Truth Magazine

By Paul K. Williams

In 1957 in debate with a preacher of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, I argued from Ephesians 4:7-13 that Jesus gave spiritual gifts to apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers until we all attain to the unity of the faith. I argued that since the New Testament contains the faith (Jude 3), the church came to the unity of the faith when the New Testament was completely written, and therefore the spiritual gifts were no longer given. I paralleled this passage with 1 Corinthians 13:10 and 11. It made a strong argument which the denominational preacher could not answer.

But I no longer make this argument because I don’t think that is what Paul was talking about in Ephesians 4. I abandoned the argument with reluctance, but honesty has compelled me to do so. In this article I want to examine my previous argument and show what I believe Ephesians 4:13 teaches.

MacKnight’s Comments

Of the denominational commentaries in my library, only James MacKnight takes the position that I have outlined. He says:

“13. These supernaturally endowed teachers are to continue in the church, until, being fully instructed by their discourses and writings, we all, who compose the church, come, through one faith and knowledge of the Son of God, to perfect manhood as a church, even to the measure of the stature which when full grown it ought to have; so that the church, thus instructed and enlarged, is able to direct and defend itself without supernatural aids.”

“Ver. 13. To a perfect man.  The apostle having represented the Christian church under the idea of Christ’s body, ver. 4., he here speaks of it as in a state of childhood, whilst its members were few in number, and imperfect in knowledge; and told the Ephesians, that the supernaturally endowed teachers were to continue in the church, till it was so enlarged, and so well instructed in the doctrine of the gospel, as to be able to direct and defend itself without any supernatural aid. This advanced state of the church, the apostle termed `perfect manhood,’ and `the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;’ at which when the church arrived, the supernatural gifts of the Spirit were to be removed as no longer necessary.”

I took this argument from brother Roy Cogdill, and I am guessing that it originated in these comments of MacKnight.

Problems With This Position

1. The first problem is that it is not possible to prove that the gifts of these verses refer exclusively to spiritual gifts.

The words “gift” and “gifts” are found in verses 7 and 8  “But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore it says, `When he ascended on high, he led captive a host of captives, And he gave gifts to men”‘ (NASB). If you read carefully you did not find the word “spiritual” in front of “gifts.” We know from these verses that Christ gave his gift of dying on the cross, or it can mean all of the things which he gives to us as undeserved gifts. We know also that when he went to heaven “he gave gifts to men.” What are those gifts?

Verse 11 says, “And he gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers.” The flaw in my reasoning was that when I read that passage I understood it to mean “He gave some gifts to the apostles,” etc. But the verse does not say that. It says that Christ made some to be apostles, some to be prophets, etc. The New King James translates: “And he himself gave some to be apostles.” The NIV says: “It was he who gave some to be apostles.” What Christ gave to us, according to verse 11, are the men and offices described. These men are charged with the duty of equipping the saints for the work of service (v. 12), thus all of us receive grace to do the work God has assigned through the instructions and examples and oversight of the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers.

The work of the apostles and prophets required direct inspiration from the Holy Spirit. Their work is finished, and inspiration and the signs to prove they were from God are no longer given. Yet the apostles and prophets are still in the church  they are part of the foundation (Eph. 2:20) upon which we must build. Just as Jesus, our head, is part of the church, so also are the apostles and prophets, even though they are no longer bodily upon the earth. The gifts of apostles and prophets are gifts which we still enjoy and which cause us to be equipped for the work of service. Through the New Testament which they revealed we are able to be complete (2 Tim. 3:16-17).

That some evangelists (Acts 8:13) and early elders (Jas. 5:14) possessed spiritual gifts is clear, but neither the qualifications nor the work of these offices required that each one have the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Evangelists and teachers are made by teaching (2 Tim. 2:2), not by the direct inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and the qualifications for elders (1 Tim. 3 and Tit. 1) include nothing which requires a supernatural gift. Therefore when Jesus gave some to be apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, he was not necessarily equipping them all with spiritual gifts. He gives everything necessary to their work.

2. The second problem is that the work described of these men is work which must continue until the end of time. Verse 12 says, “for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ.” Saints constantly need to be equipped and will until Jesus comes again. Our work of service continually goes on in order that the body of Christ should be built up. Paul is not writing about something which would soon be terminated.

This work is not completed simply by putting the written word into the world. That was the main work of the apostles and prophets. If that was all there was to it, there would have been no need, then or now, for evangelists, pastors and teachers. The written word must be preached, taught, exemplified, enforced. This is a work which will never end.

