It has always been assumed it takes a long time to make an apostle. I've heard it said that it takes 20 to 30 years to make an apostle, and 10 to 20 years to make a prophet. The years will vary, and often be longer than this, but the overall idea is correct.
I was waking last Saturday from a nap when the Lord said, "Get up; I have something to tell you!” Then He began to speak even though I was still only attempting to get up. In the following I will give you the gist of what I heard.
But to preface this, you must understand that for a long time I assumed that the years of my ministry were largely to be lived in two stages. A long period of preparation, in which I was in the ministry and doing the work of ministry, but still learning and maturing; and later, a more mature and fruitful stage in which I and others would be more greatly benefited from what I had learned and gone through before. And my thought was that this later stage was the ultimate ministry for which the earlier had been a preparation.
But now the Lord tells me, "There are three stages in the ministry of an apostle".
The first stage is where the would-be apostle has to pass the tests which will determine whether he may or may not become an actual apostle. The second stage is a long period of learning how to minister as an apostle; how to do the things an apostle does, and how to think, pray and live like an apostle – really, how to have the heart of an apostle. The third stage is when this apostle, having reached a level of maturity, is released by Christ into the fullness of being an apostle: and this is the stage that really counts. This minister of Christ finally lives, thinks speaks and acts as a true, full and mature apostle of Christ.
The three stages are essential, and one does not progress from one stage to the next unless the lessons have been learned and the tests have been passed. This explains a lot.
It explains, for instance, why so many claim to be apostles, but they are not yet mature, nor do they have a full understanding of apostolic ministry, nor do they always think like an apostle. It is possible for someone to be called to be an apostle, to be ministering as an apostle, and to have apostolic gifts, yet not be fully an apostle.
The third stage, if one arrives at it, is the stage of being in the full maturity of the apostolic office. The kind of thing that most people imagine an apostle is when reading the holy Scriptures. Those who are at the earlier stages are Christ's ministers, they have an apostolic call, they have apostolic gifts -- and they do bring apostolic words and minister out of apostolic grace -- although often this has some mixture to it. The goal, however, is full maturity in the apostolic call and office.
There are those who do not pass the tests of stage one, and who do not become apostles at all in the real sense of it. And there are those who, after passing the tests move into the initial stages of apostolic ministry, but then settle down for one reason or another. They become complacent, or tired of the battle, or in their middle-years content with whatever has been achieved, and do not go on continually learning, growing, seeking God. They simply maintain what they have in gifting and ministry. By calling and gifting these are apostles, but they are not the apostles of full maturity who really walk in the incredible grace that they were really called to.
Notice the apostle Paul confirms the reality of these tests: "We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts" (1 Thess 2:4), and in another place, "I trust that you will realise that we ourselves did not fail the test" (2 Cor 13:6). I must say something about people who do fail the test - those who do not make it past level one. A few of these fail completely, and are removed from the ministry, while some who fail completely continue to cling to the ministry and cause hurt and alarm. And I know of someone like this.
But of the rest, perhaps the majority, whilst they do not move on to full maturity, they remain in the ministry of Christ, still fruitful, still serving Christ and loving his people, but not progressing to the full understanding of maturity. They have an apostolic call, they have apostolic gifts and some apostolic grace, and sometimes minister as apostles, but they are not fully the apostles of Christ. We love them, we respect them, we receive their ministry, but we should not fool ourselves into thinking that all ‘apostles’ are the same. There are different levels of grace, and different levels of authority, in the ministry. But hopefully, to whatever level we have attained, we are all seeking to be fruitful for Christ.
What the world needs, and what we are looking for, are these great apostles! Those who have truly died to self, who have walked with Christ, who have the kind of hearts that apostles have. Those to whom the Lord has given such grace as to bring them to the fullness of the apostolic office -- these are the real apostles who must lead us. And the church must look to Christ to send us these apostles.
