KEY SCRIPTURE: 1 Timothy 3:8 ” Likewise must the deacons be grave, not double-tongued, not given to much wine, not greedy of filthy lucre;”

We continue looking at other services in the house of God. We consider deacons in this study. A deacon is defined as one who executes the command of another. Another meaning for a deacon is a servant or an attendant.

In the book of Acts of the Apostles chapter 6 there arose some controversies among the brethren concerning the sharing of food. The apostles decided that they would maintain their role in ministering the word of God and prayer, whiles others were to be chosen who would man the affairs of the food. (Acts 6:1-10). These men were the first deacons of the church.

In 1st Timothy 3:8-12 apostle Paul made a list of the qualifications of a deacon. They were apparently not very different from that of the elder or pastor. These qualifications actually talked about the character of the individual. I do not see any of the supernatural gifts being said here. Many people are very fascinated about the gifts of the Holy Spirit without taking time to let the fruit of the Spirit bear in their lives. Please note this; in every kind of service in the house of God, the pure or real servants are those who manifest or bear the fruit of the Spirit. There are cases of those who live sinful lives yet the gifts do manifest in their lives.. If you are such a one do not take that as God’s approval for your wrong ways. God, out of love for his children would allow the gift to manifest so his children who, may be praying for healing would be healed, and those who need direction may receive a word of wisdom and have that direction they need.

Remember the story of Moses in Numbers 20:8. The Lord God asked Moses to speak to the rock, to give out water so the Lord’s name would be sanctified. Moses out of anger hit the rock. He did the wrong thing yet water came. The Lord said to Him in Numbers 12:12, that because he did not obey His instruction he would not go to the Promised Land.

 Good godly character is the only criteria to have an acceptable ministry or service before the Lord. May every servant in God’s house take heed to these things.

 PRAYER

Heavenly Father I pray for all servants in your house, especially the deacons. May they understand your ways, and yield themselves to you to serve you uprightly with no selfish motives.

FURTHER STUDIES.

Galatians 5:22-23 ” But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law”.

1 Timothy 3:11 ” Even so must their wives be grave, not slanderers, sober, faithful in all things”.

KEY SCRIPTURE: Ephesians 4:8, 11 ” Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers”;

Great teachers are those who practice what they teach. Ezra 7:10, reads “For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the Lord, and to do it and to teach in Israel, statutes and judgements”. Somebody said talking is cheap. It is giving substance to what one says that gives the hearers something to hold and go by.

Ezra was a scribe, (Ezra 7:6). This means he was a recorder of the biblical truths from Moses times. Ezra 7:10 says he prepared his heart to seek the law of the Lord and to do it and then teach it. The order is SEEK, DO and TEACH. This should be the practice of every teacher of the Bible.

Our Lord Jesus is the greatest teacher of all times. He gave great insight into the word of God and also demonstrated what He taught. He culminated it by offering His body on the cross for all humanity. Please look at the following scripture from the Easy English Bible. James 3:1 “My Christian brothers not many of you should be teachers. God will judge everybody. But at that time he will demand more from teachers than he will demand from other people”. This is a very serious message to all who teach. The Lord is only telling teachers to do as they teach or say.

Ezra’s decision and action is what every teacher must do. Ezra prepared his heart. It is a heart preparation culminating in a decision to be obedient. Many people pray asking the Lord to make them obey the scriptures. Well this is one of the deceptions of the enemy. God would put His word in your heart. He may even stir your emotion but decisions and actions are the sole responsibility of an individual. This is the reason God holds us accountable for our actions. “The decision always rests with us”.

 Actions are always a result of conviction. One may hold an information, a thought or an idea, yet he or she may not be fully convicted about it. Conviction comes by persuasion. Persuasion is a product of continual reflection or meditation. It is very necessary that every teacher of the word takes time to meditate or reflect over what he or she may be studying as well as what he teaches. This would enable him to be a doer of what he teaches.

PRAYER

Father, once again I pray for every teacher of your word. May the Holy Spirit stir in them a desire to know you personally and to yield totally to your word and ways.

FURTHER STUDIES.

Matthew 7:24-25.  “Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock”.

James 1:25. “But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed”.

KEY SCRIPTURE: Ephesians 4:8, 11.  “Wherefore he saith, when he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers”.

