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Encounter: Journal for Pentecostal Ministry, Winter 2005, Vol. 2, No. 1

Apostolic Practice

Vinson Synan, Ph.D.,

Dean and Professor of Divinity, Regent University School of Divinity

Nothing has stirred more interest inPentecostal-charismatic circles in recentyears than the restoration of the fivefoldministries Paul mentioned in Ephesians4:11-13: It was [Christ] who gave someto be apostles, some to be prophets,some to be evangelists, and some to bepastors and teachers, to prepare Gods

people for works of service, so that thebody of Christ may be built up until weall reach unity in the faith and in theknowledge of the Son of God andbecome mature, attaining to the wholemeasure of the fullness of Christ (NIV).

Although most Pentecostals refer tothese as fivefold, others see them asfourfold, combining the ministries ofpastor and teacher into one. These

ascension gifts, as they are called intraditional churches, were given to theChurch after Jesus ascended to theFather to extend, guide and mature theChurch.

We can assume that, at the time Paulwrote, the New Testament church had aclear understanding of what these officesrequired, how they operated and whofilled them. However, with the passing

of time, the role and operation of theseministries in the everyday life of thechurch became less clear.

Thus, for centuries, the offices of pastorand teacher have been familiar ministriesin all churches. However, only since themiddle of the nineteenth century, with

the success of Charles Finney and otherprofessional evangelists of that day,has the office of evangelist gained apopular understanding and acceptance.

The offices of apostle and prophet havebeen more elusive for modernChristians. Many have accepted a belief

developed throughout the centuries thatthe age of the apostles and prophetsended around 96 AD, about the timeJohn, the last apostle, died. Anotherbelief, first stated by St. Augustine (andlater retracted), has been widelyaccepted along with this. It holds that,with the completion of the canon ofScripture, the Lord withdrew miraculousgifts of the Spirit such as tongues,prophecy and healing.

Over time, as the bishops consolidatedtheir power in the church, the office ofapostle was almost forgotten. By thesecond century, apostles and prophetswere seen as nothing more than travelingmedicine men with little or no influenceor authority. In the Didache (11:3) thefollowing rules were laid down foritinerant apostles and prophets: Now,as regards apostles and prophets, act

strictly according to the precept of theGospel. Upon his arrival every apostlemust be welcomed as the Lord; but hemust not stay except one day. In case ofnecessity, however, he may stay the nextday also; but if he stays three days, he isa false prophet. At his departure theapostle must receive nothing except food

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to last till the next nights lodging; but ifhe asks for money, he is a false prophet.

In spite of cessationist views and the lowesteem showed to those who claimed tobe apostles, the idea of a continuingapostleship continued to surfacesporadically throughout church history.For example, Mani of Persia (216-274),founder of the Manichee sect in the thirdcentury, called himself the Apostle ofLightthe last apostle of Jesus Christ,he said, who would ever appear. LikeMani, whose dualistic religion thechurch rejected as heretical, most peoplein church history who have claimed tobe new apostles have been branded asheretics and excommunicated from thechurch. (Mohammed also claimed to bethe last apostle and prophet for all time.)Other so-called end-time apostles, suchas Joseph Smith, have appeared over thecenturies and have been rejected.Nevertheless, the question of whetherthere are contemporary apostles hasrefused to die. In fact, the modern debateis as lively as ever.

Since 1901, despite long-standingcessation theories, Pentecostals andcharismatics have loudly proclaimed thatthe charismata, or gifts of the Spirit, area present-day reality in the church.Millions of modern-day Christians speakin tongues, prophesy, cast out demonsand pray for the sick with an expectationof divine healing. These gifts of theSpirit are regarded as part of the modernChristian experience in a large

percentage of the churches ofChristendom.

The question many sincere Christiansare now asking is this: If the charismatahave been restored, why have not theprophets and apostlesthose offices thatthe Lord himself set in the churchbeen

restored also? As with the gifts of theSpirit, the dispensational limit on theexercise of these offices seems to bemore man-made than biblical.

