How the Body Works - The Purpose

^{And
Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All
authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go
therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the
name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching
them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with
you always, even to the end of the age." (Matthew 28,
18-20 NKJ)}

^Go	Literally this means, having gone, wherever you go,
^{Make disciples}	Disciples are those who follow, hang with, spend time with, learn from, talk to, watch and know intimately the one whom they are following.
^{Baptize them}	In obedience to Jesus command
^{Teach them}	Instruct them in the things Jesus said.

Evangelism	Equipping
Go	Make disciples
Baptize them	Teach them

It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. (Ephesians 4:11-16 NIV)

The purpose of the church is to evangelize and edify, equip or build up the body of Christ. It has been rightly observed from this passage that “the church does not exist to provide for the ministry; the ministry exists to provide for the church.” The work of leadership is to equip the people of God to do the work of God to build up or mature the body so that the people can go into the world and make disciples. Equippers (Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors and Teacher) are to equip the Body by serving her with what God has given. So in truth, leadership in the Christian view is actually service. Over the centuries, this biblical view has been horrendously distorted, but the Lord is mercifully restoring this vital truth.

In the upper room the night before Jesus death, the Apostle's were debating among one another who would be at the right and left hand of the throne in Jesus kingdom. Jesus rebuked them saying, "the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves." (Luke 22:26) Jesus washed the feet of His followers, and said that we should do the same. In essence He was saying, serve one another. It is an interesting paradox that the one who really wants to lead may be highly qualified and gifted, yet may not be ready for leadership.

"The Lord resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble." Grace is "the empowering presence of God, to enable us to do what He has called us to do." (James Ryle) Therefore as leaders, we pray that God would give us the grace (empower us)to serve in the way He made us to serve. Note: some would see two kinds of grace. Grace that "saves" and grace that "sanctifies". The point is that grace "empowers". Grace is not unmerited favor. That is mercy. If grace were unmerited favor then Jesus was full of "unmerited favor and truth." (John 1:14) If anyone ever merited favor, it was Jesus. Jesus was full of the empowering presence of God, the Divine influence upon His heart. It is that same imprint that is on the hearts of every one of us as Christians.