Rounding the far turn!

Yes, I think we've had enough preamble. Let's get down to brass tacks (anyone know where that phrase came from?) and talk about vision. We're finally to level five in the levels of involvement: Minister. It's an interesting term, one that has become laden with a considerable amount of baggage. Maybe we can use Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words (1940) to ferret them out.

The first one listed is diakonos, "a servant, attendant, minister, deacon." Interesting, how we have come to attribute so much power and authority to such a humble word. Second is leitourgos, "denoted among the Greeks, firstly, one who discharged a public office at his own expense [what a concept!], then, in general, a public servant, minister." The last is huperetes, " properly an under rower (hupo, under, eretes, a rower) as distinguished from nautes, a seaman..., hence came to denote any subordinate acting under another's direction." It appears that where we commonly perceive honor and authority, the New Testament indicates humility and service.

For our purposes, in our hierarchical scheme of levels of involvement, this is the pinnacle level, the crowning achievement, the level to be most desired and sought after, and yet the one so seldom attained. Because of the responsibility and authority traditionally attached to this level, the common misconception is "There can be only one." Although that is true, in a sense, it applies only to the Son of God Himself, Jesus. He is the head; we are His body. It is as parts of His body that we minister.

However, more than an arrival state, it is the key that unlocks the door to a whole new world of experience. The hallmark of the Ministerial level is the reception of a vision for ministry along with the communication of that vision to others in order to enlist their help in fulfilling the vision. There are five types of Ministers, based upon their activity and function, as listed in Ephesians 4:11--Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor, and Teacher. Each is unique, and yet each begins with a vision.

The Apostle (Gr: apostolos), in the NT, appears to have executive responsibility and authority. Extending from the original twelve, minus one who was replaced, Paul also claims this right of Apostleship through his personal calling from Christ on the road to Damascus. However, such an intimate, revelatory encounter with the living Christ does not appear to be a criterion for Apostleship, as Paul, in his letters to Timothy, instructs his young protégé in the discharge of the office.

Apostles are primarily responsible for setting up and organizing local bodies of believers. The word apostolos literally means "he that is sent," or "one sent forth" (apo, from, stello, to send). The Apostle's function is to go to places where new converts have appeared and organize them into a body in that locale. Once the body has been established and set up, the Apostle moves on to the next place, allowing the body to grow and mature on its own.

They do not usually exert remote authority unless a problem has arisen or a question has been posed. However, they do maintain a long-term relationship with the body, as evidenced by Paul's occasional return to an communications with bodies he established.

The Apostle's vision is for an organized body of believers in which the members are functioning at all five levels of involvement and replicating themselves in the community around them as they exert a positive influence on that community through the reception and execution of a variety of visions.

Next time, we'll continue with the Prophet. See ya!