APOSTLES TODAY 
  
by David Newby 
  
Team Ministry International was started by David Newby to promote and present the principles of team ministry in the local church in every nation.

David has been in part-time and full-time ministry since 1971, living and working in Australia and many countries in Asia and the South Pacific. He has spent many years in children's ministry, leader training, church leadership and pioneering. He has been married to Rosemary for 23 years and they have five children, three boys and two girls.

In 1997 David & Rosemary pioneered a church which was built on the principles of Team Ministry. It was out of this experience that David began to teach the practical and Scriptural foundations of Team Ministry. From this also came his first book, "The Bubble Will Burst".

Our burden is to see the one, true Church of Jesus Christ built and brought to maturity through the proper function of each individual working member (Ephesians 4:11-16).

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There is a lot of talk today about the restoration of Apostles to the Church.

The key hallmarks of an apostle are agape love, servanthood and humility.

Yes, they may also work miracles, plant churches and preach the Word of God with boldness and authority, but these things are secondary to the above. Paul revealed this in 1 Corinthians chapter 13, which is a mini-handbook with clear guidelines for the exercise of gifts and ministries in the church. Time has changed nothing in this regard.

" Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves ..." Philippians 2:3 (NASB)

A recent newsletter from a brother who founded and operated an international ministry for many years contained the following excerpts:

" All divine life flows through 'the Vine'. The vine is Jesus but the branches are connected into each other. What connects us together is fellowship....... it is not until we put our trust in someone that we receive life because divine life flows through relationships.

The Apostle is the father of faith and every father has children. It is the father's responsibility to feed, clothe and protect his children, therefore life flows through the father to his children. Without a father, the children are lost. To be connected to the vine, you have to either be a father or be in relationship with your spiritual father.

Christ is the vine, the Apostle is the branch and the children are the twigs........

Abraham was the father of many ancient nations which eventually bore Christ. So fatherhood continues through from generation to generation. This same principle works through the modern day Apostle to the body of Christ." 1

There are a number of Scriptural objections to this statement:

This is a wrong analogy. There are five main analogies of the Church made by Jesus and the apostolic writers. Each has a purpose to illustrate key truths about our relationship with God and/or each other. They are :

• The Bride of Christ - those who are ready at His return.
• The body of Christ - the growth and ministry of those who are in relationship with each other and properly connected to the Head (also relationship based).
• God's garden - every plant is individually ministered to by the Gardener. Even though we are a body, God still knows us individually and meets our personal needs.
• God's house - we are living stones of the Temple of His habitation. This refers to the Church being filled with the glory of God (future event).
• The Vine - everyone is a branch and must be individually connected to Jesus, the Vine. Without this personal, individual connection, we can achieve nothing because we will be without the divine life flow.

The above statement confuses the analogies of the vine and the body. It also directs people to look to men for things that God promises to do for us.

"Look to the birds of the air... your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?" (Matthew 6:26 NASB)

"But if God clothes the grass of the field......will he not much more clothe you?" (v30)

"For your heavenly Father knows you need all of these things" (v31)

2. To say that we have no divine life flowing through us without trust in another person is to not understand the terms and conditions of the new covenant.

3. To say that one must be either a father or in relationship to a spiritual father to be connected to the vine is to rebuild the pyramid. It is to make man dependent on man, rather than on God.

4. To assert that the apostle is the branch and the people are the twigs is to add to Jesus' words. The call to the first apostles was to always bring new believers into the same relationship they had with Him - the new covenant relationship. This is the primary task of every ministry gift.

5. To liken the generational blessings of Abraham's covenant to apostolic mediation is to multiply the Catholic "Pontifex Maximus" error many times over. It powerfully implies apostolic supremacy and by default attributes an authority to apostolic ministry which is unscriptural.

The Neo-Apostolic movement in the Church today has coined some new phrases and modified some old phrases to express the view of some people in relation to the restoration or recognition of apostles.

Some of these are examined closely over the following pages. Most of these quotations are taken from "The Apostolic Revelation" by John Alley.

In this Article: An Apostolic Church Apostolic Grace Apostolic Anointing Apostolic Authority Apostolic Submission Apostolic Impartation Apostolic Fathering False Apostles

An Apostolic Church


"The message of Reformation. is about the restoration of the apostolic nature of the church itself. All of God's people were to be an apostolic people . " 2

The cry of the 1980-90's was for the restoration of the prophetic church and the ministry of prophets. Christians were supposed to become "a prophetic people". This was a sound emphasis as long as the prophetic ministry was integrated into the overall ministry of the church.

