A new day is coming to the body of Christ, the Church that Jesus is building. It will be marked not only by an unprecedented release of God’s power and supernatural gifts, but also by a new level of reality. The Gospel message will be well received because the Gospel will be something we are living. Right now, in many places, there is a great difference between the message we preach and share and the way we live. You know, like someone who is 150 pounds overweight selling a new miracle diet pill that will help people lose 30 pounds in 30 days. There is a disconnect and thus no reality to the sales pitch. Many times it is the same today with the church.

A tremendous impact is released with there is a consistency between our walk and our talk, our behaviour and our beliefs. Neither God nor the world expects perfection from us – but they do expect integrity. Throughout the centuries , nothing has been more deadly to evangelism than hypocrisy. In recent decades this ‘hypocrisy bug’ has bitten many high-profile leaders in the Church. Though they may have had a compelling Gospel message, accompanied by impressive signs and wonders, their ministries were tarnished by scandals in their personal lives. They could have been noteworthy examples of apostolic leadership in the realm of evangelism, but their ministries were instead undercut by a lack of apostolic character.

You can read a lot of books on evangelism and never see much discussion about the need for apostolic character. It is easier to talk about methods and programs, activities and strategies. Yet often our methods have been find, but our ‘fragrance’ has been foul. Instead of projecting the sweet fragrance of Christ (2 Corinthians 2:14), we have put out an offensive odour that hinders people from receiving our message. To make things worse, we are usually totally unaware of the ‘spiritual B.O.” we are carrying. Everyone around us notices the B.O. before we do.

A true apostolic perspective is concerned about the spiritual maturity and character of leaders and believers. The objective is not just to turn each Christian into a Bible scholar or someone who is adept at exercising the gifts of the Spirit in church meetings. Rather, Paul made it a high priority to see Christ formed in the lives of his disciples (Galatians 4:19). He told the Colossians of this quest to develop mature believers in Christ:

“Him we proclaim, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man mature in Christ. For this I toil, striving with all the energy which He mightily inspires within me.” (Colossians 1:28-29)

A great tragedy frequently plaguing the Church is the disconnect between evangelism and discipleship. A discipleship that develops character as we move from justification to sanctification and thus become more and more like Jesus. Those who are passionate about evangelism (and, as apostolic people we all must be) are often unconcerned about bringing the converts to maturity in character.

Apostolic evangelism bridges this disconnect, linking passionate evangelism to effective discipleship. It recognizes that either one by itself is incomplete. It recognizes not only the priority of seeking the lost, but also of forming the converts into the image of Christ so that they live their lives according to what they believe – when their behaviour and their beliefs line up. Paul spoke of this in very confident terms, saying he as convinced God would complete the good work He had begun in the believers (Philippians 1:6). In fact, Paul said of believers:

“For those whom He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, in order that He might be the first-born among many brothers. And those whom He predestined He also called, and those whom He called He also justified, and those whom He justified He also glorified.” (Romans 8:29-30)

As we continue our look at the 13 essential characteristics o an apostle and thus an apostolic team let’s remember that this is important because Jesus is building His Church. As He does so there is a biblical pattern that has been established but ignored in the majority of the work being done today in church planting. The Bible states in 1 Corinthians 12:28 that in the church “first apostles…” As well, Ephesians 2:20 states that apostles form part of the foundational work needed to plant the Gospel in new territory and to form a strong foundation upon which Jesus then builds His Church. So, with this in mind, let’s continue to look at several more of the characteristics essential in the life and ministry of an apostle today.

8> A true apostle knows how to build group cohesiveness. They are never a one-man show. First, he must know how to gather a team and help them to become one – sharing one vision and one task, one hope and one plan. Withing this plan and the task at hand there are many variables and much room for creative thinking and planning, action and risk-taking. But, there is one goal, one vision, one direction, one desired end result.

This same group cohesiveness will eventually be seen in the local church that is raised up as the Gospel is planted in new territory. The leaders and members of the local church must share the same DNA and vision so as to moving together in one direction to become all that God has designed this local church to be and then do. In other words, like a city bus – this church will have a destination, a route, and a certain speed as it moves through the route making scheduled stops along the way. There will be a leader (the bus driver) and many active members but one common life being shared as they move towards a jointly shared and understood destination.

