These are not considered “body” gifts of Christ, but rather the governmental ascension headship gifts. We must be clear not to mix them with gifts of the Holy Spirit but identify them as ascension gifts of Jesus Christ. We see that Jesus ascended and gave His mantle and leadership grace to men for the benefit of the body of Christ. Jesus gave these headship gifts to the church for a divine purpose.
Moreover, these headship ascension gifts have specific callings, graces, measures of rule, functions, abilities, and roles, but are not limited to them depending on assignment and activities. Whatever name you choose to classify them, we must understand that they are vital to the foundational structure, growth, health, and building process. Furthermore, these fivefold ministry offices are not just gifts to men but are called and chosen of the Lord before the foundation of the world to serve, disclose, and declare the overall purpose of God in the earth through the Spirit-filled believer.
The hand of God is upon those of you who have been sovereignly handpicked before you entered your mother’s womb to facilitate the work of God in your generation. I believe that God has not designated nor has He designed the fivefold officers to function separately or independently, but rather interdependently. They work interchangeably and as a team. The synergy of teamwork will promote a clear plumb line that does not hinder, stifle, or block the power of God from flowing effectively. The headship gifts needs the body, and vice versa. In the twenty-first century church we need the hand of God directing, leading, guiding, challenging, covering, and protecting us. Speaking of the hand of God, we can see that God’s hand represents power, authority, permission, and His sovereignty. Jesus is right now seated at the right hand of His Father.
In other words, the fivefold ministry is symbolic of God’s hand, the five fingers represented in the church. The apostolic, prophetic, evangelistic, pastoral, and teaching ministries are parts of God’s government in the church that release the kingdom power. The Father has placed Jesus as the Head of His church and all things concerning His church. In other words, Jesus has His hand directly involved in the building of the ecclesia (called out ones) called the church. Understanding the supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit will allow you to know God’s order and fivefold officers in the church, as He has set some as apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors, and some teachers. God is a God of order and not confusion. There is no big “I” and little “you” in the kingdom of God and in His church.
With any structure, government, kingdom, or system, there has to be an order and flow chart of how things function, operate, and flow so that there is clarity of purpose. All fivefold ministers or officers are called to govern, gather, protect, guard, prophesy, guide, build, encourage, comfort, direct, and bless the body of Christ. I remember Dr. Bill Hamon, founder of Christian International, who is considered one of the pioneers and fathers of the prophetic restoration movement, came to my local assembly and taught on the fivefold ministry and their purpose. But what was interesting about his teaching was that he showed the prophetic leaders and ministers at the conference an illustration of a human hand that I never forgot. He related the hand to the “hand of God,” which describes the governmental position, function, and placement of the fivefold ministry officers in the church: apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, and teacher.
First Peter 5:5–6 (ESV) says, “Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you.”
We can see in verse 6 of the above scripture that humility brings promotion. It is divine wisdom for a person to be covered under the protective hand of God. When a person submits to the order of God and relates in love with others in the body of Christ, whether in the kingdom or not, God will give them provision and favor. Those who are rebellious and will not submit to the order of God or to those whom He places in authority are running the risk of being unprotected and open to demonic influences and unwarranted attacks. If you are a fivefold minister or believer and you know that there is a greater cause burning within you to do greater works for the Lord, but feel like you have fallen out of agreement with Him, then the time is now to make a decision and repent so that you come under the protective covering of God and those in headship position in the body of Christ. We need the hand of the Lord working in our lives like never before. Below I have identified in simple form the headship government ministry gifts of Jesus Christ by relating them to a five-fingered hand:
1. The Apostle = Thumb: The thumb of the hand represents the apostle’s ministry, which, like the thumb, is considered the strongest and positioned strategically to bring support to the whole. An apostle can start, plant, and strengthen new and existing churches, ministries, and people, while at the same time representing teamwork. They have an ability to interact, touch, bring together, relate, reach, and impact others if they need to. Jesus being the foundation and Head of His church, an apostle has the grace throughout their ministry to operate in various and even all dimensions of the ministry gifts, but not at the same time. The Greek word apostolos, from which we derive the word apostle, literally means “one who is sent forth.”40 Apostles, like those with the other headship gifts, are sent by God by way of the Holy Spirit. They are commissioned special messengers, delegates, envoys, and ambassadors representing the king and His kingdom.
