Bill was visibly frustrated as he briskly strode into Dave’s office.
“Hey Bill, what can I do for you?” Dave asked pleasantly.
“You can accept my resignation,” Bill snarled.
“What?” Dave replied, in confusion.
“That’s right, I’m done,” he continued.
“OK Bill, I see that you’re very upset; why don’t you tell me what’s going on?”
“Five Smooth Stones is what’s going on!” he said,
“You mean the Christian Rock Band?” Dave asked.
“Come on Dave, what else would I be talking about?” he shot back.
“OK, I just want to make sure I understand what the problem is?”
Bill’s expression twisted as he explained, “It’s really pretty simple, I’ve been teaching Sunday School in this church for almost twenty years now, and it’s been like pulling teeth to get anyone interested in this ministry; especially the kids. We never have any budget, we fight to get teachers, and even when you get some kids in the classroom, you fight to get them interested in anything to do with God. But let some guys with guitars show up, and all of a sudden, we’ve got money to upgrade the sound system, we’ve got an army of volunteers to set up the stage, and the kids are acting like its Christmas Eve.”
“So you’re upset that everyone is excited about this band coming in?” Dave asked in confusion.
“It’s not that I care about the band,” he responded, “I just wonder why no one is excited about working with this ministry until some group of hot shots they’ve heard on the radio comes around. Is this really even about ministry, or is it just a meeting of the ‘Five Smooth Stones’ fan club?”
“OK Bill, I think I understand where you’re coming from. First off, as the Superintendent of the Sunday School, no one understands better than me about the struggle to keep this ministry going, and to get people excited about it; but having a nationally known Christian band just volunteer out of the blue to come, and give a concert here is a blessing, not a curse. This will give us an opportunity to reach the kids in a way that we’ve never been able to before.”
“Will it Dave?”
“Will it what?” he again asked in confusion.
“Reach the kids,” Bill replied.
“I don’t know, but don’t you think that it’s worth a try?” Dave pled.
“I don’t know what I think anymore,” he said. “I’m beginning to doubt that I’ve ever reached any of the kids that I’ve taught over the years.”
Dave’s face fell, “Come on Bill, you don’t really believe that, do you?”
“No really; I’ve watched them come in, and sit through my class like it was detention. They do there time, and then they leave,” he responded. A few years later, when you see them on the street, they either don’t know you, or you find out that they’re living with their girlfriend or something.”
“You know that isn’t every kid’s story,” Dave defended.
“I know, but the good kids seem to come from good parents. They’re fine when I get them, and they’re fine when they leave,” Bill asserted. “I just can’t see where I’ve made any difference in their lives.”
“You’d be surprised.”
“You’re right Dave, I would be.”
Just as Bill finished, an assistant knocked on the open door, and exclaimed, “They’re here!”
“You mean the band?” Dave queried.
“Yup!” the assistant chirped.
“Send them in,” he directed.
Bill rolled his eyes, and said, “I should go.”
“No Bill, you should stay and meet these guys,” Dave replied. “It may make a difference for you.”
With a heavy sigh, Bill grumbled, “I don’t see how, but whatever.”
As two members of the band stepped into the office, Dave quickly moved to the doorway and extended his hand. “Hey guys, we’re excited about you being here. I’m Dave Roberts, the Sunday School Superintendent’ and this is one of our teachers, Bill Walker.”
Bill smiled weakly, and shook the guy’s hands as well.
“It’s a pleasure to be here, and to see you guys again. I’m Chris Smith, and this is Tom Howard. The rest of the guys are unloading our equipment.”
Dave looked confused, as he asked, “So you’ve been here before?”
“Oh yes Sir,” Chris replied. “As a matter of fact, Mr. Walker was my Sunday School teacher.”
The men exchanged a look of shock before Bill turned to Chris, and confessed, “I’m sorry, you do look familiar to me, but your name doesn’t ring a bell.”
Chris smiled knowingly, “Back then they called me Willie.”
“O Lord,” Bill exclaimed. “Little Willie Smith! Of course, I remember you now!”
“It’s been a long time since anyone’s called me Willie,” Chris chuckled.
Dave exuberantly asserted, “So you guys have some history together?”
“Oh yeah,” Bill nodded. We’ve definitely got some memories.”
Sheepishly, Chris nodded in agreement, “Yeah, some pretty bad memories really.”
Again, confused, Dave asked, “Bad memories?”
“Willie, I mean Chris, was going through a tough time back then,” Bill defended.
