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I firmly believe in a God-called, five-fold ministry operating in the church. These special five-fold ministries are listed in Ephesians 4:11 and they are apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. Paul said that such ministries are "gifts given" to the church by God for the "perfecting of the saints. Remember that a God-called preacher is a gift from God!

I also believe that you cannot just decide to become a part of the five-fold ministry, but rather God must call you to it. They are God-ordained and God-chosen ministries. And as it has often been stated, God does not necessarily choose the qualified, but qualifies the chosen. There's a lot of truth to that. I've seen some men who were very talented but not God-called and fall flat on their face in full-time ministry. I've seen other men who were not very good speakers or did not possess dynamic personalities and yet because they were God-anointed to their calling, see mighty revival from their efforts. In the Old Testament, King Saul was chosen because men wanted a king and he was anointed with oil flowing out of a man-made object. King David was chosen because God wanted him king and he was anointed with oil flowing out of a bull's horn which God had made. The objects represent the difference in the two men's callings. One was made of men and the other made of God. Saul died a God-reject and David became a "man after God's own heart." It's important to only act in the anointing that God has given.

I have an uncle who is of a denominational belief that there should be no ordained ministry such as pastor or prophet or such. Basically they don't want accountability to anybody, so they made up their own rules. But each Sunday, a member of the church preaches and takes on the role of pastor. My father saw him last week at their brother's funeral and when my uncle mentioned that it was his turn to preach that Sunday and that he was going to borrow some of my father's points from the funeral message, my dad asked how the church was doing. The answer was not good, apparently. In my uncle's words "nobody really wants to have church anymore" and so they have one service every other week. I think the membership is less than 20 people. Such is the result when men and women decide to appoint themselves into God-given ministries such as pastor that must be God-appointed.

The scriptures differentiate between the anointing of "kings and priests" and there is a vast difference. A king is good at presiding over earthly and business matters and a priest is over spiritual matters. God calls both men and women to each office. Not everyone will be called to a pulpit ministry or to pastor in the church -- that's a priest anointing. But everyone will be called to be king of something -- God will call you to be anointed in one area or another, whether big or small. And you can be just as anointed at that calling as a pastor is at his. The problems arise when the kings try to become a prophet or vice versa, but when everybody stays within their God-called positions, the church will flourish!

I'm not really preaching about the differences between people who are called to be saints and those who are called to be the five-fold ministry because we have this huge problem with people not wanting a pastor. We don't have that problem at this moment in our church -- at least not that I'm aware of. Most of you understand that the calling and anointing on my life as your pastor is different than what God has called you to do and that you and I need each other to be in the will of God. For what is a sheep without a shepherd, but also what is a shepherd without sheep to lead?

I bring up the difference between the five-fold ministry and the calling of the saints, to point out that there are some things that your pastor or evangelist or prophet is called to do that you as saint cannot simply because God has not called you to do so. God will not give you spiritual authority over a congregation because you are not called to handle that sort of responsibility. God will not require you to fast and pray to feed a flock week in and week out. God will not give you a vision of this church beyond that which He gives the pastor and pastoral staff. I preach to give this church spiritual direction and perhaps touch on things sometimes that would not be received if you tried to present them. That's part of the pastor's calling as a "watchmen on the wall" that God allows him to see in the future in people's lives and to be able to pick up on things spiritually that God does not reveal to saints. It doesn't mean that the pastor is any more or less spiritual than you, it just means that God has called him to a different calling and a special place in the church.

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As I said, I point all of this out not because we have a big problem in this church with saints trying to usurp the pastor, but rather because there is a danger in going the other direction. There are some things that the five-fold ministry is called to do that the saints are not. But there are also some things that the saints should be doing that they tend to leave it only to the pastoral staff. There are some things that every Christian should do that should not just be the pastor doing them. So now that we have our disclaimer out of the way, I want to speak to you about a thematic concept that was taught by a great teacher a few years back. It's called "everyone a minister" and when it was introduced, it was revolutionary and caused quite a stir among religious leaders. But this teacher introduced this concept and it turned into a mighty revival. The teacher, by the way, who introduced this concept of "everyone a minister" was named Jesus Christ!

