Looking Back

Apostles exercise authority looking back.

Paul and his colleagues founded many churches by preaching the gospel in a new town, and then moving on to repeat the process once elders had emerged who could care for the new church.

The elders in each of these churches had a strong link with Paul. They were either his spiritual children or spiritual grandchildren. Therefore, they respect him and acknowledged his wisdom. They had been submitted to him when he was an elder and they were new Christians, so they would still respect him, although he had moved on and they have become elders.

The authority of an apostle comes out of relationships. Paul demonstrated this type of authority in his letters. He was able to give direction to the churches because he had a relationship with the people in them. He was the apostle who had established their church. He knew them well and they trusted him.

This authority is completely different from the worldly pyramid model. It does not depend on legal power or position. In contrast, the authority of a bishop comes with an appointment to a position in a legal organisation.

We should note that the Twelve Apostles of Jesus were not a select group, with a special role; they were just the first of many apostles who were sent out to start new churches.

Apostles Keep Moving

An apostle must keep moving on, or they will be quickly be turned into a bishop, CEO, or Big Man, depending on the culture. Paul understood this well. He was an amazingly talented person, but the kept pressing on to new places, so the churches he established could not make him into the “archbishop” of a group of churches.

Peter did not understand this quite as well. He seemed to be reluctant to go out and stayed too long in Jerusalem, so he became a governmental apostle. When he did go out, his behaviour was wrong at Antioch (Gal 2:11-14). He must have stayed to wrong in Rome too. No wonder he became the first pope.

Paul may have been more capable than Peter, but they could not make him into a pope, because he was continuously being sent out to proclaim the gospel and start new churches.

Apostle

Apostle is a relationship role, not a governmental role.

Paul had authority, because he had strong relationships with many people in the churches of Asia Minor (he had discipled many of them), not because he was appointed to a governmental role.

Jesus called twelve disciples and called them apostles.

He appointed twelve, whom he also named apostles, to be with him, to send them out to preach, and to have authority to drive out demons (Mark 3:14-15).

He did not appoint the twelve to a governmental role. He appointed them to be with him and learn how he did things. Once they had learned how to what he did, he would send them to preach the good news and cast out demons. Like him, they would heal the sick and cast out demons as confirmation of the truth that Jesus is truly Lord and saviour.

What Mathew literally said is the following.

He makes twelve, whom He also names apostles, that they may be with Him, and that He may be apostling them to preach.

We lose the sense of this declaration because English translations use the word "sent" for the verb apostle. The apostles were called apostles because they were sent/apostled to preach. Being sent is what apostles do.

They do not stay behind and rule and control. They are sent out to preach and enforce the of defeat the spiritual powers of evil that Jesus established on the cross. And they form the people they rescue together into new churches, like Paul did.

More at Apostle.

Empire to Kingdom of God (13)

The apostles keep on working. More churches will be established.

Transforming Society (4) - Alf Richard and Ernie

A group of Christians living in the same location can form the body of Christ there, and transform their local community. They can be a community where the Kingdom God is manifested. Here is how it could happen.

Alf, Richard and Ernie were friends. They had served together in a church for some time. They had been praying about starting a new Church and were seeking guidance about where they should go. The Holy Spirit led them to A Street, as shown in the diagram. Each square represents a dwelling. A Street could be the main street in a rural village, or a street in any city. People who live in city of apartments will need to imagine these squares stacked on top of each other in groups of four.

Alf found a house to rent in A Street (A) and Ernie and Richard bought houses nearby (R, E). The person living next door to Alf was called Phil (P). He was a networker, one of those people who knew everyone living in his street. In the New Testament, he is called a Man of Influence or Person of Peace.

The major blight on Phil’s life was that his daughter was crippled from birth. Everyone knew her and felt sad as she struggled down the street to catch the bus. One day when Ernie and Richard were over at Phil’s place, they got talking to Phil. One thing led to another and before the end of the day, they had prayed for Phil’s daughter and she was healed. This had a huge impact in the street. Phil gave his heart to the Lord and became a hard-out Christian. He told his friends what had happened, and with a few weeks, the people in the blue houses and all decided to follow Jesus. Alf discipled these new Christians, so they grew quickly.

Problems in Jerusalem (1) Apostles at the Centre

The church in Jerusalem is not the perfect model for innovative churches or Christian economists. Many wonderful things happened in Jerusalem, but several serious problems arose, despite the glorious blessing of the Holy Spirit.

The first problem was that the apostles stayed at the centre, when they should have moved out to the cutting edge. The word apostle means “one who is sent”. That means a true apostle must be sent out. Apostles should always be out at the cutting edge of what the Holy Spirit is doing. When apostles sit at the centre and give orders and direction, things start to go wrong. They quickly morph into modern day bishops, and the expansion of the church collapses.

Jesus had told the apostles to go out into all the world.

Repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high. (Luke 24:47-49).

Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised… in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit….But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:4,8).

Jesus told the apostles to wait in Jerusalem, but they were to wait “until”…. They were to wait until the Holy Spirit had come. Once they Sprit had come, the waiting should have ended. The apostles should have been sent out into Judea, Samaria and then the rest of the world.

Jesus had taught his apostles how to go out and stay in a village with a person of peace and preach the good news and heal the sick. Although they had practiced this method (Luke 9:1-6) and understood that it worked, the first apostles seemed to be reluctant to adopt it.

Peter and John just did not get it. God had to send persecution to get his disciples to move out in obedience to his commissions.

