Heresy of the Evangelist
The heresy of the evangelist speaks of the fact that many of those men who have a Fivefold Ministry Gift of Evangelist will scold the congregation for not winning souls. They typically suppose that everyone can win souls the same way that they do. I have heard an evangelist speak about how he walked up to some guys eating their lunch, spoke a few words to them about the gospel and every one of them immediately got saved. So he concluded that if he could get unbelievers saved that easily then everyone else in the congregation can do the same thing! I have often heard Evangelists say that the only reason people are not saved is because the congregation is not going out and winning them to the Lord! This is so common with Evangelists that it is actually “typical” of their behavior! Most of the Evangelists I have met are like this and they suppose that everyone in the church can do the same thing that they are capable of. But there is a huge difference between being an Evangelist and being a layman “witness” for the Lord.
The Evangelist has a special Fivefold Ministry Gift that is a “calling” from God that includes authority to command unbelievers to be saved! I have seen Evangelists say only a few words like, “Would anyone like to be saved?” and hundreds of unbelievers came forward to accept Jesus! That is a supernatural gift that only the Evangelist possesses and the Evangelists are wrong to assume that because they have great authority to get people saved that everyone in the church also can get people saved in the same way!
In fact, many believers in the church have been put under great condemnation by having an Evangelist come and scold them from the pulpit for not bringing people to the Lord! Believers who were scolded by the Evangelist will typically feel great pressure to witness to unbelievers. They cannot sit next to someone on a plane or a bus or in a cafeteria without feeling compelled that they must witness. The Evangelist told them that if they do not share the gospel with the unbelievers then that unbeliever will go to hell and their blood will be on their hands! So many believers have been put under great pressure to witness to every person that they meet for fear that they will be responsible for their eternal damnation!
But being a witness for the Lord is vastly different than evangelizing someone with a Fivefold Ministry Gift of Evangelist! In a court of law, a “witness” does not speak until he is called upon to give his testimony. In the same way, believers are to “witness” when the unbeliever calls upon them and asks them how to be saved. Jesus also spoke about the believers letting their light shine before the unbelievers.
Matthew 5:14-16 (NASB)
14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;
15 nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.
16 “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
To let their light shine means that they live in such a way that they are like a light shining in darkness. They behave differently than the world and the distinguishing mark of the believer is that they should have divine order in every area of their life!
It is the purpose of the Fivefold Ministry to bring the believers into spiritual maturity and the measure of this maturity is that they have their lives in order in every possible way.
The unbelievers typically have their lives in great disorder because whenever they break God’s laws this introduces chaos and disorder and turmoil in their lives. The greatest need of the unbeliever is to have “divine-order” in their lives and the only source available on earth for this “divine-order” is that of the gospel.
The gospel can change lives and can turn immoral people (who are in bondage to vices and violence) into holy people who are free from bondage and who have love and peace in their lives and families. This peace and “divine-order” is what makes the believers attractive to the unbelievers. This makes the unbelievers want to ask the believers what is the hope that they have which makes them live in peace and have divine order. This peace and order of the believers will cause the unbelievers to ask them how to be saved! Jesus said that this is how a believer can become a “salty” Christian.
Matthew 5:13 (NASB)
13 “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.
Salt makes people become thirsty and this causes them to go and seek water. They will drink water out of their own freewill because they are thirsty. In the same way, when a believer has their lives in order according to the divine order of God then they will make the unbelievers thirst for righteousness. This can cause the unbelievers to come to the Lord because they are thirsty for spiritual things.
John 7:37 (NASB)
37 Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink.
The gospel satisfies the spiritual craving of mankind and this craving is just like thirst for water. Unbelievers who are under bondage to sin and whose lives are filled with disorder and violence and trouble are thirsty to have some peace. When they see mature believers, who have their personal lives and families in order, then this will cause the unbelievers to thirst for the same divine order. They will be compelled to ask the believer how to be saved when they see the change that the gospel has made in the lives of the believers!
This is how a layman is to be a “witness” by living a life of divine order and letting their light shine and being a “salty-believer” who causes unbelievers to thirst for righteousness.
But oftentimes believers have been compelled by the Evangelist to witness to unbelievers who were not ready to receive the gospel. Sharing the gospel with someone whose heart is not ready to receive is called “witnessing in the flesh!” Even if the layman should push the unbeliever (who is not ready) to repeat a salvation prayer, nothing will happen and no spiritual regeneration will occur because the unbeliever did not release any faith to be saved. They were only forced to repeat a prayer when their heart was not yet ready to receive salvation. But when an unbeliever is ready to receive salvation, they will ask for it and that is the time when the believer can witness to them and tell them how the gospel changed their own life and then they can ask the unbeliever if they would like to be saved also.
A witness is always called upon before they give their testimony in a court of law and the same is also true for the believers. They should not try to “witness in the flesh” and try to force every unbeliever that they meet to repeat a salvation prayer. They would have much more success if they would wait until the Holy Spirit prompts them to witness and this will typically occur when an unbeliever asks them how to be saved. When the unbeliever asks how to be saved then that means their hearts are ready to receive.
1 Peter 3:15 (NIV)
15 But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,
The scripture above says that the believer should be always prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks them to give the reason for the hope that they have. This means that the laymen are to live their lives as a “salty-believer” and cause the unbelievers to see their life of divine order and godliness. This will cause unbelievers to thirst for the kingdom of God and cause them to desire to have the same thing. When the unbeliever asks the believer about the hope which he has in the Messiah then they can then witness to them. A witness in a court of law does not speak until they are called upon to witness and it is the same is true for believers. They should live lives in such a way as to cause unbelievers to want to be saved and cause unbelievers to ask them to give their witness for the Lord.