Not everyone will be called to a pulpit ministry, but everyone should be a minister. To minister means "to meet the needs of someone else." And Jesus' most controversial teaching was that everyone should minister. It was in the famous "Sermon on the Mount" where Jesus first introduced the concept. He told the crowd of believers:

Jesus had His leadership and the twelve Apostles and He made that distinction clear. But I want you to realize that He was talking to the average saint when He said "you are the light of the world," and "let your light so shine before men." If you are a believer and if you are a follower of Christ, then you have a God-given calling and duty to minister to the needs of this world. Not all are called to lead the church, but all who believe are called to minister! Look at somebody and say "you should be a minister."

We find this principle throughout Jesus' ministry. At first the twelve Apostles, the future leaders of the church, were sent out in twos to minister. They healed blinded eyes and cast out devils and told people about the Word of the Lord and who Jesus Christ was. And they were excited to be able to minister to the people just as Jesus Christ had. But Jesus didn't stop there because He then sent out 70 believers by pairs (Luke 10). It wasn't just the twelve apostles, but these were ordinary believers and yet the Bible says that they cast out devils and healed the sick and such with the same ability and anointing as the twelve had done!

And then we come to the end of Jesus' ministry where He is giving the final charge to His believers before His ascension into heaven. Jesus told His disciples these words which we often quote, but I don't think that we sometimes quite realize what Jesus was saying:

Now we know that we should not tempt God by willfully handling snakes and such, but the key point of this scripture is that "these signs shall follow them that believe." Not just the disciples, but those who were converted by the disciples, the saints in the church, if they were true believers would "cast out devils, speak with new tongues, have supernatural protection, and lay hands on the sick and see them recover!" Not just the disciples would do such things, but the people that the disciples won. In a truly Apostolic Church, everybody would be a minister! Everybody would have the Holy Ghost, therefore everybody would be able to have spiritual power over demonic forces and sickness and troubles!

And then when the Holy Ghost was poured out, Jesus didn't just tell the twelve to go tarry for it, but there were five hundred believers who heard the command to go to Jerusalem and wait for the Holy Ghost fire. Of that group, one hundred and twenty went back into Jerusalem and were obedient to the command. And on the Day of Pentecost in Acts chapter 2, we find that all one hundred and twenty received the baptism of the Holy Ghost with the evidence of speaking in other tongues. It wasn't just the twelve, but there were old and young, men and women, preachers and saints. Even Jesus' mother, Mary, and His half brothers and sisters were there. And the scriptures say that they were ALL filled with the Holy Ghost. And when Peter got up to preach about what was happening to the crowd of Jews that gathered together that day, he preached:

God poured out His Spirit upon ALL FLESH! What before had been only present behind a veil and attended to by a select group of the priesthood of Levi, now came to live inside normal men and women -- and eventually the Gentiles! Sons and daughters would prophesy. Servants and handmaidens (which means men and women) would prophesy. What is God saying? That in His perfect plan and in the church which would be as He willed, everyone would be a minister. Not that everyone would be a pastor or have a pulpit ministry, but everyone would be a minister with the Holy Ghost flowing through them to reach a dying world! Everyone could serve as priests and worship, sacrifice, walk by the light of the Lord, and pray before God. Everyone was to be a minister!

