Set Apart and Holy Pt. 2

And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as prophets, and some as teachers, for the equipping of the saints, for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain the unity of the faith, and the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. Ephesians 4:11-14

Let elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching. 1 Tim 5:17

In the book, The Tale of Three Kings,” we get a glimpse into the heart of those God calls into the office of a king. It is a humbling and powerful book on the actions and intentions of those who are called and the intentions of their heart. In Ephesians, the “gifts” are given to the Church to help her grow into maturity and power. We also see that those who have been elected to be bishops or elders are to be holy and in good standing before God. The five-fold ministry gifts, chooses bishops and elders to serve the people, the five-fold ministry gifts are chosen by Jesus Christ. The five-fold ministers belong to Jesus and should reflect His character and love for people.

However, we are witnessing those who are pronouncing to anyone who will lend an ear to them, that they are apostles or prophets because they love the title and accolades of men. Every apostle and prophet that I know, have questioned if they were really appointed by God at the beginning of their call to such a great office. They are slow to accept the title, not desiring to call themselves something God has not called them. After confirmation after confirmation by God and man, they slowly accepted the calling. Jesus calls, appoint and anoint these “gifts” with gifts to the Church to grow her up correctly.

A person called to be a teacher, should be able to teach and dissect the Word. A ministry gift Teacher will pull out props or paint a picture that is so clear that you can see what they are saying. Other ministers can teach, but the teacher who stands in the office has an anointing to do so. They love teaching and seeing people come to the knowledge of the truth. They stand on sound doctrine and will take the time to study the Word to be accurate in what they teach. There will be no mistake about it, that they are gifted by God to accurately teach the Word of Truth.

The person called to the Office of Evangelist will be able to draw the people with a Word from Heaven in power, that will impact the lives of the people long after the evangelist leaves. They are anointed to preach the word and to penetrate the hearts of the people who hear it. Other ministers can preach the gospel as well, but they will not be as effective as the Office Evangelist. Many people call women ministers evangelist, because they don’t want to call them by whatever office God has called them into depending on the denomination’s acceptance of women who preach. Souls will be saved when the Office Evangelist shows up and begin to deliver the gospel. They have an anointing by God to impact the hearts of the people.

The Office Pastor will have a special love for those they cover. They will be passionate about their call to this office and walk in an anointing of patience, compassion and mercy for the people that they have been placed over by God. They will not leave the sheep and will make sure that every stone is unturned when ministering to a difficult member. They are anointed and committed to the flock and loves them. They protect the flock and will not run off when things get difficult for they are anointed for trouble. They know each member intimately and are concerned about their well being. Even when they don’t feel appreciated, they understand that Jesus is their Head and that they remain in the rank because of their understanding of the call and their devotion to Jesus, who loves them. Anyone can be called pastor, but the Office of Pastor comes with an incredible anointing.

The Office of the Prophet is one in which the true prophet hears from God. There will be others who can prophesy, for some operate under the spirit of prophesy, but the Office of the prophet is one of authority and power. Prophets are called to build up, encourage and establish the Believers in the Church. Their Words should be spoken in love and they walk in integrity. The office prophet will speak what He hears and if he/she decrees a thing, the Lord will not allow his words to fall to the ground. The prophet set the order in the Church and loves the things of God. The authority of the prophet is to encourage the Believers who they are in Christ. They are also familiar with brokenness, but they are also familiar with the voice of God, who strengthens them.

The Office of the Apostle encompasses all the five-fold ministry gifts. All true apostles can operate in every office gift’s anointing at one time or another. They are the father and mothers of the Church, raising the standard for ministry. They are preachers and teachers of the Word of God and establishes or plants Churches. They have had a personal experience with the Lord, as did Paul. They function as the prophets in visions and other prophetic functions. They function in a governmental office of the Body of Christ and identify other five-fold ministry office gifts. They are “sent ones” and they operate in miracles, signs and wonders. Those called as apostles should never walk in an attitude of pride or be pompous, for they understand that their lives are to bring glory to God and not themselves. Apostles, like prophets are familiar with brokenness and betrayal, but they don’t focus on pain, for their sight is on the Lord Jesus Christ and to mature the Church to do the work of the kingdom.

The Minister of Helps is to serve the Body where they find there is a need. They have passion to serve the body of Christ and to display His love while doing so. They are never competitive with the five-fold offices, but rather, they accent the ministry gifts. They walk in love offering help to those who have a need and can also move in healings. They are an important part of the Body of Christ for they are assistants to the other office gifts. They understand that the Body is fitly joined together.


This is not an exhaustive study on the five-fold ministry gifts, just a quick overview. The focus is not on the characteristics of the gifts, but rather the character of the gifts.

I encourage all ministers to read 1Timothy 6, to refresh yourself in the walk that you have been called into and realize that you are set apart to walk holy before God and man.