3. The third problem is that in verse 13 the description of the condition of “all” is a description which shall not be attained short of heaven. Read: “until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fulness of Christ.” This is not the same condition described in 1 Corinthians 13:11 as “when I became a man.” In Ephesians Paul is talking about the perfected condition of “all.” The work of the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, plus the work of the saints (v. 12), is so that we all can attain the unity of the faith and the maturity which belongs to the fulness of Christ. This work is to continue until that perfection is attained.

When will that be? Do you suppose that Paul witnessed it in his lifetime? Have you witnessed it in any congregation, or even in your own life? This is the ideal toward which we must all be working, but it will not be attained until we reach heaven. Paul said, “Not that I have already obtained it, or have already become prefect, but I press on in order that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:12). And so say we all.

Therefore the gifts Christ is giving to us, and the work of the men and women who are workers in the church are to continue until we reach the perfection which will only be reached in heaven. This is a way of saying that this work will continue until the end of the world.

Conclusion

The subject dealt with in Ephesians 4:7-13 is not the duration of spiritual gifts. In these verses Paul is writing about what Jesus has given us so that we may be equipped for the work of service. These gifts, which are the offices described in verse 11 and the work of the saints described in verse 12 plus all that is necessary for these men and women to do their work, will continue until the perfection of verse 13 is attained in heaven.

When we understand these verses we will praise God for giving us everything needed in the church for being built up unto perfection. We will not seek to add offices or organizations he did not give because we will know that everything we need has been given. We will be encouraged to work hard under the directions of the apostles and prophets as taught to us by evangelists, pastors and teachers until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fulness of Christ.

Guardian of Truth XXXIX: 1 p. 19-20
January 5, 1995

By Mike Willis

One of the hardest things to do is to forego today’s pleasures for greater good tomorrow. Who has not tried dieting? Everyone knows that he needs to control what he eats today for the better goal of a lesser weight. But when the cake and ice cream are served, to refuse to eat for the greater good tomorrow is hard to do. What is true of such physical things is also true of spiritual things. To voluntarily endure today’s sorrows for a better tomorrow  a home in heaven  is not easy to do.

Jesus did this when he voluntarily chose the cross. Hebrews 12:2 exhorts us to look “unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.” He saw beyond the suffering of the cross to the eternal joy with the Lord.

So also did Moses. The writer of Hebrews says, “By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter; choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompense of the reward. By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible” (Heb. 11:24-27). Moses was willing to forego the pleasures available as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter to receive the greater riches associated with the “reproach of Christ.” He “had respect unto the recompense of the reward” and therefore forsook Egypt to have heaven.

This is the same principle Paul is emphasizing in Romans 8:18. He said, “For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” Consider what this verse is teaching.

The Sufferings of This Present World

We serve no good in denying that there are sufferings in this present world. There are plenty of them and they come in many different forms. We live in a sin-cursed world, a world that was cursed because of man’s sins (see Gen. 3:17-19; cf. Rom. 8:19-20). As a result of this we witness such sufferings as the following:

1. Physical problems. The curse that fell on man was to return to this dust, because God said, “for out of it west thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return” (Gen. 3:19). Because death has come to man, he faces the sufferings attached to it. We face the ravages of the diseases that lead to death. Each of us knows someone who has endured horrible sufferings because of disease. I watched two of my close friends and some of my relatives endure the sufferings of death as a result of cancer. The vigor of life was stolen from them and their physical bodies were eaten by the parasite that ultimately killed them. The pain of their sufferings was not limited to physical pain. Watching their bodies deteriorate and losing even the ability to go to the bathroom by themselves were hard to accept. We do no one any service by denying the reality of these sufferings.

2. Earning a living. Many people suffer in trying to provide for their families. They know by experience the “thorns and thistles” that make providing a living difficult. Some are unemployed through no fault of their own. Others are in dead-end jobs that pay so little that they cannot provide adequately for their families. Many go without the benefits that others enjoy in their comfortable jobs with many fringe benefits and have nothing to look forward to but an old age with nothing to live on but social security.

3. Emotional problems. Many have a difficult time coping with life’s realities and suffer from depression or anxiety. Some become so emotionally distraught that they are committed to institutions because they lost touch with reality. Some of the problems are physically caused by chemical imbalances that even the doctors do not fully understand.

