Christian Living

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The Signs of a Real McCoy Apostle
By Patricia Backora, author of the book
Tough Love in Christ's Millennium,
Which you can order online from: http://www.publishamerica.com

Bullies abound. They plague our schools. They grab power in the corporate world by back-stabbing and waging psychological warfare against weaker people. And, unfortunately, bullies lust after power in the Kingdom of God. Whether the bully calls himself a pastor, a prophet or an apostle, he’s still a bully. What you do is a sure sign of what you truly are. The apostle Peter exhorted church leaders not to act like lords over God’s inheritance, but to be examples to the flock (I Peter 5:3).

A false apostle is like the scary wizard in the Wizard of Oz. The wizard maintained his grip on power through bullying tactics. His subjects would approach the wizard in fear and trembling, and make their petitions to a fiery, fearful spectre booming out threats and commanding them to bow down before him. He got his kicks out of scaring timid creatures. Only when Dorothy found the courage to sneak behind the curtain to find out the truth was the “mighty Oz” exposed as a fraud. The character behind the curtain knew that behind the scary scenes he projected, he was nothing but a feeble little old man.

Today any inadequate entity with a bit of Bible knowledge can hang out his shingle and claim to be an apostle of Christ. Think of the prestige this brings him before the Christian community! It confers automatic respect because Christians tend to shy away from examining the life of the “apostle” to determine whether there’s enough evidence to convict him (or her) of being one. “Common saints” will be warned not to touch “God’s anointed”, and so will fear to question anything he says. But I Thes. 5:21 gives us the right to “prove all things”. That includes determining whether or not a guy really qualifies to hold the office of apostle by measuring the fruits of his ministry against the yardstick of Scripture.

A false apostle believes that only a select few who meet his personal approval have the right to speak in the Name of the Lord to build up the Body of Christ. He will loudly denounce all others as mere “wanna-be’s”, regardless of how long they have walked with the Lord, and regardless of their faithfulness to the written Word of God. All he knows is he doesn’t personally like certain ones, so they cannot be of the Lord. He will accuse those who desire to flow in the best spiritual gifts of self-exaltation or of going on a head trip. But what does Scripture have to say? Remember, Paul did not address his writings only to the spiritual elite of the churches, but to all the sheep out in the pews who loved and worshipped the Lord.

Far from being reserved strictly for some “apostle’s” inner circle, the best gifts should be coveted by everyone:

I Cor. 12:31: But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet I shew unto you a more excellent way.

I Cor. 14:1 Follow after charity, and desire spiritual gifts, but rather that ye may prophesy.

VERSE 5 I would that ye ALL spake with tongues, but rather that ye prophesied: for greater is he that prophesieth than he that speaketh with tongues, except ye interpret, that the church may receive edifying.

VERSE 39: Wherefore, brethren, covet to prophesy, and forbid not to speak with tongues. *****Notice, forbid not. Religious dictators are in the “forbidding” business.

I Thes. 5:20 Despise not prophesyings.

Far from being an exclusivist privilege for the elite, ALL God’s people are meant to minister their share of the life of Christ to the congregation. I Corinthians 14:26 says: How is it then, brethren? when ye come together EVERY ONE OF YOU hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying (building up the Body of Christ).****Notice, many of the believers “out in the pews” had a doctrine or a revelation from the Lord. And they didn’t fear to speak it out boldly just because some religious official might split hairs and find fault with what they shared. The false apostle suppresses all dissent from his own personal views, often based merely on the fact he doesn’t like you personally. He knows his own lamp has gone out because there is no love in his life, so it makes him look just a little brighter by snuffing out your tiny candle. He keeps his image up by walking in your shadow.

In Mark 9: 38-40 the apostle John warns Jesus that someone outside their group is casting out devils in His Name. John and his fellow apostles forbade that person to exorcise any more demons in the Name of Jesus. But Jesus said to John: Forbid him not: For there is no man that shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly speak evil of me. For he that is not against us is on our part (side).**** If Jesus outranks even true apostles like John, how much more does he outrank imposters on a power trip!