Moreover, the apostle, like the thumb, has been designed by the strength of their calling to take hold of something, whether it is a new vision, dream, plan, blueprint, project, etc., and gather others around them to bring what God puts in their heart to full maturation. One of an apostle’s primary focuses is bringing order, transforming, building, impacting, fathering, covering, teaching, preaching, and demonstrating the kingdom of God in the people they meet. Can you image the church without modern-day apostles? I liken it to a hand missing a thumb, and how ineffective the hand can be without the thumb, which is the base of the hand. The apostolic ministry is vital and important to Christ and His eternal church. The thumb can touch every finger on the hand; so does an apostle who should be in covenant relationship and submission to others under their leadership or in the body of Christ at large.
2. The Prophet = Forefinger/Index Finger: The index or pointer finger refers to the prophet, who is called to point the way to God, the way back to God, and the way a believer should walk in God. In other words, the pointer finger represents the special anointing and call of the prophet to receive revelation and insight, and the ability to confirm people’s destinies. The prophet’s ministry can also confirm, bring clarity, and point out sin or areas of error while at the same time ordaining, identifying, establishing, activating, and speaking into something. Like the forefinger, the prophetic nature of the prophet is the ability through their tremendous gift, call and office to prophesy with authority, power, strength, love, and clarity.
The forefinger is next to the thumb, and both the prophet and apostle are foundational ministries that need each other, especially because the apostle plants by the Spirit and the prophet can water (build) what the apostle establishes. The prophet needs the apostle and vice versa. The prophet and the apostle have a working relationship. They together have a close-knit relationship in the hand ministry of the body of Christ. The forefinger, which represents the prophet’s ministry, also illustrates the realm of authority and grace through their gift and office to minister prophetically, which outlines the nature of prophecy—a dual function and dimension in foretelling (prediction of future) and forth-telling (speaking forth).
The prophet is also the mouthpiece of God, and no ministry office has the grace and the authority to prophesy like a prophet can. I am not saying that others cannot prophesy, but they are limited to edification, exhortation, and comfort. Can you imagine the hand without the index finger to point you in the right direction and show you the way? We are not to replace the function of the Holy Spirit who has been sent
to assist and guide us with prophets. But prophets today are just as vital to the hand as any other finger. We need to know what God is doing and saying to us in the earth today. We need the ministry of modern-day prophets in our midst.
The New Testament Greek word for prophecy is propheteuo, which means “to foretell events, divine, speak under inspiration, exercise the prophetic office; to proclaim a divine revelation, prophesy, to foretell the future; to speak forth by divine inspiration; to break forth under sudden impulse in lofty discourse or in praise of the divine counsels.”41 This Greek word propheteuo is translated “prophesy.” (See Matthew 15:7; Luke 1:67; Acts 2:17–18, 21:9; and 1 Corinthians 14:1, 3–5.)
3. The Evangelist = Middle Finger: The middle finger is the longest, most visible and extended finger on the hand. It represents the ministry gift of an evangelist. The middle finger, like the evangelist, can reach, touch, and extend further than the rest. The evangelistic ministries are notable for their mass revivals, worldwide crusades, and mission trips that are held in large settings and last for long periods of time. The middle finger is the longest or largest finger on the hand, and the evangelist has a grace and passion to evangelize the world. They can move in tremendous gifts of the Holy Spirit that release revival fires that ignite in the hearts of unbelievers. The evangelistic ministries have a heart to win multiple souls for Christ. One of the primary objectives is being a witness for Christ; bring healing, miracle and redemption to the lost.