1 Peter 3:1-2 (NIV)
1 Wives, in the same way be submissive to your husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives,
2 when they see the purity and reverence of your lives.
The scripture above says that a believing woman can win an unbeliever husband to the Lord without speaking any words or preaching to them. The unbeliever husbands can be saved because of the submissive attitude displayed by a believing wife and the purity and reverence that they see in their lives. In fact, this scripture shows that unbelievers are watching the believers and the biggest witness that believers have is their godly lives that are a testimony to the Lord and to the power of the gospel to change lives. Laymen believers do not have to preach to unbelievers or force them to repeat a salvation prayer but they can have a big effect simply by the testimony of having a changed life!
Maturity Evident by Divine Order
Ephesians 4:11-12 (KJV)-M
11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
12 For the perfecting (maturing) of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
The Fivefold Ministry is given to mature the believers and the Fivefold Ministry Gifts do the work of the ministry and they edify the body of Christ. It is their job to bring the laymen into full spiritual maturity which is reflected by the divine order that can be seen in the lives of the spiritually mature laymen.
1 Peter 5:3 (NASB)
3 nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock.
A Fivefold minister is to be an example to the congregation therefore it is required of every Fivefold minister that they have their personal lives and households in order. This can be seen in the requirements for those who serve in the ministry.
Titus 1:6 (NASB)
6 namely, if any man is above reproach, the husband of one wife, having children who believe, not accused of dissipation or rebellion.
The requirements of an elder are the same requirements for all of the Fivefold ministers and even the deacons as well. They are to live a lifestyle that is above reproach (which is living a life of all honesty and purity in every way). This is part of allowing their light to shine and to be a salty believer that makes unbelievers thirst for righteousness.
The Fivefold ministers (and deacons also) must be the husband of one wife and they must have their households in order with their wives under submission and their children obedient to their parents. If a man does not know how to manage his own household then he has no business holding a leadership position in God’s house-the church!
1 Timothy 3:5 (NASB)
5 (but if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of the church of God?),
The Fivefold minister (also deacons) are all required that they manage their household well because if they cannot do this least thing then they have no business trying to take care of the house of God! This means they are to have their wives under submission and their children obedient and every aspect of their households, finances, and daily life in order.
1 Timothy 3:4 (NASB)
4 He must be one who manages his own household well, keeping his children under control with all dignity
Leaders in the church must be men who know how to manage their household well. If a man has his wife for children out of order then he is disqualified from the ministry and even disqualified as a deacon.
1 Timothy 3:12 (KJV)
12 Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well.
The deacons do natural service in the church but even they are also required to live by the same high standards as the Fivefold minister. They are to be the husbands of one wife and rule their children and households well. There should be no form of disorder in their personal lives or family or they will be disqualified from the office of deacon.
1 Timothy 3:11 (NKJV)-M
11 Likewise the deacon’s wives must be reverent, not slanderers, temperate, faithful in all things.
If the wife of the deacon is out of order then in fact that deacon is disqualified from the ministry. The same is true of every one of the Fivefold ministry offices because they must have their wives and children and households put in order according to God’s divine order. The reason for this is because the Fivefold minister (and also deacons) are to be examples to the congregation that they were leading. It is God’s will that every man in the church put his own household in order. Every man is to be the head of his own household and have his wife under submission and his children obedient and every detail of their lives put in order. The Fivefold minister is to teach God’s principles of the bible to cause every man in the church to put his own household in order. The Fivefold minister is to live according to these same principles himself and have his own household and wife and children in order or else he is disqualified from the ministry!
1 Timothy 3:5-6 (KJV)
5 (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?)
6 Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil.
A novice is a man who does not know how to rule his own household and in fact spiritual immaturity can be measured by the disorder that exists in a man’s household. If his household is out of order it is the same thing as if this man was a toddler wearing diapers and using a baby bottle! No two-year-old baby has any business leading others when they themselves have to be carried around and have their diapers changed and are using a bottle! A novice appointed to leadership will typically be puffed up with pride assuming they qualify to lead others when in fact they are in need of help themselves! How a man’s rules his own household is an indication of his spiritual maturity and if his household and wife and children are out of order then such a man is a baby in Christ and knows nothing!
In fact, the purpose of the Fivefold ministry is to teach the principles needed to help the men in their congregation put their own households in order. The wives are required by God to submit to their husbands and allow their husbands to be leaders in the home. The children are required by God to be obedient to their parents and not resist their authority. When a man has his own household in order then this is something that will be attractive to unbelievers whose lives are typically lives of disorder and chaos.
But when the lives of believers are in disorder and messed up (even more than the unbelievers) then there is no way that an unbeliever is going to ask them how to be saved! He has enough problems already and does not need any of the disorder which is obvious to see in the lives of carnal Christians!
Heresy of Neglecting Children
Another common heresy that exists in the church is when a Fivefold minister erroneously believes that if he will take care of God’s business then God will take care of his children! Nothing could be farther from the truth!