Prophecy has been an integral feature ofmost Pentecostal and charismaticmovements through the years. Untilrecently, however, there has been anextreme reluctance to recognize theoffice of prophet, although some wereordained to the prophetic office in theLatter Rain movement of the late 1940sand 50s. In the words of the Anglicancharismatic leader Colin Urquhart,There have been many prophecies butfew prophets. In the past two decades,however, particularly amongindependent Pentecostals andcharismatics, men such as Bill Hamon,Rick Joyner, Mike Bickle and Paul Cainhave led a sweeping propheticmovement.

So, what about the office of apostle?When considering the fivefoldministries, the average believer canunderstand that pastors care for theirflock, evangelists preach to theunconverted, teachers instruct theirstudents and prophets prophesy theWord of God. But what do apostles do toshow they are apostles? If there areapostles today, who are they?

What the Bible Says

The biblical definition of the Greek wordapostolosis one sent forth,

encompassing such ideas as messenger,ambassador and missionary. Perhaps theclearest definition would be one sent ona special mission. In the NewTestament, the special mission was topreach the good news of the gospel. Anapostle was sent forth by the Lord JesusChrist as an ambassador of the good

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news, one carrying the all-importantmessage of salvation.

In the New Testament, a variety ofministers bore the title of apostle:

1.

The Unique ApostleJesus.Hebrews 3:1 speaks of Jesus as theapostle and high priest of ourprofession. He, indeed, was onesent on a special mission to save theworld. Of course, there will be noother apostle like the Son of God. Heis unique and stands alone!

2. The twelve apostles. The Bibleseems to place the Twelve in a

unique category as well. This specialgroup of messengers is withoutparallel in church history; theirunique ministry will never berepeated. Some call these theapostles of Christ or the apostlesof the Lamb because they saw Jesuswith their own eyes and werewitnesses of His resurrection (Acts1:21,22). To these twelve men, Jesuspromised a special place in the

Kingdom: You who have followedme will also sit on twelve thrones,judging the twelve tribes of Israel(Matt. 19:28).

3. Eight other apostles. Some of theseare called the apostles of theChurches (2 Cor. 8:23). After Judasbetrayed Jesus and hanged himself,Matthias was chosen to take hisplace. Later, Paul, who saw the Lord

as one born out of due time (1 Cor.15:8), was also called an apostle.These two men were not the end ofthe list. Paul called James, thebrother of Jesus, an apostle (Gal.1:19). Others were Barnabas (Acts14:14), Apollos (1 Cor. 4:6-9),Andronicus and Junia (Rom. 16:7)

and Epaphroditus (Phil. 2:25). Someearly church fathers even calledMary Magdalene the first apostlebecause she was the first to see therisen Lord. Ann Graham Block and

other scholars claim that Junia wasalmost certainly a woman because ofthe feminine form of the name.

Thus, the identification of at leasteight other leaders who wereapostles clearly puts in questionthe argument that the apostolic officewas limited to the original Twelve(although their unique place in thebiblical record is undisputed).Implicitly or explicitly, the Biblegives no fewer than twenty peoplethe apostolic title.

4. The false apostles. In addition tothe twenty people with recognizedapostolic ministries, the Scripturesdefine a category of false apostles,whose positions were not appointedby God but usurped by carnal menfor their own glory. Paul called thesemen deceitful workmen,masquerading as apostles of Christ(2 Cor. 11:13-15). He likened themto Satan, who transformed himselfinto an angel of light in order todeceive the elect.

To distinguish between the genuineapostles and the false, the Bible suggeststhe following criteria:

True apostles saw Jesus in the flesh

and witnessed the Resurrection (see1 Cor. 9:1).

True apostles are accompanied bysigns, wonders and miracles (2Cor. 12:12).

True apostles equip the saints for thework of the ministry, bring unity tothe body, speak the truth in love and

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Reformation, or the apostle ofjustification by faith. Similarly, Calvinhas been called the apostle of reformedChristianity, while Wesley is known asthe apostle of Methodism. Every

denomination seems to have anapostle who served as the founder ofthe ecclesial body, usually based on anew and unique teaching from Scripture.

