Imagine you or your pastor are to preach on Sunday but your library shelves are empty, there is no internet and you have no laptop.
Add to this that the minimal theological education you’ve had has been influenced by the prosperity ‘gospel’ and contains elements of ancestor worship and you find yourself in much the same condition as many who attend their first African Pastors’ Conference (APC). God is doing great things in southern Africa and large numbers profess to know Christ, but there is a lack of orthodoxy and stability on account of the absence of biblically informed and trained pastors.
42 locations
In 2005 a providential meeting took place between Irving Steggles and Erroll Hulse in Pretoria. Irving, now pastoring in Kempton Park, Johannesburg, had fairly recently begun ministering in South Africa, while Erroll was on one of his regular visits to his homeland. Both saw the need for conferences specifically to serve the black African community with African speakers. The concept of APC was born.
Beginning with a conference in Port Elizabeth, there followed a series of January conferences and then expansion, firstly in South Africa, then to other countries in southern Africa. Last year APCs were held in 42 locations from South Africa to Kenya and Uganda.
The doctrinal basis of APC is the historic Reformed faith; books and speakers must concur with the confessional basis. The work is truly international, with Conrad Mbewe from Zambia and Thomas Winn in the USA joining Irving and Erroll as directors.
Each conference lasts for one or two days and provides vital training on a theme such as ‘Preaching Christ crucified’, ‘Biblical manhood and womanhood’, ‘Becoming right with God and more like Christ’, or ‘The person and work of the Holy Spirit’. Most who attend have not been able to have formal training and are usually engaged in full-time employment alongside their pastoral responsibilities. All that is required for them to attend is that they affirm the Bible as their sole authority for determining right doctrine and practice.
Expository preaching
A key attraction for those attending an APC is the opportunity to hear powerful, expository preaching from one of their African brethren, often from Zambia. This ensures that the delegates understand that what APC is teaching is the Christian understanding of the Bible, not just a Western one.
A further attraction is the availability of books! Each delegate receives a gift of up to five books plus the opportunity to purchase others at about a quarter of the retail price.
The logistics involved in holding conferences in numerous countries are demanding. Crossing borders with a trailer full of books can mean delays and frustration, calling for patience and tact. Safety is also a concern, with the team travelling hundreds of miles to the next venue. But it is all worth it when one sees the joy of those attending, or sees delegates going home with armfuls of highly-prized books, along with pleas to the APC team to return next year.
The conferences are only a start. There is a desire to set up informal training in the form of reading groups and mini-conferences, before providing longer-term formal training by way of distance learning linked to Bible colleges. Ultimately the aim is that biblical churches will be planted. Others are engaged in similar work with whom APC seeks to cooperate.
Sponsor a conference
A significant development this year is the concept of ‘sponsor a conference’, enabling churches and individuals to be more closely involved. Those sponsoring will receive updates regarding the attendance and outcome of a specific conference, facilitating more specific prayer for those who attended.
The outcome of attending a conference can be dramatic. A pastor returns to his church with a model of biblical preaching, having been exposed to books and Bible study aids that will form his thinking and approach. Who knows the fruit such a man might see as he sets about a reformation in his church’s teaching and practice? One Pentecostal bishop who attended went away thrilled to share with his pastors this ‘new teaching’ of ‘preaching Christ’!
