What is Leadership role of the

What is Leadership role of the

Mighty Hand of YAHVEH

Our leadership ability determines our level of effectiveness. Our leadership ability is the indicator that determines our level of proficiency. If an aircraft is been driven by an propeller engine we may reach 40,000 feet, if it is driven by a jet engine it will reach 100,000 feet, but when that craft is driven by a rocket it can brake free from the gravitational pull of earth and explore the far reaches of Space.

 Our leadership abilities will always determines our effectiveness and the impact on the lives of those around us. This principle is one that has been used by the secular world for years. That is why YAHVEH has initiated the five-fold ministry, each with its own particular characteristic trait, all-working together for the good of the Body of The Messiyah. YAHVEH can do anything He desires, but YAHVEH can use a sharp knife better than a dull one. Study to show oneself approved, rightly dividing the Word.

In reading the Bible, I realize that success is within the reach of every Redeemed.  But like an aircraft if my leader can only travel at 50 mph, and I have the ability to go twice that speed, or the speed of what ever is driving me, I will never reach my full ability if that leader cannot surpass my potential. A Redeemed person cannot succeed without good YAHVEHly leadership who can maximize their spiritual ability.

 The influence of any ministry is only a fraction of what it could be without the aid of a mature leader. If you want to get to the Holy of Holies spiritually, we cannot ask someone who is in the Outer Court spiritually to lead us there. Yahushua came from the Holy of Holies (Throne of YAHVEH) and showed the Apostles the way back, Yahushua when He said the Kingdom of YAHVEH is like unto, was speaking from a position of knowledge.

For the Five Fold ministry, The Mighty Hand of YAHVEH to increase its level of effectiveness in the Church, they must first take up and complete their cross experientially, as discussed in other chapters. The Apostle Paul said it best; follow me as I follow The Messiyah. To increase in all the fullness of The Messiyah, you and I have two choices. We can follow someone who has already been there, or we can follow someone who is on the way there. We can follow a person like the Apostle Paul who have made it into the Holy of Holies, or follow a person who have made it into the Holy Place, some one who have tasted of the fruit of the Holy Spirit and as developed an appetite for the Anointing of the Holy Spirit as outline in Isaiah 11:2. I do believe that the gift of the Apostle, Prophet, and Teacher are Holy Place ministry and has they walk in faithfulness in that ministry, they will be called faithful and true, a fitting characteristic for the Holies of Holy and an Apostle.

To change the direction or fortunes of a Church, we must first change the leader. He should hold the access to the effectiveness of the Holy Spirit in that congregation. YAHVEH is a YAHVEH of authority, and He will not break His chain of command, even in His permissive will. Remember what happen when the Yisraelites wanted a King? It was not YAH’S choice for a king to rule over Yisrael, but when they insist, YAHVEH chooses Saul to be King. Adonai does not go against the choices of man. For a time Saul had a measure of success, but in the end he failed. Saul could not have had success over his enemy as His successor David did. Saul was anointed with a phial of Oil, but David was anointed with a horn full. Change the anointing on the Leader of the church and you will change the effectiveness.

Wherever we look in the Church, we will find smart, talented, successful people who are able to go only so far, because of religion and the limitations of their leadership. In order for the leadership to reach the highest level of Redeemed maturity, we have to raise the level of Spiritual maturity from a head knowledge to a heart knowledge of Yahushua and the level of influence will increase. If any ministry does not have the Anointing (Holy Spirit), they will never be able to lead other. How do we measure the anointing?

Lets see Isaiah 11:² have to say: The Spirit of YAHVEH shall rest upon Him, The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and might, The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of YAHVEH. ³ His delight is in the fear of YAHVEH, And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, Nor decide by the hearing of His ears; ⁴ But with righteousness He shall judge the poor, And decide with equity for the meek of the earth; He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked. ⁵ Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins, and faithfulness the belt of His waist. I need not say more!

