New Apostolic Reformation (NAR): A Subtle Conflict With Protestantism and Evangelicalism

This article is a build-up to the introduction of the New Apostolic Reformation article posted on this site. The New Apostolic Reformation is a movement established to challenge and undermine the principles of the Protestant church. Although this intention is not explicitly stated, it is clearly reflected in the definition of the movement by its founder, C. Peter Wagner.

The name I have chosen for this movement is the New Apostolic Reformation. I used “Reformation” because, as I have said, I believe it at least matches the Protestant Reformation in its overall impact…”

Holly Pivec and R. Douglas Gievett, experts on this movement, comment on this definition:

NAR leaders call their new movement apostolic because they claim to be restoring apostles and prophets to the church. They call it a reformation because they say it will completely change the way church is done- and its effects will be greater than the 16th-century Protestant Reformation.

The definition indicates that the term "Reformation" in the title of this movement is not used merely for its semantic value. It is intentionally chosen to diminish and counter the significance of the Protestant Reformation, both by sharing the same name and by explicitly attacking the foundations of the Protestant movement. The belief system of this movement asserts that they are a counter to the Protestant Reformation. The GotQuestions ministry describes the movement this way: 

The New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) is an unbiblical religious movement that prioritizes experience over Scripture, mysticism over doctrine, and modern-day “apostles” over the clear text of the Bible.

The Protestant Church is well-known for its foundation in the Bible. The Protestant Reformation, which began in the medieval period and continued into the 16th century, was initiated by several Christian leaders known as Reformers. They believed that human traditions in Roman Catholicism had overshadowed the authority of Scripture. As a result, they protested for the restoration of the Bible's authority within the church. Any movement, such as the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR), that challenges this principle is fundamentally contesting the authority of the Bible in the church. If Roman Catholicism sank the church into mere human traditions the NAR and such modern Church movement alliances are striving to have the church exist simply by subjective experiences.

This movement is a big disaster for the contemporary church. The modus operandi they have smartly and craftly adopted is helping them to infiltrate the church freely. As Gary Gilley has rightly noted below, it is a movement that does not have a comprehensive organizational structure:

Even those involved (in the movement) do not understand the movement to the extent that they may even deny they are part of it. This confusion is because NAR does not have official membership or even leadership. Rather, NAR is a loose coalition of mostly Pentecostal and Charismatic Christians, organizations, and churches that are united over a particular understanding and interpretation of certain portions of Scripture. The bracket is mine.

In the same vein, Gotquestions again has also observed that:

Growth in the New Apostolic Reformation is driven primarily through small groups and church planting, often completely independent of the parent congregation. The movement is not centrally controlled, and many of its followers will not self-identify as part of it or even recognize the name. All the same, thousands of churches and millions of believers adhere to the teachings of the New Apostolic Reformation.

In Nigeria, many modern apostles were once members or leaders of established church denominations before choosing to leave and start their ministries. These ministries often lack formal leadership structures, relying instead on the charismatic appeal of a sole leader, typically the apostle. The movement tends to emphasize spiritual warfare and subjective experiences over biblical teachings, which unfortunately attracts gullible and naïve individuals.

Mainline church denominations have members and even leaders who support these apostles. Unfortunately, some evangelical pastors—who should know better—have come to view these apostles as models of ministry due to their hyper-charismatic approach and material wealth. The infiltration of the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) into the fabric of Nigerian Evangelicalism is already quite strong, both in belief and practice. Modern technology is facilitating the rapid and widespread dissemination of the beliefs and practices associated with these modern apostles. What is concerning is that the leadership of the evangelical church in Nigeria seems unaware of the reality confronting it. Therefore, the rapid and firm influence of the neglect of the objective teachings of the Bible for subjective experiences continues to gain ground and wide acceptance among evangelicals.

1. Raphael S. Dauda, The Rising Movements in the Contemporary Church and their Fallacies: A Call to Christian Watchfulness (Area 1, Abuja, Danddy Computers Associates, 2023).

2. https://www.biola.edu/blogs/biola-magazine/2015/a-new-reformation

3. https://www.gotquestions.org/New-Apostolic-Reformation.html

4. https://tottministries.org/the-new-apostolic-reformation-an-examination-of-the-five-fold-ministries-part-1/