Pastor Gail Bible reading and opening prayer
1. Matthew 28:16-20, “Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely, I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
2. Will join with me and let’s just worship the Lord. Let’s just praise and thank Him that He is with us this morning. Father, I thank You right now, as we gather in this room, in Your presence Lord, because surely You are here Lord. We thank You Father, that our desire is to obey You, Lord, to be disciples of You, to know Your Word, to learn Your Word, to share Your Word, to be the light to all the world. We know that surely You are with us, no matter what happens. You are there, Lord, Lord we place our trust in You, we place or confidence in You, Oh Lord. You will never fail; You are the Lord God of the impossible. You are the Lord God who is always there. You are the Lord who says, “Call on Me and I will answer you.” We praise You today in this room today, Lord. We praise and thank You, God, for the glory and the wonder of who You are. In the name of the Lord Jesus, Amen.
3. I want us to stop right here and take a moment to pray. If you don’t know, the US bombed Iran last night. But that is just what happens in the world. We keep our eyes on Jesus, right? I don’t know how many of you have friends in Israel or in Palestine, Gaza. Brian and I have some very close friends that are there. They write to me continuously when there is a bomb in Israel. We get notes that say that their trust is in the Lord.
4. But the Israeli government have said that they’re going to try to open the air field to try to evacuate the foreigners, so, and many of them may be coming here to Greece. I received a note from our friend at about 3:00 this morning, and said, to please pray that Iran doesn’t hit the air strip, so that planes can take off. So, that’s just part of it, that we need to pray for them. We need to pray for the believers in Iran, oh, my goodness, the underground church, whatever is happening there, we don’t know. Our faith, we should say to the Lord, ‘I know Lord, that You’re going to take care of us; You, Oh Lord, I put my eyes on You. You will take care of these things, Amen.’
5. Why don’t we pray right now, if you struggle with a spirit of fear or anxiety, just grab somebody’s hand near you and say, ‘Father, You are the prince of peace,’ Can we pray for these things right now. Father, right now, we lift up Your name for these situations. God You are the King of glory. We’re going to ask You as Mark and Theresa have asked, that they might be able to leave Israel. Father, Lord, if You would open the doors for the planes to leave, God. But God beyond that, even more God, we are going to pray for the believers that are there right now, God, that Lord God, they will be a word of comfort, that they will be the voice of peace, that they will be the voice of Jesus is with us. That Jesus never fails, that Jesus in His hands, that He works all things for the glory of His name. Father we declare, in this situation, whether it’s Iran or Palestine, or Gaza, or Isreal, Lord, that You will work that the believers, those that know Your name, and they call You Lord and Savior, they will lift up their eyes and they will see the Spirit of the Light, the Spirit of Life radiating off of them, and God, people will ask, ‘What is that?’ And Lord that they will witnesses to the power of Your love, to the glory of Your presence God, Oh Lord to the deliverance of who You are God. We declare Lord, that there is no one like You, and we give You glory. Right now, in the name of Lord, we declare and praise You and say, ‘Thank You Lord, that the saints, the believers, those who remember You God, that will not succumb, they will not get into a fear.’ But instead, as never before, God, we will rise up in strength and say, ‘God is in control. God knows what’s happening. My faith is in Him. Oh God, You’re in control.’ And God, we believe that we are getting ready for the greatest harvest this world has ever seen. God, we pray that in the middle of this situation, oh God, many will come to know You and call You Lord and that the world is not the answer, Jesus You are.
6. Hello Kaleb. Please be seated. For those of you who don’t know Kaleb, He’s actually a member of this church and he is deep in our hearts.
Kaleb – Word, praying for your enemies.
1. So, yes you heard my name is Kaleb. I live in Norway. When we were praying now, I just needed to tell this. It is so good that we pray for everyone, even for our enemies. In Matthew 5:43, it talks about love you enemies. “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”
2. It’s so powerful to love your enemies. Because, as Christians, we need to show love to the world. The world says, like ‘Hate your enemy’, it’s so normal. We need to do it from our hearts, form our love to do it and pray for others and just take care of people. Thank you so much.
Pastor Gail
1. In the little church I grew up in, it was a little church, if there was the sense of the Lord join us, my pastor would say, ‘Now everybody, stand up and take turn to give a testimony, of why you love Jesus’, and Luca, you would not have been able to preach today. Because everybody would have stood up and taken a turn to give a testimony. And maybe, we’ll do that again one Sunday, when we sense the Lord like this, because, it’s good to hear from one another, how good God is.
2. Well, I’m going to ask Ellie, who is with us today. It’s her last Sunday, and she’s going to come up really quickly and share, I hope it’s been a blessing being with us for a month with the Gateway training program.
Ellie – Testimony
1. Yes, as was said, my name is Ellie. It has been such a blessing to be at this church and to be in Athens. I got to visit a year before, so it was such a sweet gift to come back to this community. I just see the Lord moving in such a beautiful way within Greece and within this city. Getting to work with both this church and within this community is just so powerful. You all love so well, and I see that so much that there is not someone that you do not take care of.