In the town that I grew up in I saw such a revival. It was smaller than Castroville and the United Pentecostal Church there ran over 400 members at one point. Everyone knew who the Pentecostals were and that revival shook the region. At one time the mayor was a Holy Ghost-filled man (my father) and so was half of the water board! But there was one old man who was a critic and one of the things that he always said was "all them holy rollers are preachers!" He meant it as criticism, but it actually was a testimony to the power of the Holy Ghost in that congregation. Because even the shyest member could be asked about Jesus or a scripture and their eyes would light up and they would begin to talk about how good God was and about how God was still filling people with the Holy Ghost! They weren't cocky, but there was a fire burning in everybody -- not just in the pastor and pastoral staff. If somebody was sick, then there would be one of those Holy Rollers offering to pray for them. If somebody had a Bible question, something would click on in the spiritual eyes of the people. Everybody was a minister. And the result was a revival that shook that little town and which produced hundreds (no exaggeration, hundreds) of ministers, pastors, and missionaries that were eventually called to the five-fold ministries from that church. I am one such person. My father and mother and brother are also. You've met Bro. Tommy Gandy who is another. Bro. Brandon Cox has preached here and he's another. That's six people who have had a hand in this church who have their roots in the Apostolic Revival that took place twenty years ago in a small town of less than 3,000 people that is hundreds and hundreds of miles away.

I could list to you many people who taught me the Word of God either by example, lifestyle, or in a Sunday School class or Bible Study setting that never set foot behind a pulpit and were never called to the five-fold ministry. And yet their revival and impact on the kingdom of God is still being felt. And it happened because everyone got the attitude that "I'm a minister." "I've got the Holy Ghost and God can flow through me." I'm not talking about that you don't need a pastor, because there are some things that the pastor is called to do that God won't let you do successfully. But we need to realize that there are many things that we tend to think of as being only for the pastor that really is our God-given duty to perform, too!

Pray for the sick and see healings and miracles? That's not just for the pastor!

Tell others about Jesus and the power of the Holy Ghost? That's not just for the pastor!

Win souls and pray people through to the Holy Ghost? That's not just for the pastor!

Show compassion on the lost in their situations and help them out? That's not just for the pastor!

Cast out devils and pray against the powers of darkness that have people bound in this area? That's not just for the pastor!

Being sensitive to the Holy Ghost and speaking of the Bible with a passion and a fire? That's not just for the pastor!

Sacrifice our time and fast for a great harvest? That's not just for the pastor!

Besiege heaven for our services that people's lives would be changed? That's not just for the pastor!

If this is ever to be a truly Apostolic church having the kind of revival that God has destined for it, then we've got to get beyond just the pastor being spiritual and only the pastor laying hands on the sick and only the pastor fasting and praying for souls. If this is going to be a church like Jesus ordained, then it must be so that everybody's a minister! If you've got the Holy Ghost, then you need to realize that God gave it to you for you to be a willing vessel of honor working and ministering for His kingdom!

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The power is already there. The calling is already there. The opportunities are all around us! So why don't more people tap into it!? How come there are Holy Ghost-filled people who sit on pews and while keeping them in place and nicely warm, never do much else!? I think that such people are a result of two things: they have either convinced themselves that they can't operate in such a realm of the Spirit and they have settled for being ordinary, or they don't really think they know how to minister. Let me take away both excuses for anyone here who might be misguided by such delusions. I will preach to the former and "treach" to the latter.

There are many Spirit-filled Christians who have convinced themselves that they can't be used actively by the Spirit of God. Start talking about praying for the sick or casting out devils or teaching Bible Studies and they immediately begin to say "that's not for me." Usually such people don't understand a principle in God's Word that I would like to point out to you.

Most of us know the story of David and Goliath fairly well. Big, hairy behemoth without God meets little, shepherd body with God and you probably know the end result: big hairy dies! Let me only point out and refresh you on one part of the story. The stone from the sling felled the giant, but David still had to run up to the giant, pull the giant's own sword and behead him with that. There's a valuable lesson here on following through with what you start in the spirit. Some people come to church on a Sunday night and let the Word and the Spirit knock their adversary down and then go out Monday and don't follow through with what they started in repentance the night before. When you don't follow through, you've still got a giant on your hands, but now he's really mad . . . and that's a lesson for another time. Just remember to finish on Monday what you started on Sunday night and remember that God will help you knock down what you are trying to overcome, but it's up to you to kill it!

