More Than Pastors: The Church’s Incomplete Leadership (Eph. 2:19-22)

Ephesians 2:19-22 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; 20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; 21 In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: 22 In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.

In Ephesians 2:19-22, the apostle Paul speaks of a foundation divinely laid for the church, with Jesus Christ as the cornerstone and the apostles and prophets as integral to its structure. This foundation, intended to build us together into a dwelling place for God through the Spirit, prompts a critical question: Does this structure still apply today? This message examines the ongoing relevance of these foundational roles, drawing on scriptural precedents and challenging contemporary perspectives that suggest that gifts, miracles, prophets, and apostles aren’t needed today because we have the Bible. Is this viewpoint rooted in fact, or does it arise from systemic unbelief in modern Christianity?

 The Enduring Foundation of Apostles and Prophets

Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians, highlights the foundational role of apostles and prophets in the church:

And [we] are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit. (Ephesians 2:20-22 KJV)

This passage emphasizes that the church is built on a foundation laid by the apostles and prophets, with Jesus Christ as the cornerstone. This foundation is not merely historical but continues to support the church’s growth into a holy temple of the Lord. This scripture challenges the notion that the roles of apostles and prophets are obsolete. Paul’s words suggest an ongoing need for these foundational gifts to ensure the church’s proper construction and habitation by God’s Spirit. For all the suggestions that these gifts and offices have passed away, consider the following verse in Romans 11:

> For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance. (Romans 11:29 KJV)

Many would say that this only applies to individual calling, but the context, if you examine it, suggests that Paul is speaking in a much broader context, applying to the church that then was and the church throughout history, right down to our day. The gifts, miracles, prophets, and apostles in our midst have not PASSED AWAY but are still relevant to meet the needs of God’s people. 

Scriptural Precedent: Decline and Restoration

The Old Testament provides a precedent for the decline and subsequent restoration of God-given leadership. The intertestamental period, marked by the absence of prophets and kings, saw the rise of the synagogue system. However, this period of silence was broken by the arrival of John the Baptist, heralding the restoration of the prophetic.

> Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts. (Malachi 3:1 KJV)

This demonstrates God’s pattern of restoring what was lost. Just as the prophetic voice returned with John the Baptist, we can hope for and seek the restoration of all gifts necessary for the church’s perfection.

 The Purpose of the Five-Fold Ministry

Cessationists believe that all these gifts have passed away because “that which is perfect is come” which they insist is the Bible. They base this position on the following verse:

[1Co 13:10 KJV] 10 But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.

In other words, cessationists contend that the apostles, prophets, gifts, and miracles were only necessary to establish the church, and then the Bible, the Canon of Scripture, was given, rendering these offices and gifts obsolete (in their view). There is a problem with this thinking. Nowhere in scripture does this viewpoint find expression. In Ephesians 4:11-13, the apostle Paul expansively clarifies the purpose of the five-fold ministry—apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers—in Ephesians 4, and it has NOTHING to do with the Canon being established or the New Testament being written:

And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ. (Ephesians 4:11-13 KJV)

This passage reveals that these gifts are given for the ongoing perfection of the saints and the edification of the body of Christ, until we attain unity in faith and the fullness of Christ. The church has not yet reached this state of perfection and unity that the fivefold ministry was intended to bring about. The CHURCH IS NOT PERFECT, but Jesus gave these ministries to bring this “fulness of stature of Christ” about ON THIS SIDE OF HEAVEN. We might never agree on what that perfected church would look like, but suffice if Jesus gave these gifts to bring about this perfection. Jesus Himself had an idea about what He was looking for and expecting these ministries to be a part of bringing about.  Therefore, these gifts are still necessary for the church to fulfill its divine purpose.

The Foundation Jesus Gave Us is Still Needed

In Ephesians 2:19-20 Paul speaks the ministries referred to in Ephesians 4:11-13 as a foundation God has placed to undergird the church, comprised of Jesus Christ himself as the chief cornerstone but also included the apostles and prophets so that we might be “built together (v. 22) for a habitation of God through the Spirit.” Now I ask you, does this verse still apply today? Most scholars and theologians over the years have insisted that this is a “historical foundation” not to be repeated or have an ongoing influence in the church. This is said with specific reference to the apostles and prophets, who it is believed are no longer necessary. The belief is that the apostles and prophets established a non-repeatable foundation for the church in a historical sense, rather than being a living influence in the church today. What do you think? Do we still have or need apostles and prophets today?

