Welcome to Apostolic Stewardship

Here you will learn the importance of Apostolic stewardship. The questions that most often cross my desk are: “Why do we need apostles today? What are the benefits of Apostolic Governance and why should the church follow this pattern?” In this course we are going to learn how Apostolic Governance has always been God’s plan. We can see that very plainly by looking at the first few verses in each epistle as they generally begin with the writer identifying himself as an apostle: “Paul an apostle of Jesus Christ. . . “ (Col.1:1).

We know from reading the gospels that it was God’s plan to call and prepare apostles to work with Jesus to transition the people from the faith of Moses to the faith of Jesus Christ, from the First Covenant Faith to the Second Covenant Faith. After Jesus prayed all night to God He called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles (Lk. 6:12-13).

It was these men that Jesus prepared to be His voice to lead His people after He had completed His mission to establish Himself as the New Covenant.
Reading from the gospels, the book of Acts, and the epistles we observe that God planned for apostles to direct the church in doctrine and function. The church, after Jesus’ resurrection, did not disband and each believer go their separate way to devise a faith independent of the apostolic stewardship. That being true, we learn God’s mind:

• That God had not intended that prophets, evangelists, pastors, or teachers lead the church or act independent of Apostolic Stewardship. This is called “open stewardship.”

• That God had not intended each individual to decide how their faith should be expressed.

• That after Jesus ascended into heaven, His apostles were His ambassadors; they represented Him.

That being true, we’ll need to also look at why things changed and what happens to faith when the church no longer follows God’s apostolic plan. Why did Pastors replace Apostles? What terrible warning signs are seen when the Headship of Christ is removed? How does God feel about independence (those who develop doctrine for the expression of faith independent of His chosen stewardship)?

TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE
Test Your Knowledge sections can be found at the back of each lesson. The questions or exercises will help you review or apply what you have studied. You will have the opportunity to check your answers with the Answer Key.