9> An apostle is committed to Church growth. An apostle understands that healthy disciples are reproducing bringing new disciples into the Kingdom and the local church. He also understands that healthy churches reproduce healthy churches. Thus, true apostles are committed to Church growth and will be constantly sharing the vision of disciple-making and church planting with everyone and anyone who will listen. A true apostolic church will also have disciple making and church planting as a vital part of their DNA. It won’t be a program that is added after the church is founded and established – it is a part of the very life and nature of the church right from the start. A church plant should be immediately planning to plant another church within a year or two of its own beginning. And, a new disciple should be taught immediately how to share their faith and influence others towards meeting Jesus and becoming one of His disciples.

10> If the apostle is married he must have spousal cooperation. Because of the amount of time and attention planting the Gospel and raising up a local church takes the spouse of the apostle will need to be completely on board with the specific task at hand. The spouse must be an active and willing participant in the work that the apostle is called to accomplish and thus an active and involved member of the initial team and a willing worker in the spreading of the Gospel into new territory for the Kingdom. This role may be limited by many factors such as the need to work to help support the household, the care of young children if a family is involved, as well as other factors such as age and health. But, the spouse must be supportive and cooperative.

Apostles have some basic characteristics that are essential to the fulfillment of the call upon their lives. These characteristics enable them to do what The Lord has called them to accomplish.

1> Visioning capacity – they need to be able to “see” what The Lord has called them to accomplish in the ministry they are currently undertaking. This ‘vision’ is part of a wider vision they will have of what the Church of Jesus Christ is going to look like in the future (the end product of the work they are undertaking for The Lord). So, they will have a vision of the local church they are working with or currently planting, a vision of the Church Jesus is building, as well as the bigger Kingdom picture.

2> They create ownership of the ministry. They are able to share their vision and the work they are currently doing in such a way that others can “buy into” the vision and take ownership of the ministry that is on-going and that they are now a part of. An apostle can share their story and their ministry is such a way that others catch the vision, realize that this is what God is currently doing, and come to understand that God wants them to have a part in the fulfillment of this vision.

3> An apostle is able to relate to the unchurched. He is comfortable relating to those who are not followers of The Lord and who may even be opposed to his work of planting the Gospel so The Lord can raise up and build His Church. An effective apostle is neither part of a Christian sub-culture that few can relate to nor has he bought into the culture that he is working to impact for the Kingdom. He does not stand out as odd and irrelevant and does not blend in so as not to be seen as someone offering an alternative lifestyle and a different set of values. As the Scriptures state, he will be “in the world but not of it.”

4> An apostle is effective at building relationships. He enjoys people and is a good listener. By listening he is showing others that he cares and that they are important to him and thus to Who he represents – Jesus. An effective apostle (and apostolic team member) can have hundreds of relationships in the community that he is reaching for Jesus. So, an apostle will not be ‘an office person’ but will consciously plan each day to include time building the relationships he has already established and forming new relationships. He will, as a result of this, be active in his community.

Many today have been taught that after the apostle John dies, the “apostolic age” officially ended and we entered the “church age.” They teach or, at least, imply that therefore all valid apostolic ministry ceased. This view is based on two wrong assumptions.

The first of these assumptions is that the apostolic role was limited the the original 12 apostles chosen by Jesus. A careful reading of the New Testament will show that additional leaders are also referred to as apostles including Matthias, Paul, Barnabas, Silas, Timothy, Andronicus, Junias and Epaphroditus. The original 12 indeed are said to have a special role in God’s purposes (Revelation 21:14; Matthew 19:28), but that certainly does not mean they were the only apostles.

The second assumption is tat there is no need for apostles today. This objection can best be answered by looking again at the list of functions of an apostle (see the previous few blogs under the heading of “The Scriptural Role of Apostles”). Are the functions still relevant today?

1> Penetrating unreached areas. Although the Gospel has gone out to practically every nation, there are still thousands of unreached people groups that, because of geographical or linguistic isolation, have never even heard of Jesus Christ.

2> Church planting and foundation laying. God-gifted, church planting apostles are desperately needed in North America and all over the world. In addition, many existing churches have been built on human traditions and opinions rather than on the solid biblical foundation that apostles can provide.

3> Appointing and training leaders. Today the apostolic function of training leaders has been largely replaced by seminaries and Bible schools. Appointing the leaders of local churches generally has become a matter of congregational voting, selection by denominational hierarchy, or the increasingly common practice of aspiring preachers simply starting their own churches and appointing themselves as the pastors.

Whether they attend seminary or not, today’s young leaders are unlikely to receive the type of personal training and character development that Timothy received from Paul. As in the first century, there are countless tutors today, but the cry of the hour is for true spiritual fathers and mentors (see 1 Corinthians 4:14-17).

4> Addressing unresolved problems. Almost every church encounters an impasse that is difficult to resolve without outside assistance. Who is available to furnish local pastors with wise input about these thorny church problems?

There is still a need today for trans-local apostolic men who work with apostolic anointing and authority who can provide accountability and pierce through blind spots, ignorance, and pride. We still need leaders able to courageously apply the Word of God to areas of sin, imbalance, false doctrine, and division.

5> Promoting unity. The disunity of the body of Christ is still a scandal that robs us of the full blessing of God and undercuts our testimony to the lost. Ministers who have genuine apostolic hearts are burdened for God’s people to care for each other as a united family, ready to reach the world as a united army.

Local congregations frequently are deficient in seeing the “big picture” of the Church around the world and sensing the Lord’s desire for His body to be functioning interlinked. This vision of unity is sorely needed in the Church today, and only those with apostolic insight and authority have the necessary gifts to bring it about in a significant way.

6> Demonstrating and imparting the supernatural. We live in a day when God is working mightily to restore signs and wonders to the Church. For too long we have relied on our intellect, human wisdom, and persuasive words – the very things Paul refused to put his confidence in: “And my speech and my preaching were not in persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:4-5)

Today more than ever – because of our society’s increased interest in Satanism, the occult, and New Age practices – the Church needs to be able to display and dispense God’s power. The Church without the apostles is like a car without all of its cylinders functioning: It may still move, but it is likely to sputter and lack the power it is suppose to have.

We would be horrified if someone suggested that pastors, teachers and evangelists were no longer valid ministries of the Church. Nevertheless, we often allow ourselves to be robbed of the ministries of apostles and prophets, which are found in the same list of ministries in Ephesians 4:11.

We are looking at the scriptural roles that an apostle fulfills – without which the Church will not fulfill her destiny nor complete the Great Commission to “go into all the world and make disciples.” We saw that the apostle is involved in:
1> Taking the Gospel to unreached areas
2> Planting churches upon the foundation of Christ
3> Appointing and training the initial leaders of a church

Let’s continue this brief look into the ministry of an apostle as found in the New Testament that is still applicable today…

4> Dealing with specific problems, false doctrines, or sins. Paul wrote to the church at Corinth about a number of problems that had developed there: disunity, immaturity, pride, immorality, taking other believers to court before secular authorities, questions about celibacy and marriage, disputes about meat offered to idols, improper handling of the Lord’s Supper, misuse of spiritual gifts, and confusion about the resurrection.

Apostles are serious “defenders of the faith” while, at the same time, being very practical as they deal with ‘people issues’ within the church, especially within the leadership of the church. The understand what the Church of Jesus Christ is called to be and what the role of the Church is in the Kingdom and in the world. Thus, when they see behavior and lifestyles that prevent or hinder this understanding from becoming reality they become involved. Apostles are Master Builders and are deeply aware of what the Church that Jesus is building is to look like and they work hard to bring that vision to reality.

5> Promoting unity in the body of Christ. Paul addressed the need for unity on many different levels. In Philippi, he had to deal with contention between two women in the local assembly, Euodia and Syntyche (Philippians 4:2). In Corinth, Paul challenged the church’s citywide disunity, brought about when believers lost sight of the centrality of Christ and rallied around dynamic leaders such as himself, Apollos, and Peter.

In addition to dealing with unity issues in local assemblies or the church in a certain city, Paul also performed the apostolic role of networking the church regionally and around the world. “At present, however, I am going to Jerusalem bringing aid to the saints. For Macedonia and Achaia have been pleased to make some contribution for the poor among the saints at Jerusalem. For they were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have come to share in their spiritual blessings, they ought also to be of service to them in material blessings.” (Romans 15:25-27)

At the Jerusalem Council in Acts 15, Paul and the other apostles dealt with issues which could have unraveled unity throughout the Church of that day. Other examples are found is Acts 11:27-30, 1 Corinthians 16:14, and 2 Corinthians 8-9.