We continue with our studies on the ministerial offices. This time we look at the Teacher. In all these discussions I have tried to make it clear that none of these ministerial gifts is made in a classroom. The scripture said “He led captivity captive and gave gifts unto men, and he gave some pastors and teachers. All these offices are divine gifts. Nobody makes himself one. Your availability and devotion to God would allow Him to place that gift on you.

Although none of these gifts is made in the classroom, schooling greatly polishes the gifts of God. One’s ability to present these truths clearly, and understandably is all because of the training he obtained   from school. Schooling therefore is very necessary yet it is not schooling that makes anyone either an apostle, a prophet, an evangelist, a pastor or a teacher.

A teacher happens to be placed at the tail end of the ministerial gifts, yet it is in no way the least. Please note this, a false teacher is more dangerous than a false prophet.

A prophet may deceive a person or group of people, whiles a wrong teacher will destroy generations. The teachings of Jehovah Witnesses about the Holy Spirit, blood transfusion and the deity of our Lord Jesus has influenced and affected generation of people. Dying people have refused blood transfusion because of their teachings

Teaching is programming an individual or a group of people to think, act in a particular way. It is a very important gift or office that God gives to men.

The Bible is the material for teaching. Every teacher of the bible must know the scriptures exceedingly well. He must be one who reads the Bible very well. 2nd Timothy 2:15 says “study to show thyself approved unto God, a Workman that need not be ashamed rightly dividing the word of truth”. The word study is not just telling to read the scriptures. It is the Greek word “Spoudazo” and it means, to be diligent, make haste, to exert one’s self. The teacher must be diligent to search for the truths of the scripture. Many Bible teachers realises that after they have studied the scripture, the Holy Spirit keeps expounding on them even when they are not in their study times. The teacher receives a divine insight into the scriptures as the Spirit compares scripture with scripture.

  PRAYER

I pray for all teachers of the word of God to gain more insight into the word of God to bring out truths that would affect our world and the lives of many.

FUTHER STUDIES.

Ezra 7:10 “For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the LORD, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments.”

1 Timothy 1:7” Desiring to be teachers of the law; understanding neither what they say, nor whereof they affirm.”

KEY SCRIPTURE: Ephesians 4:8, 11 “Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some,pastors and teachers;”

The pastor is a shepherd He is a shepherd of the flock of God.

Our Lord Jesus is the chief shepherd. We would just do well to learn from him. In Matt 9:36, the Lord said”But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them,because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd”.This is the heart of a Pastor. He was moved with the need they had. He was not considering what they would give to Him.     

 The Lord Jesus said the following about the good shepherd in John 10:11″I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep”.This virtue is the great line separating good shepherds from ordinary shepherds and hirelings. The Lord said the good Shepherd lays his life down for his sheep. The word is sacrifice. Sacrifice means willingly giving out something dear, expensive or costly.

The Lord also talked about the hireling, the man who is working for his pay or what he would earn. The Lord said   in  John 10:12 “But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep”. This man or pastor is separated from the sheep. He is not ready to lose anything for the sheep. What concerns him is that which would satisfy him.There are so many such pastors these days.

The Lord taught in John 17:19,that he sanctifies Himself that the sheep may be sanctified. This is the principle of like gives birth to like or teaching by setting the right example.Most children take after their father or parents. Pastor, don’t live secretly in sin and think you can produce holy children. It does not work that way.                                                                                         

  The Lord also taught that when the blind leads the blind they all get lost. The pastor must search the scriptures to feed himself first and then feed the flock of God as well.

     PRAYER.                              

    Heavenly father, I pray for all pastors.Give them the heart of the good shepherd. Bring great transformations to the body of Christ, through the effective roles of all pastors.     

 FURTHER STUDIES.

John 10:14 “I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine”.

Matthew 15:14 “Let them alone:they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.”

KEY SCRIPTURE: .Ephesians 4:8, 11 ” Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some,pastors and teachers.”

 Pastors are indeed one of the commonest ministerial gifts that one may find around. Anytime a man or a woman completes bible school, he or she is called a Pastor. Are pastors made from the Bible schools? Is pastor a name or title given to young men and woman who have a zeal for God?

