Paul describes the church's leadership structure as fundamentally equipping-focused: teachers, shepherds, and evangelists do not do the ministry for the saints — they train the saints to do it themselves. The goal is a whole body, each part functioning, growing to the full stature of Christ.

From the writers we read together

Dallas Willard

Philosopher and Spiritual Formation Teacher

Willard saw Ephesians 4:11–13 as the New Testament's clearest vision of what healthy church ministry looks like — and he was convinced most churches had inverted it. When leaders do the ministry while saints watch, the body remains immature and dependent. The purpose of gifted leadership is to bring every member to 'the full stature of Christ' — not to perform an impressive service while congregations remain consumers.

The goal Paul names is both specific and ambitious: 'unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God' and 'mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.' This is not a modest improvement; it is total transformation. The equipping process at Pleasant Springs — the school, the curriculum, the daily devotional — exists precisely for this purpose. Are you being equipped, or merely entertained? Are you in turn equipping others?