My point here is that the Bible says that there was no sword like Goliath's sword. It was the ultimate weapon. And David got to use the ultimate weapon right away in his fighting career -- once. He used it that once, but it didn't come into his possession again until years later after David had learned to use a normal sword and found himself near the house of God without anything to eat and without a weapon and running for his life. He went to the priest and God broke the rules of law to allow David to eat the shewbread and that's another lesson in itself (see The Law of the Hungry) but when David asked the priest if he had a sword that he could use, the priest said:

And probably from that moment on, when David fought, he was fighting with Goliath's old sword!

The point is that God allowed David to catch a glimpse of what He had planned for him in the beginning and then reserved it until David grew into it. Goliath's sword was given back to him after he had learned to use it, and not until he really needed it! And the principle is that when people first come to God, they are excited enough to lay hands on the sick in faith that they will be healed, and they are passionate enough to tell somebody about what God has done for them, and they will not even hesitate to show someone the few scriptures that they do know. God let's them catch a glimpse of what He has for them, but then He reserves the power of the Holy Ghost until they have grown into it and are really ready for it! And for the time in the kingdom of God when they really need it.

We see the same procession in the twelve disciples' lives. Before Calvary, Jesus sent them out to heal the sick and cast out devils and such, and really those brief ministry trips only served as a little taste of what God had for them. And then they went a while before we find them in the Apostolic Church praying for the sick and raising the dead. They had to grow up into the anointing that God had for them. And God reserved it for when they really needed it after letting them have just a little taste!

But the problem is that some people have the initial taste and use the sword once and see God do the miraculous at first, and then when it takes growing up and learning scripture and prayer and fasting, they become convinced that God can no longer use them like that. They don't realize that God has the gift in store for down the road when they will really need it! And they believe the lie from Satan that the "Spirit stuff and miracle stuff" isn't for them! But I'm preaching to some of you -- it's time for our finest hour and it's time for the revival that God has for us! It's time to pick up Goliath's sword again and realize that, yes, you can operate in such a realm again! The very fact that God let you catch a glimpse at first, proves that He wants to use that way. If you have been willing to pay the price, then I preach to you that it's time -- pick up the sword!

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For those who don't think that they know how to minister, let me end this message by stating that it's very simple and that you have to look no further than the story of the lame man being healed in Acts chapter 3 that we read as our other text to learn how. This story is a discourse on how to minister to others needs in seven simple steps.

1. Preparation

The scripture says that Peter and John went up together to the temple about the hour of prayer to pray. They apparently were making prayer at the temple a daily habit, and it was their preparation that gave them the opportunity to minister in the first place. God will always use a prepared vessel. Some people are waiting for someone to come to them and say "heal me of my situation" before they ever develop a prayer life and began to prepare to minister, but that's never going to happen. If you will prepare, then God will open the door of opportunity for you to walk through. Really, preparation is giving God permission to use you. You are telling God that "I want to be used by You so much, that I'll prepare now in advance of you giving me the opportunity.

I am amazed at how often that I will set aside time to study the Word of God for my personal devotion and then that week I run into someone who asks or needs what I just studied. It happens to me all the time. I have people tell me often "you always know a scripture for any situation" and what they don't know is very often, I had just opened the Bible to or been studying the very thing that they asked. I didn't plan it, but rather my preparation opened the door for me to minister. If you want to minister, then prepare, and you will find that God will always use a prepared vessel! You've got to prepare in advance of your coming in contact with people's needs.

2. Look beyond what people say their need is.

The lame man looked at the men and saw pennies not healing. It was loose change that he asked for, but really that was just a symptom of the real problem. The real issue was that he needed to be able to walk, but he didn't know to ask for that because he didn't realize that Peter and John had a connection with Jesus that could provide that. Be aware that God will put situations and hardships and bad days in people's lives that are around you so that you have an opportunity to get involved. For that matter, God will sometimes give you a bad day so that hopefully your light will shine out from how you handle it and attract people to it!