4. Suffering for Christ. The sufferings mentioned above are the common lot of all men. We who are Christians do not escape them. Rather, our lot is to bear another level of suffering added to those born because we are men. We sometimes are called to suffer for Christ. Paul warned that “all who live godly will suffer persecution” (2 Tim. 3:12). Jesus foretold that many would be “persecuted for righteousness’ sake” (Matt. 5:11; cf. 10:18, 39; Mark 10:29; 13:9). Our sufferings are different from those of previous generations. Some early Christians lost their lives for Christ. Nonetheless, we do endure suffering for Christ. We have been belittled in classrooms as “Bible thumpers,” ostracized from a social group because we would not laugh at their jokes or approve their foul language, mocked by TV programs who portray Bible believing folks as narrow-minded bigoted little idiots, and such like things.

These are some of the sufferings of this present world and no one needs to tell us about them because we know them through experience.

Not Worthy to Be Compared

When the sufferings of this present world are placed beside the glory to come, Paul said that they are “not worthy to be compared.” That means that our present sufferings are so little in contrast to the glories of heaven that, by comparison, they are mere triflings, They are insignificant.

How can I know this? Certainly I cannot know this by experience. I have never been to heaven to see how its glories compare with the sufferings of this present world. This I can know only through revelation. The God who made us is the one who has revealed to us that the sufferings of this present world are nothing when compared to the glories of heaven. W. Oliver Cooper wrote “Heaven Will Surely Be Worth It All” to emphasize this point.

Often I’m hindered on my way,

Burdened so heavy I almost fall;

Then I hear Jesus sweetly say;

“Heaven will surely be worth it all.”

Many the trials, toils and tears,

Many a heartache may here appall;

But the dear Lord so truly says:

“Heaven will surely be worth it all.”

Toil and pain I will endure,

Till I shall hear the death angel call:

Jesus has promised and I’m sure

Heaven will surely be worth it all.

Heaven will surely be worth it all.

Worth all the sorrows that here befall;

After this life with all its strife,

Heaven will surely be worth it all.

The Glories of the World to Come

Let us consider what God’s revelation tells us about the world to come.

1. The absence of things that make earth life painful. John described heaven by saying, “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away” (Rev. 21:4). What a beautiful picture this displays about God. As a parent, I often have wiped the tears from by daughter and son who scraped their knees while playing. I would take them on my lap, wipe away their tears, minister to their needs, and kiss the hurt away. When life is over for me, God will take me on his knees and gently wipe away the tears of my grief and suffering, reassuring me that there will be no more death, sorrow and crying. The things associated with pain are gone.

2. The absence of sin. Heaven is a place where sin does not exist. Impenitent sinners have no entrance into heaven (Rev. 21:8, 27; 22:15). In heaven we will not suffer the inhumanities that sinful men commit against each other. We will not awaken to the radio’s report of another homicide in our city, a rape on the east side, a robbery downtown, or a war in some country that causes starvation and death to hundreds or thousands. These things will not exist in heaven.

3. To dwell with the Lord. David looked forward to dwelling “in the house of the Lord forever” (Ps. 23:6). Asaph expected that God would guide him with his counsel, and “afterward receive me to glory” (Ps. 73:24). John described heaven as the Lord tabernacling with men (Rev. 21:3). Jesus promised that “where I am, there ye may be also” (John 14:3). What a blessed hope this is to know that “face to face shall I behold him.” Indeed, that “will be glory for me.”

When all my labors and trials are o’er, And I am safe on that beautiful shore, Just to be near the dear Lord I adore. Will thru the ages be glory for me.

4. Access to the tree and water of life. Heaven is described as a place where man has access again to the tree of life (Rev. 22:2, 14). The tree of life was originally in the Garden of Eden. When Adam and Eve ate of it they could live and not die. The Lord drove them from the Garden so that they no longer had access to the tree of life. By telling us that we will have access again to the tree of life in heaven, the Lord is describing the eternal nature of our inheritance. Indeed, this will be a land in which “we never grow old.” I therefore wish for men to

Sing to me of heaven, sing that song of peace,

From the toils that bind me it will bring release;

Burdens will be lifted that are pressing so,

Showers of great blessings o’er my heart will flow.

Sing to me of heaven, let me fondly dream

Of its golden glory, of its pearly gleam;

Sing to me when shadows of the evening fall,

Sing to me of heaven, sweetest song of all.

Conclusion

Indeed, the sufferings of this present world, real and painful as they are, are not worthy to be compared to the glories of the world to come. So let me renew my strength and rise above the struggles that pull my soul downward.

Just a few more years

With their toil and tears,

And the journey will be ended;

Then I’ll be with Him.

Where the tide of time

With eternity is blended.

