Apostles, prophets and church planting

One of the great things that we have experienced in our moving to church plant has been the support we have experienced planting in an apostolic context.
When we read through the stories of Paul’s missionary journeys in Acts we find that the establishing of churches was an apostolic activity.
After Paul encountered Christ on the road to Damascus he was prayed for to receive his sight and the Holy Spirit by Ananias. Ananius had received a prophetic word from God that Paul would carry the Gospel to the gentile nations. (Acts 9)
Sometime later, now in the church in Antioch, Paul and Barnabus were set aside for the mission God had called them to through the Holy Spirit speaking into a season of prayer in the church in Antioch. (Acts 13)
We then see them travelling throughout Asia, proclaiming the Gospel in the cities and beginning to establish churches, communities of faith, in those cities. Into these developing communities Paul lays a doctrinal foundation, and we see evidence of the life of the Spirit in them. Paul and Barnabus travelled with a team, and we find that the team was fluid and flexible, with people coming in and out of the team, some travelling with Paul and Barnabus, some going from them to be among the young churches to serve them on the apostles’ behalf.
Later, after a period in Antioch again, Paul sets out once more to visit and strengthen the churches. He appoints elders in the young churches, commissioning them to serve and protect the churches. He writes letters to them, sometimes correcting their practices, sometimes schooling them in theological matters.
He sends members of his team to different churches, and these team members bring him report of the churches. He responds to them as a spiritual father.
It is upon this prophetic and apostolic foundation that we find these early churches established, and is this foundation that seems so often to be missing in the articles currently being written on church planting.
“The late Bible teacher Arthur Wallis once voiced a striking insight with regard to the distant future.He said, ‘It is my conviction that recognizing apostles and prophets and letting them function, will yet prove the most important restoration breakthrough of our time.’ Since he wrote this, the emergence of ministries of both apostles and prophets has triggered enormous controversy in the body of Christ from the 1970s onwards, right up to the present day. In step with an increasing recognition of the prophetic, we must also learn to recognize the validity of apostolic ministry; for the truth is that we need both.” Greg Haslam, Moving in the prophetic, pg74
So, what benefit do the gifts of the apostles and prophets bring to the church? Our experience is only one of many, but these are some of the benefits we have found of being linked to apostolic and prophetic ministry in church planting:
1. Relationship
We are not alone! We are part of a team of people, linked by relationship. We have a sense that God has called us to walk together, knowing that we can do more together than we can apart. This really is the overarching reality for us. From this we receive all the other benefits.
Being in relationship means that we don’t feel lonely here, for we know that we have friends all over the world who are rooting for us. We know that we can call for help! We know this on a personal level, and on a church level.
This has meant that people have stood with us financially, they have helped us in practical ways. In fact, if it were not for the people we are in relationship with, we would not be here in the first place!
2. Vision
Apostolic and prophetic ministry combine to give us a vision of what we should be. Apostles expound what a biblical church looks like, capturing our imagination with its beauty. They reveal the design given in scripture, they help us to ‘mark out the walls’, and build well. Prophets ignite us with the immediate, reminding us that God is with us, giving particular focus to vision, and drawing us to find our source in God.
3. Doctrine
We have men who walk with us who are concerned about the doctrinal foundation upon which we build. They are concerned that we grow with a biblical view of God, of man, of scripture, of sin, of redemption, of the church and of eternity. They serve us with preaching, with recommending books, and by speaking into our context.
They bring correction to us when we need it. Most of the time we do not need correction because we’ve become heretical (though it can happen!), we need correction because we have begun to over emphasise some things to the detriment of others and, if not corrected, it can end up in error or a malformed church.
4. Values
The church is not simply a group of people whose beliefs adhere to a set of doctrines. It is a community built upon a set of values. What we value marks us out as a community. We value people, each other. Each one is made in God’s image, and has worth. We value the teaching and application of Scripture to our lives and practices. We value the activity of the Spirit in our daily lives and in our meetings. We value different cultures, each brings particular strengths with it. We value team, and team leadership in particular. We value servant leadership, Jesus-style!
Apostolic and prophetic ministry focusses us on living these values, not simply paying lip service to them.
5. Mission
Apostolic and prophetic ministry continually reminds us of the mission. We are here to represent a loving, relational Creator God who has sacrificed Himself to make a way for us to be adopted into His family. This is great news! It’s news we want the city of Vancouver to reverberate with.
They remind us of the poor, and God’s heart for the poor, and challenge us to build with a heart for the poor.
But apostolic and prophetic ministry takes us beyond ourselves and our city. It calls us to partner in the mission with other churches, releasing ministry and opening up new places and situations. It catches us up in the global mission, and gives us a meaningful way in which we can participate in it.
6. Leadership
Apostolic and prophetic ministry appoints, strengthens and releases leaders. As we develop as a church those who we relate to will be involved in the process with us of identifying those who God is appointing as elders among us. They will be involved in the process of appointing them publicly, and will continue to strengthen us in the years to come. Healthy leadership means healthy churches, and having help from experienced and anointed men is invaluable.
I cannot imagine going church planting outside of this frame work. This isn’t really to promote the particular family of churches we are part of (though we do love it so wholeheartedly). This is about the pattern we see in Scripture. This is the framework of the New Testament.
If one removes the activity of the apostles and prophets from the church in the New Testament not much is left! On the other hand, when we live and work this way, we find blessing and protection and friendship. Who would want to trade that?