Marty: What Are We Equipped For?

So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors
and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

- Ephesians 4:11-13 (NIV)

I'm a big proponent of looking back on your life to see where God has taught you or caused you to grow through situations, life events, joyful times, difficult times, blessings, and tragedies. We don't usually fully understand the significance of an experience when we are in the middle of it. If we are honest with ourselves, there are times when we may not want to acknowledge that God can use a set of circumstances to teach us something. Yet, when we reflect on our life, God's activity can become very clear. As we go through this brief life on earth, He who gave us that very life molds us and shapes us. Something we experienced a few years ago may have prepared us for what we are doing today. And today's experiences are preparing us for something to come.

"So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors
and teachers..."

My pastor used a passage from Paul's letter to the Ephesians in his teaching this morning. While it was only a small part of his message, it gave me a new perspective on a familiar text. First point here is that the experiences and circumstances through which God shapes us include learning from the apostles and prophets through His word, and evangelists, pastors, and teachers whom we encounter. And Paul tells us here, that Christ himself gave these people to us.

"...to equip his people.."

That's right - Paul tells us that Christ gave us the apostles and prophets, and evangelists, pastors, and teachers to equip us. Our pastors aren't in church Sunday morning to make us feel good about our upcoming week. And those dedicated bible study teachers we take for granted aren't just doing their preparation so you can learn the cultural background of bible stories. Nope. Paul says they are to "equip" us.

Equip us for what?

Paul says these folks - these gifts to us from Christ - are given "to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ." 

Wow! So God has placed in our lives people specifically charged to equip us for tasks that He will call us to, with His goal being to build up the Body of Christ in unity and maturity!

I don't know about you, but that takes a lot of pressure off me. I don't need to worry about what God is going to call me to do - He'll make that clear to me. And then I don't have to fret about how I am going to do it, because I know - I trust - that He will have prepared me in advance to do that which He has called me to do.

What are you being equipped for?