The Future of Newfrontiers

By Terry Virgo, Brighton, UK

We often call ourselves a ‘family of churches’ and although that’s not a Bible phrase it’s one we feel comfortable with. God Himself lives as Trinity, in loving relationship, so we love emphasising that magnificent value of expressing mutual love, affection, and desire for one another’s blessing. If ‘family of churches’ is not a Bible phrase, how were churches related in the Bible?

‘Denomination’ was an unknown concept. The word simply means ‘a name’. A coin denomination may be
50 pence or 1 cent, but when we think of church denominations, we tend to think of the structures associated with them, which tend to be impersonal, maybe associated with headquarters, rules and regulations, more of an institution than something vibrant and exciting. Very different from how Paul, for instance, related to his ‘sphere’ of churches.

But what is ‘an apostolic sphere’ of churches? First of all it’s centred in the gift ‘apostle’. The word ‘sphere’ defines relationships around that gift. But what do we mean by ‘apostle’? The word ‘apostle’ is based on a Greek word ‘apostolos’ – ‘to send’. There is a different word for ‘send’ – ‘pempo’ – but ‘apostolos’ holds with it a sense of commissioning, almost ambassadorial; representing someone and sent with authority. In the Bible we have a number of categories of apostle.

1. Jesus

Hebrews 3:1, ‘Consider Jesus, the “apostle” of our confession.’ He is the ultimate ‘sent one’. John’s gospel records some 40+ times where Jesus refers to his having been sent. He came with a commission and celebrated, ‘I have accomplished the work You gave me to do’ (John 17:4).

Note the contrast between Moses before he was sent and after he was sent. Huge difference! His brothers were in slavery and, motivated by his own compassion and initiative, he tried to help out. It all went disastrously wrong and he fled. Later we see him having been apprehended and sent by God. He is a type of apostolic ministry in the Old Testament. Jesus is modelled somewhat on Moses. Moses, we are told, was faithful over God’s house as a servant. Jesus is faithful over God’s house as a son. Jesus, the sublime sent one.

2. The Twelve whom Jesus gathered around him and called apostles

He commissioned them. They were unique, foundational to the city of God (Rev. 21:14). Twelve obviously reflecting the Old Testament twelve sons of Israel.

3. Apostles of the ascended Christ

Ephesians 4:11 says, ‘He ascended on high and he gave gifts to men. He gave some apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers’. Here, they are a different category of apostle. Some argue that there were only twelve and their ministry ended with the completion of New Testament canon. In contrast, others increasingly use the word ‘apostle’ very freely to describe any prominent leader, without any attempt to bring Biblical definition to their use of the term.

Ephesians 4 refers to those who are apostles of the ascended Christ, such as the apostle Paul. He was not one of the Twelve. He was apprehended after Jesus had ascended into heaven and was partnered with Barnabas; having been commissioned, both are called apostles (see Acts 14:14), as was James, the brother of the Lord. So there is another category, apostles of the ascended Christ.

What was the Apostolic task?

1. They provided the foundation of the church

The 3,000 saved on the Day of Pentecost were described as being ‘added’ to a small community founded on these apostles. Ephesians 2:20 says that the church, this new temple, is being built upon that foundation. The apostles were those who had been with Jesus, lived with him, watched him, were taught by him, and laid the foundations.
In the Upper Room discourse in John 14-16, Jesus taught them that he would no longer be physically present. ‘When the Holy Spirit comes, he will lead you into truth. He will take what is mine and reveal it to you. Then you will know I am in my Father and you in me and I in you’ (John 14:20). What does this mean? This means a new community such as the world has never seen before. It’s an incredible new concept, God actually dwelling in people. So Jesus says, ‘I am the true vine. You are like branches in me. It’s going to be an organic union. You are going to be part of me.’

These were massively privileged men! They were going to have new revelation, ‘when the Spirit comes’, and were going to lay the foundations of this new community. The mystery of Christ previously hidden was now going to be revealed to God’s holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit (Eph. 3:4-5).
So when 3,000 repent and get born again, and are flooded with the Holy Spirit, they have a new identity. Who am I now? Where do I belong? They give themselves every day to the apostles’ teaching, thus building a community on that foundation.

2. The apostles gave identity to the church

They weren’t left to wander off, they were built together. The apostles’ teachings were foundational, they gave identity to this new community. They were taught that just as Jesus replaced the temple when he was on planet earth, now we are the temple, where God dwells. No longer do you have to go to Jerusalem or Samaria – no, here is where God is. God is in His church, and the apostles gave them understanding of what the church is.

Now, a number of our Evangelical brothers will say that apostles were simply Bible-writers. Once the full Canon of Scripture was complete, their role was finished. This is commonly held but it doesn’t stand up to scrutiny. Of the twelve apostles only three wrote New Testament material. Luke wrote more than anyone and he wasn’t an apostle. So the concept that apostles simply wrote the New Testament doesn’t hold up. Even our great Apostle, Jesus, was not a Scripture-writer and he is the ultimate model apostle. Nor did he gather twelve to write the Bible. Nowhere is this mentioned. So what did they do?

3. Scripture-writers or foundation-layers?

Perhaps the clearest concise description is in 1 Corinthians 3:10. Paul says ‘According to the grace of God which was given to me as a wise master builder, I laid a foundation (of the local church at Corinth).’ Now obviously, I don’t want to be misunderstood; the epistles of the apostles, along with the rest of the New Testament, are foundational to our faith. The Canon is complete. We thank God for the revelation contained in Scripture. It is necessary to state that.