An evangelist loves going out and not being confined to the four-walled church. Their commission is in the “Great Commission,” to disciple whole nations, which should be all of the headship and Christian believers’ objective and agenda. The anointing on an evangelist is a gift to draw, win, gather, convince, persuade, and encourage. In addition, they work with the local church to bring new converts into the local assembly to get them discipled, trained, equipped, and deployed (commissioned) by the Holy Spirit to win others to Christ.
The evangelists are called to bring the gospel, or good news. There are three words related to the ministry of an evangelist, all of which come from a similar root word in the Greek: euaggelizo, meaning “to announce good news or glad tidings (SC 2097),” euaggelion, “the gospel or the good message (SC 2098),” and euanggelistes, “a preacher or messenger of good news (SC 2099).”42 We can see that an evangelist is clearly one called to herald the gospel of Jesus Christ and a preacher or messenger of the word they deliver, which brings glad tidings. Can you picture the hand without the middle finger? The evangelistic ministry is so vital to the church of Jesus Christ today. Without the evangelist, who will bring the harvest into the kingdom? We need evangelists more today than ever before. There are those who think evangelism is not necessary, but I believe it is just as important to the fivefold ministry as the prophet and apostle foundationally set in the church.
4. The Pastor = Ring Finger: The ring finger represents the ministry of the pastor. This finger is the one on which the wedding ring is placed. The pastor is the shepherd of the Lord’s people. The pastor is graced with the ability and anointing to labor with the people. He or she is married to the people, in covenant relationship with them to feed, clean, correct, bless, and love them more than any other. A pastor is so committed to those God has entrusted them with that he will leave the rest to go after the one who has left or broken covenant.
The ring finger is symbolic and a representation of a long-term relationship and true accountability. It’s a working relationship between a pastor and their local saints. A pastor will lay down his life for his own, just a husband will give his life for his wife as Christ did for the church and for His people. Apostles and prophets will come and go, as they travel extensively, but a true shepherd is committed to the house of God and bound to it as he brings balance, productivity, maturity in the new believers, and spiritual nourishment.
Moreover, the pastor is called to protect, guide, oversee, defend, rule, supervise, feed, tend to, watch, manage, assist, walk alongside, give spiritual counsel, and stand with their local saints no matter what. A pastor may seem overprotective at times only because in their heart of hearts is a holy jealousness that comes from God and causes them to love unconditionally and protect the Lord’s inheritance.
Their local church is like the ring finger with a beautiful ring on it; it’s a reminder of the vow and love that they committed to. Whether sick or in good health, through ups and downs, difficulties and victories, a pastor is always there and knows when to put his own agenda aside for the sole purpose of pleasing God and being a great representation of Christ as the Good Shepherd. A pastor is patient, not overbearing, considerate, courteous, transparent, a teacher, and very relational. In other words, a true pastor is social, approachable, a good listener, understanding, compassionate, fair, balanced, fatherly, has great interpersonal skills, and is a lover of God and His people.
Furthermore, as the apostles and prophets are the most misunderstood and rejected, the pastoral ministry is much needed today in the church. Most people have in one way or another encountered, known, or visited a church that was primarily governed by a pastor, lead pastor, senior pastor, or the like; whether they married you, baptized you, Christened or dedicated your newborn child, counseled you, or even pastored you. It is vital that we have good moral and ethical pastors loving us as Christ loves His church. Note that I said pastors, plural, not one authoritative individual who is not submitted to others. I cannot imagine the body of Christ without pastors/elders and governing overseers tending to the house of God. The New Testament Greek word for pastor is poimen (SC 4166), which means “a shepherd” (literally or figuratively).43
5. The Teacher = Pinky Finger: The little finger on the hand represents the ministry of the teacher. It is the smallest finger on the hand and is able to reach the small areas of things that the other fingers may overlook. Even though the pinky finger is the smallest, it doesn’t mean that the teacher’s office is insignificant among the other fivefold ministry officers and in the body of Christ. Usually the pastor and teacher are interchangeable and is a share ministry.