I’ll exchange my cross for a shining crown,

Where the gates swing outward never:

At His feet I’ll lay ev’ry burden down,

And with Jesus live for ever.

Don’t become discouraged and lose heart, like you do on your dieting program. Fix your eyes on the goal before you and keep on serving the Lord.

Guardian of Truth XXXIX: 2 p. 2
January 19, 1995

By David D. Bonner

In 1994, Jesse G. Jenkins debated Pat Donahue twice and Christian Garrett once. The first debate was in early May in the building of the Pleasant Grove, Alabama, church. About 300 attended each evening and it was a very cordial discussion with the church there hosting the debate and saints there providing housing and food for the debaters and their moderators. Although all there do not agree on the subject of the covering (1 Cor. 11:2-16), there is no division over this matter. Pleasant Grove is a good church with a good preacher and they are supporting about twenty preachers in the field.

Relative to the Bible study of 1 Corinthians 11:2-16, both debaters agree that the passages enjoins long hair on women and short hair for men. Donahue argued the artificial covering for women while praying is the focus of the passage and the woman must wear it at all times when praying (in or out of the assembly). Jenkins argued that subjectivity (v. 3) is the focus of the passage and the covering a woman must wear is the long hair and is worn all the time she shows subjectivity which is all the time. Jenkins argued the word for “covering” (katakalupto) is a word which means a covering that hangs down and after discussing it for about twelve verses the writer finally names it in v. 15 as the hair. He showed the word “covering” in v. 15 is a different word and means a covering that is wrapped around, and the woman’s covering that hangs down (hair) is given her for (anti, instead of) one that is wrapped around.

The debate was repeated in Oklahoma City in the building of the 59th and Santa Fe church in June. This debate was just as cordial and the brethren there fed and housed the debaters and moderators. Little interest in this subject exists in Oklahoma City and the attendance indicated as much.

The last of June and first of July Jenkins debated Christian Garrtett, a young debater with the Pentecostals, in Choctaw, OK, in a large rented hall. The Pentecostals furnished the building and Garrett had challenged any preacher of the church of Christ to meet him in debate. There was only about a week to prepare and since Jenkins has debated this subject several times before, he answered the challenged. Hedge’s Rules of Controversy were not signed and the only rule of conduct was for Garrett’s people not to talk or disturb when Jenkins was debating. As is Jenkins’ custom, he took passage after passage and showed there are three distinct persons in the one God or Godhead. Garrett got up and led a “pep rally” with his people as they showed vocally and bodily their approval of him. Written questions were entertained by both debaters and a host of questions came in.

Garrett had promised at least 200 of his people for the debate, but later changed that to 100, but had fewer than half that attended. A majority of the people present were faithful saints in the area who appreciated the truth Jenkins taught.

Guardian of Truth XXXIX: 1 p. 25
January 5, 1995

By Larry Ray Hafley

Had there been such a headline in the “papers” of the day, mighty men derisively would have scoffed and said, “What a laugh!” Yet, there it was; the affirmation and confirmation of the fact was made: “See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant” (Jer. 1:10).

God had done the same sort of thing many years before with Moses. Imagine, a lowly, banished shepherd approaching the military might of the potentate Pharaoh and saying, “Let my people go”! Again, what a laugh! As Pharaoh contemptuously asked, “Who is the Lord that I should obey his voice?” (Exod. 5:2)

Centuries later, the Lord repeated the effort and its effect. After listing the magnificent seven in the courts and congresses of the world (Caesar, Pilate, Herod, Philip, Lysanias, Annas, and Caiphas), Luke said, “the word of God came unto John” (Lk. 3:1, 2). Not unto the popes and political powers of the civil and religious realm, but unto John “the word of the Lord came.”

Jeremiah, Moses, John the Immerserwhat an unlikely trio! But to each man, God gave a message and a mission. The men were unimposing; their message appeared impotent; their mission seemed doomed to failure. Jeremiah was sent to a miry dungeon. Moses was rejected by his own people. John, an ascetic, backwoods preacher, was be-headed.

If you were of “the nations” and the kingdoms” of those eras, would you have considered these men a threat? Would you have given their word a second hearing? Would you have wagered anything on the chances of their success? No, a thousand times, no! Yet, in the end, each ultimately prevailed through him that ruleth in the affairs of men. It required many years. Moses and John did not live to see the full fruition of their word and work, but, as was said of later ventures, “So mightily grew the word of God and prevailed” (Acts 19:20). Count on it (Isa. 55:11).

Guardian of Truth XXXIX: 2 p. 4
January 19, 1995