But Paul says, ‘As a wise master builder I laid a foundation.’ The root word in the Greek is the word from which we get our word ‘architect’. ‘I was a wise architect, I saw the blue print. God gave me revelation of the church.’ He wrote letters on the hoof while he was doing that, sometimes even from prison, which for us have become sacred Scripture. But what he was actually doing was obeying what Jesus said, which was ‘go and make disciples’. The apostles obeyed that command by planting churches where disciples would be made. He wrote letters full of wisdom and revelation, apostolic insight which became part of our New Testament. So he laid the foundation.

Paul argued, ‘If I am not an apostle to others, I am to you.’ The Corinthian church was proof of his apostolic gift. The fact that they existed as a church was proof that he was an apostle to them. He also says in Romans 15:20, ‘I didn’t want to build on another man’s foundation.’ Obviously, then, others were laying foundations. This is a dynamic not just a philosophical concept. It’s something he did which was part of his gift, rather like an evangelist might work with his gift. He’ll preach, heal the sick maybe, declare the gospel. He is fulfilling his evangelistic ministry. So Paul would fulfil his apostolic ministry, which was establishing a church, laying a foundation.

4. ‘Through the gospel I became father to you.’

The word ‘father’ is another word associated with apostolic ministry. Paul says the Corinthian church may have had many teachers but not many fathers. Paul says, ‘I became your father through the gospel.’ He developed relationships with churches. The Philippians plainly felt they were in partnership with Paul. They sent finance to him. He brought them to birth, and he continued having a link with them. Paul developed this kind of relationship, even with some churches, like the Colossians, which he had never actually visited. Epaphras, who worked with Paul, had planted the Colossian church but it was evidently in ‘Paul’s sphere’.

While Paul was based in Ephesus, ‘all Asia’ heard the word (Acts 19:10) and some churches were planted which Paul didn’t actually visit because those working with him did the work. He was stabilising, bringing apostolic teaching, daily pumping out revelation at the school of Tyrannus in Ephesus (Acts 19:9), and his partners were going out starting churches within his apostolic sphere. So a sphere for Paul was an ongoing relationship with a number of churches, what the theologians call ‘the Pauline churches’. So that’s a Bible concept. Paul was an apostle and churches that he related to were in fellowship with him in his ministry.

It is important we see that he said, ‘I have the care of all these churches.’ He often wrote that he was praying for them. So it’s an ongoing, affectionate link, not a ‘headquarters’ mentality. It’s not impersonal or static; it’s something very dynamic and life-imparting. In 2 Corinthians 10:13, Paul argues about his sphere and says, ‘We will not boast beyond our measure but within the measure of the sphere which God appointed to us as a measure to reach even as far as you.’ Paul says that God has given him a sphere which did have some geographical aspect to it. ‘You are within my God-given sphere. I have measured as far as you. I am not over-extending,’ he says (2 Cor. 10:14).

5. Your faith and my sphere’s growth

In verse 15 he adds, ‘Not boasting beyond our measure, that is another man’s labours, but with the hope that as your faith grows we shall be within our sphere enlarged even more by you.’ Let’s examine this. The NIV says ‘our area of activity among you will expand’. But the NASB says ‘our sphere will be expanded by you’, not just ‘in you’. There’s an expanding ministry that is coming about by virtue of his relationship with the church there. It’s not just a ministry that’s growing within Corinth. It’s because of his relationship with Corinth that his ministry is both going to and then expanding beyond Corinth. As a local church they are dynamically involved with apostolic outreach. The way they either press on or don’t will affect the reach of his apostolic ministry.

It is very important that we understand this. We gave an apostolic sphere a name, Newfrontiers. But I really want to underline that what is important is apostolic sphere, not a name. It’s possible to say ‘we are part of Newfrontiers’, but preferably, ‘We are part of an apostolic sphere’. Paul wants a healthy scene behind him so he can reach forward. He doesn’t want the Corinthian church in problems because that will pull him back!

‘As you grow, as your faith grows, I can press on. But I am having to deal with your problems, your carnality, your arguments with one another, your mis-use of spiritual gifts, your worldly wisdom! I am having to sort you out!’
He wanted to move on but he couldn’t. He was not called to be a pastor, he was called to be an apostle and he wanted them caught up with him in his mission. A local church is not functioning properly if it is not caught up with apostolic development.Their love and loyalty, and their establishment in the faith, not only gave joy to him as their spiritual father but also liberated him in his apostolic capacity for carrying the gospel to others. They needed to capture his vision for themselves and to be involved in carrying it out.

We need to get right back into the New Testament and see what happened. Jesus called apostles. They began to gather communities. They built them up in health and sufficiency in Christ, and then moved on. They were looking for these churches to help push the news to the next neighbourhood. It isn’t that the church becomes a fossilised institution while some people ‘get a burden’ to go and join a mission society. The church should be integrated with the apostolic gift in order to reach the world. The church is built on that passion. Jesus told us to go into all the world and make disciples of every nation. That’s the manifesto. That’s the foundation we are building on. So we make disciples, we gather a community of those who say ‘Jesus, you are Lord’. Great, they are healthy and growing. On we go again.

J B Philips translates it quite simply, ‘Your growing faith will mean the expansion of our sphere of action.’ Apostolic global impact and healthy local church are integrated. They are not two different things. A healthy church can help apostolic thrust. A church that is not healthy is not helping the world get evangelised. We are in this together.