History Repeating Itself – Even Divine History

In the Old Testament, after the conclusion of the intertestamental period (400 years between Malachi and Matthew), there were no prophets or kings, and when the temple was razed to the ground, there was no active priesthood. What did they have? Again, Ezra and Nehemiah established what became the “synagogue” system led by teachers (Rabbis) and administrative functionaries who organized and structured the communal life of the Jewish faithful in a given locale. What do we have today? Apostles and prophets are not accepted in the mainstream, but we do see “pastors,” “evangelists,” or “teachers” accepted and functioning in the church. This parsed and truncated leadership structure in modern times echoes what happened during the intertestamental period, but it is important to note that after the “400 silent years,” the prophetic was restored in the person of John the Baptist, the forerunner of Jesus himself.

We see that there is a scriptural record of a decline in God-given leadership offices and positions that were subsequently restored (John the Baptist, others). Could that be what we are seeing today? Those who believe in “cessationist” doctrine hold that miracles, charismatic gifts, apostles, and prophets have passed away and are no longer needed.  Cessationists believe that the Bible is “that which is perfect” thus when the “canon” the official list of books agreed upon by early church council, when the canon was codified and universally accepted therefore we (in their view) don’t need signs, miracles, charismatic gifts or apostles and prophets anymore. That can be debated, effectively so, but let’s look at it another way. The 400 silent years between Malachi and Matthew were an early precursor of what some call cessationist doctrine. It is a fact that there were no prophets during this time, or kings and priests to speak of – with the exception of times that the temple was restored (with respect to priest craft, there had to be a temple but when the temple would be razed to the ground as it was more than once, priest craft would fade out of use), and THEN were brought back by God the Father in John and Jesus in Eph. 4:11-13.

Why the 400 Silent Years

Do we have scripture relating to the 400 silent years? In the book of Amos the prophet makes the following declaration:

[Amo 8:11-13 KJV] 11 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD: 12 And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find [it]. 13 In that day shall the fair virgins and young men faint for thirst.

We can see here that Amos predicted the coming of the 400 silent years, and if you check, you will see that he gave this prophecy 320 years before the 400-year period commenced. Again, this was a lengthy intertestamental period that Amos predicted in these verses in Amos 8 as a time of SPIRITUAL FAMINE when the people of God would “faint for thirst.” Not actual thirst or hunger, but SPIRITUAL thirst and hunger. That shows us the influence of the prophetic in the Old Testament on their people. They were fed spiritually by the prophets of old. They were refreshed by the ministry of the prophets. The Old Testament supposition that prophets would pass away was seen as not a good thing, and in fact, it came about because the people lapsed in their faith and became disobedient; therefore, God withdrew these leadership positions from their benefit. What were the conditions at the time the 400 silent years began? In the book of Malachi, we see the sad state of affairs at that time:

[Mal 1:7-8, 10 KJV] 7 Ye offer polluted bread upon mine altar; and ye say, Wherein have we polluted thee? In that ye say, The table of the LORD [is] contemptible. 8 And if ye offer the blind for sacrifice, [is it] not evil? and if ye offer the lame and sick, [is it] not evil? offer it now unto thy governor; will he be pleased with thee, or accept thy person? saith the LORD of hosts. … 10 Who [is there] even among you that would shut the doors [for nought]? neither do ye kindle [fire] on mine altar for nought. I have no pleasure in you, saith the LORD of hosts, neither will I accept an offering at your hand.

Because of this sad state of affairs, and the decline of the faithfulness of the people, God lifted his leadership graces of king and prophet from the people, even when he had promised there would never fail to be a king to sit on the throne in Israel. How did God conclude the 400 silent years, which we will call the “intertestamental cessationist period.” Just for purposes of this teaching, because the point being that yes, there was a period of cessation, BUT it was concluded by God sending John the Baptist and the prophets and apostles that came after, including, of course, Jesus Himself (the apostle and high priest of our profession [Heb. 3:1]).

We have, therefore, an example in scripture of a cessationist period specific to the prophets that was brought to a close by God Himself giving birth to the New Testament church, and the restoration of the leadership office of the prophet. It’s not subject to opinion; it happened, could it happen again? In other words, let’s shift the debate. The existing contention between cessationists who think all these things have passed away, and those who insist this is not true, this existing debate is very entrenched on both sides, and none of the advocates of either viewpoint is going to give in or reconsider, no matter how hard we try to open the dialogue. Let’s take things in another direction. What if there WAS a cessation of apostles, prophets, gifts, etc., as the cessationist crowd insists BUT as it was regarding the 400 silent years, what IF God concludes, has concluded ostensibly this alleged cessation of gifts and brought them to bear AGAIN in our day as evidenced by the robust worldwide community of Charismatic faith that embraces these things that cessationists reject?

