#1~ APOSTLES: INTRODUCTION 12-7-13
Today we'll begin a study about the APOSTLES, what were the requirements to be an Apostle?
There are some people today that call them selves apostles, but as we're about to see, no one today meets these requirements.
I have saw people on certain TV programs that call them selves apostles, the other people on the same program address these certain people as apostles, but just because people call them apostles don't mean it's true.
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The 12 Apostles were chosen by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself for a specific reason and purpose.
These 12 men were chosen by the Lord from a great number of disciples after much prayer. -- A disciple is a follower, a learner, you and I today that are believers in Jesus are His disciple's, as disciple's, we'll grow in grace and knowledge as we feed upon His Word, and become more able and equipped to tell others about Him.
~But none today are personally chosen by Christ Himself as the 12 were.
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Let me say before we go any further, there are at least 8 people that are referred to as "apostles" in Acts, but these are sent by various Churches, "they are missionaries," their not called and sent by JESUS CHRIST, their sent by certain churches.
~ The church that I attend supports 11 missionaries, but never have we referred too those as "apostles" although "apostle" mean, "sent one".
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~ The title, "apostle," means, "one sent forth." As it pertains to the twelve, Jesus Himself called them AS apostles, and sent them forth.
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LISTEN; an "apostle" in the Biblical sense is someone sent with delegated authority.
~A representative or ambassador for someone else. LISTEN, Paul was an Apostle of Christ, but he was also an apostle of the church at Antioch.
~In other words, a person of the office of "teaching elder" is the role of "apostle". Not in the same sense as the Holy Apostles ("the twelve"), but in the sense of ambassadors of the church, sent to establish churches, and accountable to the local church they are sent from.
So Paul was a double Apostle (of Christ and the church), Barnabas was a single (of the church only).
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* Other that are called Apostles - church sent, not sent forth from Christ.
Andronicus - Apollos - Barnabas - Epaphroditus - James, the Lord's Brother -
Matthias - The Apostle Chosen by Lot - Silas - Timothy -
We must think of these "often called apostles" like the missionaries of today but who did not have the position, the authority, and the abilities of the Twelve and of Paul.
~Apostleship was a gift given to establish "the church", not a church.
Over and over again in the gospels, the twelve are mentioned -- are named and separated from the others. There can be no question that they had a calling which no others had. - Apostles of Christ is to be a 12 man office, never to be repeated.
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let's be sure and notice that Jesus didn't take applications for the office of His chosen apostles, and they were not consulted beforehand, or interviewed, He didn't go around the neighborhood gathering information as too what kind of individuals these 12 were. -- The choice was of His sovereign will and purpose.
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* The Choice was made after a night of Prayer.
>Luke 6:12-13 And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God. 13And when it was day, he called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles; --
Jesus probably had many disciples, many followers, we're not told how many disciples there were altogether to choose from, but from among these disciples He chose 12. --- And then for about 18 months Jesus watched and taught His chosen 12.
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* The Choice of the 12 was of His Sovereign will and plan, we read in
>Mark 3:13-15 And he goeth up into a mountain, and calleth unto him whom he would: and they came unto him.
14And he ordained twelve, that they should be with him, and that he might send them forth to preach, 15And to have power to heal sicknesses, and to cast out devils: -- notice, these 12 would be ordained and SENT by the Lord.
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Matt.10: 1-8 And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.
2Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; 3Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; 4Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.
5These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: 6But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 7And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.
„« LISTEN AS I READ VERSE 8--
8Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.
~Are the so called apostles of today raising the dead? -- they pretend to heal the sick, if that be the case, then we have no need for doctors today, these today that say their apostles are false apostle, there's not any apostles today, there's no need of apostles now.
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Jesus foresaw the whole path stretched before Him, so He instinctively knew the kind of men He needed as trustworthy witnesses of His life, death, resurrection, and ascension. -- The choice was of His sovereign will and plan, there are no self-made Christians in His service; they are all Christ-made.
~ The appointment of these 12 was carefully fore-ordained, and deliberate, and would have far-reaching results.
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* Why did Jesus choose exactly twelve, why not 4 or 5 or maybe 8?
Twelve is the number suggesting governmental perfection, so it was no accident that He selected such a number.
These 12 would sit on thrones and judge the 12 tribes during the Kingdom age.
>Luke 22:30 That ye may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
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After the apostles had been chosen, there was a time that they were still disciples, or "learners," they had to learn before they could teach.
As people would watch Jesus and the 12 it might seem to the on-lookers that there was nothing for them to do, now they have no occupation, they have given up the jobs that they used to do, their fishing, their tax-collecting, their farming. --- They carry on no business; they just walk around and behind their leader, talking to each other, or to Him; and when He speaks to the people who begin to gather they listen just like the others.
The only thing they do is to go with Him from place to place. This was at the beginning of the movement.--Jesus was grounding the 12 for future service.