“It’s true,” Chris affirmed. “It was probably the lowest time in my life. I was here living with my Aunt, while my parents tried to work out their problems with the law, and each other. I was pretty angry, and I definitely didn’t want to be in church.”
With a look of satisfaction, Dave said, “I guess things changed after you got to know the people here.”
Chris grimaced slightly, “I wish I could say that was true. Honestly, I was hateful to everyone here, especially Mr. Walker. This is part of the reason that I wanted to come back; to apologize, and to let you know that you didn’t waste your time on me.”
Bill’s voice was noticeably softer as he continued, “As I remember, you went back to your parents. I guess they got their issues worked out.”
“Not really,” Chris replied. “My Aunt sent me back because she said that I was unmanageable. Things got a lot worse after that. My father eventually went to jail, and the courts took me away from my Mom. I was raised in a Foster home after that.”
Dave almost seemed to be pleading, “So,I guess they got you back in church?”
“No, they were good people, but they weren’t church people,” he said.
“So how do you go from where you were to a Christian Rock band?” Bill asked.
“By the time I was taken from my mother, I was so angry, and depressed that I was thinking about killing myself. I had actually planned it out, but then I remembered something you showed us in class,” he said turning toward Bill. “Do you remember the string that you had that stretched all the way across the room, with the little piece of string hanging from the middle of it?”
“Oh sure,” Bill nodded. “I still have that in my classroom to teach kids about how short this life is compared to eternity.”
“Well it works,” Chris declared. “I remembered that picture in my mind, and I realized that killing myself might end the pain of this life, but that it would simply be trading it for an eternity of pain. That depressed me even more, but then I remembered when you taught about the prodigal son, and you said that no matter what happens you can always come home to Jesus. I couldn’t think of anything else to do, so that night, alone in my bedroom, I asked Him to come into my life, and to help me. And He did.”
Dave could see Bill’s eyes filling with tears, as he exclaimed, “Wow, what a great testimony.”
“You know Chris gives his testimony at every concert, and we’ve seen hundreds of kids give their hearts to the Lord,” Tom added. “Many of them talk about how someone once told them about Jesus, but that it wasn’t until they reached the bottom that they were willing to call out for help. As a matter of fact we wrote a song about it for our second CD.”
“Wow!” Dave gasped.
“Yeah, it’s called “Believing for the Harvest,” Chris added. “I thought of how Mr. Walker’s ministry had touched my life, and I knew that he’d probably never know about it. It struck me that there are a lot of faithful servants out there who pour themselves into kids, without ever knowing whether they’re making a difference. I guess I wanted to honor their service and their faith.”
Pulling out a CD from his case, Tom said, “I just remembered that Chris wrote a little dedication for the song that we put on the CD cover. It says, ‘This song is dedicated to Mr. Bill Walker, and to diligent servants like him, who are faithful to sow and water, knowing that they may never get to witness the harvest. They will never fully understand the impact their lives have made until they get to their Father in Heaven’.”
Bill could no longer contain the tears, as Chris warmly embraced him, “Thank you Mr. Walker.”
“Thank you Willie,” he whispered.
As the two men separated, Tom stepped up and hugged Bill as well, “I want to thank you too Mr. Walker.”
“For what?” he queried.
“Well, Chris is the one who led me to the Lord, so I figure that I also owe you some thanks.”
“God bless you son,” Bill cried.
As the men separated, Chris declared, “We really need to go help the guys set up the stage; maybe we can get together afterward, and talk some more.”
“That would be great,” Bill said as he wiped his eyes.
As Chris and Tom headed out the door, Dave turned to Bill, and smiled, “Where were we?”
Bill smiled sheepishly, and replied, “I believe that I was saying how excited I was about tonight’s outreach, and how I can’t wait to get back into class on Sunday morning.”
Dave’s expression grew more serious, and with his voice was filled with emotion, as he said, “God bless you Bill.”
Tears once again began to flow, as Bill choked, “God bless you Dave.”
Bjcorbin's Blog 
Apostles, Priests & the Fulfillment of All Things
Posted in Commentaries, tagged apostle, apostolic, authority, five fold, priesthood, prophet, prophetic, Teacher on October 10, 2019| 2 Comments »
The further I walk with the Lord, the less inclined I am to offer an opinion. Indeed, everyone has an opinion, and I doubt that mine smells any better than anyone else’s. The scripture encourages us to live by every word that comes from the mouth of God, and so I try to remain focused on the things He’s speaking at the present time. Because of this, I’ve never really written much about the “five-fold ministry”. Though I’ve heard and seen a lot of teaching on the subject, the Lord hasn’t spoken directly to me about it until very recently. To that end, I wanted to share the things I felt like He showed me. This is in no way intended to be a comprehensive overview, in fact, it may actually spur more questions than it answers. But I feel as though there are some strong words of caution within, and so I offer them for your consideration.