Colin Powel once wrote "You have achieved excellence as a leader when people will follow you everywhere, if only out of curiosity," Those who exemplify and remind us of the Messiyah and those who was willing to follow Him, any and every where are true leader. Many church members today have a wrong misconception about leadership. When they hear the title Doctor or superintendent, they assume that he or she is a leader, in some case that is true, but title do not have much value when it comes to spiritual matters. It is the Anointing that counts. True Spiritual leaders cannot be voted on, assigned or appointed to, it comes only from the anointing. It must be earned as Joshua earned his after the death of Moses. The only thing that a title can purchase is a little time for you to increase your influence of lack of it.

Leadership is influence. When I got a mentor in Bible School, I began to recognize people's level of influence in every situation. The very essence of leadership is getting the mentee to participate. Leadership without influence is not leadership at all; if a leader do not have leverage he or she is ineffective. The Church should represent the purest form of leadership; it entails only the anointing to maintain that position of trust.  Peter said to Yahushua we gave up all to follow you, where else are we going to go? There was not salary, no treat of death, no position that the world seek after to attract them, just the raw personal magnetism of Yahushua personality.

True leaders must be in it for the Long haul, to become a leader is a lot like investing successfully in the stock market. If your hope is to make a fortune overnight you are not going to make it. It is true that some of us are born with more talent than others; the ability to lead is a collection of all our skill like the Apostle, who possesses some of all the other four-ministry gifts. Leadership is complicated, for it is a multifaceted thing! It entails the fruits of the spirit plus the anointing. Everything must be done through wisdom in the fear of YAHVEH with Love, Joy, Hope, longsuffering, gentleness, meekness, and faithfulness and of the Spirits of YAHVEH (The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and might, The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of YAHVEH.)

From the above illustration there are many factors that come into play in the development of a leader. That is why leader require so much teaching, seasoning and discipline as Solomon did, in order to be effective. Over and over in Proverbs David warned Solomon to seek the anointing of Isaiah 11:2.

David wrote to his son Solomon to seek knowledge. David knew that there is a relationship between growth and leadership, which is the ability to develop and improve his skill and that what distinguishes leaders from followers. Successful leaders are first and foremost learners; it is a lifetime pursuit, a daily goal to better oneself today more than yesterday, to leave the woodpile a little higher than we found it, to pick up one’s cross and follow. This will allow us to understand the different phases of leadership development. One of the many phases of growth is to know what we do not know. As long as we do not know what we do not know, we will never grow.

The spiritual dilemma that the church is falling into, is realizing the value of leadership. We tend to believe that leadership is only for a royal few, for the people at the top of the Church hierarchy. The average Church members have no idea of the opportunity they are passing up when they do not learn to lead. When Moses took the Yisraelites to Mount Sinai it was their chance to meet YAHVEH and to develop their own leadership skill, it was YAH’S will for the whole nation of Yisrael to be one Nation of Leaders, an Holy nation a royal priesthood, but they chose otherwise.

Another aspect of leadership is to know what we do not know. At some point in all of our lives we are placed in a leadership position only to look around and discover that we have no following. This is the point when we need the anointing to lead. To be conscious that we are ignorant of certain facts is a great step to knowledge; study to show oneself approved, rightly dividing the truth. When we recognize our lack of skill and begin the daily discipline of personal growth in the anointing, exciting things starts to happen, in Revelation it says take this little book and eat it and in your mouth it will be as sweet as honey. When we come across a golden nugget of truth our first ability is to ask the Holy Spirit to write it on the wall of our heart, or store it away until an appropriate time.

Another characteristic of leadership is to lead tomorrow from what we learn today. All true leadership in ministry is being developed daily; this is the law of process. Success in life is for us to walk in our YAHVEH given purpose, so we can be ready for our opportunity when it comes. I was called to the ministry of teaching; my sole purpose is to invest in learning all that needs to be learned and more. One good thing about leadership ability it is not static. No matter what level we start at, we can only get better.

The Five-fold ministry must be men or women of action, I have a great respect for a person who can hold their own in the world. If any one has a desire for leadership in the Five-Fold ministry, with the help of the Holy Spirit, you can do it. The potential is in every person, but it must be developed, and it is the duty of the Five-fold ministry to produce after its own kind. The parable of the talents is a case in point, it is our duty to duplicate ourselves in others, and this was Yahushua's purpose all along.

