Apostles

Author. Chris Kilby | Publication Date. 15/07/2010

Following Christ is our ultimate desire.

One of the ways that we follow Him is by following Apostles.

Paul once made a statement about the believers in Thessalonica. He said they:
 
‘..became imitators of us and of the Lord’ 1 Thess. 1:6a
 
He also exhorted the Corinthians to:
 
‘Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.’ 1 Cor. 11:1
 
Both the statement and the exhortation point to following apostles as a way of demonstrating discipleship to Christ. Apostolic mission and devotion to Christ are not two parallel things we can turn our hand to in life; apostolic mission is an expression of our devotion to Jesus and his mission.
 
Apostles are crucial to the health and vigour of all local churches, and new local churches that are planted and built on an apostolic and prophetic foundation will bear fruit. They will be strong, and will reach communities from that firm footing. 
 
In P. J. Smyth’s excellent booklet ‘The World Needs More Apostles’, he lists some of the characteristics of an apostle. Namely that he is called, anointed and gifted to work in and beyond the local church, with a concern for all the churches. He points out that they are fatherly and relational, and hard working servants who bear apostolic fruit, in that they produce a whole raft of men and women who will plant churches, lead in mission and extend the kingdom.
 
Let’s consider what it means for the church planter to be part of an apostolic movement. What it means for us to be caught up with apostles in their mission to build healthy churches, and to press on to reach new places and new people with the gospel.
 
The Apostle Paul expressed his desire to the church in Corinth that his apostolic input and influence would not end in Corinth, but would establish a secure base there which would inspire greater missionary activity.
 
‘Our hope is that, as your faith continues to grow, our area of activity among you will greatly expand, so that we can preach the gospel in the regions beyond you.’ 2 Cor 10:15-16
 
So we are considering how, as we grow in faith as churches and church planters and are solidly hooked up with the apostolic gift (and men that embody that gift), their work among us will expand and grow. The net result of that is that we go beyond the small and static, and we are equipped and enabled by apostles to take the gospel further, and to reach and transform more communities in ‘regions beyond’ – other new places, in a way that we would not be able to if it was just you or I building an independent and isolated work in our own locality.
 
It is my sincere belief that planting in this biblical way is not an optional extra if we are genuinely seeking societal transformation through gospel preaching communities. Because it’s the bible way, it works, and as church planters learn how to tuck in under the apostolic gift we will begin to see more churches and stronger churches that will be caught up with this energising and exciting call to go to the ends of the earth.
 
Paul wrote to the church in Ephesus saying that they were:
 
‘No longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.’ Eph 2:19-20
 
So as you are planting, there are two parts to the foundation for a healthy church, the prophetic and the apostolic.
 
For healthy churches to be established across the world, both are vital. It’s important to understand that the foundation is twofold.
 
• Prophetic – what has God said?
 
• Apostolic – who will lay the foundation, be the master builder?
 
Let me reflect for a moment on my own setting here in Southampton, planted in the spring of 2007. How was it built on an apostolic and prophetic foundation?
 
In all honesty we have to go way back!
 
In the early 1980’s, Terry Virgo (Brighton UK) was hosting a prayer meeting with John Groves (Winchester UK), and a number of other pastors, when John began to prophesy. He said that he saw a herd of elephants running together towards a jungle. The way ahead looked totally impenetrable, but the elephants kept running forward and burst through the undergrowth, making a way where there was no way. Their combined strength broke through and a path was formed that others could subsequently use. Two key phrases came in this prophetic word, which have stuck with Newfrontiers, and are therefore part of us and our prophetic mission. These phrases were:
 
‘There are no well worn paths ahead of you.’ And ‘Together you can accomplish more than you ever could alone.’
 
From that moment on, Terry Virgo, even though he was terrified of becoming denominational, became convinced that God had called the group of churches that he was speaking into to work together - joining in mission, together breaking into New - frontiers. That’s where the name came from.
 
For us as we planted in Southampton some 27 years later, that meant two things:
 
• That we are called prophetically to be part of something that breaks new ground.
 
• That we are called to do it together with others, and will be more effective by doing so.
 
