Shepherds, Pastors, and Teachers

Dr. Couch, are the shepherds (pastors) the same as the teachers in Ephesians 4:11? ANSWER:  Yes, indeed. The charismatics are dead wrong by trying to make these two separate gifts, or gifted men given to the church. Paul writes:  "And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as PASTORS (Shepherds) EVEN TEACHERS."    The reason there is confusion and mistranslation is that pastors today are so ignorant, and few today can work the grammar of the Greek text. So the church is becoming more and more ignorant about what the Bible is truly teaching!    The grammar is saying "pastors EVEN, INDEED, THAT IS, TEACHERS!" So then, how does a pastor pastor? By teaching! Most pastors are foolish and do not study nor do they teach from the pulpit. They emote, devote, promote, and do not exegete the Word of God line by line. They haven't been trained that way; they don't think that way; nor do they know that this is what they are supposed to do from the pulpit.    One of the greatest grammarians concurs with me grammatically—Dr. Kenneth Wuest. He says almost line by line what I have been saying, though I only learned recently that grammatically this is what he has always taught!    He says in his Greek commentary on Ephesians:    "Paul only mentions four individuals (not five) in verse 11. The student of the English Bible could never know that the words, 'pastors' and 'teachers,' are in a construction in the Greek text called Granville Sharp's rule which is stated as follows: 'When two nouns are in the same case, connected by the word "kai" (and), the first noun having the definite article, the second noun without the article refers to the same person or thing to which the first noun refers and is a further description of it.' Not knowing this rule, the pastor would fail to see that Paul was only referring to one individual when he spoke of pastors and teachers. Thus, he would miss the important truth that God's ideal pastor is a teaching pastor, one who specializes in expository sermons, one whose ministry is a teaching ministry."    Wuest and I have been yelling in the dark. Few are getting it or listening to what Paul is saying here. This is why most pastors are ending up being cheer leaders, CEOs, psychologists, advertising agents, etc., giving puny sermonettes for weak-minded and simple christianettes!    Satan just loves it! Because the full explanation of the Word of God is not going forth, nor are the pastors able to explain it!      Thanks for asking.    Dr. Mal Couch (Oct., 09)