 02:28 says: "From that time Jesus began to preach. " 02:32 This is what an evangelist does is preach 02:34 and to say "repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. " 02:38 Next is Jesus the pastor. Hebrews 13:20 says: 02:42 "Now the God of peace that brought again from the dead 02:46 our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, 02:50 through the blood of the everlasting covenant. " 02:54 And last is the teacher - Jesus the teacher. 02:59 and these are just some of the scriptures. 03:01 There are so many. 03:03 says: "The same came to Jesus by night and said unto Him, 03:06 'Rabbi, we know that Thou art a teacher come from God 03:10 for no man can do these miracles that Thou doest 03:13 except God be with Him. '" The Greek word for evangelist 03:18 is evangelion, I like that lion on the end, which very simply 03:23 means a preacher of the gospel, hence - an evangelist. 03:26 This word describes one who will announce good news - 03:30 especially the gospel. One who declares, brings, 03:34 or shows the glad tidings. One who preaches the gospel. 03:39 Webster's Old World Dictionary - I like the Old World version 03:43 of this - An evangelist: in the early church, 03:46 one who first preached the gospel to a nation 03:49 or a people. In modern times, a traveling preacher - not 03:53 usually a regular minister in any church. 03:56 Also, one who holds meetings often in the open air 03:59 or in a tent. I love it! 04:01 All of these definitions pretty much tell us the meaning of 04:05 what most of us believe an evangelist to be. 04:08 Now let's look at a few verses then I'll share some other 04:13 slightly different views of what an evangelist can be. 04:17 Acts 21:8-9 04:19 tells us of Luke's and Paul's visit with Philip. 04:23 "The next day we left and came to Caesarea and we went into 04:27 the house of Philip the evangelist - one of the Seven - 04:31 and stayed with him. He had four unmarried daughters 04:34 who had the gift of prophecy. " Philip, although called 04:38 an evangelist here, was one of the seven men chosen by the 04:42 twelve apostles to serve as assistants under them. 04:46 Some people refer to them as deacons, but whatever they were, 04:51 they were especially touched by God for they had power 04:56 and they had favor. These, according to Acts 6:3 05:00 were seven men of honest report full of the Holy Ghost 05:05 and wisdom whom we may appoint over this matter. 05:10 Now, you might be wondering, Do I have the heart 05:14 of an evangelist? Well then you need to do some heart math. 05:18 What I am referring to is Christians who know how to 05:22 share the love of Jesus. The sign of an evangelist is love. 05:26 I am talking of those who know and understand how to pray 05:30 for the need of someone they are sharing Christ with. 05:33 All of us must learn how to minister to others. 05:37 None of us are born with this ability. And hear this: 05:42 None of us are necessarily born again with this ability, either. 05:46 We all must learn to overcome our fears and our insecurities 05:50 when it comes to witnessing and soul winning. 05:52 Nevertheless, what if after learning and knowing how to 05:57 do all of this, you still don't necessarily feel 06:01 the witnessing campaign and the Tuesday night 06:04 soul winning classes are for you? 06:07 Well, maybe you don't have the heart of an evangelist. 06:11 I have a very simple answer. If this is your case, 06:15 you may not be called to be an evangelist. 06:18 What, you say, what do you mean? 06:22 What I mean is this: there are so many gifts and callings 06:26 in the body of Christ, as we have already established 06:29 in earlier lessons, what generally happens in most 06:32 churches is this: the leaders of most churches see that there 06:37 are areas within their churches that seem to be lacking. 06:42 Usually it is the numbers in the church that are lacking. 06:46 Too few numbers to be exact so the church must do something 06:51 about it. Go out into the highways and the byways 06:54 is how it's referred to sometimes. 06:58 Bring more people in is the issue. But to do that 07:02 someone has to go out in order to bring them in. 07:04 That usually means rounding up volunteers. 07:09 God's not looking for volunteers - 07:11 and that may mean YOU that they're looking for. 07:15 Now, here is the problem: there are those who love 07:18 to go out into houses and highways and byways. 07:22 They love to knock on the doors, contact people, 07:25 hand out literature. Does this make these people 07:28 more spiritual than you because they love to do such things 07:33 and others don't? No, not exactly. 