(It also made us eager to have God speaking prophetically into our own situation. Everything from the name of our church, through to the activities we embarked on first, and the vision that we carry today, were all birthed out of honouring prophetic words spoken over us.)
 
That is part of our foundation. Life Church Southampton was planted because a growing apostolic gift, evident in Guy Miller (Bournemouth UK), with a band of men around him, was keen to break into new ground in the south of this nation.
 
We were called to do it together. This church plant wasn’t just one leaders idea!
 
Other leaders and churches beyond have owned it in their hearts, and given energy, teaching, people and resources to it. These churches have given, and will continue to give willingly.
 
As you raise a flag for a new church plant, and people begin to gather to you from other Newfrontiers settings, it’s important to understand you are not stealing people! Why? Because we are in it together, and our prophetic attitude is that we can achieve more together than we can apart!
 
One church on its own couldn’t do it, but under apostolic leadership, together, we can plant a church smack bang in the middle of a town or city and build it strong.
 
So the combination is there – the apostolic gift wanting to break into regions beyond, alongside the prophetic foundation underpinning you, so you’re going for it. It’s a dynamite combination.
 
Building this way also affects our future. The things we achieve in the future need the same foundation. So when David Stroud, who leads Newfrontiers in the UK says that we need to send people to major cities in the UK, and that we need to go for 400 churches in the UK, we should be prepared to train and send people and when Guy Miller and the team says that there are more churches to be planted in Portugal, and Spain, and India, we need to understand that this is not something outside of us – this is us, doing things together, and hence much more than we could do apart.
 
That’s following apostles in their mission.
 
That’s what we’re called to. ‘A worldwide family of churches together on a mission.’
 
It doesn’t mean that we’re locked into some hierarchical system, there isn’t really a head office mentality, but we have been likened more to an armada of ships, each getting its own advance as it learns how to have the wind blow in its own sails, but all the ships caught together in a shared purpose.
 
Alec Motyer , the outstanding Anglican scholar and commentator, commentating on the opening verses of Philippians says ‘The impression we receive in the new testament is of local churches loosely federated under apostolic authority, with each church managing its own affairs under the leadership of the overseers (elders) and deacons.’
 
From a leadership perspective, it means that church planters, and the elders that emerge, will lead the ship, will steer it as it goes in the direction that he/they sets the sail, but the desire must be to continue to be part of God’s wider mission, not just with heads down, building a private individual empire.
 
Apostolic men help us church planters to lift our heads and our eyes and achieve more.
 
So – Elders clearly govern local churches, but we are involved with, and relate to, and actively welcome the input and encouragement of apostles and their teams because they give us a corporate sense of family and mission.
 
We know from Ephesians 4:11 that apostles are a gift to us from Jesus, and I don’t know about you, but I certainly wouldn’t want to ignore a gift from Jesus!
 
They help equip the church and mature us all.
 
So as you step out of ‘home base’ and join the growing armada of church plants, can I urge you to welcome the influence of men with apostolic gift and authority to come and leave their imprint on you? We can only be better planters as a result, and the simple truth is that we love and respect them, we acknowledge their unique gift and call, and this is underpinned by genuine affection and friendship.
 
This is the New Testament model for planting church, this is the model that brings life and health and vigour to us. Gifted men and their teams working into and through local churches for kingdom advance.
 
Once again, a summary from Alec Motyer.  ‘When we add Paul the apostle, and Timothy the apostle’s delegate, we have a remarkably full summary of the constitution of the New Testament church; the body of believers, the local church officers (elders/deacons), the overarching apostolic work of Paul, and the occasional ministry of a person like Timothy coming into the local situation from outside.’ (Message of Philippians)
 
That’s the model – Believers following local leaders, who are on a mission because they are relating to and receiving apostles and apostolic delegates like Timothy.
 
The simple truth is I love relating to Apostles. I also feel the stretch of being sent as a ‘Timothy’ from time to time.  For many years Mike and Jessica Shore, in Penafiel (Portugal) have related to Guy Miller for apostolic help and strategy, and as a result of Guys gift and their faith and perseverance, they are on the verge of planting a new church with a vibrant young team into the heart of a major European capital, Porto.
 