The nature of the Church is to be the exact representation of our Lord Jesus Christ, even as He was the exact representation of the Father. We are to be a body wholly filled with Him. (Ephesians 1:23; 4:13).

We misrepresent God when we express part of His nature as if it were the whole. Moses was disqualified from crossing the Jordan River because he misrepresented God before Israel, and we run the same risk if we commit the same error.

Jesus was:

an apostle Hebrews 3:1
a prophet Matthew 21:11
an evangelist Mark 1:38
a shepherd John 10:11
a teacher Matthew 7:29

We have no Scriptural basis for singling out any of these ministries and concluding that the Church should be like this or that one in nature. This would result in a body only partly filled with Him.



Apostolic Grace


At a recent conference which was promoting apostolic fathering of ministries, a key statement was made: " Grace flows from Jesus through the apostle to the church." This is another way of expressing the Catholic theory.

While this is true in a sense, it is only part of the truth, and is therefore dangerous by reason of exclusion.

"Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us..." (Romans 12:6 NASB).

"But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift" (Ephesians 4:7 NASB).

Every ministry gift in the body of Christ is a flow of grace from Jesus to the Church. This varies according to each person's calling and their personal experience of God's grace.

"The apostle has grace from God to prepare the bride for Christ" 3

Again it is very clear from Scripture that an exclusive statement like this is erroneous. Ephesians chapters four and five are very clear on the necessity of plurality of gifts and ministries to achieve the purpose of God in the church.



Apostolic Anointing


".. We have both body ministry and headship ministry... Apostles carry the essential anointing that connects the body to the headship of Jesus" 4

There is no Scriptural basis for this statement. Apostles and prophets are under the church, not above it. There must be no division in the body. Jesus is the Head of the Church.

"The apostle's goal is the freedom and maturity in Christ of every believer, every minister, and every church, and to see each one clothed with apostolic anointing and power." 5

The same Holy Spirit anoints all ministries. There is no such thing as apostolic, prophetic or any other type of anointing - the ministries are different but the anointing for all is of the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 12:4-6 is clear that every gift and ministry is empowered by the Holy Spirit - the outworkings are different but it is the same Spirit.

We are so used to coining spiritual sounding phrases that have spurious or dubious Scriptural bases. To speak of "prophetic anointing" or "apostolic anointing" as if they are unique anointings of the Holy Spirit is to be guilty of a form of spiritual poetic licence.

Lets get back to the Scriptures - it is the ministries that are unique, and each one is to be empowered "by the same Spirit". We each have grace according to our special gift, but it is the same grace and same Spirit of God expressed through our unique gift.

It is therefore dangerous to talk of imparting "apostolic anointing" onto other ministries. We should be only praying for the Holy Spirit to fill and empower each person as He sees fit.

Paul was clear in this issue when he talked about the power of the gospel.." In demonstration of the Spirit and power" (1 Corinthians 2:4). He did not say "in demonstration of apostolic authority or apostolic anointing and power".

The word "anointing" is used in reference to the work of the Holy Spirit in a believer's life in 1 John 2:27. This refers to Jesus' promise that the Holy Spirit would lead us into all truth and teach us all things. (John 14:26; 16:13). It is a verse that promotes every believer's independence from others in their walk in the Holy Spirit and their experience of His anointing which is without reference to each person's ministry gift. Even though Jesus made the promises to the disciples, John was very clearly expressing the truth that these applied to all believers. Paul also refers to being anointed in 1 Corinthians 1:21, without making any specific application of the term. Jesus said that He was "anointed to preach good news to the poor." (Luke 4:18). The issue is that it is the Holy Spirit who empowers us all.



Apostolic Authority


"Biblically, it is the apostles and prophets that are the foundation of the Church, and apostles the governing authority of the Church. Administrators and teachers should serve, submit to and be in partnership with these apostles" 6

".it is the apostles who exercise authority over the church and its ministries.." 7

"Authority and power is much needed by the church, therefore apostolic authority is needed over the church." 8

"Thus, when Jesus sends an apostle, that apostle is Christ to you." 9

All of these quotations contain as their basis "an assumed divine institution" which requires Scriptural manipulation to achieve.

As Professor Kurtz puts it so clearly:

"This relapse to the Old Testament standpoint (of a separated ministry caste) was moreover rendered almost inevitable by the contemporary metamorphosis of the ecclesiastical office into an hierarchical organisation resting upon an assumed divine institution.

Clericalism, with its claims to be the sole divinely authorised channel for the communication of God's grace , was the correlate and the indispensable support of hierarchism, with its exclusive claims to legislative, judicial, disciplinary and administrative precedence in the affairs of the church." (History of the Church; emphasis mine).

