Apostles are appearing everywhere in modern American churches and around the globe, particularly in Africa and Latin America. What are apostles? What are they supposed to do? Do churches today misapply the title, or are they correct?

Let’s begin our study,

I. Introduction

A. Best source for an apostle

If we want to find out what an apostle is, what he or she actually did, and how one actually lived, then let’s look into Acts 13 and 14 and observe Paul and Barnabas, two genuine apostles.

But let’s first review Paul’s and Barnabas’s earlier lives.

B. Quick definitions

As noted in the previous post, apostle comes from Greek noun apostolos  (pronounced ah-pah-stah-loss), which means “envoy,” “messenger” “commissioned one” or “sent one,” depending on the context. The verb is apostellō (pronounced ah-pah-stehl-loh) and means “to send” or “to commission.” The first meaning appears most often.

With those preliminaries concluded, let’s begin.

II. Two Apostles in Acts

A. Paul’s and Barnabas’s apostleship in action

1. Saul-Paul’s source of his apostolic calling

He got his calling to be a missionary-apostle at his conversion, by Jesus himself (Acts 9:15-16; 22:21; 26:16-18).

Ananias relayed and confirmed his calling, when he ministered to Saul. Ananias was “a devout observer of the law and highly respected by all the Jews living there” in Damascus (Acts 22:12).

2.Barnabas was self-sacrificial and generous

Barnabas, whose birth name was Joseph, was generous with his resources and gave most of it away (Acts 4:36-37).

Let’s hope that today’s apostles are not greedy with the money that comes in, using their title to raise extra-amounts for themselves. Let’s hope they do not buy luxury items with the money.

3. Barnabas’s great reputation with the twelve

The twelve apostles themselves knew Joseph and gave him the surname “Son of Encouragement” (4:36).

To get this nickname, he had to be well known to the leaders of the highest standing in the Jerusalem church. They were the guardians of the stories about Jesus, the official tradents of his ministry. Their teaching became Scripture for them (Acts 2:43).

Serving in the local church for a while can lead to an apostleship, if the Lord calls. But the man (or woman) has to be known by leaders of the highest quality and knowledge of Scripture. Jesus himself trained the twelve (or eleven) in the Scriptures (Luke 24:45-47). He himself called them to be witnesses and empowered them with the Spirit and commissioned them (Luke 24:48-49; Acts 1:8; 2:1-4).

Joseph-Barnabas was so trusted by the leaders of the church in Jerusalem that they commissioned him to check things out when they had heard of Gentile conversions. For sent in v. 22, Luke used the verb exapostellō, which adds up to the same thing as apostellō.

²² News of this reached the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. ²³ When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. ²⁴ He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord. (Acts 11:22-24)

Note Luke’s inspired comments about him and how effective Joseph-Barnabas’s evangelist ministry was.

4. Barnaba’s background and education

Joseph-Barnabas was a Levite (4:36). To be a Levite, he had to know how the sacrificial system worked in the Old Testament. He had to know the word of God more broadly too, than just Leviticus.

Yes the twelve spent their time with Jesus and were therefore wise (Acts 4:13). However, Jesus is ascended into heaven now, and Saul-Paul nor Barnabas ever spent time with Jesus, so their education meant something.

5.Saul-Paul’s education and background

Paul was trained in the law, as a Pharisee (Phil. 4:5), serving under and being trained by Gamaliel (Acts 22:3). His training was the best.

Now let’s look into Acts 13 and 14.

6. Devotion to God in a team

The two men worshipped and fasted in a team (13:1-2). Here’s the team: “Now in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul” (13:1, NIV). Saul-Paul and Joseph-Barnabas were not independent operators. They humbled themselves before God and each other by fasting and worshipping together.

7. Called by the Spirit

They were called by the Holy Spirit, and a team of responsible men affirmed their calling and laid hands on them to commission them (13:3-4). The men at Antioch, Syria, named in Acts 13:1, were responsible and mature. They seem to be the next best thing to the apostles and elders in Jerusalem.

