Apostle Paul’s holistic revelation in Ephesians 4 is stunningly clear: Jesus’ “five-fold” teams integrate godly character and capacity!
When Jesus followers begin reading this chapter, they are entering uncharted territory within the Bible. No one has explained Jesus’ methodology with such precision and simplicity. And Paul’s starting point? The character of Jesus:
“As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” Vs. 1-3
But Paul is not done:
“Speak the truth in love ……. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ, God forgave you.” Vs. 15; 32
Paul’s conviction seems obvious: Jesus’ virtues of love are the non-negotiable foundation for His core leadership teams.
With this pre-condition in place, Paul now expands on the Master’s team-of-teams paradigm:
“So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.” Vs 11-16
In other words, Jesus catalyzed a world-changing team by combining the foundation of God’s character (spiritual fruit of humility, gentleness, patience etc.) with the diversity of God’s capacity (spiritual gifts of apostleship, prophecy, evangelism, pastoring and teaching).
What an insightful strategy for launching God-honoring visions…..the next blog’s focus!
Choosing Jesus’ ways again today,
