The Apostle E-Book

Dr. Brian J. Bailey

• Herausgeber: Zion Christian Publishers
• Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2017

Beschreibung

The Lord Himself warned us of the many false apostles who would arise in the Last Days. As those days are now upon us, Dr. Bailey seeks to bring clarity to the church about the office of the Apostle through this beautifully written exposition. Some practical topics that are covered are:

• The essentialities of the apostleship
• The role of the apostle within the Body of Christ
• The Godly characteristics an apostle should possess
• And also to learn how to discern between the true and the false

Leseprobe

The Apostle

Version 1.1

“The Apostle”

© 2006 Brian J. Bailey

Front Cover Design:

© 2006 Zion Fellowship, Inc.

All rights reserved

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles or reviews.

All Scripture quotations in this book are taken from the

King James Version Bible unless otherwise stated.

Published by Zion Christian Publishers

Revised April 2010 (Version 1.1)

Published as an e-book on September 2017

in the United States of America

E-book ISBN 1-59665-691-3

Zion Christian Publishers

A Zion Fellowship ® Ministry

P.O. Box 70

Waverly, New York 14892

Phone: [phone]

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Editorial team: Carla Borges, Suzette Erb, Barb Fuller, Mary Humphreys, David Kropf, Justin Kropf, Caroline Tham, Ted and Diane Topper, and Suzanne Ying.

We wish to extend our thanks to these dear ones for without their many hours of invaluable assistance, this book would not have been possible. We are truly grateful for their diligence, creativity, and excellence in the compilation of this book for the glory of God.

Introduction

This book entitled The Apostle completes a three part series on the ministries of the apostle, the prophet, and the teacher. The other books in this series are The Ministry of the Prophet and Teachers of Righteousness.

In this volume, we hope to shed light on the work of the ministry of an apostle. We trust that this book, along with its companions, may first glorify our blessed Lord and then be a blessing to you and to all those to whom you minister.

The Importance of the Apostle, Prophet, and Teacher

Writing in his first Corinthian epistle concerning the Body of Christ, the Apostle Paul gives the order of rank of ministries in the Church:“And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues” (1 Cor. 12:28).

It is important to study these ministries for three reasons:

1. That we may understand them, so that if we are called to any of these ministries, we may know the attributes that we, ourselves, are expected to attain and develop.

2. That we may pray for others who have been given these positions, so that they may effectively fulfil their ministry.

3. That we may discern those who have been given these ministries, as distinct from those who make false claim to these positions, and who are, in reality, thereby deceiving the Church, as it reads in Revelation 2:2, “…thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars.”

The purpose of these ministry gifts of Christ is given to us by the Apostle Paul in Ephesians 4:11-13: “And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.”

Chapter One

Apostleship Defined

The apostle is essentially a New Testament title and was used in the first instance to denote the twelve disciples of Jesus. However, that would be too limiting for the purpose of our studies since the Apostle Paul and many others were called to this position and ministry. We believe that this honour is given to those in His Church throughout all generations. We will especially see a revival of its function and office in the Last Day Church. The rationale for this statement is simply that all the other ministries listed in 1 Corinthians 12:28 are indeed functioning in the Church today throughout the world. These are: “…first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues.”

With this view in mind, we will consider the origin of the title, the ministry of the New Testament saints who were so called, and the qualifications of those in later generations who attained unto this honour.

We do wish to emphasize at this juncture that an apostle, being a ministry gift of Christ, is a sovereign gift; and those so designated are given this gift by the will of God. It is not an office that can be desired, gained, or bought; but it is a divine appointment. Thus, we read that Paul consistently began his epistles with: “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God” (2 Cor. 1:1, Eph. 1:1, Col. 1:1, 2 Tim. 1:1, Tit. 1:1). He refers to himself as being “called to be an apostle” (Rom. 1:1, 1 Cor. 1:1). Then, in 1 Timothy 1:1, Paul reveals that he was “an apostle of Jesus Christ by the commandment of God.” He stresses in Galatians 1:1 that he was an apostle, “not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father.”

The word apostle literally means “one sent forth,” from the Greek word apostollos. It is formed from apo (one), and stello (to send). Thus, in a wider sense, it is used of one who is sent forth on a mission. However, that would not do justice to the office of an apostle, since it is the highest office in the Church. Therefore, at this point we must consider the apostle within the confines of Holy Scripture and not seek for further understanding of the office from its usage in the Greek during the New Testament period. This will keep us from deviating from its spiritual meaning.

The Lord Jesus Himself is called “the Apostle” as we read in Hebrews 3:1: “Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus.” Thus, these titles that are given unto members of the Church were also fulfilled in the ministry and Person of the Lord Jesus.

We read in John 17:3, “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” Bearing in mind that apostle means “sent one,” the Lord Jesus said to His disciples that as He had been sent of His Father, so likewise He had sent them. Repeatedly, Scripture clearly reveals that the Lord understood that He had been sent of His Father into the world. This was His apostolic call (see Jn. 3:17; 6:40; 7:16; 12:49; 13:20).

