Apostles have the ability to forge into new territory and take the Gospel of the Kingdom to unreached areas and unreached people (Romans 15:20). As an “architect” an apostle designs and lays foundations for new churches. They want these new foundations to be built on Jesus Christ and His Word rather than human tradition and opinions.

Paul was commissioned by the Lord and by other apostles in the early Church to build and to plant churches among the Gentiles. Peter was commissioned by the Lord to build and to plant churches among the Jews (Galatians 2:8).

It seems that the authority of an apostle changed in nature once a local church was established and had the oversight of local elders. For example, Paul took on the role of a father whose authority diminished once his spiritual sons or daughters reached adulthood.

With this new release of apostolic fathers that we are currently seeing – there will arrive false apostles. False apostles prey on the works and finances of others. Looking for churches already established and wanting to use those churches to enhance their portfolio, they say, “come join me.” They have not laboured to see these works established but instead are looking for what a church can bring to them versus the true apostolic mindset that says, “How can I help this church succeed?’

An apostolic team exists for two reasons – to serve Jesus Christ and to serve local church leaders. If an apostle stops doing either of these two things, they have lost their reason for existence.

A true apostle has those who say, “If it were not for this person, I would not be successful in ministry.” In 1 Corinthians 9:2, Paul told the Corinthians, “You are the seal of my apostleship.” In other words, they were proof to the world that he had an apostolic gift functioning in his life because of the spiritual fruit of his labours among them.

Training leaders is an important apostolic function. When Paul and Barnabas made their second visit to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, they ordained elders in each church (Acts 14:21-23). Appointing leaders of local churches should be the job of apostles working with the local leadership teams rather than a matter of congregational voting or other selection.

Local churches often encounter problems that need outside assistance. Local leaders sometimes have blind spots that need the apostolic ability to break through the blindness and speak God’s Word to areas of imbalance or division or other problems. Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians illustrates his ability to use his apostolic authority to speak to the problems in the church.

More next time…

Let’s start to look at the work of an apostle within the fivefold ministry team of apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor and teacher (Ephesians 4:11). An apostle is a new gift on the scenes. The ministry of the evangelist, pastor, and teacher are widely accepted. The ministry of the prophet is often misunderstood but the role of a prophet and that prophets exist still today is now fairly widely received. However, the Holy Spirit has just begun, in the last 15 to 20 years, to reintroduce the role and ministry of the apostle to the Church in general. Some have accepted that there are modern day apostles and did so decades ago. And, slowly, over the last decade or more, this ministry has received further recognition. In many ways it is still misunderstood – but, at least, it is being recognized and discussed more than ever before.

Some say that the gift of the ministry of the apostle ended many centuries ago. This view mistakenly assumes that the role of the apostle was limited to the original twelve apostles chosen by Jesus. A careful reading of the New Testament will show otherwise. let’s take a look at the evidence.

First of all, Jesus Christ is the chief apostle. “Therefore, holy brothers, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess.” (Hebrews 3:1-2)

The first apostles were prepared and sent out personally by Jesus. They were the twelve apostles who were unique eye-witnesses of the risen Lord and His ascension. (Acts 1:15, 4:33, Revelation 21:14) They had been trained by Jesus for the task and were chosen by Jesus to represent Him.

Then there were several post-ascension apostles – Andronicus, Junia, James, Barnabas, Titus, Epaphroditus, Timothy, Silvans, Apollos, Titus, Paul, to name a few. (Romans 16:7; Ephesians 4; 1 Corinthians 12:28; 1 Corinthians 4:6, 9; 1 Timothy 1:1)

These apostles were trained and sent out by the Church. In other words, they studied and repeated what the first apostles taught. Jesus predicted that this would happen: He told the first twelve apostles, “…if they obeyed My teaching, they will obey yours also” (John 15:20b).

Indeed, the second line of apostles had successfully repeated and obeyed what the first apostles taught. These apostles realized their unique authority as Jesus’ representatives. They had followed the first apostles’ teachings which were identical to Jesus’ teachings. When Paul visited the brothers in Galatia, they welcomed him “as if [he] were Christ Jesus Himself.” (Galatians 4:14)

Tracing the steps of the apostles in the New Testament gives modern day apostles a biblical pattern to follow so as to carry out their ministries. The first twelve apostles seem to have worked out of Jerusalem for several years, devoting their time to evangelizing the lost and teaching the new believers and occasionally taking short apostolic trips to plant the Gospel in other places and to visit churches that were being established.

