“Therefore it says, ‘When He ascended on high, He led captive a host of captives, And He gave gifts to men'” (Ephesians 4:8).
Christianity is a religious device that prevents believers coming into the presence of God; it is a device that rests upon a misinterpretation of the meaning of the scripture “He gave gifts to men” (Ephesians 4:8). This has been interpreted to mean that certain men have been given certain gifts, and these gifts are to be used in “ministries” which are described as “ascension gift ministries”. These “ministries” are then used to justify the exercise of rulership of God’s people.
However, the word translated as “men” is anthropos and is a common plural noun; it is a generic term meaning mankind or the people generally. What the apostle is saying is that God gave gifts to mankind; He gave some apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and some teachers to mankind, just as He gave a Saviour to mankind. The gifts are released into humanity so as to help equip the saints in building up the Body of Christ in the world.
They were not given as offices to be held by individuals, or for the establishment of corporate businesses making merchandise of God’s people. This is lawlessness; those seeking glory from one another and not from God (John 5:44).
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