How much of our church government and structure with hierarchy, positions and titles is resting on "an assumed divine institution"?

Any church built on these assumptions will be in danger of blowing bubbles, and these will burst!

Every ministry has grace, authority and anointing from God that is intrinsic to the person and the gift. All are different. The issue is that all ministries have authority IN the church, but not over the church, and only within the measure or sphere of their calling and grace.

Whilst the author of these quotes does not promote control or authoritarian church government, these statements are open to misinterpretation and could lead to abuse in the church. There is no clear direction from Scripture to convert the authority of an apostle to "authority over the church". In the same way, it is easy to take words like 'anointing' and 'covering' for granted even though they were never used in these contexts in Scripture.

"When the twelve were appointed by Jesus to be apostles, He sent them out to preach and 'to have authority to drive out demons' (Mark 3:15). At this point the authority was over demons, but the authority of the twelve was progressively expanded. By the time we come to Matthew chapter 28 and the great commission, Christ bestows his complete 'authority in heaven and on earth' upon the apostles and ultimately to the church through them." 10

There is considerable license in interpreting Jesus' words in this way. Jesus did not say "All authority has been given to you, go therefore.". There is no implication by Jesus that any measure of this complete authority has been transferred upon the apostles, either for authority in the world or over the church. He got it, therefore we are safe to go and, in His name, do what He tells us to do.

All authority is therefore in the name of Jesus. Peter said to the lame man "Silver & gold have I none, but such as I have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise & walk." (Acts 3:6). He did not say "By the complete authority vested in me.."

Jesus also said "Whoever believes in me will do the same works and miracles that I have done, and even greater ones, because I go to the Father (to send the Holy Spirit to them)". (John 14:12). This statement is made without reference to apostolic or any other ministry or authority. You are a believer? You can do!

Since the Ephesians 4:11 doma gifts corporately reflect the ministry of Jesus as explained earlier, then it is evident that each one of these exercises an authority in the church commensurate with the gift.

As a teacher, Jesus taught as one having authority in His teaching. As a shepherd, Jesus could say with authority that the sheep hear His voice & follow Him. As an evangelist, Jesus had authority to preach the good news and authority over the demonic realm. As a prophet, Jesus accurately foretold the future - that is authority. As an apostle, amongst many other things, Jesus cleansed the temple and completed the work He was sent to do.

On this basis it is unbalanced to attribute authority in the church to apostles only, since apostles are in no way the consummation of ministry within the church.

To balance the statements on authority made by this author, he also writes: "This authority, however, is a grace. It is not controlling, not authoritarian, not overbearing. Rather, apostolic authority brings liberty and impartation to the believers." He then follows with: "The apostle has authority to set things in order, protect and govern the church...." 11



Apostolic Submission


"The genuine apostle has a heart submitted and surrendered to Christ alone" 12

"The covering of apostles is the covering of Christ , because a specific anointing is on apostles for that purpose." 13

These statements put apostles outside of the security of joint submission within the local church. Prophets especially have the right to speak into the apostles' lives, since they are co-foundational in the church. But this does not rule out anyone else doing the same thing under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

In Acts chapter 13, Paul and Barnabas were in Antioch. In a time of waiting on God with prophets and teachers, the Holy Spirit spoke through the prophets, confirmed by the teachers, that Paul & Barnabas should be sent out. In this situation, both apostles present appear to have been quite passive during this process, submitting to the word of the Lord through others.

Another statement made by a minister present at the same conference mentioned previously was " I am still trying to work out how the prophet serves the apostle ." However Scripture leads us to understand that the apostles and prophets serve the church, so such a statement appears to echo of pyramid structure.



Apostolic Impartation


".. The apostle has grace to impart authority to other ministers and believers." 14

This statement cannot be substantiated from Scripture. We see scriptures that show believers receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit through the laying on of hands, both by apostles and ordinary believers . (Acts 8:17; 9:17). The apostles also laid hands on the seven to commission them for the work they were called to. (Acts 6:6).

We see the prophets and teachers laying hands on the apostles and sending them out. (Acts 13:3) This was obviously done for blessing and so the Holy Spirit could impart to them what they would need for the tasks ahead.

Paul told Timothy to stir up the gift that was in him through prophecy and the laying on of hands by the elders . (1 Timothy 4:14) This shows that the Holy Spirit is not limited to waiting for apostles to lay hands on believers for Him to impart gifts or blessing to them.

