Ephesians 4:11-16 And He Gave Evangelists… (1)

“And He Gave Evangelists…” (1)

Introduction: Many Christians may not be aware of the decreasing number of evangelists and qualified shepherds in our brotherhood. I’m sure most of you would understand the seriousness of this problem. 

The danger is that when a church has good elders and a good preacher, not much thought is given to the many churches who may not have elders and cannot get it an evangelist,—someone who does more than preach a sermon. This need is not about a “sermon,” it is about what Paul commanded Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:5, “Do the work of an evangelist.”

The problem begins with leaders who did not prepare themselves for the work and/or do not place their primary focus on Ephesians 4:1-16. Paul’s direct proclamation in Ephesians 4:11-12 teaches that the apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds and teachers are gifts from Jesus to his body for the equipping of the saints and for the growth of the body, remind us of how important evangelists, shepherds and teachers are to the church. This text is the foundation for growth! 

In this lesson, we will concentrate more on evangelists than on shepherds because Paul taught in 1 Timothy and Titus that evangelists are required to teach and equip the church so that qualified shepherds can be appointed.

Of course, your first response might be, “What does that have to do with me? What could I possibly do to help that situation?” That is the subject of this sermon. There are principles we can all understand better and efforts we can all make to improve us and any other church that we may influence in the future.

Disclaimer: Much of what we will discuss in this lesson has often or “generally” taken place in a significant percentage of churches. I am not suggesting that all churches or even a majority of churches are failing their calling. But there certainly is and have been a strong trend toward both preachers and shepherds to fail pursuing the requirements of Ephesians 4:1-16.

1. The Work of Evangelists, Shepherds and Teachers (Ephesians 4:11-16) What do you see? 
   1. Primarily, it bring “the whole body to maturity.” 
   2. Maturity includes…?
      1. Unity of the faith
      2. Knowledge of the Son of God to a perfect man (not tossed by every wind of doctrine)
      3. Able to “speak the truth in love”
      4. The whole body knit and joined together so that every part does its share
2. The Pastoral Epistles: Paul’s Challenge to an Evangelist (imagine yourself as Timothy or Titus and being given this charge)
   1. 1 Tim. 1:3 “…that you may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine, nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies… The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. Certain persons, by swerving rom these, have wandered away into vain discussion, desiring to be teachers…” 
   2. Roles of men and women in the church
   3. Modesty (teaching women not to overdress!)
   4. Appointing elders/deacons
   5. Warning against various departures from the faith
   6. Instructing widows and the church concerning widows
   7. Instructions to servants and masters
   8. Instructions concerning contentment and the love of money
   9. Charge the rich…
   10. 2 Tim. 2:2 “…what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust to faithful men/woman who will be able to teach others also.” 
   11. 2 Tim. 2:14 “Remind them of these things, and charge them before God not to quarrel about words, which does not good, but only ruins the hearers.”
   12. 2 Tim. 4:16 “…avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness.” 
   13. 2 Tim. 4:2-4 “…preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching…” 
   14. 2 Tim. 4:5 “…always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.” 
   15. Titus 1:5 “This is why I left you at Crete, so that you might set in order things that are wanting…. And appoint elders in every town as I directed you…” 
   16. Titus 1:10 “For there are many who are insubordinate, empty talkers and deceivers…they must be silenced, since they are upsetting whole families by teaching for shameful gain what they ought not to teach.” 
   17. Titus 1:12 “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons. This testimony is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith…” 
   18. Instruct older men, younger men, older women, younger women, bondservants and masters.
   19. Titus 1:15 “Declare these things; exhort and rebuke with all authority.” 
   20. Titus 3:10 “As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him…” 
   21. Titus 3:14 “And let our people learn to devote themselves to good works, so as to help cases of urgent need, and not be unfruitful.” 
   22. Summarizing the above survey, 2 Timothy 4:5, “Do the work of an evangelist.” If you were Timothy or Titus, how do you feel about what you have been called to do? 

3. Why the Need for a Full-Time Evangelist?
   1. In the OT, God set aside a whole tribe in Israel so that the nation would always be instructed and reminded of the teachings of God’s word. 
   2. 2 Chronicles 31:4 “And he commanded the people who lived in Jerusalem to give the portion due to the priests and the Levites, that they might give themselves to the Law of the LORD.” 
   3. Hosea 4:4-7 “Do not let anyone accuse or contend against anyone else: for my case is against you priests! You stumble day and night, and the false prophets stumble with you; you have destroyed your own people. You have destroyed my people by failing to acknowledge me! Because you refuse to acknowledge me, I will reject you as my priests. Because you reject the law of your God, I will reject your descendants. The more the priests increased in numbers, the more they rebelled against me. They have turned their glorious calling into a shameful disgrace!” (NET)
   4. Malachi 2:4-9 
   5. If God needed a whole tribe to give themselves the God’s law (5 books) and teach the people, how much more is that needed today with 66 books? Cf. 2 Timothy 3:14-17.
   6. In many, if not most Christian’s minds, the work of an evangelist has been reduced to preaching sermons. That is not a recent problem and if that thinking does not change, the cause of the gospel and God’s kingdom will be seriously damaged.

4. The Challenge & Problem Before Us and in the Kingdom
   1. We are typically concerned only about our local church, where as in the NT the overriding concern is God’s Kingdom. [Recent conversation: a friend from another state telling me about their church’s condition and that he has watched 9 churches close their doors over the past few years. I pre-supposed the reason to be the inability to get an evangelist––someone who would direct evangelism efforts and lead the church in Bible teaching and preaching. His answer? “That is exactly the reason the churches dwindled and eventually folded.”]
      Consider: What would have happened to the churches in Crete if Paul had not sent Titus? 
   2. The decreasing number of evangelists even among those who “preach.” Many decide to preach out of need in a local church or sometimes other personal reasons like being out of work. However, even though I’m sure most of these men have good intentions, their understanding of the work is often limited to giving a sermon and teaching a Bible class at the building.
   3. The increasing number of Christians/churches who do not see the importance of an evangelist. Why would some come to that conclusion?
      If the men of the church can preach a sermon, why should we have a preacher? After all, many of the preachers they have heard aren’t nearly as good as the men they have in their local church.
   4. Training programs that concentrate on sermons and sermon delivery, but neglect training in the work outside of the pulpit.
   5. To summarize the problem, even though there are young men who have a passion to learn the work of an evangelist, understanding the full meaning of the work has been seriously compromised, especially in the last 50 years. 
   6. There are fewer and fewer young men who are willing to consider being an evangelist. Why? And what can we do?  (Stay Tuned for Part 2)

Berry Kercheville

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