Today there is much talk of Apostles, prophets and the Apostolic move that is now unfolding upon the earth and within the church. With every move of God, there is a constant vying for positioning coming from a spirit of jealousy and competition. This spirit always comes with new moves of God as people who are insecure of their calling and anointing are threatened by the next move. Sometimes it is a feeling of being exposed, sometimes it is a power struggle of having control over their life and others lives as well. I would like to talk about some of the things I see happening as the apostolic movement is emerging.
I believe what we see now is only a forerunner of the true apostolic movement that is to come. Many are trying to be Apostles with only partial understanding as people have declared these things falsely over people, or they have received some teaching on the subject and think they are an expert concerning this area. I have come to the conclusion that we are indeed living in a progressive revelation that continues to unfold. Because of this, those who are truly doing apostolic work “ have not been this way before” like Joshua, and the answers to define things are not yet fully comprehended. All true apostles eventually come to a statement that they are not exactly sure what this will look like at the end, since God is the one unfolding things and we are only stewards or managers of the “mysteries of Christ”.
The prophetic movement has come to point to the next movement which is apostolic. The pattern in the Bible is Moses a prophet pointed to Joshua an apostle, Samuel to David, John the Baptist to Jesus and Jesus to the 12 apostles. Each could not define the next movement, but only give some expression of what it would entail. Each of these also had false prophets trying to point to false apostles as well. Today, we are no different with false prophets and apostles trying to operate. False is never birthed outside of the church but within it. True Apostles will point out these false prophets and apostles, and give time for repentance before God brings judgment against them.
A Biblical example that best exemplifies the things we need to be on guard for is found is 1 Kings 1-2. I encourage you to read the story as you read the following understanding. David had reached an old age and it was time to pass the mantle of leadership to a new generation, much like today. False is always birthed right before a transition is to occur. Absalom, his son, was killed by Joab, David’s commander of the army, because of rebellion in his life. (2 Sam 18:15). This story has several people involved representing different areas. Here is a list and how they play out so we can see the spiritual pattern. Bathsheba represents the church going before the king and being the king’s bride. Zadok, the high priest is a true prophet from God. Abiathar the priest is a false prophet from God. Adonijah, David’s son, is a false apostle, Solomon is a true apostle, Joab is an intercessor, (The commander of the army who acted out what he thought was right by killing Absalom. Most intercessors who are not submitted act out what they should only be praying about) and of course, David, a true Apostle, who will pass the mantle to the next apostle. It is assumed we all have a good understanding of the dynamics of apostolic ministry of conquerors, builders, and kingdom mindsets. In 1 Kings 1:5 the false apostle, Abiathar, makes a false proclamation concerning his office and destiny. All false people do three things, they proclaim their ministry without affirmation, they gather others to support them in their proclamation, and they promote themselves over the kingdom of God. In verse 7, we see an unholy alliance being formed with a self appointed false apostle, Adonijah, a false prophet, Abiathar, and Joab, an intercessor, who is to be watching out for David as the one in charge of security and the army. The false always tries to bring leadership from the true into to add affirmation. In verse 8, we see the true do not associate with the false but maintains a distance. The false only seek confirmation from the false. They do not expose themselves by coming into a relationship with those who are true. The true will not associate themselves with the false also, as it would mean they approve of their actions. In this story, the false are not submitted, not appointed, and not approved or recognized by Godly authorities already in place. In verse 9, we see that these false leaders produce false sacrifices to affirm themselves. Adonijah did not offer spiritual sacrifices like David gave for example, but offered a fleshly offering. This occurs at the stone of Zoheleth (means serpent) by Enrogel (mount of the fuller), which is one of the two main streams that fed Jerusalem. This is symbolic of the true and false, both spiritual, vying for our cities and regions. In verse 10, we see that those who are true were not invited. We see the deception of those who are false doing things in secret and not openly before others. We also see them try to gain control of the springs of the cities, regions and even nations by going to the sources, in a spirit of competition.
In verse 11-27, Nathan, the true prophet, spoke to Bathsheba (the church) and revealed what is going on in secret. Today prophets will begin to speak concerning hidden motives and affections. The church needs to listen with new ears and understanding. Bathsheba received direction from the prophet and went before the king to speak concerning the passing of the mantle to the true apostle, Solomon. Nathan, the prophet, backed up Bathsheba as everything must be established with two witnesses. In Mosaic law, accusations had to be done in such a matter for it to be addressed. Today, the true prophets are speaking and telling the church “hidden things” so we can go before our King Jesus and speak these concerns. The King will always give us confirmation that His promises are true (Vs. 28-31). Once we put these things into motion, God will orchestrate that which is true. David called for Nathan and the true priest and made public declaration of the true apostle and rightful heir of the throne. They had an authorized procession. This brought great joy into the land. The true causes rejoicing, the false does not release joy in the land. They took the horn of oil from the Tabernacle, set Solomon in place, and sounded a public trumpet to declare the new King (Vs.39). This true anointing and decree was something the false could not do. We may announce that we are anointed, but only if we truly have been appointed by the Lord and not ourselves.
What happens to the false? He cried out to God not because what he did was wrong, but because he was caught in the act. He feared Solomon but not God. His focus was notKingdom of God focus but kingdom of earth focused. In verses 50-53, Solomon puts the judgment upon themselves. If they be wicked, let them die, if worthy, then not. He allowed the false to be exposed over time, even though he knew them to be false. Solomon, like David, was able to separate family from ministry and place judgment into God’s hand and not his own. Today, these same things are occurring through imprecatory prayers. These are prayers that David prayed concerning his enemies in a way that left judgment up to God concerning them. We see them scattered throughout the book of Psalms. False ministry is always given the time to repent. In this case, there was no true repentance and Adonijah said in 1 Kings 2:13-18 and still proclaimed what he coveed in his heart concerning the kingdom. He desired to have what the king once had, even if he could not have the kingdom then at least the king’s handmaiden who was still a virgin. (Vs.22) Solomon named all those who supported him and his endeavors. In vs. 23 he declared Adnijah is condemned by his own words and in verse 24 declared that he be put to death. He also address Abiathar the priest, and spoke to him that he will not die but be removed from office. Because as a priest he could not killed but could be disciplined. The final one was Joab, who ran into the tabernacle thinking this would protect him from certain death. But Solomon ordered him to be killed, as well.
What we see from this pattern, is that the false will be exposed and will be brought down. Their ministries will die, they will be removed out of office. They will be given time to repent but God will decide the final outcome of all things. It is a time to recognize true callings from the false. We should not associate with those who are false. We also need to realize that God will use men, not in a vengeful way, but in a spirit of humility, to expose and deal with false ministries. When these things begin to come to pass, we will know the mantle is about to be passed to the next generation. Lately, I have had to confront some of these very things. It is not pleasant. For David and Solomon, it was not pleasant but it was all part of Kingdom necessaries.
Greg Crawford 