I know a man who believed this lie that is commonly taught among many of the denominational churches. He was a Fivefold minister and he spent all of his time preaching and would leave early in the morning and come back late at night and he neglected his children because of it. His sons were raised in the church but they experienced no spiritual regeneration but were only church-wise! The reason that they never got saved was because they resented God because they felt God took their daddy away because their father was preaching all of the time but had no time for them. He falsely believed if he put the ministry first and working for God first place then God would take care of his children. But God is not going to come down and change your baby’s diapers because God gave that responsibility to the parents! God expects the Fivefold minister to care for his family and meet their needs for discipline and communication and emotional needs. The sons of this minister grew up to be carnal Christians who evidence no fruit of salvation and today their lifestyles are a shame to the kingdom of God!
This minister is famous and has a large congregation but in fact he is disqualified from the ministry according to biblical standards because his household is out of order. Even his wife became self-seeking and wanted to have limelight and attention from the people rather than fulfilling her role as a helpmeet. His wife and his children and his household out of order and this has become commonplace among many men called to the Fivefold ministry.
I know of a number of Fivefold ministers who have their personal lives and households out of order. How can such men teach their congregation about the biblical principles of divine order for the home if they are grossly out of order in their own households?
1 Samuel 3:12-13 (NIV2011)
12 At that time I will carry out against Eli everything I spoke against his family—from beginning to end.
13 For I told him that I would judge his family forever because of the sin he knew about; his sons blasphemed God, and he failed to restrain them.
This same thing happened with Eli who was a passive parent and let his sons grow up wild without disciplining them. God rejected the entire family line of Eli from the priesthood because he was passive with the disorder that existed in his own household. Until today, if a Fivefold minister has any disorder in this household then he is also disqualified in God’s sight from being in the ministry. How can a man be an example to the congregation when he himself is in need of help and his own household is full of disorder?
The high standards that God requires of the Fivefold ministry and the deacons is for the purpose that they be examples to the entire congregation! Therefore it is God’s will that every family in the church come into the divine order of God for their lives. Every family in the church should be led by a godly man who is a leader and provider and protector of his family. Every wife is to be submissive to her husband and allow him to be head of his home. Every child should be obedient to their parents. There should be no form of disorder of any kind in any of the homes of the believers.
The believers should have a clean and well-organized home with good food at every meal and the dishes should be cleaned and put away. There should not be pets living in the house that chew on furniture and release urine or excrement on the carpeting and floors and animal hair and body oils on upholstery and bedding. They should have a clean car that is washed and waxed and no garbage on the floors or dash or in the trunk. The drawers and storage should be orderly and organized without accumulating junk that they never use and do not need. A man should make decisions to either dispose of something or store in in organized manner so he can find it again when he needs it. A passive man will allow disorder and junk to accumulate and do nothing about it. Even if his family should whine and cry about wanting to keep pets, he should dispose of undisciplined pets that are causing uncleanness and disorder in his household. He should be a man of the house and his wife and children should obey what he commands without resisting him or complaining! It is the responsibly of the head of the household to put his house in order and enforce his will to see that nothing is disorderly in anyway. If anything is out of order in the home then it is the fault of the man who has permitted this disorder because of his own passivity!
Joshua 24:15 (NIV2011)
15 But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
Joshua said that as for him and his household they would serve the Lord! This was not an option for the household of Joshua because he enforced God’s rules in his own home! The same should be done by every man in the church because their households should all be in order from top to bottom in every detail!
If the men of the church had their homes in order and their wives were submissive and their children were obedient then this would be the greatest evangelist tool that the world has ever seen! Unbelievers would be asking them how to be saved! Unbelievers already have lives of disorder and they are looking for the divine order that comes from the gospel. If the believers display more disorder than the unbelievers then there is no way the unbelievers will ask them how they can be saved because the believers are living in a worse mess than they are!
This is the job of the Fivefold ministry and the purpose of the church to put the lives of believers in order. The Fivefold minister is to be an example to the congregation by living a life according to God’s divine order. It is OK if a new convert is still messed up and living in disorder because people understand he is newly saved and a baby will mess his diapers and have to be cared for. But the goal for a new believer is that one day he will come into full maturity and have his own household in order as well. The Fivefold minister is to teach all of the biblical principles about managing the home, raising children, financial management and being debt-free and having a savings and how to be a man and a leader of the home and all of the things that bring order and peace to the household.
Intruding into the Ministry
Mistranslation of Ephesians 4:11-12:
Most modern bible translations like NKJV, NASB, AMP, NIV, CJB and NIV2011 all alter the meaning of Ephesians 4:12 by changing the emphasis by moving commas in the punctuation. The end result of this alteration of scripture is to cause the scripture to falsely say that the Fivefold ministry prepares the saints (laymen) to do the work of the ministry and prepares the laymen so they can edify the body of Christ. All six modern translations below have altered the emphasis of Ephesians 4:12 by use of punctuation to give an alternate meaning to this scripture.
Ephesians 4:11-12 (NKJV)
11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers,
12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,
Ephesians 4:11-12 (NASB)
11 And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers,
12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ;
Ephesians 4:11-12 (AMP)
11 And His gifts were [varied; He Himself appointed and gave men to us] some to be apostles (special messengers), some prophets (inspired preachers and expounders), some evangelists (preachers of the Gospel, traveling missionaries), some pastors (shepherds of His flock) and teachers.
12 His intention was the perfecting and the full equipping of the saints (His consecrated people), [that they should do] the work of ministering toward building up Christ’s body (the church),
Ephesians 4:11-12 (NIV)
11 It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers,
12 to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up
Ephesians 4:11-12 (CJB)
11 Furthermore, he gave some people as emissaries, some as prophets, some as proclaimers of the Good News, and some as shepherds and teachers.
