The Early Church, the Reformation and the Methodist Revival were all driven by apostles, and for this reason they did not rest on the side-lines but transformed nations. Yet there is hardly any teaching on the apostle today?! This gift was vital for the function of the Church.
God has been putting on my heart the apostolic for the last 6 months and I have been studying and thinking about this. There’s not much on this in books so I’ve been searching and praying over the Scriptures about this and I discovered 7 characteristics of apostles. Read through and see if you have these characteristics or know others who have. However, first let’s look at why I believe apostles exist today.
What the Bible says about the gift of the apostle
There were the 12 Apostles and Paul. I am not referring to them. They were special and were the foundations of the Early Church. They had to have encountered the risen Lord and also spent the complete 3 years with him (Acts 1:21-22)
But the NT talks about other apostles who are not the 12 like Titus (Greek uses the same word ‘apostle’ for him, NIV translates it as ‘representative’), Barnabas, Andronicus and Junias who are all called apostles.
Eph 4:11 lists apostles as part of the 5-fold gifts of the church and fundamental to the Church growing in unity and maturity in Christ, and building up the rest of the church body. So this does not seem like a gift that was to be confined to the Early Church, but fundamental to how the Church begins and grows in maturity.
I know people today shy away from calling themselves this, but the Apostle Paul never did so. He embraced his call but with humility, “an apostle by the grace of God“. When you know who you are, you can more clearly realise who you are and your call in God. Then you can raise up other apostles to help transform nations. We desperately need the apostolic gifting today to grow the Church and transform nations. Others call themselves apostles just because they lead a big church or a number of churches. But is this true?
So here is a checklist of 7 characteristics of apostles:
1.Apostles are sent by Jesus
Preferably by a local church but primarily by the Spirit as in Acts 13:2 in which we see both aspects. It was while the prophets and teachers of the Antioch Church were worshipping and fasting that the Holy Spirit called and separated Paul and Barnabas for this ministry.
“Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”
The Church leaders recognised this and sent them out.
We see a similar model in the life of George Whitefield, the Evangelist, who shortly after being ordained in the Church of England, experienced the Holy Spirit call him:
“The next morning, waiting upon God in prayer to know what he would have me do, these words, “Speak out Paul” came with great power to my soul. Immediately my heart was enlarged. God spoke to me by his Spirit and I was no longer dumb”
Whitefield was sent out by his Bishop to preach and started the Great Awakening in England.
Apostles are sent by Jesus accompanied by signs showing they are true apostles with the true gospel (2 Cor 12:12):
“I persevered in demonstrating among you the marks of a true apostle, including signs, wonders and miracles.”
2.Apostles are pioneers
Hudson Taylor, a remarkable missionary, left for China at 21 years old. Unknown and without the support of any denomination,but later supported by many individuals and local churches,he built up what became the largest Protestant missionary organisation of his day. Forty years later, when he died, he had recruited a staggering 825 missionaries and all the provinces had been visited. Taylor showed what is classic apostolic gifting. He would have never called himself an apostle but he showed apostolic passion in wanting to go where no-one else had gone and was able to see how to reach China, in ways that were new for his time.
Apostles are often church planters but not concerned much with managing a church, but with ensuring the foundations are correct (see below). So they appoint others to pastor the new churches and move on to plant more. Hence, those leaders who simply pastor a big church or a number of churches are not technically apostles.
Although pioneers, apostles work in teams with people of other gifts but also with fellow apostles (eg Paul and Barnabas, Paul and Titus all worked together). Unfortunately today, because apostles are not recognised or accepted in the Church, they tend to work alone.
Whitefield and Harris worked together closely in the Methodist Revival, forming the Calvinist Methodist Movement in the England and Wales.
3.Apostles think Foundations
Together with the prophets, apostles are the foundation of the church. The church is “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets” (Eph 2:20). God gave to the Church first apostles and then prophets (1 Cor 12:28). Why? Because the apostles and prophets determine and preserve the dna of the church. Without them the church goes astray and begins to move outside this.
Both Whitefield and Harris wrote many documents to explain how the societies they had founded should run and defended core Gospel truths vigorously.
Apostles emphaisised the foundation of grace, see 100% BY GRACE BUT DO WE LIVE IT?
4.Apostles are guardians of the Gospel
The apostle has a great concern for the preservation and guarding of the Gospel, more than the evangelist who just preaches it. Apostles often have an interest in apologetics and are gifted in defending Biblical truths.
They also disciple and pass it onto others. E.g. Paul’s command to Timothy who was told to do the same (2 Tim 2:2):
“And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others.”
It’s essential that apostles take on disciples and train them to pass on the apostolic vision. Does this happen in your church?
See also RETURNING TO THE APOSTOLIC GOSPEL: 4 WAYS IT IS SO MUCH BIGGER.
5.Apostles are spiritual fathers
Howell Harris was the initiator of the Methodist Revival in Wales, even before Whitefield.
Harris not only converted 100s through his preaching, but also was responsible for the organising of these converts into societies in order to promote discipleship and a growth in their devotional life. He made a point of visiting these societies on a regular basis all over Wales. So a movement of people looked to him as their spiritual father. In Diary 132, entry 14 September 1748, he says,
“God has placed me as a father among you and speaks now through me”
As spiritual fathers apostles are called to live what they preach, so that others imitate them. They determine the particular emphases of the church based on the Gospel and their own walk with the Lord.
The Apostle Paul, called himself a spiritual father to the Thessalonians (1 Thess 2:11):
“For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory.”
See more on HOW TO DISCIPLE THE NEXT GENERATION.
6.Apostles start Movements
Often an evangelist but more concerned with growing a movement rather than just saving people. These movements impact society.
In Rom 15:19 Paul says:
“by the power of signs and wonders, through the power of the Spirit. So from Jerusalem all the way round to Illyricum, I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ” (NIV)
In the Greek the verb is not “proclaim” (a very Protestant translation). It’s the same verb as that used in Eph 1:23, 3:19, that is literally, “I have filled full the Gospel everywhere”. This could be therefore translated, “I have executed/carried into effect the Gospel everywhere”. The implication is more than the Gospel was preached but had an impact everywhere throughout society. We know this to be true from the early accounts of the early Christians.
Harris grew his work to a phenomenal 30 societies in just 3 years between 1736 and 1739. This was the beginning of a movement.
7.Apostles suffer for Christ
In some churches apostles have the most privileged positions and lifestyles but Paul spoke very differently about the true ministry of the apostle (1 Cor 4:9-13):
“For it seems to me that God has put us apostles on display at the end of the procession, like those condemned to die in the arena……10 We are fools for Christ, but you are so wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are honored, we are dishonored! 11 To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags, we are brutally treated, we are homeless. 12 We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; 13 when we are slandered, we answer kindly. We have become the scum of the earth”
Apostles aren’t to be different from their Master Jesus who suffered for the sake of preaching the Gospel and didn’t earn a wage from preaching but gave the Gospel freely. Today many profit from the Gospel but this is not a true apostle.
What do you think?
Where are the apostles today? Do you have apostolic gifting but didn’t know it? Feel free to add your own comments below.
Let’s pray God raises up a new generation of godly apostles today, who will transform nations.
To learn how to raise up apostles read RAISING UP APOSTLES: 4 WAYS TO IDENTIFY AND RELEASE