In the majority of today's churches, the Five-fold ministry is replace with the office of the Pastor. The Pastor has become a Redeemed dictator, who leads the church in what seems to be a YAHVEHly direction. It is like driving in a foot of snow, we step on the gas and the engine is revving, the back wheel is spinning, but the vehicle is still stationary. Anyone can steer a ship, but it takes a skillful leader to chart and navigate it. This Redeemed walk is similar to a ship, unless the leader has successfully navigated this course before, he cannot lead others through it.

The captain of the Titanic found out the hard way, that the Larger the ship the more room it takes to turn safely. A Five-Fold ministry leader is one who sees more in the spirit than others, and one who sees before others. They know that other people; spiritual growth depends on their spiritual diet, and in their ability to chart a safe path for the flock. Before Moses was ever ready to lead the Yisraelites out of Egypt into the wilderness, He first had to spend 40 years there. Before any church leader can take the people on a journey, he or she must have gone through the process in order to give the journey any chance of being successful.

Yahushua in training His Apostolic team, emphasize one important principle, He allowed the disciples to fail, and in their failure a valuable lesson was learnt, the lesson of experience. In every success or failure wisdom has it seed, if we allow it to be so. Success teaches us about ourselves; what we are capable of doing with our YAHVEH given talents. Failure on the other hand shows us what kind of wrong assumptions we have made, and the flaw in our methods. In saying this, no matter how much we learn from our experiences, it will never tell us all we need to know for the present or the future, but it will help us in finding the answer to the source of our problems, that is wisdom.

Being able to shepherd others requires a ministry to possess a positive mental and spiritual attitude. It is a difficult process for the Five-Fold ministry to balance, optimism, intuition and planning, faith and fact, but that is what it takes to have an effective ministry. If the Apostle cannot lead the people through rough waters to still waters, he is liable to drown the sheep.

 The course must be charted with a strategy in mind. The ministry must first determine the objectives, plan the action, expect problems, identify goals along the way, adjust according to priorities, allow time for acceptance, always point to your success, and review plans daily. Realize that the major barriers to the flock are fear of changes and above all remember that it is not the size of the project that determines its acceptance, support, or success, it is the size of the fight in the leader.

In any given group of people the real leader holds the power, not just the position, being in power is like being a lady, if we have to tell, others that we are in charge, then we are not. If we see a difference between the chair of the meeting and the leader of the group, then the individual chairing the meeting is not the real leader, when the real leader talk people stop and listen. It is sad to say but people do not always listen for, or because of the truth, but because of their respect or trust for the speaker.

To establish trust a leader must exemplify competence, connection, and character. A congregation will forgive the occasional slipup, but they will not forget compromise in that leader’s character. Character makes trust possible, trust makes good leaders. Character illuminates many things, such as consistency, and respect. Leaders with inner strength can be counted on day after day; it makes trust possible, and leadership more enjoyable. Leadership earns respect by making sound decisions, admitting their mistakes, and putting the welfare of the followers first. When a leader breaks the trust, He or she will forfeits his or her ability to lead. No leader can break the trust of the congregation and expect to keep influencing them. Trust is the foundation of all YAHVEHly leadership, violation of that trust and you leadership ability is finished.

When the people respect you as a person, they admire you, when they respect you as a friend, they will love you, but when they respect you as a leader, they will follow you. The greatest test of respect in any church is when a leader creates a major change in the church. That leader needs to know that he knows, and must be able to communicate it clearly to those around them, the Spirit of Counsel. The top leaders lead by response, he or she has to read the situation and knows instinctively what to do; this was Yeshiva steps to success, Spirit of Wisdom. Yahushua operate under an open heaven, I do nothing unless I see it being done in heaven, and this is what gave Him such a great advantage when it comes to dealing with people. Discernment, and perception are two of the most important spiritual tools of a Redeemed leader, we do not live by sight we live by the spirit, those who live by the Spirit are called Sons of YAHVEH.

