Subject: What is an Apostle? |
Bible Note: Greetings Makarios! I pray that things are going well with you my friend. As I stated previously, I have not read all of this thread. So, I was not sure what had or had not been said - though I could guess most of it! :-) As I alluded to before, I am in substantial agreement with you. I believe that the word 'apostle' is used in two senses. 1) The Apostles - which meant only the 12 and Paul. Scripture is very definite when refering to this group either as 'the Apostles' or 'the twelve'. I don't believe that these kinds of apostles exist anymore. 2) However, there seems to be a 'lesser (for lack of a better word)' sense of the word. It would apply to anyone 'sent'. In this sense, anyone sent by a Church for ministry was an apostle. I believe this is how the term was used of Barnabas and others. These kinds of apostles could be said to exist today in the sense that anyone sent with a mission could be said to be an apostle. However, as you noted, much of the 'ministry description' applied to 'The Apostles' would not apply to those sent today. They are not the foundation of the Church. So, I too would say that an apostle is not a missionary, though a missionary could be said to be an apostle. Did I make sense there? :-) In other words, a missionary could be said to be an apostle in the sense that he was sent with a mission. But, this term would not just apply to missionaries. Church planters, evangelists, and many others could be said 'to be sent' as well. Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |