With the rapid expansion of NAR, a lot of people have asked questions concerning Wimber's view on modern-day apostles, prophets, and the 5-fold ministry. Here are some thoughts and an overview...
Good stuff thanks. As I see it, the problem with the (A)postles and (P)rophets of today lies predominantly in the area of a very weak Ecclesiology. There is no (A)posotolic or (P)rophetic order outside of the local church of which the NT is even aware. Yet so many now are (A)postles and (P)rophets without church affiliation and even with a distinctly disrespectful attitude toward the local church. Even where there is affiliation to local church there would seem to be a quaint ignorance around the role of the local church in the life of a believer. As I read the NT Epistles, everything (including the apostolic and prophetic) gets pastored. But the apostolic and prophetic stream (one movement in NAR because every (A)postle apparently needs a (P)rophet) are in effect their own pastors. A secondary problem is that the 'prophetic stream' now mostly prophecy as OT prophets rather than the encouragement to build up the body of Christ that NT prophecy has as central to its praxis. Whilst we want to be prophetic and indeed a prophetic sign to the world, we need to recognise that most of what we see and hear now from the 'so called prophetic stream' has extremely little similarity to the prophecy that the NT calls us not to despise.
Good stuff thanks. As I see it, the problem with the (A)postles and (P)rophets of today lies predominantly in the area of a very weak Ecclesiology. There is no (A)posotolic or (P)rophetic order outside of the local church of which the NT is even aware. Yet so many now are (A)postles and (P)rophets without church affiliation and even with a distinctly disrespectful attitude toward the local church. Even where there is affiliation to local church there would seem to be a quaint ignorance around the role of the local church in the life of a believer. As I read the NT Epistles, everything (including the apostolic and prophetic) gets pastored. But the apostolic and prophetic stream (one movement in NAR because every (A)postle apparently needs a (P)rophet) are in effect their own pastors. A secondary problem is that the 'prophetic stream' now mostly prophecy as OT prophets rather than the encouragement to build up the body of Christ that NT prophecy has as central to its praxis. Whilst we want to be prophetic and indeed a prophetic sign to the world, we need to recognise that most of what we see and hear now from the 'so called prophetic stream' has extremely little similarity to the prophecy that the NT calls us not to despise.