The five-fold ministry need to understand that sovereignty is given to us by YAHVEH and power by the Most High, who probes our acts and scrutinize our intentions. Therefore, as servants of His kingdom, we have not ruled justly if we do not observe His laws, nor followed the will of YAHVEH. He will fall on us swiftly and terribly. Moses when He was asked to speak to the rock struck the Rock. He took credit for what he and Aaron did when he said “must we bring water for you our of this rock” Numbers 20:10.

This was a fatal mistake by Moses. When the ministry takes any form of credit for anything in the ministry, YAHVEH will remove us from ministry. It is YAHVEH, and YAHVEH alone that must receive all the credit.

There are a number of things that true leadership must adhere to:

§       We must never change the Word of YAHVEH.

§       We do not own the flock, we are just under shepherds.

§       In and of ourselves, we can do nothing.

§       We must speak to the Rock and YAHVEH will provide.

§       YAHVEH will bless with or without our approval.

§       We must humble yourselves in His sight.

§       The greater the responsibility the greater the faith we need.

§       Greater the responsibility, greater the accountability.

§       Everything we have we have from YAHVEH.

§       Seek wisdom.

Therefore let us set your heart on what Solomon has to say about wisdom, listen and you will be instructed. For wisdom is brilliant, she never fades, and those who readily seek those who love her, and those who seek her, she can be found. For within her is a spirit intelligent, holy, unique, manifold, subtle, mobile, incisive, unsullied, lucid, invulnerable, benevolent, shrewd, irresistible, beneficent, friendly to human being, steadfast, dependable, unperturbed, almighty, all surveying, penetrating all intelligent, pure and most subtle spirit.

For wisdom is quicker to move than any motion, she is so pure, she pervades and permeates all things. She is a breath of the power of YAHVEH, pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty, so nothing impure can find its way into her. For she is a reflection of the eternal light, untarnished mirror of YAH’S active power, and image of His goodness.

I therefore am determined to take her to share my life, knowing that she would be my counselor in ministry and comfort me in its care and sorrow. Thanks to her, the ministry shall be admired by the masses, and honored by others. My ministry shall be reckoned shrewd as a judge, and the great will be amazed at it. They will wait on her advice and lay their hand on their lips. For the wisdom of the ministry, will produce immortality, it shall govern people, and rulers will be subjected to it. It will show itself kind to people and valiant in battle.

 Natural ability and wisdom that Paul possessed creates an informed intuition that makes leadership jump out at leaders, this intuition that they possess, gave them the ability to evaluate situations with a leadership bias. They always seem to see the big picture, they have the ability to remove themselves from the situation and evaluate it in the context of the whole body, first in the spiritual and the physical realm. Who we are in the spiritual really dictates who and what we are in the natural.

An effective leader is always on the lookout for leadership qualities in other, Yahushua never chose a disciple who was lazy or possesses a mind of their own. Yahushua saw the leadership quality in Nathaniel

John 1:⁴⁷ Jesus saw Nathaniel coming toward Him, and said of him, “Behold, an Yisraelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!” ⁴⁸ Nathaniel said to Him, “How do you know me?” Yahushua answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” Intuition, perception, discernment call it what it may, is an essential tool for a leader.

Yahushua’s personality attracted a certain type of character; His disciples were an extension of Yahushua’s personality, as a football team is an extension of the coaches’ personality. It is possible for a coach to go out and recruit people diametric opposite to himself, but they are not the ones he will be naturally attracted to. By changing the coach we will change the nature of the team, the spirit that governs the head will be the covering of the whole team. If we think that our congregation is too negative or not growing, we need to first look in the mirror. Our attitude generates from our background, background generates value, value generates life experiences, which determine leadership ability, and the better leadership quality we possess. The better leader we become, the better quality of leaders we will attract and produce, this follows the same train of thought, if we think the people we attract could be better, then it is time to improve ourselves.

Any effective leader knows that he or she has to touch the people's heart first before we can ask them for commitment. We cannot move people to greater heights unless we first touch their emotions, in Christendom our heart always comes before our head. Even Yahushua’s enemy would say that no one ever speaks like that. The Apostle Paul understand the Law of connection, He won people over before he enlisted their help, He knew that you have to touch a heart before asking for a hand.

