Are You A Apostle Only When You Plant Churches And Appoint Pastors?
Question: Apostle? Do you do the work of an Evangelist? Or do you Pastor a Church being therefore a Pastor and not a Apostle. The Apostles have a Itinerant Ministry planting Churches and appointing Pastors. If your Ministry is not this you are not a Apostle.
Answer: Greetings in Jesus wonderful name!
First of all I want to say to you that apostle is not a title of prestige or somthing to boast about, rather it is a calling, I mean if somebody is a Engineer, he must be knowing the nuances of a particular subject to work in it and make a difference in that particular field. In the same way, if somebody is a nurse, they must me knowing how to minister first-aid and medical care to help people recover in their bodily health. In the same way I believe, apostle is a person who is sent by God with a particular mission in mind to make a difference in the lives of people to whom he is sent forth. To further know deeply about apostle, read my following post: 'Who is an Apostle?'
God has called some people to be apostles, some to be prophets, and some to be teachers, some to be evangelists and some to be pastors, so that the people of God in the Church may be equipped, edified and built up spiritually, for the work of the ministry, so that we all come to the unity of faith and the knowledge of the Son of God to become a perfect man which is the stature of the fullness of Christ. Through these above ministries God makes us strong in doctrine, so that we may not be deceived by trickery and cunningness of men, instead we learn to speak the truth of Jesus in love, so that we all may grow in to Christ who is our head (Eph 4:11-15).
God has called me to be a apostle to the body of Christ, here is my testimony titled: 'I Have Found My Purpose, Have you?'.
Although your understanding of the apostle, is right to a certain extent, it is not complete. As we have seen that all the different offices of the five-fold ministry that Jesus has gifted the Church, is being used to do the same thing of building the body of Christ and empowering them to fulfill the call of God over their individual lives of each members, yet the specification and specialization of each one slightly differs from the other, and also God has called and gifted these men and women of God with a ministry within the five as a dominant primary one, yet they might have more than one ministry as the secondary calling upon their lives. For example, Jesus our Lord God and Paul the apostle both carried all the five-fold offices at various times of their lives (Luke 4:18; 2 Tim 1:11; Acts 13:1; 17:18; 20:31).
Paul and Jesus were - apostle, prophet, teacher, pastor and evangelist.
Paul was mainly a teaching apostle (Acts 11:25-26; 19:8-10; 28:30-31).
Peter was an apostle (Gal 2:8; 1 Peter 1:1; Acts 2:42-43), Pastor (John 21:17), Teacher (2 Pet 1:12; Acts 2:40, 42) and Evangelist (Acts 4:12; 2:38; 3:19; 10:39; 15:7-9; 2 Pet 1:16).
Peter was mainly a evangelistic apostle (Acts 2:37, 38, 41). But God also used him to get the new believers to be filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:14-16).
James was a pastoral apostle, but was used by God to be a apostle to apostles in the Jerusalem council being appointed beforehand by God (Acts 15:4, 13, 23). James was the pastor of the Jerusalem Church and also an apostle to the Jews (Jam 1:1; 5:14).
What I would like you to understand is, when God calls a person to be in the five fold ministry office of the Church, most probably each person might have more than one gift of Jesus within them, one might be a dominant primary gift and the others might be a ancillary secondary gift or even all of the above may be active in the life of certain people like our Lord Jesus and Paul, and further for certain others most of the gifts might be active like Peter the apostle.
And for some, like Philip the evangelist, the primary is the dominant with no other gift given along with it (Acts 21:8).
With a two year Diploma training in theology and ministry, I started as a Bible teacher and have spoken in some churches as God has given me the privilege and the opportunity to speak until now, further I have also pastored a Church for some period of time. But above all the calling of the apostle to establish the people of God in the right doctrine has been the primary focus of my life for nearly more than decade. You can check the authenticity of what I say from my website www.apostolicrevelation.info. I always give reference right from the Bible, because I feel that the Word of God is the one that we must all turn to get strong in our spiritual life through learning healthy doctrine right from it.
Because you are thinking traditionally according to the previous centuries of times past where the present technology to reach people were not available, you say apostles have a Itinerant Ministry planting Churches and appointing Pastors. It is true, but what about the present technology that carries the Gospel through the website and social media, right in to the computer, handheld devices and cell phones of the people of God moment by moment? So we should all broaden our thinking and know that the Paul who wrote the edification to the Church on the parchment from inside the prison cell, and further sent it through people for it to be read in all the Churches. But today those same could be easily done through the internet without a person going in to all the churches physically. So I am called to be a teaching apostle through the latest technology of Internet that God has given me, through this small stone of latest internet technology available, I am trying to bring down the Goliath of wrong doctrine that stands against the Church and the people of God, and am looking forward for the Goliath of the world, sin and Satan to be slain by the power of God which comes to us through the message of the Cross (1 Cor 4:20). Many Pastors and saints of God alike from around the world, write various areas of their own doubts, questions, life problems and give burdens to pray, of which I have been ministering faithfully in spite of great suffering that I face physically, emotionally and spiritually in my own personal life for the sake of fulfilling the calling of Christ.
So I understand the term 'apostle' very well, and I have been trying to fulfill the mission that God has given to me to fulfill, through the support of God's family in Christ and some faithful friends alike. So it is better to have a broader understanding according to the times that we live which is very important to stand in the present truth (1 Chron 12:32; 2 Peter 1:12).