In the nineteenth century, a restorationistmovement began in Britain with theavowed purpose of restoring all aspectsof New Testament Christianity to themodern church. Lewis Way, JohnNelson Darby, Edward Irving and otherspioneered a restoration of the charismata(such as glossolaliaand prophecy). Themovement culminated in the creation ofthe Catholic Apostolic Church in 1832.In addition to the manifestation of thegifts of the Spirit, the church attemptedto restore the fivefold ministries,including the office of apostle.

In due time, the church ordained twelveapostles who were to be the end-timesequivalent of the Twelve chosen byChrist. According to their prophecies,this group would be the last apostles toexist before the rapture of the church.Eventually, however, these apostlesdied. When the last one died in 1901, theBritish church collapsed and practicallydisappeared. Only in Germany were newapostles ordained to succeed those whohad passed away. This church took thename New Apostolic Church and istoday the third largest body of Christians

in Germany (after the Catholic andLutheran churches).

Another sad case of a modern apostlewho went over the hill was AlexanderDowie, who claimed the titles ofapostle and Elijah the restorer justbefore sinking into dementia.

The earliest name chosen by thePentecostal movement in America wasApostolic Faith, a designation givenby Charles Parham to his church inTopeka, Kansas. It was here, in 1901,

that modern Pentecostalism, with itsemphasis on the baptism in the HolySpirit as evidenced by speaking in othertongues, began. Parhams student,William J. Seymour, chose the samename for his Azusa Street Mission inLos Angeles in 1906.

In this context, Apostolic Faith did notsignal a move to restore the office ofapostle to the church. Parham, in fact,was extremely critical of any kind ofchurch government, especially a highlycentralized system with apostolicauthority. Yet, there are those who referto him as the apostle of Pentecost

In the years that followed the glory daysat Azusa Street, Pentecostal missionariestraveled around the world preaching thelatter rain message of a mighty HolyGhost outpouring that would occurbefore the second coming of Christ. Anew generation of Pentecostal apostlesappeared. They included G.B. Cashwell,the apostle to the south; T.B. Barratt,the apostle to Europe; W.C. Hoover,the apostle to Chile; Ivan Voronaev,the apostle to the Slavs and LuigiFrancescon, the apostle to Italy.

Other early Pentecostal groups claimedto restore the office of apostle to thechurch. These included apostolic

churches in Wales, New Zealand,Australia, Canada and the United States,in which apostles were duly electedand ordained along with any other officein the church. Some of these continue tothis day, with colleges of apostles(usually twelve) that govern theirdenominations. The New Order of the

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Latter Rain movement of the late 1940salso popularized the restoration of thefivefold ministries in preparation forthe revelation of the manifested sonscompany. These perfected ones, it was

claimed, would rule and reign at the endof the Church Age. Prominent amongthis elite group would be prophets andapostles. Overall, however, Pentecostalshave been far more interested inrestoring the charismata than in restoringany type of ecclesiastical offices to thechurch. In the words of David du Plessis,Pentecostals are more interested inapostolic success rather than in apostolicsuccession.

Independent Charismatic Views

Many independent charismatics havedeveloped a thirst for the restoration ofapostolic authority in the body of Christ.They have produced mountains of tapesand books that assert the fivefoldministries must be restored in power tothe modern church. Indeed, manycontemporary leaders freely claim to beapostles. Some even have the titleprinted on their stationery and businesscards.

In general, charismatics have definedapostolic ministry as applying to any onewho has a trans-local ministry, usuallyleaving the pastorate to itinerate in ateaching or church-planting ministry.

The New Apostolic Reformation. In thelast decade, Peter Wagner has led the

new apostolic reformation movement,which he claims is now sweeping theworld as the new way leaders are doingchurch. This movement came out of theNational Symposium on the Post-Denominational Church, a conferenceWagner led at Fuller TheologicalSeminary in 1996. After years of

studying church growth in thepostmodern age, Wagner concludedthat the day of the historic denominationwas rapidly coming to a close while anew generation of post-denominational

churches was dawning. Before theconference could convene, however,many critics of the idea, including JackHayford, forced Wagner to choose a newname. He finally settled on the termNew Apostolic Churches to describewhat he called a New Testament modelof leadership, or new wineskins for anew Church Age.

