Evangelists of Ephesians 4:11 - Are they the same as today's evangelists?

This episode is focused on the men described as "prophets" and "evangelists." Prophets were inspired along with the apostles and were mentioned as the foundation upon which God's people were begun.

After a small description of their work, the focus of our time is spent on the evangelists, defining its meaning and use in the scriptures. Evangelists, spent as much time as necessary to complete the work of setting in order things lacking among saints in a city and appointing elders. There was no parameters of time associated with their work. As was true in Paul's work, they may have taken a few months, eighteen months, or three years. The combination of the use of the word "itinerate" with the thought of their work being among the unsaved leads to the conclusion that evangelists went to a city to publically preach the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ but kept on moving from city to city like the circuit preachers did in this country one hundred years ago. The evidence points to their work among saints which neither limited the content of their preaching around the facts of the gospel, nor the time of their stay being short. The focus was one their purpose, which when completed ended their stay.

Nothing in the Scriptures resembles a paid hireling, a missionary preacher, or a local church organization. The evangelists, Timothy and Titus, were given the task of appointing spiritual shepherds just as Paul and Barnabus had done earlier. No congregational vote, oversight, or decision-makers are identified, either. These shepherds were given the task to oversee the souls of the saints in the city in which they lived. Both men were given the qualifications for these elders that they were to appoint, both had a spiritual gift which based on Paul's statement to Timothy, included the gift of prophecy. These two were given what was necessary for their selection.

We explore not only the meaning and use of the word "evangelist" but also the use of the words "minister" and "preacher," two words that are applied to all saints. These terms are typically applied to the professional preacher/pastor who either preaches for a congregation or is supported to do "mission" work.