But you've got to be able to see beyond the obvious to what their real need is. If they are telling you how their marriage is falling apart, then you could say "you know, the real issue here is that you and your wife need Jesus involved in your life more. Have you ever received the Holy Ghost?" Or if they are depressed and thinking about going on anti-depressant drugs, you could say "the scripture says that the kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost, have you ever heard what God did for me?" Or if they are despondent and going through something that you have gone through and you realize that it is just a symptom of sin reigning in their life, say something like "I used to have to worry about that until I had my sins washed away by being baptized in His name!" You are looking past what they say their need is to what their need really is. If they are hungry for more of God, they will respond to it.

3. Realize you have something to offer.

Peter and John were nothing to look at and neither had even a high school education, but they had the Holy Ghost and they had a relationship with Jesus, and they knew the Word of God, and they had faith that Jesus could do anything! Peter looked at the lame man and said "silver and gold have I none, but such as I have give I thee." Understand that he realized that he didn't have the answers to the symptoms of the problem, but he had the solution to the real cause of all of the problems and that was Jesus! The devil wants you to think that you have nothing to offer this world, but that's a lie from the pits of hell! If you've got the Holy Ghost, then you've got something that our world desperately needs! If all you've got is a revelation of who Jesus Christ really is and His blood and His name and His Spirit, then you've definitely got something to offer!

4. Speak to others what God can do for them before it happens.

This is key. You've got to believe that God can do it and state it to them before it happens. The scripture says that "faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God." The lame man couldn't have faith for God to heal him until he had heard someone tell him that God could heal him. Peter said "in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk." Say what God can do and that way when they hear you, they have an opportunity to believe and receive it.

5. Take the first step by appealing to their strength.

The scripture says that Peter leaned down and took the lame man by the right hand. The right hand signifies power. After you state what God can do for them, you must appeal to what they have the ability and power to do already. You could say "God can heal your headache, here you can pray and God will hear you, can we pray together?" You are helping them take the first step of faith by appealing to something that they can do before the miracle happens. Or you could say "God will fill you with the Holy Ghost if you will praise Him with everything in you and ask Him for it. Can we praise God together?" They have breath and they are able to praise God. For them to be healed you must help them into action, because remember that "Faith without works is dead" or in other words if you truly believe biblically, you will act upon that faith. Peter grabbed the man's right hand but when that man pulled himself up on it is when the healing took place. It wasn't Peter's hand, but rather the man acting on his faith that had come from hearing what God could do.

6. God shows up and performs the rest.

If they believe, then God shows up and does the part that you cannot! God will fill people to the Holy Ghost and heal them as a result of your prayers, but you must get them to respond in faith, believing. Peter never touched the lame man's feet or ankles. He didn't try to rub a healing into them. He didn't kick them a few times to cause them to come to life. Peter ministered to the man by getting him to believe with faith and act upon that faith, and then God showed up and did the part that man couldn't do. Peter set up the situation for a miracle and then God did the supernatural. That's what being a minister is all about: setting up people's lives and situations so that God is free to work! The world needs more of God's Spirit working and less of us working! Set it up and then get out of the way and let God do the work!

7. Give God the glory.

When the healed lame man had been seen leaping and shouting and praising God throughout the temple, and the people came to Peter and John to find out what had happened, Peter was quick to tell them: "we didn't do the work, but Jesus of Nazareth, through faith in His name has made this man whole!" They gave God all of the glory, because it was really God who had done the work! Really the process was starting over and they were just setting up the people there for Jesus to work again! When you give God the glory, then you reload the spiritual cannon and prepare for God to keep moving!

Since it's Jesus that does the work, that means that everyone of us can be a minister of the kingdom of heaven to prepare situations and people's lives for the moving of the Spirit of God. All God is looking for is someone willing to be used by God who will prepare and then step out in faith when the opportunity arises. It's time we step out in faith and let God use us! It's time that the plan of Jesus operates in our church for everybody to be a minister! When we do, the revival will shake our community and will have eternal effects in the kingdom of God!