Dynamic Qualities of an Apostolic People... the word dynamic is used here purposefully. Dynamic refers to a motive force, something that is potent, and energetic.
The following are the values and ethics which are foundational to the nature of the apostolic church. They are the true characteristics and of an apostolic people. These are energising principles, and are clearly part of God’s revelation for the life of His people. As we submit to Christ, and learn His way, the power of God flows through such a people.
One Heart and One Mind - Unity in the Apostolic Church: An apostolic people is marked by a great desire for unity, although unity is not just an end in itself. The purpose of unity is not only to establish love amongst the brethren, but also to obtain intimacy with God and to bring the world to faith in Christ. Even so, the love and acceptance of one another is real. Apostles will bring unity to the church, both within each local fellowship, and across the body. This is one of the great purposes of apostles, and no mature apostle is without this burden -- a burden for the whole body. The apostolic goal is the unity of the faith and the maturity of the church, spoken of in Ephesians 4:13, and which is to be built upon the unity of the Spirit for which we are meant to strive and maintain.
Humility, Teachableness, Submission: These values become our very life when we have the Spirit of Jesus. No one is able to change their own heart, but as we receive Jesus, we receive His Spirit, and we are enabled by the Holy Spirit to live and think and feel as Jesus would. There cannot be such a thing as an apostolic people who are not teachable and in submission to their leaders. Without these qualities there can be no unity, and there can be no visitation of the Spirit in power. Without teachableness there will be no growth in grace, and without submission there is no genuine authority in the believer. Without these graces in the heart, truth cannot be received. Humility precedes both of these qualities, and is essential for apostolic power.
Honouring Leaders: An apostolic people honours their leadership, not only because of the biblical command, but because this is a primary source of life and blessing which God has ordained. The ability to give honour is a mark of maturity, wisdom, and a pure heart. The impure always struggle to give honour, because it is against the nature of the flesh. In community, the mutual honouring of one another makes for a beautiful and peaceful experience of life. This is the wisdom that comes from heaven, mentioned in James 3:17-18, and is the opposite of the striving of envy and selfish ambition that disturbs many Christian fellowships and brings in every evil.
Heart Relationship: In traditional churches, relationship is often based on convenience. The relationship continues while it is convenient, but when it no longer suits, people walk away. Many Christians effectively live for themselves, and the result is that relationships are shallow. Apostolic Christianity calls us to discover meaningful relationships, based on faithfulness to one another. We are to become devoted to one another, as the apostle instructed. “Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves” (Romans 12:10). We are to be brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers to one another in the faith. Effectively, this is a relationship of the heart -- we give our hearts to one another.
Accountability, Transparency, Openness, Honesty: Amongst an apostolic people, there is accountability through relationship. We are to live lives of transparency with one another. For this to be effective, we have to come to the place where we trust others. The Bible says that love always trusts, but of course this can only be the experience of those in community, where the issues that divide have been worked through, our hearts are at rest, and we accept one another. In community, and the apostolic faith, individuals do not pursue a private agenda. We live for the good of other people, and we are honest about ourselves, our purpose and our motives.
Love: The early apostolic church was recognised by the believers and their enemies alike as being a people of amazing love for one another. They were fulfilling the law of Christ. The church’s enemies were chagrined by the love the believers had for one another, and this was foundational to the power evident in the early church. There is no other way to turn the world upside-down, and the apostolic church succeeded in doing this in one generation. This is the call of God upon today's church, to be an apostolic people in our generation, marked by the amazing, selfless, sacrificial love which is Christ in us.
Laying Down Our Lives for the Brethren: Christ calls us to love one another, and to do so in the same way that He loved us. He loved us to the point of laying down His life for us, as He remarked to His disciples: “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). The apostle John later wrote this challenging appeal, “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers” (1 John 3:16). This describes the spirit of apostolic Christianity. Do not be surprised if God calls some of His people to supreme sacrifice. More to the point, understand that the love of our hearts toward one another should be such that we would count the lives of other people worthy of sacrifice. This at least will call forth obedience to John's next statement, which was, “If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth” (1 John 3:17-18). This is the spirit of an apostolic people.
Not democracy, but community: Democracy may be fine for nations, but it has never been God's plan for the church. Even Churchill remarked that "Democracy is the worst form of government except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time." Instead, the church is meant to rise above mere democracy, and find community. Democracy cannot produce community, as we discussed earlier. An apostolic company functions through relationship and by its people knowing and trusting each other deeply, not through the politics of who can get the votes. In community, it is not the opinion of the majority that counts -- it is the Spirit of God bringing peace to the heart that guides and speaks. The voice of just one member can be used by God to bring either direction, or correction, and the believers whose hearts are right with one another sense an inner witness to the truth. In the end, the anointed leadership of the community carries the responsibility for understanding the heart of the people and the mind of the Spirit, no matter through whom it is being expressed.
Rights, but no rights: To be an apostolic people, we must give up our 'rights'. If we are not prepared to do this, we are not following the way of Christ, and therefore can never know His power. Christ was honoured by the Father and exalted to the highest place, specifically because He gave up His rights and trusted the Father instead. This is the message of Philippians chapter 2, where we are called to be like-minded and one in spirit and purpose with the believers, because we are united with Christ. We are called to look after the interests of others, as well as our own, and instructed to have the same values that Christ did when He made Himself nothing. Jesus did not count His equality with God something to be held onto, but humbled Himself to become a servant to others. Likewise, the believers of an apostolic community do not demand their rights, but trust the covering of God, and seek to be servants to their people. An apostolic people must be content to be ‘nothing’, and it is Christ who will exalt them in His way and time. This is the people who will inherit the apostolic promise, “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet” (Romans 16:20).
