The Power of Five-fold Collaborative
—Mark W. Pfeifer
Jesus gave SOME to be apostles, SOME prophets, SOME evangelists, SOME pastors and SOME teachers.
Essentially, this describes a company of apostles, a company of prophets a company of evangelists a company of pastors and a company of teachers.
All five gifts are plural, insinuating that a company of each of the five gifts exists with each company of gifted leaders working with the other four company of gifted leaders for equipping the saints properly.
What’s the central message?
We cannot do it alone!
JESUS WAS THE ONLY ONE THAT WAS ALL FIVE
I Corinthians 15:28 “Now when all things are made subject to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subject to Him who put all things under Him, that God may be all in all.”
Colossians 3:11 “...but Christ is all and in all.”
Colossians 1:16-18 “For by Him all things were created... He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. And He is the head of the body, the church... that in all things He may have the preeminence.”
Jesus was all five gifts in One.
THE Apostle.
THE Prophet.
THE Evangelist.
THE Pastor (Shepherd).
THE Teacher.
Jesus embodied all five gifts singularly. However, none of us are Jesus. We are not all five-fold equipping gifts personified in a single individual. While we may have a dominate gift and one or two secondary gifts in which we can operate, not of us match the Messiah in the fullness of all five.
Therefore, like a prism defusing light into the seven colors of the spectrum, Jesus defuses His five-fold abilities into these five separate gifts that are distributed into a company of servant leaders who express their particular gift along with the other four to equip the saints as Jesus intended.
In order to be equipped properly, saints need to be influenced by all five gifts in equal proportion. Since no single leader has the ability to influence all the saints adequately in all five dimensions, it means that…
Saints need to be influenced by a company of Apostles.
Saints need to be influenced by a company of Prophets.
Saints need to be influenced by a company of Evangelists.
Saints need to be influenced by a company of Pastors.
Saints need to be influenced by a company of Teachers.
This is why five-fold collaboration is so important. None of us can claim to be equal to Jesus in all five gifts. We cannot even claim to be a lone representation of any single gift. Leaders need to collaborate with other leaders who represent their particular gift and with others who carry diverse gifts in order to effectively equip saints for ministry in a multi-dimensional world.
Not only do the saints need to experience the influence of all five gifts in equal proportion, but they also need to be influenced by diverse expressions of each gift within a company of gifted leaders.
UNITING THE FIVE BACK INTO ONE
Here’s another important point about the prism and diffused light.
Just like the single white light is diffused into the seven colors of the spectrum by the prism, those seven colors unite back into a single white light when directed towards the saints.
In other words, the five expressions of Jesus are diffused into five separate gifts in the Five-fold ministry but are reunited into a single form when they unite together for the purpose of quipping saints.
The benefactors of this synergy are the saints. Through the life-giving ministry of all five gifts in equal proportion, the saints together become a pure and unified expression of the Body of Christ reconstituted on earth as it is in heaven.
While each saint gets to be missional (apostolic), spiritual (prophetic), attractional (evangelistic), familial (pastoral) and doctrinal (teaching) in equal proportion, together with others who equally equipped, they become the Body of Christ.
Each well-rounded, wholistic disciples can become a Christ-like member of the greater collective. Together with other saints, these Christ-like members, equally influenced by all five dimensions of Christ through the Five-fold Ministry gifts, combine to present to the world a full picture of the Body of Christ recreated on earth as it is in heaven.
What a great plan!
What a great process!
If only we have the humility to pull it off!
OUR CHALLENGES
In order to complete this process, Five-fold Ministry leaders must humble themselves to consider the following:
I’m not a one-man five-fold ministry.
I need others who share my gift.
I need other who have different gifts.
I am part of a greater company of leaders.
I cannot be successful on my own.
This is the biggest challenge I have personally witnessed: Leaders whose independence and self-reliance convinces them they can do it alone. So long as the church creates platforms for gifts on display, leaders can maintain a one-man show for the masses. But if we take seriously Jesus’ command to make disciples and not fans, we must invoke collaborative mindset to be successful.
Let’s get our act together!
Let’s connect!
Let’s work together!
We need each other in each of the Five-fold ministry gifts, and we need all five gifts working together to equip the saints equitably and to recreate the Body of Christ on earth as it is in heaven.
The saints need us to work together. Don’t they deserve to have leaders who are interested in equipping them and serving their best interests more than our own careers?
Doesn’t Jesus deserve that each Five-fold gift collaborate with others in their company and for all five gifts to act a team for the benefit of the saints?
It’s not about us!
It’s about the saints!
This is why we need one another and why it’s important we lean in and learn from each other and connect with one another, formally in our coalition and informally in our friendships.
Jesus is glorified and the saints are equipped when we do!