07:37 If we do all these things in the natural course 07:41 of whatever our calling might be, then we have no reason 07:45 to think we are any less than those who go boldly 07:50 out into the witnessing field and soul-winning trail. 07:55 It may just simply mean this: those people 08:00 may have the call of an evangelist on their lives. 08:03 We may not. You may not. 08:06 It really can be that simple. 08:10 Then the question arises, 08:13 why are these gifts in the church? 08:17 Why did the Lord leave them when He ascended? 08:20 You see, all of the five gifts of Christ's gifts to the church 08:24 as well as the nine gifts of the Holy Spirit, 08:26 must be accepted by the church. When all are in place 08:31 and operating as they should, there will be no lack. 08:35 Churches will not feel the need to persuade those not called 08:39 to evangelism to do the work of an evangelist. 08:42 Or to put it in another way, when the gifts and callings 08:46 of God are all working at full force, the evangelists will 08:51 gladly do their job and we will be free to do ours. 08:55 The proper way to allow a church to grow is by teaching it, 09:00 by encouraging it, and by showing it how to function 09:04 as it ought. Too many of us and too many churches 09:08 are going about building our churches the wrong way. 09:12 Don't start out by expecting the sheep of the Lord 09:15 to be perfect. I've seen too many ministers 09:19 take that approach. That approach will only frustrate 09:22 the people. Teach them! Show them! 09:25 Help them to first understand who they are in Christ. 09:30 To know who they are and know who the enemy is. 09:32 Once you can show them this, you can then move them 09:36 to a place where they will delight to serve Him 09:39 thus making it very easy to find out what gifts 09:42 they may have been given by the Lord. 09:45 Once they know their giftings and callings, then they can 09:50 actually help you prepare others for ministry and help to edify 09:55 and build up the local church. It is a process. 09:58 It is a teaching process. Some learn more quickly 10:03 than others do - so patience is of the essence. 10:07 Well, Pastor Hal, what is the work of an evangelist? 10:11 II Timothy 4:5 says: "But you, Timothy, be watchful 10:16 in all things, enduring afflictions, doing the work of 10:20 an evangelist and making full proof of your ministry. " 10:23 Paul had a special affection and bond for Timothy. 10:26 As you read the two letters which he wrote to his son 10:30 in the faith, you will quickly see that Timothy was more 10:33 than a son. 10:34 Paul taught, discipled, and mentored Timothy 10:39 leaving no stone unturned and leaving nothing to chance. 10:43 In the verse we looked at, Paul admonishes his son in the Lord 10:47 to be watchful, to endure afflictions, to carry out 10:51 to the full extent his ministry. And what was his ministry? 10:55 We see in this verse that he was, among other things, 10:59 an evangelist. Do the work of an evangelist. 11:03 Timothy had other giftings, other callings, other offices, 11:07 but Paul reminds Timothy to not fail in that call 11:12 as an evangelist. 11:15 Once churches, ministers, and leaders can accept their 11:20 responsibilities according to Ephesians 4 by teaching 11:24 and helping all gifts and callings of God, 11:27 then we - the whole body - can move, grow, and function 11:32 as we are meant to. And the apostles, the prophets, 11:37 the pastors, the teachers, evangelists will be free 11:40 to minister, to edify, and build up the church 11:43 the way that Christ intended evangelists to be: 11:45 encouraged in our churches not exploited. Did you hear that? 11:50 Evangelists need to be encouraged in our churches 11:53 not exploited. Preparation needs to be made to have 11:57 evangelists in and be able to meet their expense. 12:00 I don't believe that in the ministry that you ought to 12:03 go out there to make big bucks. But I also don't believe 12:06 that you need to go under the unction of God and it be a 12:10 burden upon you. Now see that goes for all five of these 12:14 special anointed gifts of Christ. 12:15 You need a soul winner? Find someone who has the gift 12:19 and call of an evangelist. You need to send someone out 12:23 witnessing? Get hold of the evangelist. 12:27 You want someone to canvass the neighborhood? 