主題：屬靈恩賜系列（二）：你知道為何五重職事是必需的？
日期：2015年10月12日
作者：Diane Lake

“他所賜的，有使徒，有先知，有傳福音的，有牧師和教師“（以弗所書4：11）

最近，我們一對牧養當地教會的好朋友離婚了，並且離開他們的職位。從服事而來的壓力和要求讓這對夫妻難以負荷。

我們的朋友並不孤單。最近，我讀到一些令人深省的統計數據：

- 每一個月有1,800名牧師離開服事的禾場。
- 有40% 的牧師將會在十年內離開服事的禾場。
- 有50% 的牧師無法滿足工作上的需求。
- 有80% 的人認為牧養事工為其家庭帶來負面的影響。
- 有45% 的牧師表示，他們所經歷的抑鬱或倦怠的程度已經到了他們必需要從服事中請假缺席。
- 有33% 的人認為在他們服事的頭五年內，就已經感覺精力耗竭。

沒有辦法來完全減輕牧師們每天所面對的壓力。然而，當五重職事沒有在今日的教會裏完全運作讓這樣的影響大大加劇。

讓牧師試圖單獨來裝備和建造基督的身體並非神的心意。在經文中甚至沒有一處建議，一位資深的牧者已經被賜與一切所必需的來完善塑造一群特定的會眾。

五重職事乃是在人們特殊的恩賜和能力中合作，共同治理，引導，凝聚，奠基和保護神的子民。

神服事的手

“所以，你們要自卑，服在 神大能的手下…“（彼前5：6）

當基督升天，祂將祂的整個外袍，分開，賜給五個部分的男性和女性。要達到完美，成熟和裝備聖徒，這五個部分都需要。“直等到我們眾人在真道上同歸於一，認識 神的兒子，得以長大成人，滿有基督長成的身量”（弗 4：13）。這些恩賜的功能，有時也被稱為裝備或耶穌升天以降下的恩賜，以及它們如何能完善地組合在一起可以藉著實際上一隻手如何運作的比喻來更加清楚地理解。

使徒：拇指

拇指並非位居反對或超過其它手指的位置，但它是被設計來完成手的全部功用和能力。使徒在行政管理方面運作並（連同先知）奠定適當的教義和屬靈結構的根基（參弗2：20）。使徒主要在醫治，信心，行在神蹟中，智慧的言語，辨別諸靈，（有時）發預言這方面的恩賜中運作。

在現代教會中，他們將負責發展和差派行神蹟事工的使徒團隊，以及啟動，分賜和顯現使徒性的恩膏給其他信徒的肢體們。他們會前往其他地區和國家以建立新的教會和幫助當地的牧師在原有的會眾中進行恢復秩序和合一的工作。

先知：食指

食指通常被稱為指引的手指 – 先知在啟示下運作以及為信徒指引道路。先知的職位和預言的恩賜是不同的 - 它帶著管理性的權柄和是個具有更高責任的角色。預言的恩賜是為了造就，勸勉和安慰人，而先知是在指導，指示，訓斥，判斷和啟示中運作 - 基督為了要來潔凈和完善祂的教會而選擇要對其說話的任何對象。

先知也被賜與特別的能力來辨識神給個人的恩賜和對個人的呼召，並啟動人們進入他們的服事。不是每個發預言的人都是先知（正如不是每個行神蹟的人都是一位使徒）。

在今天的教會中，先知會監督合格的預言團隊的發展以能夠來提供準確，及時的給個人的預言，並組成預言長老會 – 服事者和長老們的群體，為了先知性的服事個人或是教會而聚集一處。

傳福音的：中指

中指是延伸最遠的手指 - 它代表了對外延展將福音傳到世界的事工。

在今天的教會中傳福音者會監督傳福音和對外擴展，並為耶穌贏得靈魂保持熱情和異象，此外並訓練先知性的傳福音者。

牧師：無名指

無名指是戴婚戒的手指，象徵著牧師對他羊群的承諾。先知和傳福音者可能會來來去去，但牧師在牧養的關係中對當地的聖徒負有責任。

那些在當地教會教牧部門中的牧師將監督家庭小組的領導並協助資深牧師處理一些職務，如婚禮，葬禮，探訪，禱告，諮詢和其他部門的服事。

教師：小指

雖然它是最小的手指，小指卻是不可少的並有提供平衡的功能。教師藉著教導神的話語的原則而將教會奠基在真理上。

教學部門在現代教會中將監督教育和培訓部門，包括寫作和發展課程，並進行教學工作。

結論

•一個人不自己呼召或委任自己五重職事中的任何一項。這是一個恩賜或是基督自己的呼召，並逐漸的，會經由其他信徒得著證實。

•一般情況下，一個五重職事有一個初始的首要呼召和神聖的啟動以充分顯現一個裝備的恩賜。它們也可能在五重職事的另一個領域裏有第二個較多的服事，除此之外，在不同時間被呼召來顯現其他五重職事的恩賜。

•最後，牧師可能讓他/她的會眾來符合他/她服事的教義，信仰和方法，但並沒有進入基督的豐盛中。這需要所有五個耶穌升天以降下的恩賜來共同實現此一目標。

願我們 - 作為一個教會 - 謙卑自己在神大能的手下，並承認這些祂授權以代表祂的心意的人們。



Do You Know Why Fivefold Ministry is Essential?
October 12th, 2015
By Diane Lake
http://www.generals.org/articles/single/do-you-know-why-fivefold-ministry-is-essential/

“And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers.” (Eph. 4:11)

Recently, good friends of ours who pastored a local church were divorced and left their position. The pressures and demands of ministry simply became too much for this couple to handle.

