Apostolic-Style Leadership

Apostolic-Style Leadership
Lessons from Peter,
James and Paul
 Acts 11:1-4, 15-18
1 The apostles and the brothers throughout
Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received
the word of God. 2 So when Peter went up to
Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized
him 3 and said, "You went into the house of
uncircumcised men and ate with them."
4 Peter began and explained everything to
them precisely as it had happened . . . 15 "As I
began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on them
as he had come on us at the beginning.
 Acts 11:1-4, 15-18
16 Then I remembered what the Lord had
said: 'John baptized with water, but you will be
baptized with the Holy Spirit.' 17 So if God
gave them the same gift as he gave us, who
believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to
think that I could oppose God?"
18 When they heard this, they had no
further objections and praised God, saying,
"So then, God has granted even the Gentiles
repentance unto life."
Apostolic-Style Leaders . . .
Following the Holy Spirit
is an absolute.
Apostolic-Style Leaders . . .
Speak the Word and
let the Holy Spirit work.
 Apostolic-Style Leaders . . .

Are not afraid to follow where the Spirit
leads.

Are not afraid to speak the Word when the
Spirit gives opportunity.

Let the Holy Spirit work and acknowledge
that it is the HOLY SPIRIT AT WORK.
Apostolic-Style Leaders . . .
Affirm and support the
working of the Holy Spirit in
the ministry of their
brother or sister.
 Acts 15:6-11
6 The apostles and elders met to consider
this question. 7 After much discussion, Peter
got up and addressed them: "Brothers, you
know that some time ago God made a choice
among you that the Gentiles might hear from
my lips the message of the gospel and believe.
8 God, who knows the heart, showed that he
accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to
them, just as he did to us.
 Acts 15:6-11
9 He made no distinction between us and
them, for he purified their hearts by faith.
10 Now then, why do you try to test God by
putting on the necks of the disciples a yoke
that neither we nor our fathers have been able
to bear? 11 No! We believe it is through the
grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just
as they are."
 Acts 15:19-21
[James said,] 19 "It is my judgment, therefore,
that we should not make it difficult for the
Gentiles who are turning to God. 20 Instead
we should write to them, telling them to
abstain from food polluted by idols, from
sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled
animals and from blood. 21 For Moses has
been preached in every city from the earliest
times and is read in the synagogues on every
Sabbath."
 Apostolic-Style Leaders . . .

Recognize the working of God

among others in traditions
and manners different from
those that had been in
practice among them.
Apostolic-Style Leaders . . .

Are able to distinguish

between that which is
worthy of retention and that
which can be cast aside.
 Questions

What have we held on to from our
past that may have prevented a
person’s “turning to God?”

Have we built and maintained barriers
to the hearing and receiving of the
Gospel?
 Acts 17:16-21
16 While Paul was waiting for them in
Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that
the city was full of idols. 17 So he reasoned in
the synagogue with the Jews and the God-
fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace
day by day with those who happened to be
there. 18 A group of Epicurean and Stoic
philosophers began to dispute with him.
 Acts 17:16-21
Some of them asked, "What is this
babbler trying to say?" Others remarked,
"He seems to be advocating foreign gods."
They said this because Paul was preaching
the good news about Jesus and the
resurrection. 19 Then they took him and
brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus,
where they said to him, "May we know what
this new teaching is that you are presenting?
 Acts 17:16-21
20 You are bringing some strange ideas to
our ears, and we want to know what they
mean." 21 (All the Athenians and the
foreigners who lived there spent their time
doing nothing but talking about and
listening to the latest ideas.)
Apostolic-Style Leaders . . .
Are distressed that people
do not know Jesus.
Apostolic-Style Leaders . . .
Engage their community
with the message of Christ.
 Characteristics of
Apostolic-Style Leaders

They follow the Holy Spirit.

They speak the Word and let the Holy Spirit
work.

They affirm and support the working of the
Holy Spirit in the ministry of their brothers and
sisters.

They recognize the working of God among
others in traditions and manners other than
those that have been in practice among them.
 Characteristics of
Apostolic-Style Leaders

They are able to distinguish between that which
is worthy of retention and that which can be
cast aside.

They are distressed that people do not know
Jesus.

They engage their community with the message
of Christ.
 RESULT
Action or reaction to reach
the culture with the message
of Christ.
“U.S. Religious Landscape Survey”
by
Pew Forum on
Religious & Public Life
February 2008
 “Major Christian
denominations are losing
numbers fast.”
Parochial Structures
The Missional Leader: Equipping your
Church to Reach a Changing World:
“Discontinuous change is disruptive and
unanticipated; it creates situations that
challenge our assumptions . . .
Leaders suddenly find that the skills and
capacities in which they were trained are
of little use in addressing a new situation
and environment.”
What does this mean for
leaders in the LCMS?

REFOCUS
Apostolic-Style Leaders . . .
Aeed to expand the focus of
the church to a larger scale.
Apostolic-Style Leaders . . .
Aeed to be people of prayer
and the Word.
Apostolic-Style Leaders . . .

Must ask God for the ability

to see the extra opportunity
in the ordinary day-to-day.
Apostolic-Style Leaders . . .
Help shape the vision and
sharpen the focus of the
congregation’s task of
mission.
 Answer these questions:

What is Jesus doing where you are right now?

What opportunities exist in your community
where God is already at work but you are not?

What opportunities exist in your “community”
where there is no visible work of Christ
currently occurring?

What are the other things God wants you to do
for the sake of the Gospel as His witness in
your community?
The Apostolic Church: One,
Holy, Catholic and Missionary

“The church is apostolic not just

because it represents the apostles’
teaching, but because it re-presents
Christ.”
 Matthew 5:14-16
“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill
cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a
lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put
it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in
the house. In the same way, let your light shine
before men, that they may see your good deeds
and praise your Father in heaven.”