12:30 The evangelist would be happy to do it. 12:32 Of course, once the Lord sends that evangelist out 12:35 to the rest of the church and to the world and His witnesses, 12:38 you may not see him very often if at all. 12:42 One other point. If we as pastors and teachers 12:47 do not teach and encourage and bless the five-fold ministry 12:51 within our churches, then we cannot expect to find 12:54 that evangelist. Did you hear that? 12:56 If we do not embrace them, if we do not accept them, 13:00 then you will never find that evangelist or the other 13:03 ministers of the five fold. When we may need him or her 13:08 they will not be accepted or any of the helpful gifts 13:12 Christ has so graciously given to His church. 13:14 The one thing that I have seen do much harm to the body 13:19 of Christ concerning the gift of the evangelist, is 13:22 for a true evangelist to try to pastor a church. 13:27 The heart of an evangelist is somewhere out there 13:33 in the fields, the highways, and the byways - not in the 13:35 local pasture or with the local sheep. 13:41 Now, next we want to look at the gift of the pastor. 13:45 I said at the beginning of the program this is an overview. 13:48 It's not an in-depth study. But the gift of a pastor is so 13:53 powerful. The Greek word of poimaino defines the ministry 13:58 a calling of the shepherd who is called of the Lord. 14:01 However, if we look at the Hebrew word for shepherd -re'a - 14:05 specifically where shepherd is used in Psalms 23. 14:10 "The Lord is my shepherd. " We see a much wider and clearer 14:15 picture of who a shepherd is. Here the word ra'e means to 14:20 tend a flock, to pasture it, to prepare it for grazing, 14:26 to rule - but more in the sense of leading than dominating. 14:31 This is the pastor. It also suggests that a shepherd 14:34 makes friends or has a friendship with his sheep. 14:37 As a herdsman who keeps sheep. 14:40 This is brought out very nicely 14:43 in the teachings of Jesus and the good shepherd 14:46 in John 10:14. It says: 14:51 "I am the good shepherd and I know my sheep, 14:56 and I am known by those who are mine. " 15:00 >From this one portion of scripture in John 10 here, 15:04 we are reminded of just how important we are to the Lord. 15:08 For example, He cares for you. 15:13 He cares for us. He knows each of us by name. 15:17 Can you imagine it? We are in His fold, the sheep 15:21 of His pasture. He speaks to us and we hear, understand, 15:26 and trust Him. Jesus goes before us when we go out 15:32 and leads us when we come in. He tells us that He gives 15:36 us life more abundantly than we could ever hope for. 15:41 His life - eternal life. He assures us that we will 15:46 know His voice and have no need to fear the ravenous wolves 15:51 that lurk about. He will feed us, clothe us, give us water 15:57 to drink, and He will always be our protector and our 16:02 covering, never leaving or forsaking us. 16:05 And lastly, but most importantly, 16:08 the good shepherd is willing to lay down His life 16:14 for His sheep, and He will do it willingly, 16:17 and He will do it gladly. 16:20 Some churches and some pastors, not all, say they not 16:25 known nor they have never even heard about the doma gifts. 16:28 It makes me want to ask this question: why is that? 16:33 These gifts are clearly expressed in scripture. 16:36 They are not hidden. They are not disguised 16:39 in mysterious words or in convoluted texts or symbolisms. 16:44 There are even healings, prophets, miracles, 16:48 and mighty acts of God in the Old Testament. 16:51 They are there for us to see as examples 16:55 if we will but have eyes to see them. 16:58 It may be this is why Jesus only gave 17:03 some of each. 17:04 Maybe some churches, maybe some Christians, 17:08 didn't fully understand their responsibilities 17:12 for the five-fold gifts and they did not receive them. 17:16 Let's move in and claim them even as the Children of Israel 17:21 moved in claiming all of the land of promise 17:24 for the time is short. There is no doubt that the 17:27 present-day state of the church needs these gifts. 17:30 Now, we are talking about shepherds. 17:34 Who are the shepherds? Especially, who are the good 17:38 shepherds? Pastors who are good shepherds will care for the 17:43 Lord's sheep and for the Lord's people. A good shepherd will 17:47 know each of the sheep by name. No one sheep will feel unknown, 17:52 unloved, or rejected. Sheep will feel safe in a good 17:57 shepherd's fold, rejoicing to be in that shepherd's pasture. 18:01 A good shepherd will seek God's voice and will hear, 18:06 understand and trust Him because he serves the one true shepherd. 