Apostles and Prophets
The Church of the living God does not need any more Apostles and Prophets than the ones that God has already sent, and the Apostles whom Christ has already appointed. The church is "built upon the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief Corner Stone" (Eph. 2:20). And these divine appointees were given by God "for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry," and "for the edifying of the body of Christ" (Eph. 4:12). And "whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope" (Rom. 15:4).
The church today is woefully derelict from the purpose and will of God because of its failure to give the more earnest heed (Heb. 2:1-2) to these holy men who have already been sent by the Father and the Son. In the church there are already twelve Apostles, not including the one who was "born out of due time" (I Cor. 15:8), namely Paul. "In the days of His flesh" (Heb. 5:7) the Lord Jesus spent three years with the Twelve, meticulously instructing them and grooming them for the "foundation stone" positions that they would be occupying, not only in the present age, but also for eternity in the new Jerusalem. And somewhat later, in much the same way, the exalted Christ spent three years with the Apostle Paul (Gal. 1:15-18) while he was in Arabia and then in Damascus (Gal. 1:17). Paul "was not a whit behind the very chiefest Apostles" (II Cor. 11:5). Paul was a unique Apostle, and was used by the exalted Savior as He used none others. As Paul declared, "According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon. For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ" (I Cor. 3:10-11). The foundation that Paul was given of God to lay was a foundation of instruction and understanding of "the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ" (Col. 2:2).
Paul has instructed us about things that none of the other Apostles did: justification by faith, and not by the works of the law, the struggle described in Romans 7, the old man and the new man (Ephesians, Colossians), the mystery (regarding Jew and Gentile) which had been kept secret since the world began (Rom. 16:25), the High Priesthood of Christ (Hebrews), the eternal purpose which God has purposed in Christ Jesus (Eph. 3:10-11), God's dealings with both Jews and Gentiles in relation to His eternal purpose (Rom. 9, 10, 11), our being baptized into Christ, and into the death of Christ, and being raised to walk in newness of life, the two federal heads of our race (Adam, of the old order, Christ of the new and eternal order), extended insight and understanding regarding the resurrection from the dead (I Cor. 15). For all these things, and many others we are indebted to the Apostle Paul.
We should not get hung up on the the number "twelve", wondering how Paul fits in with this number. In our judgment "twelve" is expressing the thought of completeness. And let us give diligent heed to message of Apostles and Prophets that God has already given us. To receive them, is to receive the Father and the Son. To reject them, amounts to a rejection of the Godhead. --editor@banner.org
Showing posts with label apostle. Show all posts
Showing posts with label apostle. Show all posts
Monday, July 6, 2009
Church "Offices"
Mitch Senti wrote, “In my opinion, until the five-fold offices are reinstated, the church will remain divided over disputable matters. We now ordain pastors, but have no place for apostles, or prophets. Evangelists do their work without being trained or recognized as such; teachers do little more than pass along information in an age where accountability is greatly lacking. Without sent out leadership, the vision of prophets and the accountability of true teachers, the church in North America continues to lack maturity. “
Matthew Henry wrote, “The apostles were prime officers in the Christian church, being extraordinary ministers appointed for a time only. [1] (emphasis added)
They were furnished by their great Lord with extraordinary gifts and the immediate assistance of the Spirit, that they might be fitted for publishing and spreading the gospel and for governing the church in its infant state[2].” (emphasis added)
If that is the case, why do we read in Ephesians 4:11-14 says, “And mhe gave the napostles, the prophets, the oevangelists, the pshepherds2 and teachers,3 12 qto equip the saints for the work of ministry, for rbuilding up sthe body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to tthe unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, uto mature manhood,4 to the measure of the stature of vthe fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, wtossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in xdeceitful schemes. [3]” Since the church has not yet attained to tthe unity of the faith nor of the knowledge of the Son of God, uto mature manhood, nor4 to the measure of the stature of vthe fullness of Christ, do these offices still not continue?