 Yahushua realizes that the key to connecting with others is to recognize that even in a small group, we have to relate to people as individuals. He took a little child on His knees when He emphasizes who is the greatest. Many of us see the forest, but not the tree, or the tree and not the forest. It is always the leader's responsibility to initiate connection with the people, to take that ever-important first step necessary to build a good relationship with the flock. People do not care how much you know until they know how much you care.

When a minister makes connection with the people, it will be evident in the way the church functions. There will be incredible loyalty and a strong work ethic will follow. The vision of that leader will become the aspiration of the entire church. To misunderstand the importance of building relationships is to disregard the Law of connection. A good leader leads the people from his heart and himself from his head.

A good Redeemed leader is determined by those closest to him, whether personal or public. King David had men under him, II Samuel 23: ⁸; I Ch 12: ⁸ "Some Gadites joined David at the stronghold in the wilderness, mighty men of valor, men trained for battle, who could handle shield and spear, whose faces were like the faces of lions, and were as swift as gazelles on the mountains:

¹⁸ Then the Spirit came upon Amasai, chief of the captains, and he said: “We are yours, O David; We are on your side, O son of Jesse! Peace, peace to you, and peace to your helpers! For your YAHVEH helps you.”  So David received them, and made them captains of the troop." David was a giant killer he also taught his mighty men to be giant killers also,

II Samuel 21:¹⁵ "When the Philistines were at war again with Yisrael, David and his servants with him went down and fought against the Philistines; and David grew faint. ¹⁶ Then Ishbi-Benob, who was one of the sons of the giant, the weight of whose bronze spear was three hundred shekels, who was bearing a new sword, thought he could kill David. ¹⁷ But Abishai the son of Zeruiah came to his aid, and struck the Philistine and killed him."

When we have the right staff, our potential will soar. David staff continued to grow in wisdom, strength, and loyalty under his leadership. He developed the people to make them better leaders; I believe that when a staff member died David would look for someone as good or even better to take their place. Today's churches need to adapt the power of the Law of the inner circle and chooses the very best they can find and anoint them for service.

Many of today's ministries are an individual dictatorship, any question or any perceive challenge, will be met with expulsion. In the name of protecting the flock. As one well-known leadership says, only associate with those of the same belief. True Redeemed leaders find greatness in a group by helping others to discover their true potential. Every effective spiritual leader, surrounds him or herself with a strong inner circle, the power of association with good people makes us better than we could ever being alone. The scripture says I will rise up a prophet from among you, hear him? In the church environment a leader should always try to rise up leaders from among the ranks and file. This might not always be possible, but we can best see our result, if we bring up men or women to leadership from initial salvation. A wise person once said, that it is lonely at the top, so take someone with you.

In Christendom there is a severe problem with micro managing. Micro- managing is giving a job to someone and stand over their shoulder and watch him or her do it. The best Redeemed leader is the one who has a sense to pick good people to do a job, and have enough self-restraint from meddling in the process. To be successful as a minister, we must be an agent of empowerment; only an empowered congregation can reach their full spiritual potential. Failure to empower other, will create a barriers within the church that others cannot overcome. If that barrier remains long enough, then the people will get discouraged, or move to another church where spiritual empowerment is available.

There are many enemies to spiritual empowerment in today's churches, one such obstacle is change. It is in the human natures that as we grow older, we naturally guard against changes, specifically change of the unknown. Another is the desire for job security. Insecure ministers will worry about the younger assistance that might show more initiative. The only way to have job-security in the Kingdom is to make oneself-dispensable. If we remember the parable of the talents, the bare minimum that YAHVEH required is that we duplicate ourselves in one person. If and when the church takes hold of this and starts to empower others and help them to reach full maturity, we will become so valuable to the Kingdom of Heaven, that we will become indispensable.

Because of the lack of maturity, many ministers seek value in their lives from their position; any treat posed by anyone or anything is seen as a direct attack. However, those of us who have confidence in the working of what the Holy Spirit has done in their lives, change is a stimulating event, and is an progress indicator. This type of ministry believes one person can make a difference and influence the environment around them, these are the mature sons of YAHVEH, and these are the empowered of the people.