18:12 A good shepherd will go before us when we go out and lead us 18:16 when we come in. We will not feel alone or isolated. 18:21 A good shepherd will teach us about Christ's life. He will 18:25 teach us about our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ - 18:27 helping us to grow more abundantly in Christ. 18:31 His life, eternal life. A good shepherd, a good pastor, 18:37 will assure us and teach us how to know the voice of Christ 18:41 and have no need to fear the ravenous wolves that lurk about. 18:45 Pastors who are good shepherds will teach us to trust Christ 18:50 who will feed us, who will clothe us, who will give us 18:54 water to drink, and he will always be our protector and our 18:58 covering. Never leaving us or forsaking us. 19:01 And lastly, but most importantly a good shepherd will be willing 19:07 to lay down his life for his flock 19:09 who are really God's sheep. This sacrifice was done 19:14 willingly and gladly. As we look at this list, 19:17 let's remember that we have taken these traits 19:21 from the words of Jesus himself in describing himself. 19:25 He gave us a clear picture of what a true pastor or shepherd 19:30 should endeavor to be like and that is to be like Jesus. 19:34 Of all the gifts He gives to the church, the gift of the pastor 19:38 is the most clearly defined and easily seen 19:43 in the Word of God. For this reason alone, no pastor 19:47 of God's flock should feel as though he has no direction 19:51 or no goal for which to aim. The calling and the duties 19:55 of a pastor are so very clearly revealed there should be 20:00 no doubt as to what is expected of him. It is, I know, a 20:04 tough job. I've been there, done that. It's a difficult job, 20:08 one that needs all the help and aid possible. 20:10 And without the gifts God has given to the church, 20:14 we are intended to feel any lack of strength, any weak areas. 20:20 Pastors really do have it hard. 20:25 But last, and not the least of the gifts, 20:30 of the teacher. 20:32 I personally believe from my heart. I personally believe 20:37 this to be the most powerful of the five-fold gifts. 20:39 I believe it is the one to be the most reverenced because 20:44 of what it produces. Matthew 7:22-23 says: 20:49 "Many will say unto Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not 20:53 prophesied in Thy name and in Thy name have we not cast out 20:57 devils in Thy name and done many wonderful works? 21:00 And then I will profess unto them I never knew you. 21:06 Depart from Me, ye that work iniquity. " 21:09 It will not be enough to just 21:11 do something or teach something in the name of Jesus. 21:14 We must be so intimately acquainted with Jesus 21:18 that it is only His word 21:22 and His will that will flow from us 21:25 and never our own. For 18 years I taught that the 21:30 evidence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit 21:32 was speaking in incoherent tongues. 21:34 Due to my own misunderstanding of the true baptism of the 21:38 Holy Spirit. I was wrong. I was wrong. 21:41 I now thank God that He has given me the opportunity 21:45 to repent and now teaches the truth through me 21:50 to the saints of God. You see, He gave some apostles, 21:54 and some prophets, and some evangelists, and some pastors 21:57 and teachers for the perfecting of the saints. 22:01 Hey, we are going to take a short break, and we will be 22:04 right back after that - so don't go away. 22:09 If you've been confused about what the Bible says about 22:12 the Holy Spirit's amazing gifts for the church, 22:14 you'll want to order your very own copy of this 13-part series. 22:18 It's available on DVD or video cassette from 3ABN 22:22 at a very special price. This 13-part series 22:25 with Pastor Hal Steenson makes a wonderful gift for a friend 22:28 or a family member. Just call us at: 22:33 and we'll be happy to take your order. 22:35 You may also order it online at: 22:41 Again, the phone number is: 22:54 You know, although the five-fold ministry gifts that Jesus gave 22:58 to the church appear to be given individually, it is possible 23:02 for someone to be an apostle teacher, or a prophet teacher, 23:05 or an evangelist teacher, or a pastor teacher. 23:08 Someone may also stand in the office of the teacher only. 23:12 Those who have only a teaching ministry usually travel. 23:16 Some pastors may also serve as itinerant teachers as well. 23:21 Those who do must always keep their home flock 23:26 as their number one priority. During the 18 years 23:30 that I pastored, I would preach and teach for other pastors. 