A similar scenario takes place in Numbers Chapter 11. Joshua wanted to protect Moses’ place in the pecking order. Joshua felt it wouldn’t look right for others besides Moses to be used mightily of God. No one must overshadow the great Moses. But the Lord had other plans. He also put His Spirit upon the seventy elders who assisted Moses. They began to prophesy without ceasing (verse 25). Two in particular, Eldad and Medad, were spotted by a young man who went and alerted Joshua to this new thing the Lord was doing. But Joshua feared that those two were robbing Moses of spiritual stature by being used of God in that way. So in verse 28, Joshua says: “My lord Moses, forbid them.”

But instead of coveting ALL of God’s anointing for himself and forbidding God to anoint others for service, Moses replies in verse 29: Enviest thou for my sake? Would God that ALL the Lord’s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!*** A far cry from the false apostle who stomps on the ministries of little people he personally dislikes, trying to discourage them! Evidently Joshua had forgotten that the Lord’s original plan for the Nation of Israel was to be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation unto Him (Exodus 19:5-6). But that would be fulfilled only through the continued obedience and faithfulness of the Israelites. The conditional promise of a national priesthood was given a few chapters before the Israelites worshipped the Golden Calf while Moses was receiving the Law atop Mt. Sinai. Because of this terrible sin, God was going to wipe the whole nation out, and would have made a great nation of Moses only. But unlike today's spiritual tyrants, Moses wasn’t out merely for himself. He loved his nation. He interceded for Israel and God listened and spared them.

After the rebellion in the Wilderness of Sinai, only the Tribe of Levi could be priests under the Mosaic system. Because of rebellion the Israelites lost the anointing which would have rested upon them as a nation. But the church of the Living God has never lost its priesthood as a penalty for rebellion and idolatry. True, sin has cropped up now and then in the church. But through the grace of God, God views the church as covered by the Blood of Christ, as being made righteous through faith in Him. Not just one tiny segment of the Body of Christ, but ALL of God’s Holy Nation is called to be priests before the Lord. So who has the right to set himself up as lord over us and say the anointing has no right to flow through our lives to bless others?

Chapter 12 tells of Miriam and Aaron’s power struggle with Moses, who doesn’t struggle at all. Far from grabbing glory for himself, verse 3 says that Moses was the meekest man in all the earth. Moses’ own sister Miriam criticized him over issues that had nothing to do with how well he served the Lord. That’s gratitude for you. Moses had saved them all from being annihilated by God through his intercessions for them on Mt. Sinai, and now his sister is criticizing him over a mixed-race marriage. Miriam and her brother Aaron went on to question Moses’ place in God’s scheme of things. Instead of scolding Miriam, Moses appealed to God to vindicate His ministry. God punished Miriam for unjustly attacking His servant and struck fear in the heart of Aaron. Notice, God was angered by the powerlust of Miriam and Aaron, who were not content with the honorable positions they already held in the congregation of Israel.

Next time some high-fallutin’ “apostle” denies your calling when you differ with him over some doctrinal point and he tries to discourage you, say this to him: “What are YOUR qualifications to call yourself an apostle anyway? How many dead have YOU raised? How many blind people have YOU restored sight to? How many lepers have YOU cleansed? How many devils have YOU cast out? How many signs and wonders are following YOUR ministry? At least I don’t try to put my tiny little feet in the big boots of an apostle. All I claim to be is a child of God who serves the Lord.”

WHAT IS A REAL MC COY APOSTLE SUPPOSED TO BE DOING? (commentary inserted)

II Cor. 12:12 Truly the signs of an apostle were wrought among you in all patience (not meanness), in signs and wonders and mighty deeds (not bully-boy hotair boasting).

Romans 15:18-19 For I will not dare to speak of any of those things which Christ hath not wrought by me, to make the Gentiles obedient by word and deed. Through many signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God; so that from Jerusalem, and round about by Illyricum, I have fully preached the gospel of Christ.

Matt. 10:7-8 And as ye go, preach, saying; The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.****How many of today’s apostate ministers make a tidy profit off their "apostleship" these days!

Acts 2:43 And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles.

Acts 5:12 And by the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders wrought among the people.

Acts 14:3 Long time therefore abode they speaking boldly in the name of the Lord, which gave testimony unto the word of His grace, and granted signs and wonders to be done by their hands.****God backed up their words through signs and wonders!

Acts 19:11 And God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul: So that from his body were brought unto the sick handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them.*****Notice, Paul didn’t mail the prayer cloths in a glossy brochure with instructions to sign the cloth, then sleep over it one night, then wrap it around their “best offering” and send it back to him by tomorrow morning!

Hebrews 2:4 God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to His own will?

Wow, that’s some job description! The life of a true apostle is an exciting life indeed, but it has its ouchy side too. II Corinthians 11:23-28 details the drawbacks of the apostolic life: beatings, shipwrecks, perils of false brethren, hunger, thirst, lack of basic necessities, exposure to cold, the burden of overseeing many churches. Today’s “apostles” can buy plenty of beans with ministry funds to stave off hunger. The worst suffering the false apostle could complain of would be carpal tunnel syndrome from spending most of his time online criticizing others and soliciting donations. Or, it might be laryngitis from preaching a lot of hot air devoid of love and power. Next time some “apostle” takes a bite out of you, ask him (or her) when’s the last time they suffered any of Paul’s trials. Suffering for Jesus is yet another sure sign of the apostolic life. In II Cor. 6:4-10 Paul lists still more proofs of his personal ministry: afflictions galore, having to be patient with enemies, vexations, privations, stripes, stints in jail, tumults, hard work, sleep deprivation, hunger, ad infinitum. And through all these miserable things Paul demonstrates pureness of heart, true knowledge of God's Word, kindness and love in the Holy Ghost. All the while Paul rightly applies the Word of Truth, even as he demonstrates the power of God in his life and ministry. He wears the armour of righteousness, not a flashy veneer of arrogance. Some honor Paul and say good things about him because of who he is in the Lord, others dishonor him because they reject his message. But through it all Paul could truthfully say that whatever befell him, whether favorable or unfavorable, none of those things moved him (Acts 20:24).

I would think twice before claiming the highest office in the Church, that of apostle. If some heavy-handed apostle is making your life a misery, ask yourself this: Did he receive his ordination through a true anointing of the Spirit, and by the laying on of hands by true followers of Jesus? And even then, after a long, sober session of group prayer? Matthias, Judas Iscariot's replacement, was chosen after a ten-day prayer meeting in the Upper Room. Matthias didn't just up and decide one day that the best way to get his Pay Pal donations flowing like milk and honey would be to slap the title of apostle on himself. Back then, most followers of Jesus respected God too much to play such deceitful games. They walked in the fear of the Lord, not just in a happy-clappy "love" which could evaporate in the day of adversity like the morning mist. Really and truly, I'd be surprised if even one-tenth of today's "apostles" would remain true to Jesus if they had to suffer like the Apostle Paul did.

If a professing apostle is really and truly filling the giant boots of a true Biblical apostle, he’ll be way to busy to swat at every online posting he doesn't agree with. He’ll unglue his eyes from his plasma screen long enough to get out into the real world where the needs are. He’ll wage warfare against satan’s onslaughts against the true Body of Christ. Satan knows that if he can split the Body of Christ up into warring factions, he can kick back and relax and enjoy the war the saints fight against themselves. He has infiltrated the church with bully-boy tyrants who quench the Spirit and stomp on new ministries. He knows that Christians will polish off their own wounded. He knows they'll even clamp a bushel basket over lights who have finally found the courage to shine. And if some surrender to unjust accusations of pride and quench their light to be seen no more, the devil wins either way. Such saints who withdraw from active service would still be criticized, this time for “doing nothing” for the Lord. Either way, the devil wins an easy victory.

The hour is perilously late, way too late to play the power game. The important thing is to be busy about the Master’s work of proclaiming His Good News of salvation, while warning others of His coming Judgment upon sin. We don't all have to be apostles, or attach any label to ourselves whatsoever. We should rejoice that we are able to speak a word in good season to someone who is weary (Isaiah 50:4). Let us love not in word but in deed (I John 3:18).

[email protected] http://www.kingdomageministry.com

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