On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria (Acts 8:1).

This is amazing. The disciples moved out, but the apostles did not get the message. They stayed in Jerusalem, despite their calling and Jesus’ clear commands.

The Holy Spirit had a dreadful job getting Peter to go to Caesarea to share the gospel with Cornelius and his household. Luke takes a whole chapter to describe the incident. Peter had a vision. The Holy Spirit spoke to him. The prediction of the Holy Spirit was fulfilled (Acts 10:19-21). Even after all that, Peter launched into his sermon by saying that it was against his law for a Jew to associate with a gentile. While Peter was preaching, the Holy Spirit interrupted and filled the people so they spoke in tongues.

Peter did not have a clue about what the Holy Sprit was doing in Caesarea and struggle against. He just did not want to go there and he did not stay, when the Holy Spirit started moving. Peter went back to Jerusalem and an opportunity was lost.
Paul initially made the same mistake and went to Jerusalem. The Holy Spirit had to put him into a trance to get him to understand that he should be getting out of Jerusalem.

When I returned to Jerusalem and was praying at the temple, I fell into a trance and saw the Lord speaking. “Quick!” he said to me. “Leave Jerusalem immediately, because they will not accept your testimony about me”….. Then the Lord said to me, “Go; I will send you far away to the Gentiles.” (Acts 22:17,18,21).

Paul left for Tarsus and then went on Antioch. The apostolic ministry he launched demonstrated that Jesus method is effective (Acts 28:1-10).

Financial Support for Local Apostles (2) - Tent Making

The Take No Purse approach would work in traditional cultures where providing hospitality is a normal part of life. It would not work in our Western culture, so apostles would need a different means of support. One option is tent making. Paul used this option in Corinth.

After these things he left Athens and went to Corinth… and because he was of the same trade, he stayed with them and they were working, for by trade they were tent-makers. And he was reasoning in the synagogue every Sabbath (Acts 18:1,3,4).

Paul stayed with the tentmakers with similar skills. This gave him credibility while witnessing to them, while allowing him to be independent financially.

In the Western world where part-time work can produce a good income, this will be the most common form of financing. Paul was quite staunch about people working for their living where they could.

We were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat anyone's food without paying for it. On the contrary, we worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you. We did this.. in order to make ourselves a model for you to follow…we gave you this rule: "If a man will not work, he shall not eat." We hear that some among you are idle. They are not busy; they are busybodies. Such people we command and urge…. to settle down and earn the bread they eat (2 Thes 3:7-12).

In a world whether many religious leaders have fleeced their flock, this is an example that we need. Modern apostles should look at using their skills to earn their living by seeking part-time work.

Some apostles will encourage the development of neighbourhood businesses. This will provide financial support for other apostles and people in need. These businesses will come into their own when globalisation collapses in the future. They will be able to produce things that can no longer be imported. Some will be family businesses.

Financial Support for Local Apostles (1) - No Purse

Locality-based apostles will be moving frequently, so they will find it difficult to hold down permanent employment. They will receive their financial support in three different ways. The common factor is strong relationships.

When Jesus apostled the twelve and the seventy, they took no purse.

Do not take along any gold or silver or copper in your belts; take no bag for the journey, or extra tunic, or sandals or a staff; for the worker is worth his keep (Matt 10:9-10).

These apostles were not to take money from a central purse. Jesus specifically told them not to take a wallet. Instead, they were to rely on the hospitality of the people in the town or village they were going to visit.

Whatever town or village you enter, search for some worthy person there and stay at his house until you leave (Matt 10:11).

These Christians would bring healing to the people in the town. This would create tremendous good will. They would stay with the person of peace until the work in that village was complete. Being dependent on the person of peace made the apostle vulnerable, but it had a huge advantage. The person of peace would be discipled quickly, because the apostle’s life would be transparent to them.

Governmental Apostles (7) Centralised Finances

A serious problem with modern governmental apostolic ministries is lack of money. Many apostles feel that their activities are restrained by lack of resources. The apostle at the centre, who is governing a region and training church planters, needs lots of money.

One solution is to establish regional finance programmes. Because these ministries function at a trans-local level, they need trans-local funding. A region finance pool is a possible solution, but it does not deal with the problem.

There are several reasons why centralisation of finances is a dangerous practice.

Centralisation of finances is dangerous at any time. Any process that gives power to a few people is dangerous. If these people fall into pride or deception, they can do a lot of harm. Trouble crept into the church through money during its very early days. The practice emerged of disciples laying donations of money at the apostle’s feet (Acts 4:35). This practice was contrary to Jesus’ teaching.

Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets… to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret (Matt 6:1-4).

Making donations to the apostles in public contradicted this command. It also led to pride and deception. The worst case was Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:11-11). The pride that came into the church through the practice of giving in public caused this couple to lie to the Apostles to make a good impression.

Now a man named Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, also sold a piece of property. With his wife's full knowledge he kept back part of the money for himself, but brought the rest and put it at the apostles' feet (Acts 5:1-5).

This type of incident would not occur if the church depended on decentralised giving at a person-to-person level, as described in Acts 2:45.

Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need (Acts 2:45).

Bulk centralised finance is vulnerable to spiritual attack. Small scale person to person giving is safer.

Centralisation is particularly dangerous during periods of persecution. If the government gets serious about stopping the church, it could cripple hundreds by arresting the people in charge of the money. If necessary, it could freeze the bank accounts, or clean them out. Decentralised finances are safer.