23:33 However, my own home flock was always my number one concern. 23:38 They were where my heart was. Matthew 6:21 says: 23:44 "For where your treasure is, there will be your heart also. " 23:48 A pastor teacher could easily lose a congregation 23:53 by not keeping them his number one concern. 23:57 Excellent teachers, excellent teachers are always excellent 24:02 students. This is the only way to excel in this supernatural 24:06 office. Teachers are always open to experience 24:09 present truths. A good example of this would be my wife, 24:14 Molly Sue, and our friend, Shelly Quinn, who are both 24:17 excellent teachers. They came into the truth more readily than 24:22 most people because they have the ministry gift of a teacher. 24:26 The teacher will diligently study the scriptures so as not 24:31 to be fooled or confused. 24:36 says: "And a certain Jew named Apollo's, born in Alexandria, 24:40 an eloquent man and mighty in the scriptures, mighty in the 24:43 scriptures, came to Ephesus. This man was instructed in the 24:47 way of the Lord and being fervent in the Spirit, he spake 24:51 and talked diligently the things of the Lord. 24:54 Knowing only the baptism of John he began to speak boldly in the 24:58 synagogue whom, when Aquilla and Priscilla had heard, they took 25:02 unto them and they expounded to him the way of God 25:05 more perfectly. " 25:08 Obviously, obviously, when Aquilla and Priscilla approached 25:12 Appolos, he was humble enough to receive their instruction. 25:17 They had the further revelation of the New Testament he needed 25:22 and he was willing to pay the price to get it. 25:25 No doubt they shared the foundational doctrines of 25:28 Christ with him. The apostle Paul refers to these doctrines 25:32 in his letter to the Hebrews. Hebrews 6:1-2 says: 25:35 "Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of 25:40 Christ let us go on unto perfection, not laying again 25:43 the foundation of repentance from dead works, 25:47 and of faith toward God and the doctrine of baptism and the 25:51 laying on of hands and of the resurrection of the dead, 25:54 and of eternal judgment. " An excellent teacher, 25:58 an excellent teacher is grounded in all of these. 26:01 An excellent teacher is also grounded in major Bible 26:03 doctrines. For example, the oneness of the Trinity. 26:07 The deity of Christ. The fall and the redemption of man. 26:11 The church ordinances and government. 26:14 The ministry office. Scriptural gifts, divine healing, 26:18 and the advent of Jesus, the reign of Jesus Christ, the final 26:22 destiny of the righteous and the wicked, the great controversy, 26:26 Revelation, and all these areas and more are the marks of a true 26:31 New Testament teacher. The teaching office is 26:35 supernatural. Just because someone is a school teacher, 26:39 does not necessarily mean he or she can teach the Bible. 26:43 No one calls himself or herself to any of these five-fold 26:47 ministry offices. There must be 26:49 an anointing from the Holy Spirit 26:51 to stand in any of these supernatural offices. 26:53 There must be a divine calling 26:56 by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 27:00 What we've been looking at for these last 13 programs 27:05 are the gifts of the Spirit and the gifts given by Jesus. 27:09 Why have we been looking at them? 27:11 Well, the truth is so much of the church world knows very very 27:16 little about any of these gifts. How they do operate 27:20 and how they don't. Mostly what we know is there 27:24 is a lot of error surrounding the use and the misuse of 27:28 these gifts. But they are real. Do you hear me? They are real! 27:32 And they are given to the church by the Holy Spirit 27:35 and by Jesus Christ, the Son of God, in order that 27:38 He might protect us from the wiles of the enemy. 27:41 And the doma gifts that they might perfect us in order that 27:44 we might grow into the maturity of Christ. 27:47 Be willing, please be willing to embrace them. 27:50 I pray that somehow, some way, I have spoken something 27:53 into some of your lives that will help you overcome the enemy 27:58 in these last days and move out in the ministry gift that God 28:02 has placed on you through Jesus Christ. 28:05 And do the work of the ministry. 28:06 And cause this thing to come to a complete end. 28:31 On our next Heaven's Point of View, we will be looking at the 28:34 purpose of the Holy Spirit for the church today. 28:37 So be sure and check your 3ABN World for the date 28:41 and the time, and we'll see you there. |
Revised 2014-12-17