Mark Twain once commented that great things could happens when we do not care who gets the credit. Taking that a step further, the greatest change happen internally only when the Redeemed gives the credit to the Holy Spirit. Only a mature leader can give themselves away, as Paul says, I leave my success behind and press forward for the mark of a higher calling in Yahushua the Messiyah. I consider all my success but dung (fertilizer) for the sake of the Gospel. Too often I have seen pastors who put other down. What they do not realize is that when they push someone down they themselves go down in the process.

It takes a mature leader to rise up another leader. Leaders cannot take others where they have not been. I am a Jamaican, if you wanted to find out something about Yisrael would you ask me. Instead of send young men or women to Bible School why don’t the church train its future leaders. There are many reason for this, sometimes the Church discipline or the church board hinders them. Others focus too much on salvation, and not enough on progressive salvation, that is, coming to full maturity. Just as it took David, a giant killer, to produce other giant killer, it also takes a leader to rise up other leaders. In order for the Five-Fold ministry to develop other leaders as Paul did to Timothy, it requires taking the first step, see the big picture, attract potential leaders, and create an eagle mentality.

The first step is to have a vision the size of Yahushua; we are all called to rule and reign with Him. Rulers see the big picture. He or she should know the potential of every soul, the more souls the ministry helps to reach maturity, the greater reward we have in heaven. We need to attract people who want to dwell in the Holy of Holies, like Yahushua who chose one follower at a time.  True potential leader, do not flock together, we must seek and we will find them one at a time. The Law of Magnetism suggests, that the members of the Five-fold ministry, The Mighty Hand of YAHVEH, must first develop their leadership abilities, and the ability to attract others of similar abilities will come naturally. Seek those with the eagle mentality, the eagle mentality is one who has the ability to fly into a storm and uses the up draft created by the storm to overcome the storm.

Once the Church leadership understands the Law of reproduction, it will recognize the incredible impact it should have on the earth. If the church has very little impact on society, it needs to analyze its leadership ability; poor leadership usually produces poor influence. On the other hand, if the church has strong leadership it will produce strong leaders. The church will be like the every ready Bunny, keep going and going and going.

The most remarkable thing about leadership is not that we become leaders, but that we are able to effectively change the vision of the world. The world does not understand the things of the spirit, we are the light and salt of the world, and however, if that light and salt has lost its ability, it must be thrown away. That is why we need the Five-Fold ministry in all its fullness. Like Gandhi the church needs to rally the people to YAH’S way of thinking, when the prophets call for righteous living we will see revival. The struggle for righteous living will is slow and painful, but, like Gandhi, the Church leadership must be strong enough to deliver on the promise. When the church leaders understand its dream the people will find them. When the people find the church they will find that dream.

Many churches today, are buzzing around trying to find an invention, a new thing, a new scheme, which would increase the number in the pew, and many are unsuccessful. If we would only buy into all that Yahushua has to say and has done, we would find what the entrepreneur's vision is. When we buy into the person of Yahushua The Messiyah, then we will really accept His ideas. When the word gets out that Yahushua is in the house, there will not be enough room to contain the people. People buy into an idea based on the character of the messenger, not because the message is good, but because they trust the messenger. Every idea every suggestion is filtered through the filter of the messenger, if there is credibility in the messenger then the message has value. The Five-Fold ministry was originally based on this principle. Paul said to trust the Gospel to faithful men, credible men.

What drives one person to seek the Holy of Holies, full maturity in The Messiyah and another to settle for the bare minimum of salvation the Outer Court? The answer is a lack of knowledge. What does it take to achieve full maturity? What is the cost? The Messiyah says we must pick up our cross daily and follow Him that is the answer. What is the cross? Every leadership situation is different! Every challenge has its own crisis. The Alternative to the Holy of Holies should be totally unacceptable to each member of the Five-Fold ministry. What must be done for each and every Redeemed to achieve maturity?