Our friends are not alone. Lately, I’ve encountered some sobering statistics:

- 1800 pastors leave the ministry every month.
- 40% of pastors will not be in ministry in ten years.
- 50% of pastors feel unable to meet the needs of the job.1
- 80% believe that pastoral ministry negatively affects their families.
- 45% of pastors say they’ve experienced depression or burnout to the extent they needed a leave of absence from ministry.
- 33% felt burned out within their first five years of ministry.2

There is no way to entirely alleviate the pressure that pastors face on a daily basis. However, the strain is greatly compounded when the fivefold ministry gifts are not fully operating in churches today.

It is not God’s intention for pastors to attempt to equip and build up the body alone. There are no scriptures that even suggest that one senior shepherd has been given everything necessary to perfect a particular congregation.

Fivefold ministers are meant to cooperate in their special giftings and abilities, and together govern, guide, gather, ground and guard God’s people.3

God’s Hand of Ministry

“Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God… “ (1 Pet. 5:6)

When Christ ascended, He took His whole ministry mantle, divided it, and gave it in five parts to men and women. All five are needed to perfect, mature and equip the saints “till we all come to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of… the fullness of Christ” (Eph. 4:13). The function of these gifts, also sometimes called equipping or ascension gifts, and how they fit together can better be understood through the analogy of how a physical hand functions.

The Apostle: The Thumb

The thumb is not in opposition to or over the fingers, but it is designed to complete the full function and power of the hand. Apostles function in administration and (together with prophets) lay the foundation with proper doctrinal and spiritual structure (Eph. 2:20). Apostles move primarily in the gifts of healing, faith, working of miracles, word of wisdom, discerning of spirits, and (sometimes) prophecy.

In a modern church setting, they would oversee the development and sending of apostolic teams for miracle ministries, as well as activating, imparting and demonstrating the apostolic anointing to other bodies of believers. They would participate in going to other regions and nations to establish new churches and help local pastors restore order and unity in existing congregations.

The Prophet: The Forefinger

The forefinger is often called the pointer finger—the prophet functions in revelation and points the way for believers. The office of the prophet is different than the gift of prophecy—it carries a governmental authority and role with higher responsibility. The gift of prophecy is for edification, exhortation and comfort, whereas the prophet flows in areas of guidance, instruction, rebuke, judgment and revelation—whatever Christ chooses to speak for the purification and perfection of His church.

Prophets are also given the special ability to recognize God’s gifts and callings on individuals and can activate people into their ministries. Not everyone who prophesies is a prophet (just as not everyone who moves in miracles is an apostle).

In a church today, prophets would oversee the development of qualified prophetic teams to be able to give accurate and timely personal prophetic words, and form prophetic presbyteries—groups of ministers and elders who come together for the purpose of ministering prophetically to individuals or a church body.4

The Evangelist: The Middle Finger

The middle finger extends the furthest on the hand—it represents the outreach ministry extended to evangelize the world.

An evangelist in today’s church would oversee evangelism teams and outreach, and maintain passion and vision for winning souls to Jesus, in addition to training prophetic evangelists.

The Pastor: The Ring Finger

The ring finger is the wedding ring finger, symbolizing the pastor’s commitment to his flock. Prophets and evangelists might come and go, but the pastor is bound to the local saints in a shepherding relationship.

Those in the pastoral department of a local church would oversee home group leaders and assist the senior pastor in duties such as weddings, funerals, visitations, prayer, counseling, and other ministerial capacities.

The Teacher: The Little Finger

Although it’s the smallest finger, the little finger is essential and provides balance. The teacher grounds the church in truth through instruction in the principles of the Word of God.

The teaching department in a modern-day church would oversee the educational and training ministries, including writing and developing curriculum and performing teaching duties.

In Conclusion…

- A person does not call or appoint himself to any of the fivefold ministries. It is a gift or call of Christ Himself and, in time, is confirmed by other believers.

- Generally, a fivefold minister has one initial primary calling and divine enablement to fully manifest one equipping gift. They may also have a secondary leaning in another fivefold area, and additionally, be called to manifest other five-fold gifts at various times.

- Finally, a pastor may conform his or her congregation to his/her doctrines, beliefs and methods of ministry—but not into Christ’s fullness. It takes all five ascension gifts working together to accomplish this.

May we—as a church—humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God and recognize those He has empowered to represent His heart.