2. This is such an intentional church, and I see that, from the entire body taking care of everyone within it. And for those of you, who I’ve gotten to talk to, or been over to your home, or share a meal with, I just felt that love myself, so much. So, thank you. I cannot wait to bring with me a little piece of Greece with me back to the United States. So, thank you for your love.
Pastor Gail
1. Be sure to greet Ellie in coffee time today. We are glad you were here, Ellie. We’re getting ready to give our tithes and offerings to the Lord. Yesterday, I was downtown in a meeting where Nicky Cruz gave his testimony and brother George Romeo gave us this pamphlet for the Voice of the Martyrs, this one’s in Greek, they’re all in Greek, but it’s to pray for people, the Voice of the Martyrs particularly, focusses on people whose lives are in danger.
2. Next Saturday 28th is the March for Jesus in Athens. I’m sorry, we’re finding out a little late. We may have had notice, but I didn’t know about it. I’ll have it on the bulletin board back here. And brother Elias Armenis, begged me, please have a group from Glyfada come and march for Jesus. This will be next Saturday and they will be marching down to Monastiraki.
3. Pastor Brian and I are leaving for Tunisia in the middle of the night, Brian will be back Wednesday, I’ll be back Thursday, so, just pry for our time there. We’re going to be baptizing some people who were Muslims and have now given their lives to Jesus.
4. We’re going to have a special treat this morning. Luca is going to come and preach to us praise God. So, welcome Luca.
Luca – Main Message – The Ministry of the Apostle.
1. Good morning, everybody. We are still in the ‘Gifted’ series, and today, we’re going to talk about the first of the so called, ‘Fivefold ministries.’ Paul writes about this in Ephesians 4, among other places. But before we come to this, I want to remind us of what Leto told us about last week. So, when we are talking about the gifts to the church, the gifts each of us have received, it’s important to remember, that we did not receive the gifts for ourselves. We did not receive them to elevate ourselves above others.
2. God has given them to us for a higher purpose. They are to equip His people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up. That’s how Paul writes it up in Ephesians 4, so that we grow together, in love and unity. That we, in this church can fulfill our calling in this world. And these gifts are tools to get to that goal. We want more and more to become more mature, sent and be a church full of life. A church that reflects Christ.
3. So, that being said, Paul wrote in the verse before, Ephesians 4:11, “So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers.” These are what some people call the fivefold ministries. And today we want to understand something more about the ministry of the apostle.
4. The word, ‘Apostle,’ we can find it earlier in the New Testament. We know Jesus called His 12 disciples and they are the first apostles. After that we read about Paul, and then, he continues to talk about it in his letters. Even though I think the concept of being an apostle evolves, I believe that we can learn from certain principles, that stay the same, and we can learn about that, and what it can mean for us, believers today. For us in our personal life, for our individual calling, but also what it means for us as a church.
5. What does it mean for us as apostles, for the church? What is my purpose, my goal, and my task, for the body of the church? So, let us just pray that Jesus teaches us today, about what it means to be an apostle that we can learn from Him.
6. So, heavenly Father, I thank You for this Sunday service. Thank You that You brought us here together, and that we can learn from You. I pray, that You bring us closer to You, God, that You reveal Yourself to us, and to show us individually and as a whole body, what it means to be Your follower and what it means to be an apostle. Amen.
7. We talked already about the disciples, and now we’re going to start looking at them a little closer. In Mark 3:14, “He appointed twelve that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach.” So, those of us who speak Greek, who know the Greek language, knows that it means to be a messenger, right. Is that correct? And we can see that here. Jesus just sent them out.
8. Those 12 actually symbolized the New Covenant. They symbolized the 12 tribes of Israel. God’s new beginning, starts with them. They are the ones who saw Jesus with their own eyes. He performed miracles, right? He went to those who had no place in society. He gave value to prostitutes and tax collectors, and He did not shy away from the sick, but He healed them.
9. Jesus acted in pure love. And I believe that’s what made it so authentic, because He did not only preach the Gospel through His Words, but also through His actions. And the apostles were the ones who witnessed all of this. Such a privilege, right? They witnessed the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, so that they could preach and be sent out.
10. They are the ones who planted the first churches. So, I think it’s fair to say that they carried a unique authority. They met Jesus, they were called by Him, and were sent out by Jesus. And I think that, that is what made them apostles and what we can see throughout the New Testament.
11. So, let’s look at Paul, because we can find it very similar in his life. In the opening of his letter to the Corinthians, he calls himself an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the will of God. (1 Corinthians 1:1). Now Paul was not an eyewitness like the 12. Actually, he was even a persecutor before, and yet, the risen Christ met him, on the road to Damascus, and this encounter, becomes a turning point in his life.
12. So, he met Jesus as well, and was called by Him. We read about his calling in Acts 9:15-16, where it says, “But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”
13. So, we see the same 3 things as before, right?
a. He had an encounter with Jesus.
b. He’s called by Him and
c. He’s sent out to bring the Gospel to the Gentiles, to found new churches, everywhere, where no one has heard about it.
