We live in times where many want to be called an apostle. But what does the Bible say about apostles. Are you one of them? You may, if this lifestyle is the motivation of your heart.
I Cor1:1 Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother,
An apostle is a divinely summoned and divinely appointed ambassador belonging to Christ Jesus. The formation of the apostolic office comes as the apostle learns to do everything through the will of God. An apostle is the product and a vessel of God’s will, ways and timetable. The apostolic office is not a ministry, which one chooses for himself or is conferred upon by men. It is divinely willed by the Lord.
He is divinely picked and divinely sent out and his life is result of the will of the Lord.
John 5:30 I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.
John 8:28 Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things.
John 8:42 Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me.
Through the agency of God’s will. The apostle called to be an apostle has no other choice than to fulfill everything through the will of God, in that His will is the agent or vehicle for the apostolic ministry to be executed successfully.
The apostle does not matter but the one giving him the commission, the Lord.
The apostle sacrifices all programs and agendas to become a vessel of God’ ways, will, and His timetable.
Thus the apostle becomes an ambassador or a representative of the Lord.
Gal 1:1 Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;)
In absolutely no way is his calling from men, or his ordination or authorizing from men. Neither is it through their help, support, influence, or the open doors that they can provide.
Paul, an apostle not from men as a source. Not raised up by men but by Jesus Christ
Thusly the apostle is never intended to please man outside of God’s will, but to please God who chose and raised him up. Not pleasing man, but a bond slave of God.
Eph 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints, which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus:
An apostle by the agency, influence, and the open doors willed by God.
Col 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timotheus our brother,
The apostle can proclaim the will of God, because he or she lives strictly out of the will of God.
1Tim 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the commandment of God our Saviour, and Lord Jesus Christ, which is our hope;
He or she can proclaim God’s commandments, because the apostle lives strictly out of the commandments of God.
2Tim:1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus,
With the apostolic proclamation of the resurrection life in Christ Jesus there it the promise and ability for us to live in this quality of life now. Hence the apostle in proclaiming Christ’s power and life must be an ambassador of the life of Jesus. In other word he or she must live in the resurrection life of God, which comes forth from the death of Christ’s cross, which has touched everything in their lives.
The apostle can only proclaim the life of the resurrected Christ to us to the degree that he lives in it. No cheap grace message here.
Titus 1:1Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness;
(Greek: and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect, and the full knowledge of the truth.)
The apostle lives in accordance with God’s level of faith for His saints. God’s level of faith is His rhema word, or the voice of the Spirit. Therefore the apostle lives out of God’s rhema word.
The apostle stimulates and promotes the faith of God’s chosen ones. The stimulation of this faith is to make others thirsty for the Son of God and not just simply for the blessings, prosperity, social justice issues and other things that come from God.
True promotion of faith by the apostle is to reveal the Son of God, and give the saints the knowledge of what is their participation, ministries, and callings into the riches found in the Son of God whom the apostle has just revealed to them. This called the fellowship of the mystery.
Secondly, the apostle reveals to the church an exact witness of the Word of God found both in the logos and rhema word. This allows the saints of God to take part in the truth of the Word, which will produce godliness in their lives.
The apostles thus must live themselves in that accurate recognition and participation of the truth so that they may be able to testify to it and bring others into its participation or fellowship.
In accordance with the faith of God’s chosen out ones as a precise and full knowledge of the truth, which is in accordance with godliness towards God. He leads the saints into the correct discernment, recognition and participation of the truth, which belongs to and harmonizes with what tends to godliness. He must live in that accurate recognition and participation of these very truths.
Romans1:5 By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name:
The apostolic ministry promotes obedience to the gospel, and through it makes disciples among all the nations. The gospel must be testified to in such an accurate way by the apostle that it will have the power to promote obedience to others.
He or she promotes obedience to the faith and make disciples among all the nations. It is a traveling ministry.
The apostle can only promote obedience to the gospel to the extent that they are themselves living in accordance to it. I limit the administration of the kingdom to my hearing of the rhema word, or voice of the Spirit.
The apostle does not have the power to do anything from myself as a source.
The apostle does not matter who sent him and His mission. The emphasis on the commissioning is the author of the mission, Christ Jesus.
None can be sent but the one who is under orders.
The man commissioned is always the representative of the one giving the commissioning. The apostle represents in his own person the Lord and His rights.
He must be as good as the one who sent him.
God’s commission cannot be fulfilled unless there is an absolute subordination and death of the sent one’s will.
God’s authority is given to the one who lives under God’s authority.
God’s power is given to the one who lives out of God’s power as the source of life.
The sent one by the Lord should be as the Lord Himself.
A man that is sent with full authority must stand fully under the authority of the Lord and as a slave of the Lord derives all that He is and has from the Lord,
He forfeits his own initiative and unites his won will to the one who sent him.
An apostle is always a mathetes (disciple).
The commissioning to represent Jesus and His cause means humiliation and not exaltation.
There is no special position or personal privilege.
The apostle has no personal influence on how his ministry will turn out. He is brought under the will of God who destroys his autonomy and leaves the apostle with no other choice but to a full and obedient dedication to the will of God and a military walk to the voice of the Spirit.
Gal 5:25 If we live in ( Instrumental (By)) in the Spirit, let us also walk (Greek word which is defined as “marching in the footsteps of a soldier”) in (Instrumental (By)) the Spirit.
Greek paraphrase) (It is a given that we should be living our lives not in the present day world system, but in the domain, influence, and sovereignty of the world of the Holy Spirit.
Because we are being continually affected and influenced by the Spirit, in that influence and effect we must march in step as soldiers so that the Spirit’s influence can go on, deepen, intensify, and continue interrupted.
Jose and Mary Alvarez 