The challenge of getting the men and women as pastors’ act rightly to an appreciable degree is made probable when you have systems that has been put in place to monitor the activities of such people… In the event that a man or woman start gathering people with no external supervision, then the tendency for excesses becomes very great.

To be a pastor is a divine call.Those who appoint people into this office must allow the Holy Spirit to give them an insight into the condition of heart of the individuals they seek to appoint as pastors. Individuals who also decide to gather people for meetings must do so not based on any selfish motives. It is rather unfortunate to hear scandal after scandal about persons who call themselves pastors. The following lamentation from Apostle Paul depicts what I am talking about and the ultimate effect on the lives of such people. Philippians 3:18-19  ( For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ :

 Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.)

The bible gives us standard qualifications that pastors must have..1 Timothy 3:1 “This is a true saying, if a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work”. This verse says. It is a good thing for a person to desire to be a pastor. Pastors,shepherd people using God’s word to instruct and help them grow in their faith to become matured Christians. It is a good thing for any man to desire to play the role of a pastor. The scripture gives us certain qualifications that pastors must have. (1st Timothy 3:2–7)

These qualifications are as follows:

1. Blameless

2.  Husband of One wife.

3   Vigilant 

 4.   Sober

 5.  Of good behavior

 6.  Given to hospitality

7.  Able to teach

8. Not given to wine.

 9. Not a striker or a brawler.

10. Not greedy about money.

11. A patient man or woman.

12. Not a covetous character.                              

 13. Able to rule his house well.   

14. Not a novice.    

15.   Has a good report from those outside. (For an in depth study into this topic, please get my book titled: Biblical Qualifications of a Pastor)  

    PRAYER                                                                                               

 Heavenly Father, I pray for all pastors especially the very young ones in ministry. May your grace strengthen them to play their roles as pastors more effectively and overcome the deceptions and schemes of the evil one.   

   FURTHER STUDIES.  

Jeremiah 3:15 “And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding”.John 10:11 “I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep”.

KEY SCRIPTURE: Ephesians 4:8, 11 ” Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some,pastors and teachers;”

 The next ministerial gift or office to consider is the EVANGELIST. Every Christian is called to be an evangelist.  We are all commissioned by the Lord to go to all the world and make. Disciples of all nations (Matt 28:19&20)

 In spite of the fact that we are all to do the work of an evangelist, God through His special grace appoints certain individuals, either male or females to be evangelists.

The evangelist is a proclaimer of the gospel. This is the main reason for his or her calling. His message is about the love and forgiveness of God, and calls on men to accept His salvation.There are some evangelist who are revivalists for the body of Christ although their prime calling is to call men unto salvation

 An evangelist is a gift from God. No one goes to a bible school to become an evangelist, yet through one’s dedication to God in prayer and holiness, the Holy Spirit may appoint an individual to become an evangelist. It is by divine appointment for God normally confirms this calling with certain unique gifts of the Holy Ghost. The power gifts, which comprises, gift of faith, gift of working of miracles and the gifts of healing are the gifts of the Spirit that is seen in the ministry of an evangelist. Other gifts like the word of knowledge and the gift of discerning  of spirits can also manifest in an evangelist. Please note; the Holy Spirit may choose to manifest these gifts yet one’s dedication to God in prayer, fasting and holiness is very paramount in allowing the Holy Spirit to manifest these gifts. Miracle signs and wonders has a special role in publicizing the gospel. Evangelist T L Osborn could not convince the Indians to accept the gospel when he went there as a missionary because there was no miraculous signs to proof the authenticity of his message. He later encountered the resurrected Lord Jesus, through fasting and prayer and the miracles started. Multitudes now started going to his meetings.  

 The Lord may call you into the office of an evangelist,yet it would be up to you to wait on the Lord in prayer and fasting to activate the power in you.               .

      PRAYER 

Heavenly Father may you stir up the hearts of your children, to arise in power of the Spirit with signs and wonders following as they share the message about the Love of God.

 FURTHER STUDIES

2 Timothy 4:5 “But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry”..Isaiah 40:31 “But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint”.

KEY SCRIPTURE Ephesians 4:8, 11 ” Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. And he gave some, apostles; and some,prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;”

As we consider these ministerial gifts I wish to state that women are also keenly involved. In the office of the prophets, there are a number of women across the bible who were prophetesses. I am putting this across, because a number of people have resisted the place or the role of women being in the front line to do God’s work.

