Apostles and Prophets

Publisher’s note: This document regarding the importance of building on the foundation of the apostles and prophet has been collated by Thomas Harry who serves as Senior Leader and supervises Church Operations and Services of a church in the UK. He holds a degree in Technology and Business Studies achieved at Strathclyde University, Glasgow in 2002. Thomas and his wife Vivian, have been married for over 4 years and have 2 children.

© 2016, Z3 News. All rights reserved. This content may be freely reproduced.

Greetings to you dear believer. The Lord has confirmed that the church as a whole has shifted to a new season and consequently we must build on the Apostolic and Prophetic foundation laid out in Ephesians 2:20.

Over the past few months and in particular at the start of 2016, the Lord has been emphasizing and continues to emphasize one of the most crucial words for the church. The word is regarding Ephesians 2:20 and the church building on the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets. Due to the unprecedented number of confirmations from Christian leaders all over the world, it is clear this is a word for the whole church. The bible says in Exodus 2:25 “By the mouth of 2 or 3 witnesses let every word be established.” In this extraordinary case there are not 2 or 3 confirmations for this word, but 10 confirmations in this document alone from unconnected sources from all over the world. It has been extraordinary and from every angle.

“Behold I do a new thing, before it springs up I will tell you, do you not see it?” (Isaiah 43:19)
Some believers may not have realized it yet, but the church has shifted to a new season and the Lord is doing a new thing. ”And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins.” (Mark 2:22).

The Lord has emphasized that this parable will now become a major reality for the church in this new season. The Lord requires us all to adjust to a new wine skin in order to prepare for and contain what He is about to release in the earth.
There are huge changes and awakening coming in the earth and the church. However, as the parable states if we do not prepare a new wine skin, the new wine cannot be contained. This new wine skin is found in Ephesians 2:20: “Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself.” (Ephesians 2:20)

In relation to a church, the prophetic sees where God wants to take a church. The Prophetic obtains guidance and direction from the Lord in the form of visions, prophetic words, revelation, insight, heavenly mandates etc. The Prophetic brings the revelation from God of the vision and future plans the Lord has. The Apostolic then brings the authority, wisdom, strategy and heavenly instruction on how exactly to complete the plan. With only the Prophetic, a great prophetic word will only remain a great word 20 years later and nothing is accomplished, this is what has happened in many circles. With only the Apostolic we have good works, strategy, wisdom but we may not actually accomplish God’s will as we have not obtained the Prophetic guidance or word from God for His exact will. That is why the 2 are so interdependent and it is essential for every church to build on this foundation.

It is important at this stage to emphasize that when we talk about the Apostolic & Prophetic we are not talking about titles, individuals, positions or hierarchy. We are talking about the function or the role of the Apostolic or Prophetic in the church. If we do not clarify this distinction people will think it is all about the titles within a church or leadership hierarchy. To think that way would miss the point as many with no titles or positions within churches actually function in the Apostolic and Prophetic. Naturally if you have a genuine Apostle and Prophet operating in a church then this would help ensure the church is built on the biblical foundation of Ephesians 2:20. However, the main focus is the function or role of the Apostolic and Prophetic, rather than titles or leadership hierarchy. [Publisher’s note: What is an apostle? may be helpful for some.]

It is also important to state that Apostles and Prophets are NOT more important and that Pastors and Teachers are NOT now obsolete. They all have essential roles and functions as do all the fivefold ministry and all believers who are not in full time ministry. The reality is Pastors would be more effective and function better with a lot less burnout if proper foundations were in place. The truth is we have placed unnecessary and indeed unbiblical pressure upon Pastors hence why so many have struggled in ministry. The Pastor has been made the foundation/focus of the church and this has led to significant imbalance in the church. This imbalance and undue Pastoral pressure has led to countless committing suicide, leaving ministry, financial scandal and marital breakdown. Some will say that is all down to lack of integrity or character and while that will play a part – the fact that Pastors have been given such heavy and unbiblical burdens has been just as pivotal. If Churches had been built on the correct biblical foundation, then there would be fewer unnecessary demands on Pastors.

There is the fivefold ministry which most are familiar with, which is the Apostle, Prophet, Pastor, Teacher and Evangelist as per Ephesians 4:11 “So Christ Himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers”.

The church has built predominantly with the foundation of Pastor, Evangelist and Teacher. However, in addition to the aforementioned Ephesians 2:20, the word of God further emphasizes the correct foundation and true biblical order to be the Apostles and Prophets. The additional emphasis is found in 1 Corinthians 12:28: “And God has placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets.” (1 Corinthians 12:28)

It is vital at this stage to highlight that it is God who created this order of first Apostles and Prophets, not man or any individual. Therefore, when you remove the very foundation instructed by the Lord – you have no foundation at all and no building can successfully stand with no foundation.