The ministry needs to set a goal for everyone it comes in contact with, and should encourage them to pursue it with everything at the disposal of the individual and in conjunction with the ministry. A Redeemed leader should know that the Alternative to maturity in The Messiyah is totally unacceptable. They should figure out with the aid of the Holy Spirit what must be done to achieve victory for the saints, and then they should lead them to that new pastures. Winston Churchill said it best: Victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be; for without victory there is no survival.

  In any given organization, victory is only possible if there is unity of vision or spirit, diversity of skill, and dedication to victory. Unity and teamwork is synonymous, each members must have a unified vision, regardless of how talented the member of the ministry are. The Five-Fold ministry cannot bring the body to full maturity if each member has a different goal. A house that divided against itself will fall.

 I Corinthians 12:²⁷   Now you are the body of The Messiyah, and members individually. ²⁸ And YAHVEH has appointed these in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, varieties of tongues. ²⁹ Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Are all workers of miracles? ³⁰ Do all have gifts of healings? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret?  

A team cannot win if its players have a different agenda from the coaches; this is true in any walk of life, business, and sport or spiritual. Can you imagine the whole Five-fold ministry having the same pastoral gift, as the majority of today's churches do? It just does not make sense. Can you imagine my hand being one big ring finger? How would I catch a ball or scooped up water in my hand.

 The Mighty Hand of YAHVEH needs to have all five fingers fully functioning to achieve its objectives. I notice that when my eyes sees a ball coming towards me, it tells my hand to catch it, and this brings all of my five fingers into conformity to achieve the objective. I cannot have the big thumb falling asleep while the others are awake. Unity in vision is a complete must, as the fingers of the hand works in sync to catch the ball. It will take the leadership of the Apostle to provide the motivation and empowerment, and the direction of the Prophet in order for the church to be successful. The potential of the Evangelist is required to bring the unsaved into the church, the office of the Pastor to clean them from all unrighteousness by the word and the office of the Teacher to build them up, the office of the Prophet to provide direction and clarification.

Other characteristics of the Five-Fold ministry are as follows: We have no plan B. When difficulty comes we have no other options. We cannot throw in the towel, we cannot quit, it is victory at all cost, victory, or nothing. We must face a tidal wave of negativism from the enemy. We must not shun small beginnings, we must be prepared, and motivated for the great moment to arrive. We need to keep doing what we are doing until we are finished.

Successful leader priorities: successful leaders must give up to go up. With successful leaders sacrifice is an ongoing process, not a one-night stand. Successful leaders seldom think about themselves, successful leaders know that for everything they missed, in the natural, he or she will gained much more in the spirit. Successful leaders realizes that the higher the level, the greater the sacrifice. Successful leaders realize that when the right leader and the right time come together, incredible miracles will happen.

          Moses is the most successful leader outside of Yahushua, the world has ever seen. Moses took the people of Yisrael to the place where He meets YAHVEH for himself. Exodus 3:⁴ So when YAHVEH saw that he turned aside to look, YAHVEH called to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, Here I am.

The true test of the Five-Fold ministry is their ability to hear the Voice of YAHVEH for themselves and the congregation and respond accordingly. Eli did no understand that Samuel had heard the Voice of YAHVEH until the third time, what a sad spiritual state for a High Priest.

          Under the leadership of Moses the Children of Yisrael arrive in the wilderness of Sinai exactly forty days after they left Egypt. Exodus 19:¹⁰ Then YAHVEH said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes. ¹¹“And let them be ready for the third day. For on the third day YAHVEH will come down upon Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people.

                    ^19:17 And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with YAHVEH, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. ¹⁸Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke, because YAHVEH descended upon it in fire. YAHVEH appeared to Moses in the form of an unconsuming fire and came again to the Yisraelites in a grader scale later.

 

Exodus 20:¹⁸ Now all the people witnessed the thundering, the lightning flashes, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood afar off. ¹⁹ Then they said to Moses, “You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not YAHVEH speak with us, lest we die.” ²⁰ And Moses said to the people, “Do not fear; for YAHVEH has come to test you, and that His fear may be before you, so that you may not sin.”