 Shall we go through the bible and consider some of the women who were prophetesses..

 Exodus 15:20 “And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances”. As a prophetess she exercised, some level of authority over some of the people.

The next one is Deborah. She was a judge in Israel. Judges 4:4 “And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, she judged Israel at that time. “In those days judges carried so much authority.They were like kings.

2 Kings 22:14 ” So Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asahiah, went unto Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe; (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the college;) and they communed with her”.

 Isaiah 8:3 “And I went unto the prophetess; and she conceived, and bare a son. Then said the LORD to me, Call his name Maher-shalal-hash-baz”.This woman was Isaiah’s wife

In the New Testament was Anna.Let’s see what the scriptures talked about her. Luke 2:36 “And there was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Aser: she was of a great age, and had lived with an husband seven years from her virginity”;

Please let us note that God is not a respecter of persons. Anyone who would purge himself or herself from sin and dedicate himself or herself unto God would be a vessel meet for the master’s use. The bible described Anna as a woman who married for only seven years and the husband died. From then she lived in the temple fasting day and night for eighty four years.(Luke 2::37)If a person dedicates herself this way won’t the Lord  visit her and tell her secrets that other men may not know?

 God’s dealings with people is not according to gender but purely on the basis of one’s dedication. Acts 10:34, 35

PRAYER

Lord I pray, that every child of God will set him or herself apart unto you so that you could likewise use them for whatever you intend to.

FURTHER STUDIES

Luke 2:37  “And she was a widow of about fourscore and four years, which departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day”.

2 Timothy 2:21 ” If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour,sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, and prepared unto every good work.”

KEY SCRIPTURE: Ephesians 4:8, 11 ” Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some,evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;”

We continue with our study on the ministerial gifts. Please understand that the Bible said “and he gave some apostles, some prophets …..” The scripture teaches that the Holy Ghost gave gifts to certain men and women that made them function in certain unique offices,as apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers. Although these people received supernatural gifts to function in these offices, they themselves became gifts unto the body of Christ.

 These ministerial gifts are stewards of the mysteries of the gospel 1 Corinthians 4:1” Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God”. As a steward of the mysteries of God, he or she is to serve the rest of the body of Christ with the gift given to him or her. (1st Corinthians.4:1)

The next ministerial gift to look at is the prophet. The prophet is the second in rank to the apostle. This office is not entered into by an election or one’s decision to become. It is the sole prerogative of the Holy Spirit to appoint someone into this office. Every prophet must function in all the revelational gifts, which includes, word of wisdom, word of knowledge and discernment of spirit. Some of the prophets may have all the power gifts. No prophet operates in all the nine gifts of the Holy Spirit. Any man who operates in all nine gifts of the Holy Spirit ceases to be a prophet but an apostle.

   The prophet in the Old Testament is called a seer (1st Samuel 9:9).The prophet has the ability to know into the past as well as seeing what is yet to happen in the future.  

Many people are fascinated about the ministry of the prophet .They want to know what the future holds. They therefore put a lot of pressure on these prophets to give them messages concerning the future. A person with such an attitude becomes dependent on the prophet. If there is any selfish tendencies in the prophet, he would easily manipulate you to be taking monies unduly from you. Everyone ought to learn to live by the word of God.

 The prophetic office is such an important office if he or she functions well. He or she is a great blessing to the body of Christ and even the nation as a whole. Whenever the church or nation is getting out of touch with God, it is the prophet who normally tells the mind of God to the people.     .

A prophet should be very bold since some of the messages about certain individuals are very difficult to talk about. They must also be very prayerful to be very sensitive to the voice of the Spirit. A prophet must not allow the love of money to influence him. He should be careful about extorting money from his audience. May the Lord help every true prophet of God.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father I pray for all true prophets of God to be faithful to their calling and resist various temptations that come their way.

FURTHER STUDIES

1 Kings 22:26-27  “And the king of Israel said, Take Micaiah, and carry him back unto Amon the governor of the city, and to Joash the king’s son;  And say, Thus saith the king, Put this fellow in the prison, and feed him with bread of affliction and with water of affliction, until I come in peace”.

1 Kings 17:1 “And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the LORD God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.”