Ephesians seems to be saying they do continue UNTIL these things are accomplished.
Are the offices of apostles, pastors, prophets, evangelists, and teachers for our day? Is the church hindered if these offices are not restored? Or were certain offices for Biblical days only? If so, which ones? When and why did some stop? Why does the church ordain pastors, but not train or send out people who are gifted with these other offices?
In certain Pentecostal church, the offices of apostles and prophets are acknowledged today, but do not operate in the same way as in the Bible; there is a great show, but little substance or godly instruction shown by those who profess such offices. So what are we to believe in this regard?
An apostle is defined as:
1) One who is sent on a mission
2) one of an authoritative New Testament group sent out to preach the gospel and made up esp. of Christ’s 12 original disciples and Paul
3) the first prominent Christiian missionary to a region or group
The English transliteration of a Greek word meaning ‘one who is sent out.’ An apostle is a personal messenger or envoy, commissioned to transmit the message or otherwise carry out the instructions of the commissioning agent.
.
Some have claimed that an apostle must have been one who walked with Jesus while he was here on earth and was an eyewitness to the resurrection. This was true in Acts 1:21-22 when the Apostles chose Matthias to replace Judas, saying he must be “one of the men who have accompanied us during tall the time that the Lord Jesus uwent in and out among us, 22 vbeginning from the baptism of John until the day when whe was taken up from us—one of these men must become with us xa witness to his resurrection.”[4]
But, whereas this was true of Matthias, it was not true of the Apostle Paul, and so some people make an exception for this rule for Paul because he “saw” the glorified Christ and was struck blind by His glory. Further proof of his apostleship was derived from the nature and role he occupied in the mission and expansion of the church among the Gentiles (Acts 9:15-16; 15:1-35; Gal. 2:1-10)[5] . Are there people among us who have had life-changing visions of our risen Lord and are sent by Him to carry the gospel to places where people have never heard? Does that definition make such a person an apostle?
If one did not need to walk with Christ in person and be a witness to the Resurrection, what precludes one from being an apostle today? Were the twelve Apostles with a capital A, and others a different kind of apostle? And what of Junia a Christian to whom Paul sends greetings in Rom. 16:7. It is unclear whether a masculine (Junias) or a feminine name (Junia) is intended (the masculine is not found elsewhere ). If a woman, Junia may be the wife of Andronicus. It is significant that the two are perhaps referred to as ‘apostles.’ who was greeted by Paul as one who was an apostle before he was.
Junia brings up the question of women as pastors since women were leaders in the church until the Catholic church masculinized the name Junia to Junias reasoning that it MUST have been a man because this person was an apostle. On that basis, all women were forbidden to be priests and that tradition has been followed by many Protestant churches—even though they acknowledge that we are ALL a kingdom of priests. What a change was wrought in the church by the addition of one small letter “s.” No wonder we were warned not to change one jot or tittle of Scripture.
The case of Junia presents another question for church offices: are all offices proper for both men and women?
I would welcome comments from my brothers and sisters in Christ.
The designation of Barnabas (Acts 14:14) and Andronicus and Junias (Rom. 16:7) as apostles is more difficult to explain[6]
We have four lists of the apostles, one by each of the synoptic evangelists (Matt. 10:2–4; Mark 3:16; Luke 6:14), and one in the Acts (1:13). No two of these lists, however, perfectly coincide. [7]
By the second century, the term no longer identifies an office of the church.
In Heb. 3:1 and John 20:21, Jesus is the ‘apostle,’ the one sent by God.
[1]Henry, M. (1996, c1991). Matthew Henry's commentary on the whole Bible : Complete and unabridged in one volume (Eph 1:1). Peabody: Hendrickson.
