The Apostles’ Qualifications There were two requirements for one to be qualified as an apostle: 1. The apostle had to be an eyewitness of the risen Jesus. . . . until the day when He was taken up to heaven, after He had by the Holy Spirit given orders to the apostles whom He had chosen. To these He also presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God.” (Acts 1:2-3) Being an eyewitness was one of the requirements for the appointment of the one to be installed as the twelfth apostle in the place of Judas Iscariot: Therefore it is necessary that of the men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us—beginning with the baptism of John until the day that He was taken up from us—one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection. (Acts 1:21-22) Similarly: And with great power the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant grace was upon them all. (Acts 4:33) Paul the apostle was indeed an eyewitness of the risen Christ: Now Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest, and asked for letters from him to the synagogues at Damascus, so thatif he found any belonging to the Way, both men and women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. As he was traveling, it happened that he was approaching Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him; and he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” And He said, “I am Jesus whom you are persecuting, but get up and enter the city, and it will be told you what you must do.”(Acts 9:1-6) Consequently, Paul often emphasized that his credentials as an apostle were based on having been an eyewitness of the risen Christ: Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord? (1 Cor. 9:1) . . . then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also. For I am the least of the apostles, and not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. (1 Cor. 15:7-9) Paul clearly states he was the last apostle to be commissioned by Jesus. His description of Jesus’ appearance to him is given in connection with his apostleship. Since he makes his statement under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, it is not possible that he was mistaken. One could perhaps argue that Paul simply meant he was the last apostle at that time, and that he did not know other apostles were to come in the future. However, like Paul and the other apostles, subsequent apostles would have had to be eyewitnesses of the risen Jesus and be commissioned directly by him (see below) to receive and teach direct revelation. This is no longer possible, since the canon of Scripture has been closed. 2. The apostle had to have been commissioned directly by Jesus. The twelve original apostles were commissioned directly by Jesus: And when day came, He called His disciples to Him and chose twelve of them, whom He also named as apostles: Simon, whom He also named Peter, and Andrew his brother; and James and John; and Philip and Bartholomew; and Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon who was called the Zealot; Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor. (Lk. 6:13-16; cf. Mat. 10:1-7; Mk. 3:14) Given such requirement, when the apostles felt Judas Iscariot’s office as one of the 12 apostles (the number being typological of the 12 tribes of Israel) should be filled, they naturally sought not only God’s wisdom, but also his direct revelation and appointment: “Therefore it is necessary that of the men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us— beginning with the baptism of John until the day that He was taken up from us—one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection.” So they put forward two men, Joseph called Barsabbas (who was also called Justus), and Matthias. And they prayed and said, “You, Lord, who know the hearts of all men, show which one of these two You have chosen to occupy this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.” And they drew lots for them, and the lot fell to Matthias; and he was added to the eleven apostles. (Acts 1:21-26) Thus, Paul often emphasized that his credentials as an apostle were based not only on the fact that he had seen the risen Jesus, but also that he had been commissioned directly by him: Paul, an apostle (not sent from men nor through the agency of man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised Him from the dead). (Gal. 1:1) For I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. (Gal. 1:11-12) The Apostles’ Role in the Church Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, tells us that the apostles had a definite role in God’s plan in the building up of the Church. He told the Ephesians that the apostles and prophets were the foundation of the Church: So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone. (Eph. 2:19-20) Similarly, the apostle John describes the glorified Church of God having the apostles as its foundation: Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and spoke with me, saying, “Come here, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. Her brilliance was like a very costly stone, as a stone of crystal-clear jasper. It had a great and high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels; and names were written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel. There were three gates on the east and three gates on the north and three gates on the south and three gates on the west. And the wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. (Rev. 21:9-14) Conclusion The biblical evidence rules out the possibility that there could be any apostles after the first generation of the Church, i.e., in the first century. Consequently, there are no apostles today. They were a select group of eyewitnesses of the risen Christ, commissioned to their office by Jesus himself. Only they had the authority to write (or supervise the writing) of the New Testament Scriptures. The canon of the Word of God, being complete, cannot be augmented by any document. Since the apostolic office by definition included the authority to write Scripture, it follows that it does not exist today, because that authority is no longer given by God to anyone. God no longer gives inspired and inerrant revelation to any person, under any circumstance. His infallible revelation is found exclusively in the closed canon of Scriptures. It is important to stress that the ministry of apostles does indeed continue today – not in the person of anyone claiming to be an apostle, but in the New Testament. Every time the Word of God in the New Testament is read and proclaimed, the apostolic ministry and office fulfills its role. The apostles of the first century live on today, in the Church, through the Word God has given us through them. According to that Word, Paul was the last apostle. The only offices that remain in the Church (even though there is a variety of ministries) are that of the pastor (or presbyter, or bishop – the three terms are used interchangeably in the New Testament and refer to the same office), and of the deacon. God is sovereign and free in his decisions. The Holy Spirit is a Spirit of freedom. Yet, he is also a Spirit of order. God has bound himself to operate according to what he has already revealed in his Word. He honors his Word. We should never expect him to add to it, to subtract from it, or to contradict it.
Posted on: Tue, 02 Dec 2014 03:46:33 +0000
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