These new churches, which many thinkare really pre-denominationalmovements, would have the followingnew features:

A new name (New ApostolicReformation)

New authority structures (the leadersare called apostles)

New leadership training (noseminaries but volunteers,homegrown staff, local Biblecolleges)

New ministry focus (vision driven[toward the future] rather thanheritage driven [toward the past])

New worship styles (keyboards,ministry teams, lifted hands, loudpraise, overhead projectors)

New prayer forms (concert prayer,singing in the Spirit)

New financing (finances areabundant, giving is expected,beneficial, cheerful)

New outreach (church planting,compassion for the poor)

New power orientation (openness tothe Holy Spirit and gifts of the Spirit:healing, demonic deliverance andprophecy)

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In his book, The New ApostolicChurches, Wagner listed eighteenpastors (or apostles) who representedthe new movement. Of these, only BillHybels, Michael Fletcher and David

Kim do not appear to have Pentecostalor charismatic backgrounds. Most, suchas Billy Joe Daugherty, Roberts Liardonand William Kumuyi, are openlyPentecostal or charismatic. Others havebeen part of the Pentecostal/charismaticrenewal for years. Clearly most of theNew Apostolic Churches have theirroots in classical Pentecostalism. Theirdistinctive features were pioneered byPentecostals who were successful

pastors long before the apostolicmovement began.

In 1999, Wagner attempted to organizethe movement into an umbrella groupingunder the name International Coalitionof Apostles, with Wagner listed as thePresiding Apostle. New apostlescould join and pay $69 a month asmembership dues. Wagner listed themany types of apostles who could bemembers. They included:

Vertical apostles, which includedecclesiastical, functional, apostolicteam members and congregationalapostles

Horizontal apostles, whichincluded: convening, ambassadorial,mobilizing and territorial apostles

Marketplace apostles, (undefined)

Calling apostles, which are thosewho call Christians together in unity

By 2004, in his book,Aftershock! Howthe Second Apostolic Age is Changing

the Church, Wagner made grandioseclaims about this new movement,

claiming that the charismatic movementwas a vision unfulfilled and that thenew apostolic renewal movement hadtaken its place as the wave of the future.

Since almost all of them operate in thegifts of the Spirit, it seems that most ofthese networks were planted andinspired by the Pentecostal-charismaticmovement in the first place. DavidBarrett previously listed most of them asdenominational Pentecostals until hisNew World Christian Encyclopedia

(2000) began to designate them as neo-charismatic. Rather than being part of aNew Apostolic Reformation, most ofthem are actually part of thePentecostal/charismatic reformation. Itseems that Wagner has tried to impose anew title for movements that werealready dynamic churches originallyinspired by the Pentecostals and to createan artificial apostolic structure withhimself as presiding apostle. Althoughthey claim to be only apostolicnetworks, they are rapidly organizingand developing structures under theirclaim of apostolic authority. They are inreality new denominations.

Because of my studies of church history,I view this movement with the followingreservations:

1. It fails to appreciate and recognizethe missionary accomplishments ofthe Pentecostal denominationssuch as the Assemblies of God. Italso fails to distinguish between the

dynamic and growing Pentecostaldenominations and the mainlineProtestant denominations, many ofwhich are slowly dwindling away.

2. Many of these post-denominationalnetworks are simply incipientdenominations themselves.

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3. Having an unaccountable apostleintervening between a churchsconstituted authorities and a ministercan cause conflicts of authority thatcould lead to confusion similar to the

shepherding-discipleship controversyof the 1980s.

4. This could become an elitistmovement that places all power inthe hands of self-appointedapostles at the expense ofaccountability to the church as awhole.

5. The ultimate end could be theremoval of all lay influence in thegovernance of the churches and theend of all democratic orcongregational government in favorof a hierarchical system that rulesfrom the top.

6. The appointing of territorialapostles who are unknown to mostof the Christian community in aparticular area can be dangerous anddivisive.

7. In church history, most apostolicmovements, such as the Irvingitemovement of the 1830s and thevarious twentieth-centuryPentecostal groups that ordainedapostles, have been notable fortheir lack of growth and missionarysuccess.