The Apostolic and Prophetic is primarily about alignment with God’s mission. This includes His heavenly plan for a local church, its region and the nation as a whole. Each church has a specific mandate or plan from God and in order to correctly fulfill this, both the Apostolic and Prophetic are needed. Each church has a bigger purpose than to be a Sunday destination for believers, host Evangelistic outreaches and develop in-house church program’s. The Ecclesia are meant to have a sphere/region of influence where the church impacts society in a far more tangible way and negate the operation of the devil in their designated region. Jesus’ mandate was to “Destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8) and this needs to be our goal also. It includes transforming communities, schools, the government, business and reducing the problems and evil in the area like addictions, poverty and crime. This level of influence is very rarely seen through churches, however, that is what the Lord desires and is expected of us as per Matthew 28:1 “All authority is given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of nations” and Jeremiah 29:7 “Seek the peace and prosperity of the city I have placed you.”

However, if we refuse to build according to the Ephesians 2:20 blueprint, then it is not possible to have this level of impact. If a church operates without the function or application of the Apostolic and Prophetic, they loose a significant degree, if not all of the sight/vision and wisdom/strategy to build effectively. That is why it is so important that all churches adjust accordingly so that they have both the prophetic guidance and Apostolic wisdom and strategy to correctly advance the Kingdom of God. We all must adjust our current wineskins accordingly or the Lord cannot pour out His new wine (experience, encounter, expression of Jesus in the church) or our old wineskins and structures will burst as they cannot contain what God is about to do.

Some may wonder how such a shift is happening now and why such a significant biblical truth and foundation has been missed by the majority of the church. The Lord has a time and a season for everything. An excerpt from a prophetic word by Chuck Pierce, who is one of the most respected prophetic voices in the world, lays a foundation for this fresh revelation and understanding of Ephesians 2:20: “The time is NOW to plow that fallow ground. There is more than your mind has conceived – new patterns, new ways, and new means. The familiar will chain you down to an old thing and way, and you won’t be ready for the breaking of a new day. You will return to divine patterns you’ve not seen clearly in the Word before; or you saw them and you didn’t know how to apply it right.”

Here Chuck speaks of blueprints in the word being seen in a new way and that is exactly what has happened with Ephesians 2:20. With all of this in mind, it is crucial that we all adjust accordingly. Whatever group, ministry or denomination, the Lord is speaking to all. The Charismatic and Pentecostal groups may feel they have accepted Apostles and embraced the Prophetic, however, by and large they too have not built their churches on this foundation. Therefore, it is not a season for merely acknowledging these 2 foundational functions and roles, but actually building our houses and churches around these as the bible instructs.

Many will be realizing that this will require sweeping and drastic changes where they are planted. It is vital that all leaders in particular humbly accept this and seek the Lord on blueprints on how to adjust accordingly so that they are prepared to be a house that experiences the fullness of what God wants to do.

Some will resist as is always the case when God does something new or moves in Revival power. However, God gives us freewill, so we can continue with our man made designs and ideas about church that is built on the old wineskin of the Pastoral, but will miss out on what God wants to do. God in His grace will not pour out His new wine on those who resist this change, because as the parable says – their wineskin will burst and the wine will be wasted. In the natural we all know the mess and marks that are left when wine spills, so in the spiritual the Lord does not want to pour out wine in places who refuse to adjust their wineskin as it will lead to wasted wine and wineskins.

Confirmations of the Foundation of Apostles and Prophets – 10 Global Confirmations

The word of God says in Amos 3:7 “Surely the Lord does nothing without revealing to His servants the Prophets.” The Lord has indeed brought fresh revelation to His church. Therefore, the best way to emphasize that this is a genuine word from God is to provide a list of confirmations from respected leaders in the Church. Some sections will be highlighted for emphasis and all sources are quoted for research and further study if desired.

Confirmation 1: Catherine Brown (Scotland) – Prophetic Word for 2016
As we approach the year end and we contemplate what the New Year of 2016 may hold in the Kingdom of God it is my conviction that we are shifting into a deeper dispensation of grace by which we will move in new levels of wisdom, instruction and revelatory understanding, which will in turn release God’s miracle-working power and provision in our midst.
“There is a global paradigm shift coming that will cause the church to move from “revelation-only” to the much needed gift of instruction plus revelation. It is receiving and acting upon the word of apostolic instruction coupled with revelatory understanding that will become the key to miracle manifestation.”

