Is Evangelism A Gift That Few Have?

Ephesians 4:11-12 says, “And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ…”

The question I’m concerned with from this passage is: Does this verse mean that evangelism is a gift that only some people have?  My answer?  NO.  But hold on; this is a good question because the verse seems to teach that evangelism should only be done by those who have the gift of evangelism, just as preaching and teaching should be done by those gifted in preaching and teaching, etc..  Let me say two things to help you see why I thinkn the idea of evangelism being a gift few have is false and dangerous.

a) Is evangelism a gift?  Yes.  God indeed has granted certain people the joy, love, desire, knowledge, and courage needed to evangelize.  But, most of those who think evangelism is a gift see evangelism as someone else’s command, and not as their own.  It’s not their gift, so they don’t have to do it.  We are all commanded to share the gospel (Matt. 28, Acts 1, etc.), to shurk our duties to someone else is cowardly and sinful.  So, if that is true, then what does Paul mean when he speaks of evangelists here?

b) Good question, and this is the heart of the issue.  Notice how Paul says God gave evangelists…to the Church?  Hmmm…  Think about that, evangelists are for the lost, right?  Wrong.  Most people think Paul meant that God gave the Church evangelists so that those evangelists would bring new people into the Church by going out to talk to people about Jesus.  This is wrong.  I think a proper understanding of God giving evangelists to the Church means that the evangelists teach and equip (v12) the Church to go out and evangelize.  This understanding fits with the truth that all people are commanded to go and share, not just some.

So, is evangelism a gift that few have?  No.  It is a gift, and only some have that gift, but those that do are to teach the rest of us how to evangelize, in order to help us fulfill the great commission that we’re all called to.

Why Were You Saved?

If you were saved by Christ, do you know why your salvation took place?  Ephesians 1 has the answer:

YOU WERE predestined, chosen, SAVED…

Verse 6: “…to the praise of the glory of His grace…”

Verse 12: “…to the praise of His glory.”

Verse 14: “…to the praise of His glory.”

You were not saved for your sake, your fame, or your own glory.  You were saved for the glory of God’s grace.

The Foundation of Marriage – Psalm 103:10

Paul says that marriage is a picture of the gospel in Ephesians 5:21-33.  Most people read this, and think, “Okay, the husband is love his wife as Christ loved the Church, and the wife is to submit to the husband because he is the head of the marriage, just as Christ is the Head of the body, the Church.”  This is great, but it’s not where we end.  When Paul says that men are to love their wives as Christ loved the Church, he means to get our marriages centered around one massive truth.  What truth?

The truth found in Psalm 103:10, “He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.”  This is how Christ loves us, He does not treat us as our sins deserve.  Do you see the foundation for marriage (and all relationships)?  Men, if you want to love your wives as Christ loved the Church, do not treat your wife as her sins deserve.  Rather, when she sins against you, and sin she will, remember what Jesus did for you and give her what she needs most even though she deserves it the least.

Can You be Out of God’s Will?

I often hear people tell me, “You have to try to get into the center of God’s will” and then comment about someone who is not saying, “Their not in God’s will.”  I think a lot when people say these things to me, for one reason.  If God is absolutely sovereign (which He is!), it is possible to be out of His will?  Doesn’t Eph 1:11b say God “works all things after the counsel of His own will“?  So again I ask, if God “works all things after the counsel of His own will” than nothing works after the counsel of mine. right?  Yes.  Okay, than if nothing works after the counsel of my will, and all things work after the counsel of God’s will, can I ever be out of God’s will?  You see the issues going through my mind now don’t you.

This is a serious question, because if all things work according to God’s will, than what does that mean for sin?  Does God, in His sovereignty, allow me to sin?  Does God, in His sovereignty, allow others to sin?  In orthodox Christian theology, we have always recognized that the will of God is the ultimate cause of all things.  In this discussion there has also been a helpful distinction within the will of God, His decretive will, and His preceptive will.

The decretive will, or the will of decree, is the will in which God purposes or decrees whatever comes to pass.  No matter what language you use for it (causes, permits, allows, or ordains) it all means that God actively decrees all events, big or small, everywhere.  Some have called this the ’secret’ will of God, using verses like Deut. 29:29 to do so.  The preceptive will, or the will of precepts (commands), is the will in which God lays down the rule of life for His creatures, indicating the duties He has commaded them to do.  This rule is found in the Bible.

Back to our question: Can I be out of God’s will?  No, speaking in terms of His decretive will I am always going to be in the place God’s wants me to be, doing whatever it is that I am doing, good or bad.  Speaking in terms of His preceptive will, Yes I can be out of God’s will by my disobedience to God’s Word.  Now to the real question: if all things work according to God’s will, than what does that mean for sin?  Does God, in His sovereignty, allow me to sin?  Does God, in His sovereignty, allow others to sin?  The answer must be YES, God does allow me and others to sin (in His decretive will).  When God does this, we must take care to say that God does not tempt me to sin nor is God at fault for my sin (James 1:13-15).

Is this hard to swallow?  Yes for many reasons, one of which is that this shows that free-will is not an option for Bible believeing Christians (WHAT?!  Go here).  Listen to Augustine, he will calm your mind: “Evil men do many things contrary to God’s revealed (preceptive) will; but so great is His wisdom, and so inviolable His truth, that He directs all things into these channels which He foreknew (in His decretive will).”

Quotes like this have made verses like Matthew 10:29-31 very sweet to me.  It is here that I feast upon my sovereign God, who works all things out in the best possible way for my best possible good (Romans 8:28), and for His maximum glory!