Much Blessings....
Answer: Greetings in Jesus wonderful name!
First of all I want to say to you that apostle is not a title of prestige or somthing to boast about, rather it is a calling, I mean if somebody is a Engineer, he must be knowing the nuances of a particular subject to work in it and make a difference in that particular field. In the same way, if somebody is a nurse, they must me knowing how to minister first-aid and medical care to help people recover in their bodily health. In the same way I believe, apostle is a person who is sent by God with a particular mission in mind to make a difference in the lives of people to whom he is sent forth. To further know deeply about apostle, read my following post: 'Who is an Apostle?'
God has called some people to be apostles, some to be prophets, and some to be teachers, some to be evangelists and some to be pastors, so that the people of God in the Church may be equipped, edified and built up spiritually, for the work of the ministry, so that we all come to the unity of faith and the knowledge of the Son of God to become a perfect man which is the stature of the fullness of Christ. Through these above ministries God makes us strong in doctrine, so that we may not be deceived by trickery and cunningness of men, instead we learn to speak the truth of Jesus in love, so that we all may grow in to Christ who is our head (Eph 4:11-15).
God has called me to be a apostle to the body of Christ, here is my testimony titled: 'I Have Found My Purpose, Have you?'.
Although your understanding of the apostle, is right to a certain extent, it is not complete. As we have seen that all the different offices of the five-fold ministry that Jesus has gifted the Church, is being used to do the same thing of building the body of Christ and empowering them to fulfill the call of God over their individual lives of each members, yet the specification and specialization of each one slightly differs from the other, and also God has called and gifted these men and women of God with a ministry within the five as a dominant primary one, yet they might have more than one ministry as the secondary calling upon their lives. For example, Jesus our Lord God and Paul the apostle both carried all the five-fold offices at various times of their lives (Luke 4:18; 2 Tim 1:11; Acts 13:1; 17:18; 20:31).
Paul and Jesus were - apostle, prophet, teacher, pastor and evangelist.
Paul was mainly a teaching apostle (Acts 11:25-26; 19:8-10; 28:30-31).
Peter was an apostle (Gal 2:8; 1 Peter 1:1; Acts 2:42-43), Pastor (John 21:17), Teacher (2 Pet 1:12; Acts 2:40, 42) and Evangelist (Acts 4:12; 2:38; 3:19; 10:39; 15:7-9; 2 Pet 1:16).
Peter was mainly a evangelistic apostle (Acts 2:37, 38, 41). But God also used him to get the new believers to be filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:14-16).
James was a pastoral apostle, but was used by God to be a apostle to apostles in the Jerusalem council being appointed beforehand by God (Acts 15:4, 13, 23). James was the pastor of the Jerusalem Church and also an apostle to the Jews (Jam 1:1; 5:14).
What I would like you to understand is, when God calls a person to be in the five fold ministry office of the Church, most probably each person might have more than one gift of Jesus within them, one might be a dominant primary gift and the others might be a ancillary secondary gift or even all of the above may be active in the life of certain people like our Lord Jesus and Paul, and further for certain others most of the gifts might be active like Peter the apostle.
And for some, like Philip the evangelist, the primary is the dominant with no other gift given along with it (Acts 21:8).
With a two year Diploma training in theology and ministry, I started as a Bible teacher and have spoken in some churches as God has given me the privilege and the opportunity to speak until now, further I have also pastored a Church for some period of time. But above all the calling of the apostle to establish the people of God in the right doctrine has been the primary focus of my life for nearly more than decade. You can check the authenticity of what I say from my website www.apostolicrevelation.info. I always give reference right from the Bible, because I feel that the Word of God is the one that we must all turn to get strong in our spiritual life through learning healthy doctrine right from it.
Because you are thinking traditionally according to the previous centuries of times past where the present technology to reach people were not available, you say apostles have a Itinerant Ministry planting Churches and appointing Pastors. It is true, but what about the present technology that carries the Gospel through the website and social media, right in to the computer, handheld devices and cell phones of the people of God moment by moment? So we should all broaden our thinking and know that the Paul who wrote the edification to the Church on the parchment from inside the prison cell, and further sent it through people for it to be read in all the Churches. But today those same could be easily done through the internet without a person going in to all the churches physically. So I am called to be a teaching apostle through the latest technology of Internet that God has given me, through this small stone of latest internet technology available, I am trying to bring down the Goliath of wrong doctrine that stands against the Church and the people of God, and am looking forward for the Goliath of the world, sin and Satan to be slain by the power of God which comes to us through the message of the Cross (1 Cor 4:20). Many Pastors and saints of God alike from around the world, write various areas of their own doubts, questions, life problems and give burdens to pray, of which I have been ministering faithfully in spite of great suffering that I face physically, emotionally and spiritually in my own personal life for the sake of fulfilling the calling of Christ.
So I understand the term 'apostle' very well, and I have been trying to fulfill the mission that God has given to me to fulfill, through the support of God's family in Christ and some faithful friends alike. So it is better to have a broader understanding according to the times that we live which is very important to stand in the present truth (1 Chron 12:32; 2 Peter 1:12).
Much Blessings....
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