Priority #4: Equipping Believers for Ministry and Mission

“And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (Eph. 4:11-13).

Just as the primary task of the gathered church is the edification of its members, so the primary task of pastoral leadership is to equip the saints for the work of the ministry. The pastor is not the one who ministers, while everyone else watches. Rather, ministry is the responsibility of every member according to each one’s gift.