Spring 1973
New Directions

Author Unknown

We sense that God desires a change of direction at Pinecrest and, insofar as He has given us a direct revelation of His Will, we are obeying His leading. God is presently extending His work of restoration in bringing us corporately and individually into Divine Scriptural Order. Thus God has begun in the family, establishing Divine Standards in the home. God did not make man only as an individual, but from the beginning established him as a member of a family. God is also revolutionizing His Church by breaking down our traditions and establishing Divine Standards on every level. He is bringing us back into the pattern established in the New Testament.

In the book of Act s, we see the progressive revelation of God’s pattern for the Church. We see a church which was bound to the Temple in Jerusalem, yet as they responded to the problems which arose in the Church, they developed into Divine Order. God always pours new wine into new wine skins; therefore, the most far-reaching development is found in a church which is not bound to the traditions of the past; the Church at Antioch. One of the concepts which the Word teaches us, not only by the example of Antioch, but also by that of Ephesus is that Paul and Barnabas developed effective ministries as part of the Church. For two years they ministered with others in Antioch until the Holy Spirit developed them to the place where they could be set in and sent forth by the Church. Apollos was a man with great potential, yet through the influence of the Holy Spirit working through Aquila and Pricilla, he came to a further revelation in Ephesus. When Apollos came to the place where he should go forth in ministry, he went forth as Paul and Barnabas had: not with a degree or an ordination certificate from a theological school, but with the recommendation of the local body, which stood behind him in prayer.

How often have we seen a young person, on fire for God, sent to a Bible College and come back a cold, professional theologian, totally ineffective to minister to people’s needs. In the New Testament, ministry was not trained in a professional manner, but arose through the ministry of the Church under the assistance and direction of the local eldership. This does not discount Bible Institutes: they have been good instruments while the Church strayed from the pattern. Yet as God continues His work of restoration, the local bodies will be the vehicles by which ministry will be trained, equipped and sent forth. This will strike a death blow to the “professional spirit.” The Lord purposefully never chose a disciple from a theological school because He detests professionalism in the ministry.

We at Pinecrest have recently been led by God to change our vision and direction from the concept of an institutional Bible Training School toward that of a resident Teaching Church. Instead of just having teachers, God would establish the ministry as more in line with the Biblical pattern of Elders. We will still have schedules, classes and meetings, yet, rather than just students who come to Pinecrest only to study; we will have active members of a local body. Since we really only learn by doing, we believe this will bring about a further development in those who are called of God into ministry for this end-time.

One thing we sense as we travel in ministry, is that people are hungry to know what God is saying to His Church today. We feel there needs to be a place where people can do more than just study but where they can, buy God’s grace, see a functioning of the Church. We thoroughly place ourselves in God’s grace and mercy, for the task is beyond us. Yet, we believe Him to bring it to pass.

Most important for us to remember is that the Church is not just a static entity, but a building made of living stones. Not just stones, but living stones. The concept of living stones alludes to the fact that we, individually, must be abiding. The Lord Jesus had nothing to say about church order, yet His words were to bring us into a living abiding relationship in God. We could have perfect church order, but if we were not abiding in Him, we would be perfectly dead. The Holy Spirit then gives us understanding of the Divine Pattern so that the lively stones will know how to function. Therefore, we would like to stress again that our main goal and emphasis is to exalt and magnify the Lord Jesus Christ, and, by God’s grace, bring people into a closer love relationship with Him.