12 Their task is to equip God’s people for the work of service that builds the body of the Messiah,
Ephesians 4:11-12 (NIV2011)
11 So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers,
12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up
Out of seven bible translations [KJV, NKJV, NASB, AMP, NIV, CJB, NIV2011] only the KJV got it correct with Ephesians 4:11-12.
Only KJV Got it Right
Ephesians 4:11-12 (KJV)
11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
The KJV verses above reveals the threefold purpose of the Fivefold ministry. The Fivefold ministry is given to do the following:
1. To perfect the saints.
2. To do the work of the ministry.
3. To edify the body of Christ.
The way that people translate the bible is of vital importance because it will affect the way that people apply it in their lives. These modern translations of Ephesians 4:12 have in fact licensed laymen to intrude into the ministry for which they have not been called by God! But the layman cannot do the work of the ministry because they have not been born with the spiritual equipment necessary to do these things!
See the link “Endorsing Laymen Intruders” for more details.
Bad Case of Shipwreck
I have known many laymen who were taught these twisted scriptures and then were scolded by the Evangelist to go out and preach and some laymen have even tried to quit their secular jobs and enter the ministry. Probably the worst case of shipwreck that I have ever heard was that of a man who was over age fifty and he had a steady job and a good home. He heard the mistranslation of the Ephesians 4:12 scripture that the laymen were to do the work of the ministry and he also heard the Evangelists scolding the congregation for not going out to preach. So, this man did a very foolish and impulsive thing! He quit his job and sold his house and uprooted his family and moved them overseas to a primitive third-world nation where he assumed, he could do the job of an Apostle and be a missionary. But he immediately found that he had no calling or gift to be an Apostle-missionary and he had no fruit or results for the ministry. He also had no grace from God to live under primitive conditions and he ended up losing everything! He had to quit the mission field and return to his homeland again. He lost his house and possessions in the move and he even lost his seniority at his job. When he returned to his old job again, he was hired as a new-hire! This means he lost all of his seniority and even if he worked until he was 80-years old, he would never have any hope of retirement! This is an example of a great shipwreck and being “shipwrecked” means that a ship has been crushed into toothpicks and there is no hope of repairing it! This disaster was complete and something that could not be recovered from! This is one of the worst cases of shipwreck that I have ever heard about but it was based on the mistranslation of Ephesians 4:12 that pushes the layman to do the work of the ministry for which they are not called or gifted to do!
I know many laymen who are doing things that are a shame to the kingdom of God because they are using Ephesians 4:12 as an excuse to quit their secular jobs so they can intrude into the ministry. Many laymen have funny ideas about what the ministry is. They suppose they can have six-days a week vacation and preach one time on Sunday and have limelight and attention and stand before the congregation. But if they are not called, they will not produce any fruit of the ministry. Some dominant temperament-types have been able to run a social club but they are not accomplishing anything to prepare people for eternal life. In fact, they are sending people to hell who are deceived to think that being a member of a religious social club is equal to salvation. Nothing could be farther from the truth!
I know of a large church that authorized women to be cell-group leaders. These women often used this as an excuse to escape the boredom of housework at home. These women would leave early in the morning and come back late at night always knocking on doors and trying to get people to join their cell-group. Their families at home were neglected and the husband had to go out to eat because there was no food prepared at home. The children were wayward because the mother was never home when they came back from school. In fact these cell-group leader women had some of the most disorderly homes in the entire city! Their husbands and their children were turned off to the gospel because these religious women were always preaching but neglecting their family who needed them at home!
Again, no unbeliever would ask these people how to become saved because these women had more disorder in the household than the unbelievers had! They were not making true converts either but were hounding unbelievers and forcing them to attend their cell meetings. One unbeliever was so distressed by these zealous religious women that he sold his house and moved away hoping to have some peace! But these women went to the municipal building and found out his new address and sent some more cell-group leader women to harass him at his new residence. He was like a prisoner and said that he just joined the church because he was unable to escape!
But forcing unbelievers to repeat a salvation prayer or harassing them continually to join a cell-group is not producing true converts that have experienced spiritual regeneration within! These cell-groups were largely following religious rituals invented by these women but it was not producing any fruit of divine order or salvation in the lives of the people. This was because these layman or laywomen cell leaders do not have the spiritual equipment to produce the fruit of the ministry!
The fruit of the apostle is divine order and every bible teaching he gives will bring order to the lives of the congregation. The fruit of the prophet is fear of the Lord and holiness and his teaching will be to expose sin and his teaching will show how to overcome sin. He will also expose sin both privately and publicly by the operation of spiritual gifts. The fruit of a Fivefold minister cannot be produced by layman who have no such gifts or spiritual equipment which gives evidence of a calling from God.
The job of the layman is not to preach and do the ministry but they are to put their personal lives and families in order and let their lights shine before the unbelievers. If they had their lives in order, they would be salty-Christians and cause unbelievers to thirst for righteousness! But instead of putting their lives in order these people are forsaking their duties at home so they can spend all of their time in a self-invented ministry of the flesh that can be called a barking-at-the-pigs ministry.
Barking-at-the-Pigs Ministry: This speaks of so-called ministry that is often invented by bored housewives trying to escape their responsibility of managing the home. This term was coined because of a female dog we had on the farm that invented her own job to go and bark at the pigs whenever the family car started down the driveway. It was as if this dog was saying, “OK, you pigs, you better straighten up because the master is coming home!” If a dog could be proud, this dog certainly acted proud of what she was doing. We did not teach this dog to do this nonsense but it was her own invented idea and this dog acted really proud, as if she was accomplishing something really important! I have met many Christian women who have invented their own outlandish ministry and they behaved just like our dumb dog! They would be proud of their nonsense and act as if what they were doing was really important! I call a self-invented nonsense ministry as “barking-at-the-pigs-ministry” for this reason.