As part of Guys team, he’s asked me to stand with them and bring my gift into the mix to encourage and provoke them to keep pressing on in both evangelism and planting. I love being a church planter, and I love being an evangelist, but I also love the way that God stretches me as I learn what it means to follow apostles, and am convinced that ‘We can do more together than we can apart!’
 
Do you see the beauty of the New Testament model of church planting under apostolic leadership as a blueprint for kingdom expansion? It works!
 
This seems so obvious from the New Testament, but so often the church has got it painfully wrong!
 
Look at the wider scene we have in the UK – We have archbishops overseeing the whole thing, some of whom aren’t even bible believing Christians. They’ve been appointed, not by the risen Christ, but by a secular government, within a framework where the secular nations head is regarded as the head of the church! It’s ridiculous, it’s unbiblical, and it’s no wonder that the church has failed to become the bride fit for the king.
 
John Stott, in ‘God’s New Society’ points out that ‘The New Testament never contemplates the grotesque situation in which the church commissions and authorises people to exercise a ministry for which they both lack the divine call and the divine equipment.’
 
The contrast with the New Testament model is so stark. In the New Testament the church was served by those gifted by the ascended Christ.
 
Jesus gave gifts. The implication of this is that we can’t make people into apostles. We can’t have a committee and vote them into office, but we can see the grace of God on people for apostleship, we can observe an anointing, we can respect a gift of God. In fact a church plant that honours God’s gifts, honours him, and will receive his ongoing favour. Our privilege is to observe where God’s gifts are operating in people, and to follow those whom God has anointed to lead us in mission.
 
As zealous and enthusiastic church planters we want their gifts to mature us. The ascended Christ has given a breadth of gifts and ministries because he has an endgame in sight. He wants a glorious church! He wants a beautiful and majestic and mature and gracious body that is growing into the fullness of the stature of Christ himself – a mature man. That is his jealous desire. That’s why I am so passionate about planting and building a glorious church, here and across the nations. A body with all the maturity that the bible describes, because that is God’s endgame - his desire.
 
Everything is heading to one glorious point in the future – the marriage of Christ and his church.
 
In the book of Revelation – the climax of the whole redemptive story, we glimpse the marriage supper of the Lamb.
 
John Writes:
 
‘Hallelujah! For the lord our God the almighty reigns.
 
Let us rejoice and be glad, and give him the glory!
 
For the wedding of the lamb has come,
 
And his bride has made herself ready.’ Rev 19:6b-7
 
So, just as the bible opens with a wedding, Adam and Eve in Eden, so it closes with one, the wedding of Christ and his church. The romance of all romances, the marriage of all history.
 
In ‘Life in the Spirit ‘ Dr Martyn Lloyd Jones describes it thus:
 
‘The picture before us, therefore, is of our Lord and Saviour looking forward to the moment, to the day when He will present the church to himself. And what will she be like? She will be a ‘glorious church’ – which means a church characterized by glory…glorification, the ultimate destiny of each of us, and to the church also. The church glorified.  It is very difficult for us to realize this. While the church is still walking in this world of sin and shame she gets bespattered by mud and mire. There are therefore stains and spots upon her, and it is very difficult to get rid of them…but when she arrives in that state of glory and of glorification she will be without a single spot; there will not be a stain upon her. When he presents her to himself there will not be a single blemish. The most careful examination will not be able to detect the slightest speck of unworthiness or of sin…it is impossible to describe this perfection.’
 
God is at work in our day. As you and I follow apostles and plant churches, He is preparing the bride.
 
It was the bridegroom, Jesus himself, who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists and pastor/teachers, so that his bride could be brought to a place of beautiful maturity, presented as spotless.
 
That’s why apostles are vital, that’s why we are part of Newfrontiers, not to sign up for a statement of doctrine, or even a network of great friends.
 
We are simply in love with Jesus, and Jesus is in love with us. And one day all of this will pass away, and that wedding will be a reality. All our sin finally eradicated, and us, pure and spotless walking down the aisle to the amazement and gasps of every principality and power.

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