The only verse that can really pinpoint a spiritual endowment coming through an apostle is in Paul writing to the Romans "For I long to see you that I may impart some spiritual gift to you." (Romans 1:11). But verse 12 explains that it could just be encouragement and faith that is mutually shared by both the Roman church and Paul. The Greek word metadidomi which has been translated "impart", can mean "to share" and "to give".

There is scripturally every basis for laying on of hands with prayer and prophecy so that the Holy Spirit can give gifts and blessings to believers. This can be done by any believer as guided by the Holy Spirit. But anything beyond that could be construed as control and presumption.



Apostolic Fathering


"To be connected to the vine, you have to either be a father or be in relationship with your spiritual father. Christ is the vine, the Apostle is the branch and the children are the twigs........

Abraham was the father of many ancient nations which eventually bore Christ. So fatherhood continues through from generation to generation. This same principle works through the modern day Apostle to the body of Christ." 15

As in this quotation, there are those who state that only apostles can be spiritual fathers. To say this is to demean the nurturing work of many faithful shepherds, prophets and teachers in the body who have invested their lives into others throughout their ministry. When John wrote to the Church at large "I write unto you fathers.." he was not just writing to apostles (1 John 2:13), but he was recognising the fact that many become "fathers" in the church as they come to know Him as He really is . This is the primary qualification for spiritual fathers and as such this role cannot be monopolised by apostles, no matter how many there are.

The key to the anecdotal evidence of the blessings of apostolic fathering is relationship . One of the fundamental problems of our traditional ministry model is the separation of clergy from people, so ministers go friendless and unloved needlessly. When they find another minister who earns their respect and commitment and who speaks into their life, they begin to flourish. But they could have found much of this from the brothers within their own congregation.

As a natural parent, it is difficult to properly father five children, and an extraordinary man may father ten. Beyond that, fathering doesn't work.

Spiritual fathering is similar. If fathering in the body of Christ became the sole responsibility of apostles, there would be many spiritually undernourished people and orphans.

It is vitally important for every member of the body of Christ to be in meaningful relationships with others. Every one of these relationships is to be a two-way street of giving and receiving which is a true discipleship relationship.



Apostolic Restoration


We must put from our minds the thought that the restoration of apostolic function to the Church is the panacea for the Church's ills. The goal of all the Ephesians 4:11 ministries is to adjust the saints so that they (each and every one) can take their place of function and ministry in the body of Christ.

The Church will grow and mature when YOU are in the right place and functioning with your whole heart, aglow with the Spirit.

It was this "I'm connected to an apostle" error that Paul addressed in 1 Corinthians chapter 3 . "As long as you grab for what makes you feel good or makes you look important, are you really much different than a babe at the breast, content only when everything is going your way? When one of you says, 'I am of Paul,' and another says, 'I'm of Apollos,' aren't you being totally infantile?"

Paul goes on to point out that it is personal connection with God not through another person, in line with the Vine analogy, that brings growth.

"Who do you think Paul is, anyway? Or Apollos, for that matter? Servants, both of us- servants who waited on you as you gradually learned to entrust your lives to our mutual Master. We each carried out our service assignment. I planted the seed, Apollos watered the plants, but God made you grow.

It is not the one who plants or the one who waters who is at the centre of this process, but God, who makes things grow.

Planting and watering are menial servant jobs at minimum wages. What makes them worth doing is the God we are serving. You happen to be God's field in which we are working." (The Message)

If ever there was an opportunity for Paul to explain and set up an apostolic dependent organisation he had it here, but he didn't. Instead he put ministry of every kind into perspective - servanthood. The letter I quoted from previously puts apostles at the centre of the growth process, which is clearly wrong.

"You realise, don't you, that you are the Temple of God, and God Himself is present in you?" (The Message)

In a similar passage in 1 Corinthians 1:10-17, Paul, exasperated, finished up saying "I thank God that I baptised none of you except Crispus and Gaius, so that no-one would say you were baptised in my name..." Why did he have to say this? Because "belonging" to one or other of the apostolic figures had become an errant focus of the early church.

"Even though we had some standing as Christ's apostles, we never threw our weight around or tried to come across as important, with you or anyone else. We weren't aloof with you. We took you just as you were. We were never patronising, never condescending, but we cared for you the way a mother cares for her children. We loved you dearly. Not content to just pass on the Message, we wanted to give you our hearts, and we did."

"You saw with your own eyes how discreet and courteous we were among you, with keen sensitivity to you as fellow believers. And God knows we weren't freeloaders. You experienced it all firsthand. And with each of you we were like a father with his child, holding your hand, whispering encouragement, showing you step by step how to live well before God....." (1 Thessalonians chapter 2, The Message.)

