72.
An Apostolic Church
Apostles
like good fishermen know how to keep the nets in good shape
See The Lessons
In Your Bible Read This
2 Corinthians 10 & 11
Here Is Your Memory Verse
You are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow-citizens
with God's
people and members of God's household, built on the foundation of
the apostles
and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.
Ephesians 2.19-20
Afterwards Talk About
This
Can the churches of today ever be restored to the New
Testament
pattern of apostolic ministry?
Something To Do Before
Next Time
Be apostolic, go as a team to somewhere, like a village,
school or prison
that the gospel has not penetrated, and present God’s plan
of salvation.
Written Diploma Work
Discover how other churches and denominations are governed
today
and write the examples and Bible basis.
Meditate Word By Word On
This Verse
1 Thessalonians 1.7-8
- Spend
a Minute to Change the World
- Pray For Uzbekistan -
24,000,000 in many ethnic groups
- 68% Muslim, 4%
Orthodox, Islamic capital of Central Asia
- Long history, recent
independence
-
- Be sure to
teach this lesson to others.
- Always pray
and prepare well adding your own verses and stories to
bring it to life.
Throughout the New Testament we find
apostles mentioned around 80 times, so in the early church they
were obviously key people, in fact ~
- Apostles are ‘first’ in the
Church, 1 Corinthians 12.28
- The Church is built on the foundation
of the apostles and the prophets. Ephesians 2. 20.
- Apostles and prophets have special
revelation and insight from God. Ephesians. 3.5, Jude 17.
- Churches should have their own
apostles. 2 Peter 3.2
But are apostles for today or were they
there at the beginning to establish the Christian movement? If
they are for today, who are they and what do they do?
What Do We Do?
Today we are often led by gifted
administrators or pastors but if apostles are still God’s
‘first’ in the Church and one of its foundations, what
should we do?
What Is An Apostle?
The word means a messenger, empowered to do
a mission from God. It is not a rank, but a calling, a gifting
and a function in the Church like any other.
- Apostles In The New Testament
- Jesus, above all, Hebrews 3.1.
- The 12 original apostles of the Lamb,
Mark 3.14-16, Acts 1.26; Rev. 21.14
- The gift of the apostle, Ephesians 4.11;
people like Paul, James, Barnabas, Timothy, Silas,
Andronicus and Junias.
The Bible does not say they were just for
the first century. The fact that Christ has given the apostles to
the Church to do a job that is far from complete, Ephesians 4.12-14,
is evidence enough that apostles are still urgently needed today,
as are all the other more familiar Eph. 4.11 gifts.
What Does An Apostle Do?
Not every apostle does everything found in
the New Testament but the apostolic function includes ~
- Advancing the gospel, for example Paul’s
many journey’s, and Peter’s visit to the
uncharted territory of a Gentile’s house and family,
Acts 10.
- Reaching the unreached peoples, Romans
15.20
- Causing new evangelism to take place,
Acts 19, 10
- Causing new churches to be planted,
like Paul did all over Southern Europe.
- Being a wise master builder, knowing
what to do, 1 Corinthians 3.10, 5.3; 6.4; 7.1, 8.1.
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- Apostles Lay Firm Foundations
Of Christ, 1 Cor 3.11
- Of life in the Spirit, Acts 19.1, 8.14-17
- Of obedience to God, Roman 1.5
- Of sound teaching, Eph 3, 2-21
- Of good leaders, Acts 14.23, Titus 1.5
-
- Being a father and a mother to the
infant churches, encouraging through letters and visits,
but never dominating, 2 Corinthians 11.28; 1 Thess. 2.7,11
- Challenging unhelpful traditions, as
Paul resisted even Peter, Gal. 2, 11-14
- Travelling to unite the Body as Paul
did linking Jerusalem, Antioch and the new churches by
his relationship.
- Demonstrating long term friendships
and loyalties, working through relationships not
structures and rankings, 1 Thess. 1 5-7, 2.8; Phil. 1.8,
4.10, 14-15; Acts 20.31, 18.11.
How Do You Know Who Is
An Apostle?
Apostles are called by God, and know it,
and so do the people. They may acknowledge their calling, but
they have no need to advertise their position as a ranking, which
it is not, rather a place of high service. See Paul’s
greetings that open most of his letters, and also see that
apostles ~
- Are recognised by other church leaders,
Acts 15, 2, 4
- Function and show the evidence of
their calling not through a forceful, controlling
personality but through the continual manifestation of
the power of the Spirit, 2 Cor. 11.6-13
- Have people as living proof of their
ministry, 2 Cor. 3,2-3
- Are anointed with power for ministry,
2 Cor. 12.12.
- Have proven God for themselves in a
history of perseverance through hardship and opposition,
2 Cor.12, 7-10; 1 Cor. 4, 9-13
Apostles Also Need A
Home.
Apostles in the New Testament are always
seen at work in a missions team or with church elders in their
home apostolic base. See Acts 15 and lesson 12.
What Is An Apostolic
Base?
It is a model church, where apostles, teams
and people gather together for Jesus and for each other. It is a
launching pad and a resource centre of men money and materials
for missions. It is a place of fellowship, renewal,
accountability and support for apostolic people but never a
pyramid ministry commanded by one ‘super-apostle.’ Only
when Paul’s team was away from their base at Antioch did
they support and govern themselves. Acts 14, 26-28
- Apostolic Bases In The Bible
- Jerusalem, Antioch, Ephesus and
Thessalonica were much more than local churches.
Typically they had ministry in Holy Spirit activity,
prayer, evangelism, prophecy, doctrinal confer-ences and
worship. There was plurality of leaders, live church and
fellowship. They handled legal challenges, persecutions,
strategy and sent apost-olic teams and help to the Jewish
world, on into Samaria and out to the nations
-
- It is important that apostles learn at
home and take the lessons away to others. An apostolic
base should pass any examination and is somewhere for the
team to point to, to invite people to learn from, and to
be proud of.
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- To Close Pray For The
- World's Most
Unreached Peoples By Name
-
- Taken from the Joshua Project
2000 Unreached Peoples List
- no cell, church or mission
has committed themselves
- to prayer, adoption or church
planting among this people.
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- © Dr
Les Norman | School of Christian Leadership, UK
Permission is granted to provide copies at cost price for
study purposes
- but
not for sale or commercial purposes. Freely you have
received, so please freely give.
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