by, Al Scott
Excerpt from the Daily Exposition
Acts:1:12-26 13 When they had entered the city, they went up to the upstairs room where they were staying, that is, Peter, John, [l]James, and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, [m]James the son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas the[n]son of [o]James
Understanding the Role of the Apostle
Here we have listed for us eleven apostles of Jesus Christ. We will soon see this number be returned to twelve, but before that, let us at take a moment to meet the apostle.
Yes, that's right, we are going to meet the Apostle. I do not have the time or the knowledge to introduce every one of the disciples by name, family, age, and education; but rather, due to the significant role the apostles play in the book of Acts, we are going to attempt to understand the meaning behind the tittle and role of the apostle.
I. Apostle vs. Disciple
The terms apostle and disciple are often used synonymously, however, they are not both the same thing. A disciple, as defined by the Bible, is a learner. An apostle on the other hand, was much more than a learner. The key difference between an apostle a disciple is that an apostle is one who is not only directly sent by God, but one who is given authority to speak on behalf of God himself.
Though all apostles where at one time disciples, not all the disciples become apostles—in fact, far from it. The Apostles were:
1. Disciples of Jesus
Every apostle was once a disciple of the greatest of all apostles, the one who’s rank far surpasses even the importance of this office we now discuss, Jesus Christ. This is the first requirement of any apostle.
2. Eyewitnesses of the Resurrection
All the apostles, except one, were eyewitnesses to the resurrection. This was a necessity for any apostle (Acts 1:22), and for this reason, some early church leaders called the apostleship of Paul into question
Yes, the apostle Paul was not a former disciple of Jesus, and he was not an eyewitness to the resurrection in the same way that the twelve were. Nevertheless, he was directly called by Christ himself, and his commission was confirmed by apostles whose rank was never in question. Because of this, Paul can rightly be named the thirteenth apostle.
3. Commissioned Directly by Christ
One thing that cannot be disputed is that every apostle was directly commissioned by Christ.
Jesus was sent by the Father and given full authority to speak on behalf of the father. He then used this authority to send out the twelve disciples, transferring them to the office of apostle.
Conclusion & Application
Jesus was sent by the Father and Spoke with full authority invested in him by the Father, to reject Jesus was to reject the Father. In the same way, to reject apostolic authority is to reject Christ, who is the author and commissioner of that authority. The apostles were chosen directly by Christ to be apostles, to speak on behalf of Christ. (John 6:70) You cannot be a ‘red letter Christian.’ Every single book written by an apostle, which includes those written by Paul, where written by men who were given the authority—not to mention the inspiration—to write such things.
We must recognize that the authority of an apostle is great. The message of an apostle carries the divine seal of approval. We must head the words of the apostles as though they were spoken on behalf of God: because they were. The apostles were Gods messengers.
Yes, the office of the apostle is great, but it is no longer given. There are very specific criteria one must meet to be an apostle, and as you can probably see by now, it is both theoretically and experimentally impossible for anyone today to meet those criteria. Therefore, it is imposable to attain the status of apostle. For someone today to claim apostleship is nothing short of heresy.
Let us strive with great passion to be disciples, mighty tools in the hands of Jesus Christ, learning from his messengers: the apostles.
- Soli Deo Gloria -
Al K. Scott
Al Scott is the writer of The Daily Exposition,
the founder and CEO of The Portland Post
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