Confirmation 2: Sharon Stone Prophetic Word for 2016 – Time to Build Apostolically
“This begins with the Church again being built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, so there are some shiftings that are going on around the earth right now. This foundation is being restored in a new dimension of God’s government. He is giving us fresh strategies for today and so new blueprints to build are being released to enable the Church to partner with God in this new mandate. For some it will look like a redevelopment plan, but for all participating it will be structures that are going to accommodate an incredible harvest.”

Confirmation 3: Alice Cresswell – Morningstar (England) – Apostolic and Prophetic partnership
“This is a time for the prophetic to go to a whole new level. Like Daniel, supernatural gifts will begin to be used within every sphere with people of influence, to help rebuild His city and His Temple. I believe Cyrus and Daniel represent the apostolic and the prophetic coming together in a whole new way to bring about the purposes of God at this time, to liberate the people of God from captivity, from being lukewarm and complacent and from the religious spirit. The Lord is rebuilding His temple, that is the people of God. The Apostolic (like Cyrus) will come into greater maturity and follow divine strategies and advance, taking enemy territory.”

Confirmation 4: Cindy Jacobs (USA) – January Prophetic Word for 2016
“There will be connections between apostles and prophets that will result in prophetic words not only being released, but also implemented to see their fulfilments.”

Confirmation 5: Marshall Cross (Scotland) – January Prophetic Word for 2016
“The ‘old wine skins’ and the ‘old wine’ have had its day and unless we are willing to transition to the new we will be left in the old way of doing church and ministry. Once the plates stop moving in the spirit the Tsunami of change will settle and there will be a period of recognising the true apostolic as the scales will begin to fall off the eyes of those once blinded.”

Confirmation 6: Jane Hamon – Prophetic Word for 2016 – (USA)
“I believe as the Apostles and Prophets (as well as apostolic and prophetic people) come together to decree and create a sound in the earth, they will put the Lord in remembrance regarding previous covenants in our nation where we were dedicated to God and to the expansion of the Gospel and the Kingdom of God, and He will respond from Heaven.”

Confirmation 7: Peter Wagner on the Apostolic Reformation
Peter Wagner calls it a “ChurchQUAKE”. States that by 2017 we will see that the New Apostolic Reformation has arrived in Europe. Dr. C. Peter Wagner has presented why Apostolic Churches are changing the world today. In 2017, it will be 500 years since Luther´s Reformation. That will also show that the New Apostolic Reformation has arrived full-fledge in Europe.

Confirmation 8: Phyllis Ford – January 15th Word for 2016 (USA) – Reformation Winds
“The Lord said He was about to set things in order, ushering in an apostolic and prophetic order that will change churches and even house meetings. People will be gathering together with a hunger for His presence and hearts crying out for transformation, and it will take place in the house both apostolically and prophetically. In many ways God will see to it that things fall into their proper place.”

Confirmation 9: Val Russell – Prophecy 6.2.16
“For you to accomplish the destiny of My Church, you must be joined with Me, partaking of My Divine insight. Build My Kingdom by being spiritually smart. The Spirit of Wisdom and knowledge will work together for you; knowledge is knowing “what” to do and it is prophetic in its nature. I have not called you all to be a Prophet, but I have called you all to be prophetic. Wisdom is knowing “how” to do it. Wisdom is the ability to apply knowledge accurately. Possess My wisdom as well as My power for Wisdom is an intelligence – it is the mind of Christ. The Spirit of Wisdom will cause you to be kingdom-minded people who rule and reign with rank, positioning and power, and possess kingdom dominion and authority. This is being “Apostolic”. You are not all Apostles but I have called you all to be ‘Apostolic’. Build on a Prophetic Foundation, advance the building with Apostolic Revelation, and keep Christ Jesus as your Chief Cornerstone.” (Source: Facebook Page of Prophetic Releasers for UK Revival – Revival Prophetic)

Confirmation 10: Ryan LeStrange – Word for 2016 – Apostolic and Prophetic foundations
“His house is built on the apostolic and prophetic foundation with Jesus Himself being the chief cornerstone (see Ephesians 2:20). A large part of the Body of Christ is opening up to the reality of these two foundational gifts and ministries. There will be tremendous apostolic and prophetic synergy to uncover the plans of the Father for His people along with divine strategy. These two gifts will lock arms in an unprecedented way in order to pioneer dynamic Kingdom expression.”

What Does This Mean For The Church?

From these confirmations it is clear that the Lord Himself has declared a global shift and new season for His church that must be built on the Ephesians 2:20 foundation of the Apostles and Prophets.