See the link “Glossary” for more details.
There are other scriptures used to falsely authorize layman to intrude into the ministry for which they are not called.
False Assumption of Laymen Preaching Everywhere
Acts 8:1 (NASB)
1 Saul was in hearty agreement with putting him to death. And on that day a great persecution began against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.
It has been widely presumed that the great persecution against the church in Jerusalem caused all of the laymen to be scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samara except the apostles. This gives the false impression that the entire congregation was driven out of Jerusalem and only the apostles were sitting there by themselves. But this would not make any sense because what good would it be for an apostle to be sitting alone without any congregation? The apostle finds his purpose in ministry to the believers and if all of the congregation was driven out they would have nothing to do!
Acts 8:4 (NASB)
4 Therefore, those who had been scattered went about preaching the word.
Then in verse 4 it reads that those who were scattered out of Jerusalem went about preaching the word. Again, it is commonly assumed that the laymen were all scattered everywhere preaching the word of God but this is not what this is saying. The next verse tells the reader who was scattered out and who was preaching the word.
Acts 8:5-8 (NASB)
5 Philip went down to the city of Samaria and began proclaiming Christ to them.
6 The crowds with one accord were giving attention to what was said by Philip, as they heard and saw the signs which he was performing.
7 For in the case of many who had unclean spirits, they were coming out of them shouting with a loud voice; and many who had been paralyzed and lame were healed.
8 So there was much rejoicing in that city.
Philip had the Fivefold ministry gift of Evangelist and it was Philip who went to the city of Samaria and proclaimed Christ to them. The crowds gave attention to the things that Philip said because they saw the signs he was preforming. There were many who had unclean spirits that were set free from demonic power and the crowds heard them shouting with a loud voice as the demons left. There were many were had been paralyzed and lame and these were healed. Philip had the healing gifts for deliverance and the healing of those who were paralytic and lame. An Evangelist will commonly have healing gifts manifest because this is part of the office of Evangelist. Healing gifts are like a dinner bell to the unbelievers to show them that God is real! That is why the unbelievers listened to what Philip told them and they accepted the gospel and were saved.
I once attended a large church and an Evangelist told about how in his ministry he had seen pagans and Buddhists and Muslims and people from all types of backgrounds become saved. He said that once miracles occur then all argument goes out the window! So unbelievers of every kind were saved including those who normally resist Christianity. The laymen in this church heard this and they thought that they would prove to the unbelievers that God was real so they went out and they laid hands on any sick person they could find assuming they would be healed and then accept Jesus. But it did not work for them and they did not see any of the healing the same as the evangelist experienced in his crusades overseas. This is because this type of healing is part of the calling and office of an Evangelist.
The only Evangelists that I have seen who do not have signs and wonders were denominational Evangelists who were taught that healing passed away. Denominational Evangelists typically resist healing and even when God does heal people through them, they will resist it and say that they cannot understand why God heals people contrary to their denomination doctrines!
But the layman is not normally going to see healing in the way that an Evangelist does. A layman believer can lay hands on himself or on his family members and see them healed. He can stop the work of the devil in his own sphere of influence within his own household. But the same layman is not going to be able to go out and publicly see hundreds of people healed because he is not an Evangelist and does not possess the spiritual equipment that goes along with this gift.
When these deceived laymen went out of the church and were laying hands on every sick person they met, they did not see them get healed. This is an example of trying to do the work of the ministry in the flesh without a gift or calling from God to do this. It did more harm than good because many skeptical unbelievers used this as evidence that God does not exist when the prayers of these laymen Christians did not work. Some desperate sick people even lost all hope when they were not healed and supposed healing passed away or that God did not love them. These are the negative results of “ministering in the flesh” when laymen were not gifted or called to do such things!
Acts 8:4 (NASB)
4 Therefore, those who had been scattered went about preaching the word.
Again, those who were scattered everywhere preaching the word were not the layman as is commonly assumed! These were those with a Fivefold ministry gift of Evangelist and it is clarified that it was Philip the Evangelist who was one of those who went forth to preach.
Acts 21:8 (NASB)
8 On the next day we left and came to Caesarea, and entering the house of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the seven, we stayed with him.
Philip is called an Evangelist and that is because he had evidenced the signs of an Evangelist in his ministry. He was preforming signs and wonders and miracles and had gifts of healing manifest. He also had spiritual authority to command unbelievers to be saved and they obeyed him! Many were saved when Philip the evangelist preached. Philip was at one time one of the first seven deacons. God tested him in his faithfulness as a deacon before he was promoted to fulfill the calling of Evangelist that he was born with. Not all deacons will become Evangelists but sometimes a man born with a Fivefold Ministry Gift will serve as a deacon to prove his faithfulness before God promotes him into his given ministry and calling.
On the day of Pentecost there were Jewish people from every nation present in Jerusalem. There were 3,000 converts the first day and Jewish men from every nation returned home and became godly leaders over their own households. Some of them may have been born with a Fivefold Ministry Gift and could have discovered this calling after they were saved. But most of them would be laymen who do not have a Fivefold Ministry Gift.
