The word apostolos means “sent one”. So, from that we derive that an apostle is one who is sent. But, the word apostle also has a range of meanings in the New Testament and we’ll have to begin to take a look at those meanings if we are to understand who apostles were in the New Testament and who apostles are today.
Paul wrote to the followers of Jesus in Corinth and told them that they were ambassadors of Christ (2 Corinthians 5.20). I believe that the description “ambassadors” applies to all the followers of Jesus in all times and in all places. So, there is a sense in which all followers of Christ are sent ones, apostles, though I do not know any text of Scripture that uses the term apostle in reference to all the followers of Jesus. Regardless, that is not how the word apostle is used in Ephesians 4.11-13, as it is clear not all followers of Christ are in view in that description.
We’re really trying to come to an understanding of the meaning of the word apostle in Ephesians 4.11-13, And God gave some apostles, and some prophets, and some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the followers of Jesus for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.
There are some people who believe that the word apostle as it is used in Ephesians 4.11-13 finds its modern fulfillment in the sending of missionaries. They reason that missionaries are the “sent ones” of churches today. Again, they grab the general meaning of the word apostle and try to fit it to the post-Reformation reality of the church. I am a missionary, but I am not an apostle in the Ephesians 4 sense of the word. Where Ephesians 4 is concerned, I am a teacher, but I am also a cross-cultural missionary. Most of the missionaries that I know are evangelists, pastors and teachers, but very few are apostles as we read about them in Ephesians 4 (and I have yet to meet any who are prophets). So, I do not agree with those who see missionaries today as all being equivalent to the apostles that God has given to the church in order to have a complete and healthy church.
We find the word apostle used in many texts in the New Testament, but the word is not always used to indicate the same thing. Let’s look at a few examples.
The word apostle is applied to Jesus in Hebrews 3.1. Jesus was certainly one sent. However, Jesus was not an apostle in the Ephesians 4.11-13 sense of the word apostle.
Jesus chose twelve men to be His disciples. The word “apostle” is sometimes used in reference to these twelve men. The ministry of the twelve and their unique relationship with Jesus leads me to believe that the apostles referred to in Ephesians 4 are not apostles in the same sense as the twelve apostles (and Matthias and Paul). The key to understanding this will be to understand that the New Testament refers to more than 14 men as apostles.
In fact, there are 22 people in addition to Jesus who are referred to as apostles in the New Testament. Here’s the list:
Paul – many Scriptures, but Rom. 11:13 “to the Gentiles”
Peter – many Scriptures, but I Peter 1:1, Matthew 10:2
Andrew – Matthew 10:2
James (son of Zebedee) – Matthew 10:2
John – Matthew 10:2
Philip – Matthew 10:2
Bartholomew – Matthew 10:2
Thomas – Matthew 10:2
Matthew – Matthew 10:2
James (son of Alpheus) – Matthew 10:2
Thadeus – Matthew 10:2
Simon the zealot – Matthew 10:2
Judas Iscariot – Matthew 10:2
Matthias – Acts 1:26
Barnabas – Acts 14:14
James (Jesus’ brother) – Galatians 1:19
Epaphroditus – Philippians 2:25
Andronicus – Romans 12:7
Junia (a female apostle) – Romans 16:7
Cephas – may also be Peter I Cor. 9:5, but is not necessarily Peter
Silas – I Thessalonians 2:6
Timothy – I Thessalonians 2:6
I have no way to speculate about how many apostles actually existed in the New Testament era. I do find the following text to be interesting though.
For I [Paul] delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also (1 Corinthians 15.3-8).
In I Corinthians 15:3-8 Paul refers to Jesus appearing to Peter and then to the Twelve after His resurrection and before His ascension. In the same context, Paul states that Jesus appeared to James and then to all the apostles. Paul stated that Jesus had already appeared to the Twelve and Paul goes on to refer to all the apostles. That he referred to both seems to indicate two different groups. I believe the two different groups are the Twelve (a group of apostles that would include Matthias and Paul) and then the Ephesians 4 type of apostles. I believe the first type is no longer with us, but that the later type of apostles remain and minister among us today.
Please check back soon, as I plan to explain my understanding of the ministry of apostles today.
8 comments for this post
Stan,
I’m curious why you include Paul among the 12. Wouldn’t that make 13?
David,
Thanks for asking me for clarification on this. It is sometimes hard to speak categorically without people reading more than one wants to say in terms of categories. In an attempt to avoid that, I wrote less about categories.