By the time that Paul arrived in Jerusalem, however, the first apostles seem to have left with only James remaining. It seems apparent that after the first initial years in Jerusalem, most of the first apostles moved around as itinerate leaders, stopping to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom and organize churches and then continuing on to new locations.

Paul spent some time in Corinth, Ephesus, and Rome. He instructed Timothy to “stay in Ephesus so that [he] might command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer” (1 Timothy 1:3). After that job was finished Paul told him to “do your best to get here before winter” (2 Timothy 4:21). Similarly, Titus was left in Crete to “straighten out what was left unfinished and to appoint elders in every town” (Titus 1:5). After this was completed, Titus joined Paul at Nicopolis” (Titus 3:12).

Apostles have always been foundation layers (Ephesians 2:20). They are spiritual fathers to the churches and young leaders. They are parenting-type figures who have the ability to attract and birth other leaders. They are master builders who have a strong passion to see the Church built on the right foundations. They are servants of the Church, who are sent out by the Church to evangelize and to plant new churches, thus having an itinerant ministry as they often exercise general leadership and spiritual oversight over a group of churches that relate to them.

More tomorrow…

We are looking at the tasks of the fivefold ministry. Today, let’s first look at the ministry of “RECONCILIATION to the Word.”

A fivefold minister is not just concerned with your salvation, he is concerned that you obtain your full potential in God. And the only way that you will realize your potential is by being conformed to the Word. Fivefold ministers ground us in the Word so that we are not tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine. The Word of the Lord is their plumb line, and they minister from that base of authority. They desire not only that we would be conformed to Jesus but that the Word of God be formed in us, so that the situation and circumstances in life do not spin us out of control.

Their goal is that we are grounded in the Word, ready to speak against every false doctrine, not easily fooled by cunning demonic or fleshly thoughts or ideas, growing and maturing in our relationship with Jesus and each other. For a fivefold minister, there is never a question whether the Word is relevant. It is as relevant today as it was the day it was written. The fivefold minister’s desire is that the Word would take preeminence in our lives and that our lives would be reconciled to the Word and the Author of it.

Fivefold ministers are able to teach and preach with authority. They know who they are in Christ, and they know and understand the Word of God. They know the authority of the Word of God and are able to stand on it allowing the Word to speak for itself. Their goal is to bring the Church to maturity because a mature Church is a strong Church.

Another task of the fivefold minister is PREPARATION.

Fivefold ministers have the goal of bringing us to the “measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.” Their goal is to prepare us for ministry. To equip us. When fivefold ministers contribute their gifts, believers receive an impartation so each one can be better equipped to fulfill God’s call on his or her life.

The heart and desire of the fivefold minister is to expand the ministry of others. When they are ministering and see that the people are being changed and transformed, they become excited, even ecstatic. As a fivefold minister, my greatest desire is that people would grasp the same revelations that the Lord has given to me. When people grab hold of the revelation I am pumped spiritually. Fivefold ministers love to see people growing and maturing in the Lord. It is what makes them tick. We want to see ourselves multiplied.

Jesus was excited to leave Earth because He knew that the Comforter (the Holy Spirit) would come and reside in the hearts and lives of men multiplying His ministry. A fivefold minister’s desire is to see others growing up into their full potential prepared for life and all the circumstances that come their way. Jesus was never shaken by life circumstances but used every circumstance in life as an opportunity to minister God’s heart and bring about change. And, so can we are we are prepared for life by the fivefold ministers God has placed in our church and life.

This is also the desire of every fivefold minister.

The next goal of the fivefold minister after encouragement and edification is UNIFICATION. His task is to bring the Body of Christ “to the unity of the faith” according to Ephesians 4:13. In today’s Church, various Church doctrines differ and are presented in a way that often lead to division.