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I want us to notice that the 12 were all just common people; there was none of the 12 well educated, perhaps Judas was better with numbers -- They were all Galileans except Judas, it is said that he was from Judea, all were Jews.
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>1 Cor. 1: 26For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called:
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Also the list of the twelve does not contain the name of a single nobleman, or a rabbi, or a man of great wealth, these 12 had weaknesses and problems just like all the rest of us do today, Jesus chose 12 typical men.
~ Judas was chosen for the specific purpose that he fulfilled, the scriptures must needs be fulfilled.
>John 6:70-71 Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil?
71 He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve.
* Jesus knew before all the things that were to come His way.
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The 12 Christ chose were 12 men made up of differences and varieties of temper and disposition, they were not 12 clones.
Not one of the 12 reminds us of another, each stands out with his distinctive character, some of the 12 were leaders, and others were content to be led.
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* For difference in temperament we have it in Peter and John.
~Peter was a man of action, he was impulsive, and at times he would speak out before thinking things through, Peter had a temper that was often revealed.
~John was a man of prayer; most of the time he was quiet, John had a loving heart, John was the one that leaned on the Lords breast, He was close too the Lord. -- It was John that was chosen to write the Revelation.
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* For difference in spiritual gifts we have an example in Bartholomew and Thomas.
~Bartholomew, also referred too as Nathaniel, was a believing soul and ever ready to confess.
~Thomas was slow to accept the witness of others, and really if we'll think about it, that's how we should be, if it's not written in the book we're not going to believe it, there are umpteen religions and they all say their right, but we'll go by the Bible. - We'll be like the Bereans, and search the scriptures daily to see if it's true or not.
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* For difference in political opinion,
We have it in the most extreme and violent form in the contrast between Matthew and Simon the Canaanite, or Zealot.
~Matthew was a publican or tax gatherer, a servant of the Roman government.
~Simon was a Zealot, a rebel against Rome, whose sword was drawn against it and who hated its taxes.
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Throughout the ages Christ has drawn to Him men of different backgrounds, men of all colors, men from all over the world, He is no respecter of persons, all that will come too Him, He will in no wise cast out.
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For the people that say that apostles are still around today, I just wonder why they would still be here.
What is their purpose? -- There will be no more revelations from God; we have the complete word of God in the 66 books of the bible, what could be the reason God needs apostles today?
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LISTEN; the 12 Apostles had a specific roll and purpose, they were the foundation of the Lords Church, the foundation has been laid, its not going to be laid again.
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>Eph. 2:19-22 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, ---Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.
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* Here we see the church compared to a building.
Jesus himself is the chief cornerstone. The apostles and prophets make up the rest of the foundation. So here we see the foundational role of the apostles.
LISTEN; when building a building, the first thing that is laid is the foundation. Everything else is then built upon that one foundation.
LISTEN; do we then go back after building a couple of stories and lay the foundation again? No. It is only done once.
The foundation is laid one time in the beginning and then never again.
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The same is true of the 12 apostles. They served as a foundation for the up coming church.
We're not to look for another group of apostles later on any more than we would look for someone that's building a building to lay another foundation on the fourth floor.
LISTEN; Jesus Christ, being the chief cornerstone, is a part of this foundation as well, and we certainly don't expect there to be another Jesus Christ.
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The 12 Apostles were to bear witness to the fact that Jesus had risen from the dead, and in order to do this, they had to have seen him after he was resurrected.
>Luke 24:46-48 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: 47And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
48And ye are witnesses of these things.
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* When looking for someone to replace Judas, the one chosen had to be a witness unto the resurrection.
LISTEN;
>Acts 1:15-26 And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about an hundred and twenty,) 16Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus.
17For he was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry.
18Now this man [Judas] purchased a field with the reward of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out.
19And it was known unto all the dwellers at Jerusalem; insomuch as that field is called in their proper tongue, Aceldama, that is to say, "The field of blood."
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20For it is written in the book of Psalms, "Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell therein: and his bishoprick [office] let another take.
* LISTEN TO THE QUALIFACATIONS OF BEING NUMBERED WITH THE 12.
21Wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 22Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection.
* Notice; it had to be from the baptism of John unto the same day that Jesus ascended in the presents of the 11, at that time.
23And they appointed two, Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias.
24And they prayed, and said, "Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen, 25That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place."
--- Judas did not fall from grace, he was never saved, he fell from the office of apostleship. --
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26And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.
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LISTEN; Prior to Pentecost the casting of lots was a divinely approved method of discerning God's will.
>Proverbs 16: 33 The lot is cast into the lap; but the whole disposing thereof is of the LORD.
Nowhere else in Acts is there any record of a New Testament church using lots. The Holy Spirit now provides that direction.
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Keep listening as we continue talking about the APOSTLES.