See how Paul identifies with the believers, rather than elevating himself above them? His fathering ministry was that of discipling, but showing the Father's heart to them at the same time.

In Romans 1:11-12 Paul said "For I long to see you so that I may impart some spiritual gift to you, that you may be established; that is, that I may be encouraged together with you while among you, each of us by the other's faith, both yours and mine." (NASB).

Here again we see the pure spirit of Paul, that he came as an equal amongst brothers, to give and receive in mutual encouragement.



False Apostles


2 Corinthians 11:13 "..... for such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ." (NASB)

Like Paul, I would like to warn the Church about apostolic pretenders.

Revelation 2:2 ".... and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them to be false...."

1 Corinthians 4:1, 6-7, "Let a man regard us in this manner, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God...........Now these things I have figuratively applied to myself and Apollos for your sakes, so that in us you may learn not to exceed what is written, so that no one of you may become arrogant in behalf of one against the other. For who regards you as superior? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?" (NASB)

The Message says "Isn't everything you have and everything you are sheer gifts from God? So what's the point of all this comparing and competing?"

The NIV says it this way "... I have applied these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, so that you may learn from us the meaning of the saying, 'Do not go beyond what is written .' Then you will not take pride in one man over against another."

Obviously "what is written" is the Scripture and refers to the equality of all gifts and members of the body of Christ. There is no supremacy of one above another. It confirms that it is not men that should be followed, but God.

The Amplified Bible puts it this way "Now I have applied all this (about parties and factions) to myself and Apollos for your sakes, brethren, so that from what I have said of us (as illustrations) you may learn (to think of men in accordance with Scripture and) not to go beyond that which is written; that none of you may be puffed up and inflated with pride and boast in favour of one (minister and teacher) against another."(1 Corinthians 4:6-7)

Matthew Henry's Commentary makes the following points:

1. The apostle is not to be overvalued , for they were ministers not masters. They were the servants of Christ, no more. They had no authority to propagate their own fancies, but to spread Christian faith.

2. Apostles were not to be undervalued, for they were ministers of Christ ....... they did not set up as masters , but they deserved respect and esteem in this honourable service.

If these apostles do not come to you in a spirit of meekness, if they do not submit their ministry to you, if they do not receive as well as give, if they are not open to learn, then they may not be who they claim to be. Do not submit yourself to ministries like this.

There are those in ministry who are quietly (or sometimes overtly) arrogant about their position, who demand the best seats, the best accommodation, the VIP lounge, etc. For the safety of the Church, we are compelled to do some fruit inspection and guard against contamination by the spirit of kingdom-builders from the old wineskin.

This is not a comprehensive analysis of the current movement to re-establish apostolic ministry. The issue is that God has been restoring true apostolic function in the Church for a long time, many centuries in fact. Do we need to interfere with what He is doing by putting our approval on it and possibly even erecting a structure around it?

For 20 years we have seen fresh recognition of prophets and the prophetic ministry. Are we not now just replacing these prophets with apostles? Do we now just have a new title for the top spot in the hierarchy of the old pyramid?

Let us recognise the apostolic ministry, let us keep it in perspective and balance with the other ministries of the body of Christ, but let us not do the big pendulum swing and create multiple papal officers worldwide. Anything of this nature will just be another bubble, and God will make sure that it will burst.

Should we not look to local Church government as being "invisible" government, where function is not a doorway to position or a licence to dominate, but an anointing to recognise others, to equip and release them into their call and giftings for the common good of the Church?

Perhaps "fluid" government would be a better term, in that it is not a fixed or permanent thing in all situations, defaulting always to the apostles for decisions, direction, etc. Rather we should allow the Holy Spirit to decide through whom He wishes to reveal His will to the local church.

Acts chapter 13 is a clear indicator that Paul did not always call the shots in the local church.

Some of those who now wave the conductor's baton around the local church may need to pause and recollect the struggle it was for they themselves to rise from obscurity with nothing but the drive and urgency of the call and gifting of God in their heart and spirit. How hard it was to push through a system that was designed to resist, rather than encourage, up-and-coming young Christians in their ministry.

It is so easy for us as the "mature" to not trust younger Christians in their ministry, yet during our own growth periods we knew that we were totally trustworthy ourselves at the same stages....... after all, in spite of all our humanity, God trusts us, does He not???

Let us not allow the recognition of apostles today to become another cork in the bottle.

Let every ministry find its place in the new covenant Church without man-made hierarchy or government to stifle or control the life that needs to flow.

David Newby
www.TeamMinistry.com.au 
teamministryint@yahoo.com