The fivefold ministers have the assignment of bringing the Church to a unity of faith in the midst of this apparent lack of unity. The fivefold ministers are Kingdom-minded individuals looking for areas that we can agree on rather than areas that bring disunity. We may have strong beliefs and they may be, in our minds, firmly rooted in a proper understanding of biblical truth. However, we must be sensitive to others and aware that their different beliefs and understanding regarding these truths differ from ours and are yet, in their minds, biblically verifiable as well.

As I travel extensively in numerous countries I constantly meet new people at the various churches where I am speaking and ministering. Within the first few minutes of talking to a leader, I can usually discern some issues that I instantly realize will separate us or issues we can agree upon. I try to focus on things that bring us together. After trust is built, we can then, maybe, explore those ambiguous areas, but always in the context of learning from each each other, not to have a debate to prove that I am right.

Some of the issues are: Women in ministry, The gifts of the Holy Spirit, Speaking in tongues as the initial sign of the Baptism in the Spirit, solo pastoral leadership, team leadership, the way a church should be organized and governed, and the ministry of apostles and prophets today. Depending on location, the list changes and can grow.

I try to deal with issues that really need to be dealt with: the unsaved, discipleship, prayer, worship, the Kingdom, and the body of Christ in the world today.

Fivefold ministers must be mindful of the larger picture that not all Christians interpret the Bible exactly alike. This may seem like an impossible task, but it can be done through Christ as He works through the Holy Spirit in the lives of believes in churches of various theologies. Yes, fivefold ministers have non-negotiable, but they also have the rest of the body in mind and try to “major on the major things” and not get snagged on the little things that so easily divide the body of Christ.

As Christians, we are exhorted to “keep the unity of the brethren” (Ephesians 4:3). I think what Paul is saying here is that we have unity in Christ when we get saved, and we should not allow put own petty ideology to bring disunity.

We have been looking at how a fivefold minister develops and receives or gains recognition by the leaders of the church and then the network of churches to which he is connected and where he ministers. The fivefold minister first develops relationships with local leaders in his home church where he is being discipled, trained, equipped, and, most importantly, mentored. Here the focus is not just on the gifts and his calling but his character and social / relational skills. As his ministry becomes recognized within the local church he is then publicly recognized as a fivefold minister (in-training) and released to minister locally, under the authority of the local leaders. Accountable to them as well.

Then as his gifts develop and his skills in using these gifts increases he will find himself ministering to other churches within the family of churches – a network or a union of churches. He is still accountable on the local level but his range of experiences will be greater and his skills, both ministry-wise and relationally / socially, will be developing and maturing. At this level he will be invited to churches and ministries within the family where he is becoming known and may even work a little bit outside of the union in other churches as well as in the secular world as doors open for him and his calling.

The third level of ministry recognition is the whole body of Christ. To be released in this sphere, a trans-local fivefold minister must carry the affirmation of the overseers of the family of churches as well as other trans-local fivefold ministers in the body of Christ.

The network of church leaders realize that Mark (our example from the other day) has further matured. A leader outside the church family usually affirms this. Mark is now at a place where he has matured enough to be used throughout the church body, across “family” church lines. During this time Mark will probably develop his own ministry name and have a team around him – one that has developed a deep trust and respect for him, that love him, and supports him so that his ministry is fruitful. He may have developed, by this time, a group of advisors who can speak into his life and ministry. He should have also developed a group of people who are committed to praying for him, his family, and his ministry.

Accountability for the ministry goes back to the leadership team of the network of churches that commissioned him. Accountability for his family still resides within the local church of which he is a vital part. His sphere of ministry now extends to the body of Christ, and he carries within himself the character, authority, and signs that are recognized by the larger sphere, namely the Body of Christ at large, but he is still connected to the local church.

We must remember that the seed of these fivefold ministry gifts dwells in many of God’s people at the small group level. This is where we can begin to exercise our spiritual gifts and minister to
others. The small group if your church has cell groups (or the house church if you are in a house church network) is a safe environment for ministry. It is the place to learn how to use gifts and become better equipped in ministering to others. The small group or house church (and they are different things) is basic ministry training for all fivefold ministers.

Tomorrow we will begin to look at “The Goals of the Fivefold Minister.”