The apostles largely remained within a home ministry that was not as public as an Evangelist. It may be for this reason that those called as Evangelists received the brunt of the persecution that drove them out of the city of Jerusalem. The Evangelist gift is for public ministry outside of the church and those scattered everywhere preaching the gospel were the Evangelists just as Philip was.
Acts 15:35 (NASB)
35 But Paul and Barnabas stayed in Antioch, teaching and preaching with many others also, the word of the Lord.
Paul and Barnabas were mentioned as staying in Antioch and teaching and preaching as Apostles. But there were many others also who taught in the church at Antioch and these others were also men that possessed a Fivefold Ministry Gift. It was not layman who were doing the teaching because laymen do not possess the spiritual equipment to do the work of the ministry.
In the same way, Philip was mentioned as one of those who was scattered out of Jerusalem but it is likely that there were many other Evangelists who were preaching also. It was therefore the Evangelists that were scattered and preaching not the layman who do not have spiritual equipment to do the work of an Evangelist.
The job of the layman is to go home and put his household in order and be a witness to any unbeliever who asks him about the hope of his faith in Christ. Some of those 3,000 foreign Jews who were saved in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost would have had the gift of Evangelist but most of that number would be laymen who were saved and went home and put their household in order and lived as a witness for the Lord as a layman.
Erroneous Assumption of Laymen Preaching
Another erroneous assumption that has been used by laymen is that they should preach in season and out of season.
2 Timothy 4:2 (NKJV)
2 Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.
This scripture has been taken with a wrong emphasis that layman are to preach at all times even with or without the proper time and season of the Holy Spirit moving them. It has been interpreted that they should preach the word in season (when prompted by the Holy Spirit) and out of season (when the Holy Spirit is not prompting them)! This gives them license to go out and preach in the flesh with or without God’s leading and even without having any fruit or evidence of gifts in operation that are part of a calling from God!
The Proper Emphasis
2 Timothy 4:2 (7KB)
2 Preach the word instantly in season (under unction of the Holy Spirit). When out of season, rely on the systematic teaching of doctrine to reprove and rebuke and exhort with all patience.
The proper emphasis is found in my 7KB bible above that speaks of preaching the word by being instant in season but when out of season rely on the systematic teaching of doctrine to reprove and exhort with all patience. This is a Levite scripture that is for Levites who understand what it means to preach the word “in-season” as well as being faithful with a systematic teaching ministry out-of-season. If there is no special in-season message then they are to rely on the faithful teaching of God’s word in the out-of-season times.
When a Levite has no “in-season” message from God then he is to fall back upon going through the systematic doctrines that reprove and rebuke and exhort the congregation.
This scripture can easily be understood by the Fivefold ministers (New Testament Levites) because they will understand about spiritual things. Trying to explain spiritual things related to a Fivefold ministry call of God to a layman is like trying to explain what snow is to a native person of a tropical rain forest! They just do not have any basis of experience to understand no matter how much someone tries to explain it to them.
But New Testament Levites will indeed understand these things because they have experienced them for themselves!
To preach the word “in-season” is to deliver a message under the unction of the Holy Spirit. It is a special message from God that is “in-season” for a particular time and place and people group. It is a message from heaven specifically tailored by God to be delivered at a specific time by a Fivefold minister.
A Fivefold minister has no control over this but if God happens to deliver a special message through him at a specific time and season then this message could be called “in-season” because it is addressing something specific at a specific time and place and this is addressed to a specific person or persons.
If, however God is not moving through a Fivefold minister with a specific “in-season” message then that same minister should fall back on an “out-of-season” agenda. If he is “out-of-season” then the Fivefold minster (Levite) should be ready to systematically teach doctrines that will reprove, rebuke, and exhort the congregation. This is the general plan of teaching that can be applied to all congregations in any place if there is not a specific word of God given at that moment. A Fivefold minister has to be patient and go through all of the doctrines in systematic manner and not skip any detail. This will lay a solid spiritual foundation in the congregation by going over the basics in systematic manner. It is only when a special anointing falls upon the Levite that he can deliver an “in-season” message from God that will come forth with great power and authority and deal with something specific to that body of believers that he is addressing.
Acts 17:16 (NKJV)
16 Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him when he saw that the city was given over to idols.
Paul was in Athens and his spirit was provoked within him but this was not because he was angry in his human emotions or his soul. This provocation came from the Holy Spirit who is angered by idolatry and this anger was felt within Paul as the Holy Spirit expressed His own feelings through the Apostle Paul.
This same kind of spiritual provocation occurred within me when I once visited a bible school on the island of Mindanao in the Philippines. (This is a topic that applies to the Levites who can comprehend what I am talking about here!) I was waiting at a bus stop with my national interpreter and he struck up a conversation with a staff member from a bible college. This person heard I was a missionary and so invited me to come and address the student body in their auditorium. We accepted the invitation and proceeded to the campus but when I stepped foot on the campus immediately, I felt an explainable rage come upon me! This was not a result from any natural sources because no one said anything to me that could have provoked me and I never met anyone from this college before and there was absolutely no reason I would feel angry at anyone in this place!
