The apostles and the prophets were listed the first among those whom Jesus “gave gifts” to. There is an order of appointment that we need to consider and respect. This order is reiterated in 1 Corinthians 12:28, when God appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, and so on. In the letter to the Ephesians, Paul further defined the purpose why humans are given spiritual gifts, which is to equip the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ. Wherever the body of Christ would exist, saints must look to the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers to equip them to serve in order that the church might be built up.
Most of the believers would have some contact with evangelists; these are the ones who probably shared the gospel with them. They would have regular encounters with pastors and then teachers. In their case, there is little difficulty in understanding how they can equip us to serve. However, we do not know how exactly apostles and prophets operate because there is a higher level of mystery in their work.
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Why do you think God appointed and equipped the apostles and prophets first?