When Jesus ascended, He gave us the Fivefold Ministry in for the GROWTH of the body of Christ. Picture your church as a garden, with God as the gardener, and the members the plants.

There will be many different types of plants, which will interact with other plants in different ways. 

1. There will be Parasite Plants which will destroy other plants.

Just like a love vine attaches itself to your garden plants and sucks the life out of them, in the garden of your church there will be parasitic plants. Like a love vine, these plants have no roots, so they are not grounded, but actually seek to remove themselves completely from the ground so that they can live off another plant. The truth about church is that you will encounter people that have no interest in being grounded in God, but will seek out flourishing members to attach themselves to.

2. There will be “Nurse Plants” which will help other plants to grow.

In nature there are plants that assist other plants in growing. Ecologists once found agave plants growing in the desert. When they investigated how this could be, they found that wherever the agave was growing, there was also bunchgrass. The bunchgrass shielded the agave from the harsh desert sun, which was healthy for the bunchgrass, and hence the brush-grass aided the agave in growth. They also found that the soil nitrogen was high at the base of the bunchgrass, which allowed the agave to benefit from the enriched soil. The ecologists called the bunchgrass a Nurse Plant, and in the body of Christ, there will be individuals ordained to be "Nurse Plants" for younger plants, assisting them in their spiritual growth. These individuals will have what is needed to help the younger ones grow.