Why This Evangelist Says the Church Has Misunderstood His Gift

“The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:5).

Evangelist Chris Brooks refers to this Scripture on a recent episode of Recovery to Recovered podcast with host Caleb McCall on the Charisma Podcast Network. Brooks says President Trump has told us that with the COVID-19 pandemic and resultant economic downturn, “there has been an increase of drug addiction, suicide and all these things happening because that’s what the world is turning to. And it is the responsibility of the church to be there in order to show the world where to turn and leave the darkness because we’re supposed to be the light that penetrates that darkness.”

Brooks shares the concept of the hand being used to help us understand the five-fold gifts given in 1 Corinthians 12:28. He says, “Your thumb is actually the apostle, for the apostle actually is the only member in your hand that can touch the prophets, the evangelists, the pastor and the teacher.” The prophet, he says, is “the shooter. … The prophet is the one that goes in there and points that finger and says, ‘This is what needs to happen. This is what needs to take place. I hear the voice of the Lord coming.'”

But the evangelist, Brooks says, “sticks out further than all of them. … he’s the first one that comes in there and is a draw.” Brooks reminds listeners of the biblical purpose of the five-fold gifts: “for the equipping of the body of believers,” he says (see Eph. 4:12). He points out a common misunderstanding of the gift of evangelism: “We used to think the role of the evangelist was to come in and hold a huge revival. And the evangelist comes in and draws everybody in. And that’s not true, and here’s why. If we rely upon the evangelist to be the only one who draws the people in, when the evangelist leaves, the church does nothing.”

To hear more of the discussion between McCall and Brooks on the five-fold gifts, click here to listen to the entire podcast. {eoa}