Let’s Visit an Alternate Universe

What if the gifts and offices did cease after the canon was established? I don’t think that viewpoint is scripturally sustainable, but let’s give the cessationists their point. Okay, you are right (???), the gifts and offices did cease because that which is “perfect” has come; therefore, these gifts are not needed anymore. Again, that is not my viewpoint, but for the sake of discussion, let’s stipulate to that point of view. It is a fact that charismatic gifts did fade out, and there were reasons for this. Primarily because of a very pervasive sect called the Montanists, who were condemned by the mainstream ancient church as being heretical. The Montanists would fit very nicely into the Charismatic movement of today. They believed in prophets, apostles, prophecy, and spiritual gifts, among other things. But they had doctrinal problems. Yet they insisted that they were authentic ON THE BASIS of the gifts and offices that operated in their midst. Therefore, the mainstream church would have rejected their doctrinal errors and, in turn, rejected their emphasis on gifts and prophets because the Montanists used these gifts and offices as a basis for insisting their doctrines were true and authentic. As a result, anyone at this time operating in gifts or believing in prophets might have been accused of being “Montanists,” and therefore these gifts and offices faded away because of the stigma attached to them by the heretical beliefs and practices of the Montanists. This is one possible example of why emphasis on miracles, gifts, and the prophetic faded. The cessationist crowd points to the fact that these gifts faded with the argument “they passed away, therefore it was God that brought it about…” Not necessarily. The existence of prophets in Malachi’s day came to a conclusion because of the backslidden and corrupt character of Jewish faith, otherwise the 400 years would perhaps have been very different.

What the Early Centuries of the Church Can Teach Us

Why is any of this relevant? Because the church is fighting with one hand behind its back, without the existence and acceptance of the gifts, modern-day miracles, and the existence and acknowledgement of modern-day prophets and apostles. Of course, Cessationists insist that these were only necessary to establish the church in the early centuries and to give us the canon of scripture. This is a logical argument with one consideration – the scripture TELLS US in a very clear way why Jesus gave these office gifts, and it has nothing to do with the inaugural season of getting Christianity established and going. Look at the following verse:

[Eph 4:11-13 KJV] 11 And he (Jesus) 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: 13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:

That which is perfect (in light of this verse, letting scripture interpret scripture) HAS NOT come – because the church hasn’t arrived at the full measure of the stature of Christ. Now, looking back on early church history, is there a time we can point to that the church came into “unity of the faith” and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a “perfect” mature body based on the metric of the “fulness of the stature of Christ” There is no version of church history that would support this in the affirmative. Neither do we see these attributes and graces present today. The church, Christianity, has we know it is not perfect, it is not in the unity of the faith, it is not manifesting in the earth the “fullness of the stature of Christ” that Paul insists is the whole reason for Jesus giving these “five-fold” gifting in the first place. Therefore, they were, are, and will continue to be needed. The Cessationists believe that “that which is perfect” is the Bible, but Paul himself, speaking along the same line, identified in Ephesians 4 that “that which is perfect” is the Body of Christ coming into the perfection of maturity defined in Eph. 4:11-13, which few if any leaders would believe WILL ever happen. So, it’s a problem of unbelief, not eschatology.

Is the Imperfect Church Non-Optional? Not According to Jesus

Think about it. How many times have we heard the tongue-in-cheek statement that if you “find a perfect church,” it won’t be perfect anymore because you are not perfect. The expected point is that Christianity as a whole doesn’t expect perfection or the fullness of the stature of Christ to be brought about in our lifetime or on this side of heaven. This supposition of an unperfectable church is contrary to scripture. But Jesus doesn’t say we will be imperfect and then go to heaven and be perfect. Death will not perfect the church; the FIVEFOLD MINISTRY is for the perfection of the church! Jesus is saying through Paul that He gave the five-fold ministry for the PERFECTING of the SAINTS here and now by the instrumentation of these office gifts. But leaders reject this. Pastors reject this. They aren’t trying; they are just marching in place till Jesus comes. Still, we need to go back and have the faith of God, the faith that Jesus demonstrated, that this perfection is His goal for the church on this side of heaven. It is incumbent upon us to cooperate and press into it, and one way we do so is by embracing the fullness of the five-fold ministry and not just a few anemic gifts limited to pastoral or teaching ministry.

Review and Reflection

Let’s Pray Together

Heavenly Father, we thank you for your enduring word and the gifts you have given to the church. Help us to recognize and embrace the fullness of your provision, that we may be perfected and unified in faith. We ask for a renewed understanding and appreciation of the roles of apostles and prophets in our day. May we, as your body, press into the fullness of Christ, for your glory. In Jesus’ name, Amen.