Embodiment of Other Five-Fold Ministries

As we consider the lives of prominent apostles in Scripture, there are certain main truths that present themselves concerning the apostolic office.

The apostolic office, being the first in the rank of all other ministries, will indeed mean that those occupying that office would also embody some of the other ministries in the Body of Christ. Many of the prominent apostles embodied within their sphere of ministry the other five-fold ministries referred to in Ephesians 4:11, namely the offices of the prophet, evangelist, pastor, and teacher.

The Lord Jesus Christ

This embodiment of the other five-fold ministries in Ephesians 4:11 would also be very true of our Lord Jesus. He was called “the prophet like unto Moses” (see Acts 3:22, 7:37). He sought out the lost of the house of Israel as well as also from among the Gentiles, thus fulfilling the ministry of an evangelist. He is called the Chief Shepherd by Peter, and is the pattern of a true pastor. We know He called Himself the Good Shepherd who gave His life for His sheep. He leads us beside still waters and restores our souls, as David says, because of Him we shall not want (Ps. 23). Moreover, He was called Rabbi (or teacher) by those of His generation. He taught as One who had authority.

The Apostle Paul

We see these ministries plainly manifested under an apostolic mantle in the life of Paul. That he was a prophet is clearly seen in Acts 13:1, where Paul (called Saul here) is among the prophets. Also, his writings are filled with prophetic utterances, especially concerning the Second Coming and the glorious Church for whom Christ will come. Paul writes on the Antichrist (who will come before the Lord appears in the clouds), and his manifesting of signs and wonders to deceive those who love unrighteousness (2 Th. 2).

That Paul is also a teacher is evident throughout all his epistles and by his own acknowledgement. He says in 1 Timothy 2:7, “Whereunto I am ordained a preacher, and an apostle, (I speak the truth in Christ, and lie not;) a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity.” He also declares in 2 Timothy 1:11 that he is appointed to be a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles. His ministry was to set in order the doctrines for the Church and amplify the teachings of Jesus so that Christians might know how to behave themselves in church (1 Tim. 3:15). He further explained the operation of the spiritual gifts (1 Cor. 12–14).

Paul was undoubtedly, too, a pattern for any evangelist, showing forth an intense fervour to save souls. He writes in 1 Corinthians 9:19-23, “For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all, that I might gain the more. And unto the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain the Jews; to them that are under the law, as under the law, that I might gain them that are under the law; To them that are without law, as without law, (being not without law to God, but under the law to Christ,) that I might gain them that are without law. To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some.  And this I do for the gospel’s sake, that I might be partaker thereof with you.”

Paul even said that he wished he were “accursed from Christ” (Rom. 9:1-3) for his brethren’s sake. His desire was to save some by any means (Rom. 11:14).

His pastoral care for the churches is revealed in 2 Corinthians 11:28 (among other verses), when he writes of the fact that, “Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches.” Thus, we see in the life of Paul that all of the five-fold ministries operated through his apostleship. The same may be said of John and Peter.

The Apostle John

That John was a prophet is seen in that he received from the Lord the marvellous understanding of the ages, for he speaks of eternity to eternity. He begins with the revelation of Jesus being the Word from the beginning. Then in the Book of Revelation, he not only gives a detailed study of the Last Days leading to the Coming of Christ, but he also speaks about the millennial reign and the new heavens and the new earth.

John’s gospel is a model of simplistic teachings, where we see that he develops the thoughts of the seven signs, the seven teachings, and the seven I AM’s of Christ.

His pastoral care is revealed in his epistles. In these, we see his tender concern that we show love for the children of God, and that we open our bowls of compassion for those who have need of this world’s goods. John wrote in 1 John 3:14 17, “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.  Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.  Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?”

Then his evangelical zeal is shown as he recounts the discourse of Christ with the Samaritan woman at the well (Jn. 4). It is also shown in his statement that the reason for his Gospel was that his readers might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing, we might have life through His name (1 Jn. 5:13). It is worthy of note that the Gospel of John is the most read of all the books of the Bible; and therefore, the most read book in the world. It is primarily used for evangelization, with the books being distributed to households throughout the world when evangelistic campaigns are due to take place.

The Apostle Peter

Peter, the premier apostle of the Lord, is a teacher of note, since he gives beautiful instruction whereby we might have an abundant entrance into the kingdom of God (in the first chapter of his second epistle). He expounded on the eight steps to Christian perfection in 2 Peter 1:1-13. He adds that he will not be negligent to put us always in remembrance of these things, even though we know them. This is the mark of a true teacher, who consistently repeats truth.

His prophetic mantle is shown forth as he consistently warns of apostasy in the Last Days, as well as the fact that the elements will be destroyed with a fervent heat (2 Pet. 3:10).

His evangelical zeal was displayed, among other times, on the Day of Pentecost when he appealed to his hearers to repent, to be baptised, and then to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38).