[2]Henry, M. (1996, c1991). Matthew Henry's commentary on the whole Bible : Complete and unabridged in one volume (Eph 1:1). Peabody: Hendrickson.
m [1 Cor. 12:5, 6]
n See 1 Cor. 12:28
o Acts 21:8; 2 Tim. 4:5
p Jer. 3:15; [Acts 20:28]
2 Or pastors
3 Or the shepherd-teachers
q See 2 Cor. 13:9
r ver. 16, 29
s See 1 Cor. 12:27
t [ver. 5]
u Heb. 5:14
4 Greek to a full-grown man
v ch. 1:23
w [Matt. 11:7; Heb. 13:9; James 1:6; Jude 12]
x ch. 6:11
[3]The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001 (Eph 4:11-14). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
t [ver. 5]
u Heb. 5:14
4 Greek to a full-grown man
v ch. 1:23
t [John 15:27]
u Num. 27:17; Deut. 31:2; 1 Sam. 18:13
v ch. 13:24; Mark 1:1–4
w ver. 2, 9
x ch. 4:33; [ver. 8; 1 Pet. 1:3]; See Luke 24:48
[4]The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001 (Ac 1:21-22). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
[5]Achtemeier, P. J., Harper & Row, P., & Society of Biblical Literature. (1985). Harper's Bible dictionary. Includes index. (1st ed.) (40). San Francisco: Harper & Row.
[6]Achtemeier, P. J., Harper & Row, P., & Society of Biblical Literature. (1985). Harper's Bible dictionary. Includes index. (1st ed.) (40). San Francisco: Harper & Row.
[7]Easton, M. (1996, c1897). Easton's Bible dictionary. Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.
Matthew Henry wrote, “The apostles were prime officers in the Christian church, being extraordinary ministers appointed for a time only. [1] (emphasis added)
They were furnished by their great Lord with extraordinary gifts and the immediate assistance of the Spirit, that they might be fitted for publishing and spreading the gospel and for governing the church in its infant state[2].” (emphasis added)
If that is the case, why do we read in Ephesians 4:11-14 says, “And mhe gave the napostles, the prophets, the oevangelists, the pshepherds2 and teachers,3 12 qto equip the saints for the work of ministry, for rbuilding up sthe body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to tthe unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, uto mature manhood,4 to the measure of the stature of vthe fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, wtossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in xdeceitful schemes. [3]” Since the church has not yet attained to tthe unity of the faith nor of the knowledge of the Son of God, uto mature manhood, nor4 to the measure of the stature of vthe fullness of Christ, do these offices still not continue?
Ephesians seems to be saying they do continue UNTIL these things are accomplished.
Are the offices of apostles, pastors, prophets, evangelists, and teachers for our day? Is the church hindered if these offices are not restored? Or were certain offices for Biblical days only? If so, which ones? When and why did some stop? Why does the church ordain pastors, but not train or send out people who are gifted with these other offices?
In certain Pentecostal church, the offices of apostles and prophets are acknowledged today, but do not operate in the same way as in the Bible; there is a great show, but little substance or godly instruction shown by those who profess such offices. So what are we to believe in this regard?
An apostle is defined as:
1) One who is sent on a mission
2) one of an authoritative New Testament group sent out to preach the gospel and made up esp. of Christ’s 12 original disciples and Paul
3) the first prominent Christiian missionary to a region or group
The English transliteration of a Greek word meaning ‘one who is sent out.’ An apostle is a personal messenger or envoy, commissioned to transmit the message or otherwise carry out the instructions of the commissioning agent.
.
Some have claimed that an apostle must have been one who walked with Jesus while he was here on earth and was an eyewitness to the resurrection. This was true in Acts 1:21-22 when the Apostles chose Matthias to replace Judas, saying he must be “one of the men who have accompanied us during tall the time that the Lord Jesus uwent in and out among us, 22 vbeginning from the baptism of John until the day when whe was taken up from us—one of these men must become with us xa witness to his resurrection.”[4]
But, whereas this was true of Matthias, it was not true of the Apostle Paul, and so some people make an exception for this rule for Paul because he “saw” the glorified Christ and was struck blind by His glory. Further proof of his apostleship was derived from the nature and role he occupied in the mission and expansion of the church among the Gentiles (Acts 9:15-16; 15:1-35; Gal. 2:1-10)[5] . Are there people among us who have had life-changing visions of our risen Lord and are sent by Him to carry the gospel to places where people have never heard? Does that definition make such a person an apostle?