KEY SCRIPTURE: Ephesians 4:8, 11 ” Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;”

In 1st Corinthians 12, we learnt about the nine a supernatural gifts of the Holy Ghost. We see in our key scripture another kind of gift. This time it is ministerial gifts.

A ministerial gift is a man or woman, who is divinely endued with abilities to function as an apostle, a prophet, an evangelist, a pastor and a teacher. Each office has its unique supernatural gifts that go with it.

 The Bible says such men are gifts to the body of Christ that is the church. We would consider the office of an apostle into detail.

An apostle ranks first in the order of authority and impact of operation. The word apostle means one who has been sent with full power of attorney to act on behalf of another.   He is sent to act on behalf of the Lord Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Ghost. An apostle is not called by man or made by man. No one also makes himself or herself an apostle. It is purely divinely appointed Galatians 1:1  Paul,an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;)He is sent to do a work for the Lord and therefore must be fully submitted and subjected to the Lord Jesus.

Some people also claim there are no apostles in our times, and rather it ended with the apostles in the bible.God still raises apostles in our days. The apostle is different from the other four offices because he has the ability to function fully in any of the other offices. This is the reason the apostle is ranked first in the ministerial offices and not the prophet. Any person,whether a man or woman with an apostolic calling has the ability, the authority and the anointing to raise up a church without any outside help. He could also stay there establish a school and send them forth to go and play various roles in the body of Christ. He can also set up a governing board for the church.Titus 1:5 “For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee”:

In our day the title apostle has become common with one not having the gifts and divine authority that go with it. 2 Corinthians 12:12 ” Truly the signs of an apostle were wrought among you in all patience, in signs, and wonders, and mighty deeds”.

I pray the church of God would be circumspect in the way we go about giving these titles or appointing ourselves into such offices.

   PRAYER

I pray that in these last days the Spirit of God would raise more men and women with an apostolic grace to speedup the end time work of the church of God, in Jesus name I have prayed.

FURTHER STUDIES

Acts 4:33 ” And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all”.

Acts 9:27. “But Barnabas took him, and brought him to the apostles, and declared unto them how he had seen the Lord in the way, and that he had spoken to him, and how he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus”.

KEY SCRIPTURE: 1 Corinthians 12:2.  Ye know that ye were Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb idols, even as ye were led.

We continue with our study on the counterfeiting of the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

The gift of healing is one gift that Satan has counterfeited so much. The danger with this one is that anyone who seeks healing from a false or demonic healer is contaminated with the devil or demons. Sicknesses can be very distressing so anyone in a desperate condition is tempted to go anywhere that promises relief.

We see a lot of these demonic healers all over. They even advertise their activities both on print an audio-visual media. They put up their posters and signboards throughout the nation. Many people including some Christians patronise these healers. I wish to state that there are a number of herbal medicine practitioners that have no relationship with any occult (hidden) powers. They have studied the practice and use them without any rituals to heal. Christians, don’t seek healing from fetishes or Mallams. These are clear demonic agents, who would get you filled with demons.

I read about a cult in the Philippines that perform surgery without a knife. They do surgery without any incisions on the body, with just their fingers. These healers have been patronised by swarms of people from England, Canada, Australia, the United States of America and many others who travel to the Philippines for treatment.

There is a story of a brother of a medical Doctor who claims his gallstones were removed without any incisions made, nor leaving any scar. When this doctor asked his brother for an X-ray examination, the results showed that the gallstones were still there.

Most of these demonic healing cults only deceive their patrons. There are cases of people who go with a kind of condition, I will call it  problem A,only to find out that problem A is no more there but he now has problem B. The truth is that they do not give permanent and lasting healing Jesus heals excellently. There are countless cases of both terminal and demonic diseases that have been completely wiped away by the power of God.  Medical reports always prove the condition is gone. A pregnant woman who was healed from ovarian cyst in one of our meetings was confirmed healed and is still well. God performs it totally.

    PRAYER

Father, I pray for all Christians to know and trust you when suffering from some ailment so they would not visit fetish and occultist homes for help.

FURTHER STUDIES:

2 Chronicles 16:12 ” And Asa in the thirty and ninth year of his reign was diseased in his feet, until his disease was exceeding great: yet in his disease he sought not to the LORD, but to the physicians”.

1 John 4:1.”  Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world”.