A pastor and teacher don’t always share ministry, but together they are vital to the practicality and implementation of the principles of God’s Word. One of the gifts and anointing of teachers is that they are sticklers to attention to detail, precision, and accuracy, and are able to research, to dig out; reach the cracks and crevices of things. Like the pinky finger, a teacher can fit into tight spaces to reach and illuminate the dark (hidden) areas of the Word of God, while at the same time bringing balance to the body of Christ through fundamental teaching. Their approach is very practical, didactic, revelatory, and prophetic, teaching the Word with clarity that will produce stability, maturation, application, accountability, and responsibility. The ministry of the teacher brings foundational balance to the body of Christ as the pinky finger does to the hand.
A teacher is not limited to just teaching, but can operate as well in any other spiritual gifts. Furthermore, they can be prophetic, evangelistic, apostolic, and pastoral in their delivery and style of teaching that bring results. I believe that ministry gift of the teacher is so vital and needed for church growth, spiritual growth, discipleship, training, equipping, and empowering. Teachers are solely dedicated to revealing and discovering the truth of God’s Word without violating the original intent of the Word of God. They build people on the Word of God, line upon line, precept upon precept. We need the teacher mantle, gift, anointing, and ministry in this hour. I do not know where I would be if someone hadn’t taken the time to teach me and labor with me to make sure I understood what I was taught. The New Testament Greek word for teacher is didasko (SC 1321), which means “to learn or to teach.” There is another Greek word, didaktikos (SC 1317), which means “instructive (‘didactic’)” translated, “apt to teach.”44
1 CORINTHIANS 12:8–10, 28—THE NINE SUPERNATURAL GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT
Word of Wisdom
The gift of word of wisdom is
a supernatural ability by the Holy Spirit to ascertain the divine purpose for accomplishing the Lord’s objective and will in any given situation and the “how” to fulfill it in a strategic way. It is the ability to rightly apply knowledge and discernment in one’s own life and in the lives of others who seek counsel, while the wisdom of God works interactively in this gift. Moreover, it is also the divine perception of God and knowing His divine direction for something in particular, and appropriate spiritual intuition in solving a major and/or unexpected problem or crisis. This gift works effectively in “what to do” types of circumstances and a supernatural knowing of how to handle things in a godly manner. It is a divine insight into the mind, counsel, and truth of God’s Word. In this gift there is an ability to execute sound judgment with patience. When I think about the gift of word of wisdom it is “What would Jesus do?” in a situation mindset.
This particular gift is one of my strongest gifts because God has given me a special grace and gift to help senior leaders, other prophets, and those who are in need of the counsel of the Lord. Prophets and Christian believers can operate in this gift of the Spirit. Prophets especially should be able to minister in the wisdom of God. I have witnessed what the word of wisdom gift can do in a person’s life; it has brought much clarity, protection, many warnings, and provision.
Word of Knowledge
The gift of word of knowledge is a supernatural ability to contain revelation of God’s eternal plan, will, and agenda. It is the ability to utilize moral wisdom for righteous living and establishing godly relationships. In this gift, there is a supernatural possession to know specific facts, information, and revelation about a person, place, thing, or situation that may have happened presently or in the past. This divine knowing is initiated and given by the Holy Spirit without the assistance of any human resources, but primarily by divine help. In other words, it’s an ability by the Spirit to know what you know without actually seeing the evidence or even having prior encounters with a person, situation, place, etc. Furthermore, this gift can also refer to the knowledge of God, things pertaining to things possessed by God, as it relates to the Word of God. This unique gift implies a depth and greater capacity to understand the communicated works of the Lord. I have seen this gift, which is considered a prophetic revelatory gift, in operation in prophets.
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