14. The same 3 things, we see with the apostles, happened to Paul. And also, we read about the reality of suffering in his life. Being an apostle, cannot always be easy. Paul, became from being a persecutor to becoming an apostle, and being persecuted himself.
15. But we also read about signs and wonders, that Paul performs and witnesses and they are confirmation for him being an apostle. So, in this progress, Paul represents the next phase of the apostles. He’s not an eye witness, but a founder and representative, for new contexts and spaces. Through this, Paul becomes a bridge to our time and what it means for us.
16. So, I look with awe at what Jesus did through His apostles, and I believe that Paul takes this concept further when he writes to His church. And this is where we are again in Ephesians 4. So, Christ Himself, gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and the teachers.
17. But the truth is as well, to be honest with you, Paul does not give us a job description. He doesn’t say, ‘If you’re an apostle, you do this, that and that’s how you do it.’ However, I’m convinced that if we look at the life of Paul, we can learn a lot about what it means being an apostle.
18. I found 2 principles, that I believe we can see in his life.
a. The first one is reaching new contexts. We read that Paul goes to many places where the Gospel was not yet known. In Romans 15:20, he writes, “It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation.” So, apostolic thinking is looking at places, groups, where the Gospel is not yet rooted. Maybe there’s a platform where nobody knows about Christ, or where Christians are represented. It is about overcoming cultural, linguistical and social barriers. It is about asking, ‘Where is nothing growing yet? Where is nobody hearing about the Gospel in their own language?’ In their own culture maybe? Or even on eye level. So, I believe an apostolic ministry is about pioneering. It seeks new paths. Goes into uncertain territory. And thinks missionally. So, this can mean a new neighborhood, where no church yet exists. Maybe a digital platform where Christians are hardly represented. Or a cultural group that has never come into contact with the Gospel before. And that takes courage, flexibility, and the willingness to leave family behind. This can mean, that you’re going to suffer. But apostolic minded people do not ask what already works, but rather what has not happened yet and how can I be a part of what God will do here. So, that’s the first principle – reaching new contexts.
b. The second principle I found was that Paul was founding churches and building networks. Even though Paul was not married, he was by no means a lone warrior. He had a network of co-workers, relationships and spiritual children. Where he went, he appointed leaders, accompanied them, wrote letters, and visited them. So, he was a multiplier. Which means that apostolic thinking, recognizes that the goal is not being in control. Paul multiplied through people and encouraged them. He equipped young leaders and released them. Therefore, apostolic ministry, asks questions like, ‘Which people has God called to take on responsibility, and how can I help to let them grow? When is the right time to let them go?’ What can this look like in our lives and in our church? Planting new churches on a Greek island, maybe? It’s beautiful, that we just had the privilege last week to be on Kefalonia and to witness this happening through our church. This can also mean coaching young leaders and preparing them for ministry. Something that Ellie just gave testimony for us, right?
19. So, apostolic ministry does not build its own kingdom. It builds up God’s Kingdom and knows, that what I will start, some others will continue. It is about a spiritual legacy. So, for us as a church, we can ask questions like, ‘Where is Christ not known yet? What people are needed to go on and start something new? How can I set others free instead of binding them to me? Who amongst us has an apostolic vision?’ Maybe you feel that in your heart as we are thinking about this today. So, we as a church can think about how we can start initiatives, to reach new people.
20. Christ gave His church apostles, so that the church would grow, spread and make Jesus visible. I think, today we need people who have an apostolic vision. People who feel that longing in their heart. To connect with other people, send them out and build the Kingdom of God.
21. Maybe you feel that calling in your heart, like Paul. And even if you don’t see yourself in that position, you’re still a disciple of Jesus, and as we actually read today, in the beginning of this service, in Matthew 28, Jesus sends out His disciples, or as it says in John 20:21, “Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” I think that He is still saying that to us.
22. Maybe you are not called to go into a different country, or to build networks all around the world, but you are sent in your daily life, your job, family, this church to be a representative of Christ. “As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” Amen.
Pastor Gail.
1. Praise God. We’re going to learn about 5 different positions and we learned about apostles today. Thank you, brother Luca. In September, we’re actually going to let you take some tests about where your spiritual giftings will be. Amen. Maybe some of you may have the gifting of coming to clean pastor Gail’s house, so she never has to have a cleaner again.
2. Actually, I think it’s kind of funny, but I do know people, that they feel a gift to help people clear their house and take care of things. I would really love that. I probably feel like I have an apostolic anointing, but more than that, I think I have a gift of just what? Anybody guess? I like to have my office real organized, so that’s a gift too, believe it or not. I know, Anton is probably laughing, because he’s seen my office.
3. No, there’re so many gifts and it’s an exciting day that we’re alive. Because God is going to cause each one us, He really is, if we talk to Him, if we listen to Him, if we ask Him, ‘Lord, what would You have me do? What have You deposited in me?’
Pastor Gail – Prayer for healing
1. I’d like our prayer teams to come up please. Sometimes we are weak. Sometimes we are strong. But it is the grace of God who sees all these things. If you would like for someone to pray for you this morning, if you have a burden, or if you want to pray for someone else, come forward.