²¹ So the people stood afar off, but Moses drew near the thick darkness where YAHVEH was.  ²² Then YAHVEH said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the children of Yisrael: ‘You have seen that I have talked with you from heaven.

If the Children of Yisrael had accepted Adonai’s request and when up the Mountain to meet YAHVEH, He would not have given them the Law written on stone. YAHVEH would have written the law in their heart as he did with Moses. How else could Moses have known the will of Adonai?

          The Law written on stone tablets was a substitute for not meeting YAHVEH face to face. YAHVEH had to write the law on stone, and gave it to the people. When we meet YAHVEH face to face we will know Him as He is. Adam, Noah, Abraham all knew and understood the Law due to their relationship with YAHVEH. It is the Spirit that will convict us of the will of YAHVEH. This is what the true Five-Fold ministry must do when YAHVEH is trying to speak to us. Verse 20, Do not be afraid, for YAHVEH has come to test you that His fear may be always before you, so that you may not sin.

          I am very sure that when Moses met and spoke to YAHVEH at the burning bush he was very fearful by, he was also comforted. The present of YAHVEH should be a fearful, but still very comforting. How then can today's ministry lead the churches. Can they take the people from initial salvation to where they can hear the Voice of YAHVEH for themselves? The question that must be asked, is where did you meet YAHVEH? Can you take me there also? Do you know how to hear the Voice of YAHVEH? If those who choose ministers for the church ask these questions, the church would be in far better shape than it is.

An airplane can only travel as fast and as high as the engine that it is powered by. When it is driven by a propeller engine it is limited to 45,000 ft, when it is powered by a jet engine it will reach 100,000 ft, by when it is powered by a rocket that airplane, it has the potential to leave the atmosphere. A church will reach whatever heights the leadership has attained spiritually, or to say it another way, a church is driven by the spirit that governs the leadership. If we want to be the best we can be, just find the person who is the best in that given field, and be a mentor to him. Today's churches do not provide mentorship programs, so the transfer of the spirit cannot be accomplished.

Moses did what he obviously had to do, even though the people refused to meet with YAHVEH. Exodus 20:¹⁸ Now all the people witnessed the thundering, the lightning flashes, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood afar off. ¹⁹Then they said to Moses, “You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not YAHVEH speak with us, lest we die.

The Five-Fold ministry cannot and will not be held responsible if they did not provide the opportunity for the people to meet YAHVEH. Ezekiel 34:¹ And the word of YAHVEH came to me, saying, ²“Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Yisrael, prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says YAHVEH YAHVEH to the shepherds: “Woe to the shepherds of Yisrael who feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the flocks? ³“You eat the fat and clothe yourselves with the wool; you slaughter the fatlings, but you do not feed the flock.

⁴“The weak you have not strengthened, nor have you healed those who were sick, nor bound up the broken, nor brought back what was driven away, nor sought what was lost; but with force and cruelty you have ruled them. ⁵“So they were scattered because there was no shepherd; and they became food for all the beasts of the field when they were scattered.

 ⁶“My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and on every high hill; yes, My flock was scattered over the whole face of the earth, and no one was seeking or searching for them. The shepherd metaphor for leaders was common in the ancient land. This passage helps us to understand the role of the leaders of Adonai’s people.

The accusation found here implies a positive trait, which we should look for in those who function as leaders in the church. The condemned traits in these verses are: "taking care of themselves rather than the sheep, profiting from those being led, without taking care of them." Each trait is in total contrast with the model of an ideal spiritual leadership we have in Yahushua, the Good Shepherd.

I Peter 5:¹ The elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder, and a witness of the sufferings of The Messiyah, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed. ² Shepherd the flock of YAHVEH, which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly. ³ nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; ⁴and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away. The term Shepherd is an imperative, which involves: protecting, leading, guiding, feeding, and generally watching out for the welfare of the members of the church.

Revelation 3:²¹ “To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. This verse shows the ultimate reality for all believers. Notice what I Peter 5:⁴ and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away. If we overcome we will receive a crown in order to get to rule with the Messiyah Yahushua. In light of this scripture, those who have any aspiration to be in the Five-Fold ministry must therefore attain to the level of over comer!