The New Testament refers to the disciples of Jesus as “The Twelve” and uses the term apostle in reference to them. We also find Matthias replacing Judas as an apostle. And Paul is an apostle too. I believe that Matthias and Paul were apostles in the same way that the Twelve were apostles. So, I could have written the Fourteen, but that really wouldn’t have made sense either without further explanation. Nonetheless, I believe these fourteen apostles were in some way different than apostles as the term is used in Ephesians 4.11-13. To our knowledge, only these fourteen of the 22 men and woman described as apostles actually saw Jesus while he was on earth, which is one of the requirements that were given for the man who would replace Judas among the Twelve. So, I see the word apostle being used with one meaning for these fourteen men and with another meaning for the other 7 men and 1 woman. As we’ll see in the next post or two, I believe we find in the fourteen many similarities of function that we find in the other 8.
I hope that clarifies what I was trying to say. Thanks for asking!
Stan,
Though I agree with the gist of your post, as I understand it, Matthias replaced Judas among the 12, and Paul is of a special category (not included in the 12). Also, not sure if I am following you correctly on this one, but 1 Cor. 15:7 seems to state that Jesus appeared to “all of the apostles,” not just to the 12 (or the 14). I will be interested to see your other posts, though, to see where you go with this.
Blessings,
David
Again, thanks for asking for clarification here.
I do believe that 1 Corinthians 15.7 says that Jesus appeared to all of the apostles and also to the Twelve as a group (see 1 Corinthians 15.5). So, the Twelve saw Jesus after the His resurrection in one or more appearances and then, in another appearance, all of the apostles saw Jesus after His resurrection. I believe this text makes it clear that there were more than just 12 apostles in the New Testament church. However, I do not believe that all the apostles were apostles in the same sense that the Twelve were apostles. I base this belief principally on the qualifications that were set forth for Judas’ replacement who was Matthias.
That leads us to the question of Paul. I believe Paul was an apostle equal to the Twelve. I think we can only say he is of a special category in that he did not meet the requirements set out in Acts 1.21-22 in the same way that the remaining 11 disciples and Matthias met them.
Paul invested a great quantity of ink in dealing with this very question. He was an apostle equal to the 12 even though he was “untimely born”.
Paul was unique among the apostles in that his “seeing” Jesus was a post-ascension occurrence and not simply a post-resurrection occurrence (1 Corinthians 9.1; 15.8).
Paul claimed to have received the gospel message not from the apostles in Jerusalem, but from Jesus Himself (Galatians 1.11-12). When this occurred we do not know. Scholars and theologians have many theories about when Paul was taught by Jesus, but we have no way of knowing. It is this fact, that he was taught by Jesus and not the 12 that Paul uses to argue that he is equal to the 12 and not dependent on them. In Galatians chapter 1 Paul is defending his apostleship to the Galatians. F.F. Bruce wrote this explanation of Paul’s visit with Peter and James, “Peter could impart to Paul much information of the kind he sought, more indeed than James could, but there was one thing, he insists, which neither Peter nor James did or could impart to him, and that was his apostolic commission, which he had already received direct from the risen Lord on the Damascus road.” (Paul: Apostle of the Heart Set Free, p. 84)
Paul defends himself as an apostle equal to the 12 even though he did not meet the qualifications in a natural way. So, I tread lightly with saying that he was of a “special category” in order not to confuse the issue further. Paul was an oddity, but an equal to the Twelve (Matthias serving in the place Judas vacated) and that is the category in which I place him.
Again, thank you. Your questions are helping me to express more clearly what I am trying to convey.
Cool. Now we’re tracking.
Thanks for your NT list of named apostles. This is helpful in showing people we are training that there were NT apostles other than the “12″ or “13″.
I certainly agree that missionaries are not apostles. There are a few who would fit that profile, but for the vast majority of M’s I know, we are talking about pastors, teachers, and evangelists.
I too have had a hard time identifying true Eph.4 prophets in our midst. There are plenty who call themselves prophets, but few of the “real thing.”
While in Antioch (back in Oct/09) I did meet several, of what I would call, genuinely gifted prophetic people. So I do know they exist, but just haven’t found them in our local context…yet!
Stan,
I’m curious why you include Paul among the 12. Wouldn’t that make 13?
Bruce,
Please read the comments above. That was the first question asked in response to this post and my answer follows.
Thanks – Stan
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