If one did not need to walk with Christ in person and be a witness to the Resurrection, what precludes one from being an apostle today? Were the twelve Apostles with a capital A, and others a different kind of apostle? And what of Junia a Christian to whom Paul sends greetings in Rom. 16:7. It is unclear whether a masculine (Junias) or a feminine name (Junia) is intended (the masculine is not found elsewhere ). If a woman, Junia may be the wife of Andronicus. It is significant that the two are perhaps referred to as ‘apostles.’ who was greeted by Paul as one who was an apostle before he was.
Junia brings up the question of women as pastors since women were leaders in the church until the Catholic church masculinized the name Junia to Junias reasoning that it MUST have been a man because this person was an apostle. On that basis, all women were forbidden to be priests and that tradition has been followed by many Protestant churches—even though they acknowledge that we are ALL a kingdom of priests. What a change was wrought in the church by the addition of one small letter “s.” No wonder we were warned not to change one jot or tittle of Scripture.
The case of Junia presents another question for church offices: are all offices proper for both men and women?
I would welcome comments from my brothers and sisters in Christ.
The designation of Barnabas (Acts 14:14) and Andronicus and Junias (Rom. 16:7) as apostles is more difficult to explain[6]
We have four lists of the apostles, one by each of the synoptic evangelists (Matt. 10:2–4; Mark 3:16; Luke 6:14), and one in the Acts (1:13). No two of these lists, however, perfectly coincide. [7]
By the second century, the term no longer identifies an office of the church.
In Heb. 3:1 and John 20:21, Jesus is the ‘apostle,’ the one sent by God.
[1]Henry, M. (1996, c1991). Matthew Henry's commentary on the whole Bible : Complete and unabridged in one volume (Eph 1:1). Peabody: Hendrickson.
[2]Henry, M. (1996, c1991). Matthew Henry's commentary on the whole Bible : Complete and unabridged in one volume (Eph 1:1). Peabody: Hendrickson.
m [1 Cor. 12:5, 6]
n See 1 Cor. 12:28
o Acts 21:8; 2 Tim. 4:5
p Jer. 3:15; [Acts 20:28]
2 Or pastors
3 Or the shepherd-teachers
q See 2 Cor. 13:9
r ver. 16, 29
s See 1 Cor. 12:27
t [ver. 5]
u Heb. 5:14
4 Greek to a full-grown man
v ch. 1:23
w [Matt. 11:7; Heb. 13:9; James 1:6; Jude 12]
x ch. 6:11
[3]The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001 (Eph 4:11-14). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
t [ver. 5]
u Heb. 5:14
4 Greek to a full-grown man
v ch. 1:23
t [John 15:27]
u Num. 27:17; Deut. 31:2; 1 Sam. 18:13
v ch. 13:24; Mark 1:1–4
w ver. 2, 9
x ch. 4:33; [ver. 8; 1 Pet. 1:3]; See Luke 24:48
[4]The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001 (Ac 1:21-22). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
[5]Achtemeier, P. J., Harper & Row, P., & Society of Biblical Literature. (1985). Harper's Bible dictionary. Includes index. (1st ed.) (40). San Francisco: Harper & Row.
[6]Achtemeier, P. J., Harper & Row, P., & Society of Biblical Literature. (1985). Harper's Bible dictionary. Includes index. (1st ed.) (40). San Francisco: Harper & Row.
[7]Easton, M. (1996, c1897). Easton's Bible dictionary. Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.
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