They introduced me and I was invited to come to the pulpit. When I stepped into the pulpit, immediately I opened my mouth and I was roaring like a lion as I rebuked them non-stop with a rage that I have never experienced before in my entire life! In fact I did not even know what I was saying because it came directly out of my spirit and through my mouth and my mind was bypassed entirely! I was looking through my eyes like windows at the expressions on the faces of the dumbfounded students. They all had their eyes open as big as saucers and their jaws also dropped down wide open! I raged like a lion the entire time until this “in-season” message was delivered and then I just stopped. The students were visibly shaken and a great silence followed before they began to leave their seats in timid manner just like dogs that had been whipped with their tails between their legs! All the while I delivered this message I was wondering to myself why I was so angry! I did not even know what I had said until it was all over and one of the students came to me and told me that everything I had said was right-on and exactly what needed to be said! It seemed that the upperclassman were greatly arrogant and were abusing and disdaining the underclassman and there was strife in this bible college among the student body. My message came directly from God as an “in-season” message for that specific time and place and people group! The rebuke was hard and terrifying but it worked repentance in their lives and served to humble those people who had been greatly puffed up with pride! It served to cause love and unity to be restored to the group again because it was a message from God delivered by the mouth of an Apostle!
Those who are reading this now who are layman will have no idea what I am talking about. It is as if I am talking about snow to a jungle man! Some layman may even think such a rebuke is cruel but in fact it came from God and it no-doubt saved people from hell when they were shocked and their sin was exposed and they repented before the Lord!
Levites (especially Apostles and Prophets) will have no problem understanding what occurred here because they have experienced this same thing many times themselves. This is called an “in-season” message and it comes directly from God and has nothing to do with the man delivering it and it may even entirely bypass his natural intellect! God simply uses their mouth to deliver His message or deliver His rebuke in supernatural manner.
The Apostle Paul was provoked in his spirit when he saw the city of Athens entirely given over to idolatry. Out of this stirring of his spirit Paul delivered a powerful message to these people in Athens.
Acts 17:16 (NASB)-M
16 Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, (his human) spirit was being provoked within him [by the Holy Spirit] as he was observing the city full of idols.
This scripture says that the human spirit of Paul was being provoked. The Holy Spirit communicates with believers from Spirit to spirit in direct spiritual communication. The provoking of an Apostle’s spirit occurs when the anger of the Holy Spirit is conveyed to the human spirit of the preacher. He then becomes a mouthpiece to deliver a message of rebuke from the Lord.
Cutting them to the heart
Acts 7:54-59 (NKJV)
54 When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth.
55 But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God,
56 and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!”
57 Then they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him with one accord;
58 and they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul.
59 And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
When Stephen delivered his last message, the audience was cut to the heart! This is because he delivered this message under the power of the Holy Spirit and his words came out like barbed arrows and struck the hearts of the listeners. He had systematically went through Jewish history and exposed the sin of unbelief and then pointed his guns at the audience and declared, “You are the guilty ones!” These people were so enraged that they stopped their ears while crying out in a loud voice as if to drown out the words of Stephen! They could not stand to hear another word because his words cut them to the heart and exposed their sin! This was another “in-season” message that came out like an atomic bomb and it certainly had explosive effect!
Jeremiah 20:8-9 (NASB)
8 For each time I speak, I cry aloud; I proclaim violence and destruction, Because for me the word of the LORD has resulted In reproach and derision all day long.
9 But if I say, “I will not remember Him Or speak anymore in His name,” Then in my heart it becomes like a burning fire Shut up in my bones; And I am weary of holding it in, And I cannot endure it.
Jeremiah the prophet is another example of a man holding an “in-season” message within. God told him to warn the nation of Israel that if they did not repent they would have violence and destruction come upon them with great disasters! But every time Jeremiah proclaimed the message from God then he was abused and reproached and scorned by the people. So Jeremiah thought to just keep quiet and not speak to this hard-hearted group anymore! But Jeremiah was unable to hold the word of the Lord within him! He was compelled to preach because holding the word inside was like trying to hold a burning fire shut up in his bones. He could not hold it in and was forced to speak it out because it was a message from God not of his own origin or human invention.
An “in-season” message comes from God and it is placed into the spirit of a Fivefold minister Levite who has no choice but to release this message because he cannot hold it in! It burns like fire within him and he becomes like an erupting volcano spewing out fire and smoke and ash and lava as this message goes forth and rebukes and warns the unrepentant of coming destruction!
Again, a layman has absolutely no basis for understanding such things because these things cannot be comprehended on an intellectual level. This is a topic for the Levites who know about such things and have experienced such things themselves in their own ministry.
2 Timothy 4:2 (7KB)
Preach the word instantly in season (under unction of the Holy Spirit). When out of season, rely on the systematic teaching of doctrine to reprove and rebuke and exhort with all patience.
Again, it must be emphasized that the above scripture is speaking to New Testament Levites only (not to laymen). There is much confusion when the layman try to apply scriptures to themselves that only apply to NT Levites. In order to rightly divide the truth of God’s word, a Levite must define and clarify the proper application for every scripture by distinguishing to which group the particular scripture applies.
2 Timothy 2:15 (NKJV)
15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
To rightly divide the word of truth is to apply it to the proper application with scriptures meant for Levites applied to them and scriptures meant for laymen applied to them and everything given according to proper application.
Correct Application
Another example of a misapplication of scriptures for that which is called the great commission and this is commonly applied to laymen to the effect to cause them to go out and preach.
Matthew 28:19-20 (NIV)
19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
This scripture is so commonly applied to laymen that no one has ever thought otherwise. This again supports the heresy of the Evangelist who always seeks to compel layman to go out and preach even when they have no gift or spiritual equipment to do so.
But the fact of the matter is that these scriptures are not even referring to the layman as seen in context with the other scriptures before it.
Matthew 28:16-20 (NIV)-M
16 Then the eleven disciples (apostles) went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go.
17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted.