Part of what makes this subject contentious is the issue of authority. Western ethos in general, and American culture in particular, seems to have a love / hate relationship with authority. Within Americanized “Christianity”, it is not uncommon to see either strong rebellion against any sort of limitation or boundary, or to have people exalting those in leadership into positions God has reserved for Himself. Some will get up and walk out of the room, while others will likely bow down and worship a mere man (or woman). Without a doubt, neither of those responses is appropriate.
Despite the tremendous freedom we have in Christ, it is difficult to argue that there should never be titles, ordered structure, or positional authority. The scripture clearly states that He has called some to be apostles, and prophets, and teachers…, and He sets about an order within marriage, the family and the church. The fear of all these things is rooted in what men have historically done with these positions and with this authority. The current landscape of “Apostolic” and/or “Prophetic” ministry” hasn’t done much to dispel those concerns. Too much personality, too little character. Lots of networking, not much community. Way too much sensation, and way too little transformation.
Jesus made the Father’s intentions clear when He told us that He is the vine and we are the branches. No more bloody sacrifices, no more annual visits from the high priest, and no more middle men. After attempting to walk with them in the garden, and trying to speak to them from the mountain, and wanting to be their King from afar, He would finally have the direct connection that He always desired. With the perfect sacrifice of His Son, who was both King and Priest, He tore the veil that separated them, and made them a temple of His Holy Spirit. Now His sheep would know His voice, they would listen, and they would follow. And He would give them an anointing that would teach them all things.
This priesthood of the believer is what Paul envisioned as he spoke of Christ being the head, and of a whole body, made up of many parts, which is supported by every ligament. As each one stepped into their fullness in Christ, they would come to maturity as the body of Christ upon the earth.
It was with these points as a backdrop that I felt like the Lord began to speak to me.
Paul clearly states that the purpose of the five-fold ministry is to help equip members for service, and ultimately to build up the body of Christ (Eph.4:11-12). It is meant to undergird and support the priesthood of the believer. These ministries are in no way meant to replace, or diminish the headship of Christ, or the leading of the Holy Spirit for each individual believer.
Ministry that infringes upon this relationship has overstepped the bounds of its authority. Indeed, “The friend of the Bridegroom never steps between Him and His Bride”.
Much of the confusion related to apostolic ministry is gathered around the notion that apostles are intended to become something like CEOs of the church, and that is a distortion of the truth. While the Lord has given apostles an important role, it is a very specific role, and not intended to give them limitless authority.
He has not ordained them to become brokers between Him and His children (1Tim.2:5). The body of Christ will only become fully functional when every member is directly connected to the head (Christ Jesus), and empowered and led by His Spirit.
The hallmark of a genuine apostolic grace is humility. It is only when knowledge encounters humility that it can become wisdom. Without humility, knowledge simply puffs up a man. Paul spoke of how this calling will “expose the motives of the heart” (1 Cor. 4). In that same vein, I sensed the weightiness of these issues, the stricter judgment that comes with this role (Matt.18:6), and the resistance God feels toward the proud (James 4:6).
Even those who are called, and have a pure heart will have to resist the people’s penchant for wanting an earthly king, and be diligent in ensuring that none of His glory is found buried beneath their tent. Functioning in this role will demand more than just wisdom and experience, it will require a supernatural grace.
I was also reminded of Paul’s warnings about “deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ” (2 Cor.11) and sensed that there are many who have simply placed this mantle upon themselves. Some have become notable for their extensive “networks”, but the Lord says that they are drawing people to themselves instead of to Him. I felt like the Lord showed me that in the infancy of this move He is being patient, but that there is a coming age of accountability.
Finally, I sensed the Lord say that the first century church is not the model for where He wants to take His Church. While we romanticize the concepts of folks being devoted to the teaching of the Apostles (Acts 2:42) and placing money at their feet (Acts 4:35), they never actually walked in the fullness of the things He ordained for them.
As in all things, Christ is our model, as He walked in perfect fellowship with both the Father and the Spirit. If we do not have the mind of Christ, and the heart of the Father, we cannot be trusted with the power of His Spirit. It is His desire to do abundantly more than we could ever ask for, or imagine, but that will only happen if He builds His church (Matt.16:18, Psalm 127:1).
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