8. When individuals have claimed the

title of apostle or Elijah itsometimes has resulted from anexaggerated ego or, in several cases,actual dementia.

9. There have been recent reports ofAmerican or British apostolic groupsoffering indigenous third-world

Pentecostal and charismatic churcheslarge sums of money to come undertheir apostolic covering.

In spite of these concerns, the apostolicmovement might inspire some persons toexercise the function of apostle inbringing the gospel to unreachedpeoples. Although I respect PeterWagner for his tremendous contributionsto the growth of evangelicalism, andeven to the Pentecostal movement, I amdisappointed that he has attempted toplace himself at the head (presidingapostle) of an organization designed forall those who claim to have apostolicministries.

As interest in the apostolic emphasis hasspread, more books and articlesanalyzing the movement have appearedin major Christian journals.MinistriesTodaymagazine devoted an entire issueto the topic in November 2004.Although generally favorable, thesearticles raised some serious concernsabout the movement. Dr. DougBeacham, an official of the PentecostalHoliness Church, addressed Wagnersapparent disdain for denominations in anarticle named The Leadershift.Although he sees a bright future forsome denominations, he contends,Twentieth-centurycharismatic/Pentecostal wineskins mustbe adapted to hold twenty-first centurywine.

In the same issue, David Moore, an

adjunct professor at Regent University,states positively, We need present-dayapostles, and the New ApostolicReformation is a genuine expression ofGods renewing work in His church. Hewarns the new apostolic movement,however, of the excesses of thediscipleship-shepherding movement that

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divided the charismatic movement in the1970s. As a former devotee of theshepherding movement, Mooreexperienced many of the problems thatcaused massive confusion at that time.

He sees great danger intriumphalismviewing onesmovement as the cutting edge of whatGod is doing today. This mind-set, heexplains, especially if coupled withsuccess, tends to devalue those whodont see it their way, or worse, write offcritics as old-fashioned defenders oftradition unwilling to embrace Godsnew move.

Yesand No

This brings us back to the originalquestion: Are there genuine apostles inthe earth today? The answer would seemto be yesand no. No, there are noliving persons like the original Twelvewho witnessed the resurrection of JesusChrist. These apostles of Christ wereand will remain unique in salvationhistory. And, yes, there are apostlesabroad today who are carrying out thesame mission as the apostles in the NewTestament. Who are they? The nearestparallel to the New Testament and

historic use of the term apostle arethose missionariesoftenunnamedwho are bringing themessage of the gospel to unreachedpeoples and tribes. They are busy

translating the Scriptures and plantingchurches where none existed. They havelittle time to consider their apostolicoffice.

It is axiomatic to say that anyone whoclaims to be an apostle probably is notone. An apostle is not self-appointed orelected by any ecclesiastical body but ischosen by the Lord himself. As LewiPethrus, founder of the famousFiladelphia Church in Stockholm,Sweden, has said anyone who claimsapostleship is suspect. The one mostlikely to be an apostle is he who, likeJohn the Baptist, claims only to be avoice crying in the wilderness.

Who are the apostles today? Perhaps weare asking the wrong question. Where dowe find apostolic ministry and apostolicresults? The modern church needs thesefar more than it needs names to carry asa title or warm bodies to fill an office.

Bibliography

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Flegg, Columba Graham. Gathered Under Apostles: A Study of the Catholic ApostolicChurch. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992.

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John Eckhardt.Moving in the Apostolic. Ventura, Calif.: Renew, 1999.

Faupel, William. The Everlasting Gospel: The Significance of Eschatology in theDevelopment of Pentecostal Thought. Sheffield, UK: Sheffield Academic Press, 1996.

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Goff, James. Fields White Unto Harvest: Charles Fox Parham and the MissionaryOrigins of Pentecostalism. Fayetteville: Arkansas University Press, 1988.

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Nelson, P.C.Bible Doctrines: A Series of Studies Based on the Statement of FundamentalTruths as Adopted by the General Council of the Assemblies of God. Springfield, Mo.:Gospel Publishing House, 1948.

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