18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
These scriptures (in context) show that this is referring to the eleven disciples who were all called to be Apostles. There were 12-original disciples but one fell out when Judas perished so this left eleven Apostles remaining. It was to these eleven Apostles that Jesus told them to make disciples of all nations and baptize them and teach them to obey everything that Jesus commanded. This is a job description of Apostles as they are to make disciples and baptize converts and teach these disciples everything that Jesus had commanded.
This is not a command for all of the layman to forsake their jobs and leave their households in disarray and go out trying to preach. As laymen they have no gift or calling or spiritual equipment to do such things.
Mark 16:14-15 (NIV)-M
14 Later Jesus appeared to the Eleven (apostles) as they were eating; he rebuked them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had risen.
15 He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.
Again, in the gospel of Mark it clarifies that it was to the eleven Apostles that Jesus appeared to and gave them the commission to go and preach the gospel. It is the job of Apostles to do this work.
I know of hundreds of laymen who go out and try to obey this great-commission because they were taught that these scriptures apply to all believers in general. But they have no gift or calling or spiritual equipment to do these things and therefore they are fruitless and their work is dry and meaningless. It is because they are in the wrong place and have left their assigned role as a layman (to put their households in order) and have intruded into the ministry for which they have not been called by God!
Intruding into the Holy Office
Numbers 1:51 (NASB)
51 “So when the tabernacle is to set out, the Levites shall take it down; and when the tabernacle encamps, the Levites shall set it up. But the layman who comes near shall be put to death.
The Old Testament Levites are a direct counterpart of the Fivefold Ministry New Testament Levites. The biblical principles that apply to the Old Testament Levites also apply to the New Testament Levites because the New Testament is a fulfillment of the Old Testament.
The scripture above is an example of this because God assigned the Levites to care for the things of the tabernacle. But if any layman came near to assume to handle the things of God then that layman was to be put to death for intruding into the holy office!
Numbers 16:35 (7KB)
35 And fire came out from the LORD and consumed the 250-laymen (intruders) who were offering the incense.
There were 250-laymen leaders who assumed that they could stand in the office of a priest and offer incense before God’s altar. These men were consumed by a fire from the Lord and instantly burned to ashes!
Numbers 16:38-40 (NASB)
38 “As for the censers of these men who have sinned at the cost of their lives, let them be made into hammered sheets for a plating of the altar, since they did present them before the LORD and they are holy; and they shall be for a sign to the sons of Israel.”
39 So Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers which the men who were burned had offered, and they hammered them out as a plating for the altar,
40 as a reminder to the sons of Israel that no layman who is not of the descendants of Aaron should come near to burn incense before the LORD; so that he will not become like Korah and his company—just as the LORD had spoken to him through Moses.
The censors that were carried by the scorched laymen were hammered out into plates and made into a covering for the altar. This was a gruesome reminder for the following generations to warn them that no layman should intrude into the holy office who have not been called by God.
1 Corinthians 10:11 (NIV)
11 These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.
All the things that happened to the children of Israel were recorded as examples and these things still have application to this present time under the New Testament era! These things were written down as warnings so believers of this present time and era can learn from these examples and not offend God!
Today, believers are not using a physical tabernacle or an altar to burn incense anymore but these things are symbolic of spiritual things. The censors that were hammered out into plates to cover the altar served as a reminder that no layman was to intrude into the holy office for which he was not called. The same exact warning still applies today under the New Testament era that no layman who is not called by God should intrude into the holy office of the Fivefold Ministry for which he was not called!
This has application to the Fivefold ministry because if laymen try to intrude into this office for which they were not called then they can bring judgment upon themselves. There is much error being taught in the carnal church today. They are licensing women to become deacons by using footnotes to alter the scriptures to endorse deaconesses. They are licensing the layman to enter the ministry by altering scriptures like Ephesians 4:12 to say that the Fivefold ministry is to equip the laymen so that the laymen can do the work of the ministry. Even the great commission is misapplied commonly to the laymen who are not called or gifted and have no evidence or fruit of an Apostle.
See the link “Alteration to Invent Deaconesses” for more details.
A time will come when layman who do not repent and stop intruding into the ministry will be judged for it. This will occur after they have been warned and after they know better. But if they harden their hearts and insist on continuing their intrusion into the holy office then judgment will come! It does not matter if they use many altered scriptures to justify themselves. If these scriptures were twisted by modern translations and changed to conform to their own carnal views then they are not living according to biblical precedent by following these twisted scriptures.
See the link “Bible Translation Mistakes” for more details.
The heresy of the Evangelist is to scold the layman and push them into the ministry for which they are not called. The Evangelists assume that everyone can do what they can do but this is a false assumption. They are not doing the layman any favor by pushing them into the ministry because in fact they are causing them to intrude into the holy office and this can endanger the lives of the laymen if they do not repent.
I have known laymen who have thought that the ministry was a means to escape a secular job and they used it as an excuse to be an unemployed freeloader. But they had no calling or gift and no fruit or any means of feeding people spiritually. They were warned by God many times and after many years they came to the end of their time of repentance and met judgment. I know of laymen who have had an untimely death because of their insistence in intruding into a Fivefold ministry office for which they were not called.
(See my lesson “Fivefold Ministry Gifts” for more details.
The heresy of the Evangelist deals with the false assumption that the laymen can do the same thing as an Evangelist. If laymen are scolded and sent into the ministry for which they are not called they will in fact endanger their own lives. This is a warning for those who alter the scriptures and push laymen into any of the offices of the Fivefold ministry for which they are not called.