To answer your good and important question, I want us to read Ephesians 4:11-16, “And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.”  We need to read all these verses because they are just ONE sentence, and so should be read together.  They teach us about different gifts and the purpose of those gifts. 

At the outset, I want to point out that the Bible does not refer to these (apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers) as offices.  Rather, they are gifts (or abilities) the Lord gives to people for the benefit of the church.  Who has a gift from the Lord?  All believers!  We read in Ephesians 4:7, “But unto every one of us is given GRACE ACCORDING TO THE MEASURE OF THE GIFT of Christ.”  Everyone who has trusted Christ as his savior and has been added to the church (Acts 2:47), and has been gifted in some measure to serve the Lord and benefit His church. 

The gifts of apostles and prophets have passed from the scene.  Ephesians 2:19-20 show us, “Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon THE FOUNDATION OF THE APOSTLES AND PROPHETS, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone.”  We learn here that the apostles and New Testament prophets laid the foundation of the Lord’s church.  We further read in verses 21-22, “In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.”  For anyone who has ever been involved in constructing any type of building, you know that once the foundation is laid, another foundation is not laid on top of it.  Rather, that foundation is built upon…and that is where the gifts of evangelists, pastors, and teachers come in.  (There are also more gifts listed in Romans 12:6-8.)  The Lord wants us to build upon the foundation that has been laid by the apostles and prophets by using the gifts He has given “for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ…” 

• The gift of evangelist is for the sharing of the Gospel message to the world. The definition of the evangelist is “a preacher of the Gospel.”
• The gift of pastor is to help guide the Lord’s people.  The definition of the pastor is “a shepherd.”  The Greek word for pastor is ‘poimen’ is used 17 times in the Bible.  Only here is it translated as pastor.  All other times it is translated as shepherd.
• The gift of teacher is for instructing the Lord’s people. All true teachers will use God’s Word to instruct others.  We are taught in 2 Timothy 3:16-17 that, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.” 

While we can see that the gift of pastor is different from that of a teacher, it is quite possible for someone to have both of these gifts.  Also, the work of the pastor will involve teaching, and to a great degree, the work of the teacher will involve some pastoring.  (CC)  (716.2)