Derek Ott

This Christmas season we celebrate the coming of the Word of God made flesh, the Lord Jesus Christ. He’s not a baby anymore. He is on the throne and He is active. He is the God of peace!

Our prayer for you is that you will experience His joy, His presence, and His peace.

“The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.” Romans‬ ‭16‬:‭20‬ ‭ESV‬‬

I have just finished reading the latest book by John Alley, “The Testing of Apostles”, the second time. It is difficult to express in words what this book means to me. I have personally been involved in what has been popularly termed apostolic-prophetic ministry for over thirty years. So my review is written from a practitioner’s perspective.

For years have I have had the awareness that all fivefold ministry is active and for today, including the reality and ministry of apostles. It has never ceased. Yet, for decades I have been unsatisfied with the explanation and definitions laid out in popular literature or conferences. The very term “apostolic” has come to mean, (at least in the Western context), more or less a leadership style or a leadership mindset. Sometimes it means something akin to a glorified missionary or church planter. The term “apostolic”, in some circles, has been contrasted with another popular term also used to also describe a specific leadership style called, “pastoral”. Hence, apostolic is good and pastoral is bad. Obviously, an egregiously simplistic and inaccurate description.

What I am trying to get at is that the author, I believe by God’s grace, has recaptured and redefined who and what an apostle is, what an apostle does, and what should be meant, biblically by the term “apostolic”. Moreover, great lengths are made to describe what true apostles are not and why we should even care.

I am finally deeply satisfied. I feel the fear of the Lord and a great appreciation of Christ’s work in the earth today every time I read this book. My heart gets filled with hope for the future of the Body of Christ, and I rejoice at the glimpse I’ve been given to what the Church will look like through the profound insights of the scriptural truths described in this book. To know the long process of testing that Jesus brings his chosen servants through before granting them real apostolic authority and power, and to be aware how the Church should test and w**d out false apostles has brought a great comfort and assurance to me personally.

Get it on Amazon ⬇️
https://a.co/d/44Ae9j