8. Here is their calling

As it will turn out, Saul and Barnabas will learn that the Holy Spirit commissioned them to go to unevangelized territories; the people never heard the gospel (13:4-5). First, they went to Seleucia (seaside town in Syria) and then to the town of Salamis on the Island of Cyprus. This island was Barnabas’s old home (Acts 4:36). It is not clear whether Barnabas went back to Cyprus before Acts 13 to preach the gospel, but he seems to have remained in Jerusalem until he went north to Antioch, where he and Paul were sent out on their mission.

9. Proclamation in an unevangelized synagogue

They proclaimed the word of God in a synagogue, whose people had never heard it before (13:5). If someone is not called to preach to the Jews in a synagogue, then that’s okay, but we can learn that the apostles were bold in proclaiming the gospel to people who had never heard it before, face to face.

10. Authority over demons

They then met a proconsul and a Jewish magician or false prophet (13:6-11). They went to Paphos, a town still on the other side of the Island of Cyprus. Once again. the apostles went to an unevangelized area.

The magician / false prophet’s name was Bar-Jesus (or son of Joshua). His other name was Elymas. He overawed the proconsul there, named Sergius Paulus. (A proconsul was a man of high rank in the Roman empire.) When Paul preached the gospel to him, the false prophet slandered the apostles and attempted to get the proconsul not to accept the faith. Paul called down judgment on him, and the magician went blind. The proconsul accepted the faith.

Today, the critics of modern apostles are not hindering people’s salvation like the false prophet was. The critics are challenging the modern apostle’s basis for his (or her) title, and they may be right.

Today’s apostles must therefore be careful about calling down judgment on critics.

11. Saul-Paul’s master-class sermon

They preached in the synagogue to people who had never heard the gospel (13:15-16). Paul delivered a long, master-class sermon on the Old Testament and applied it to Jesus the Messiah (13:16-41).

They were now in southern Asia Minor (Perga, Pamphylia) (13:13) and then in Antioch, Pisidia (13:14).

Two points: (1) the people never heard the gospel before; (2) Paul knew the Scriptures and doctrine.

12. Great results

The people begged them to hear more (13:42). Many Jews and God-fearing Gentiles believed (13:43). Not every evangelistic campaign will meet with success, but I have to wonder if their success was based on Spirit-empowered preaching.

This is a brand-new revival of the lost. First-time converts. The pair did not enter a large, established church and watch the churched people get saved (again!) or unbelievers get saved for the first time. Apostles break brand-new ground. In contrast, evangelists can enter established churches and ask newcomers to attend, so they can hear the gospel, maybe for the first time, or maybe not.

13. Persecution

Paul and Barnabas suffered persecution and opposition, due to Jewish jealousy about the crowds (13:45). But the two apostles stood their ground. Courage in the face of real persecution. Critics on youtube don’t count as persecution.

Here’s a passage that describes apostolic “status”; they had none.

⁹ For it seems to me that God has put us apostles on display at the end of the procession, like those condemned to die in the arena. We have been made a spectacle to the whole universe, to angels as well as to human beings. ¹⁰ We are fools for Christ, but you are so wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are honored, we are dishonored! ¹¹ To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags, we are brutally treated, we are homeless. ¹² We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; ¹³ when we are slandered, we answer kindly. We have become the scum of the earth, the garbage of the world—right up to this moment. (1 Cor. 4:8-14)

14. Sound doctrine and Spirit-empowered preaching

Paul taught the people the differences between the law of Moses and faith in Christ (13:46-47). The whole region heard the gospel for the first time, in an unevangelized territory (13:48). Once again, Paul knew the Old Testament and theology centered around the Messiah. For him this was the mystery of the ages (Eph. 2-3.)

The new disciples were joyful for the word and their salvation (13:52).

15. More persecution

They were persecuted again, this time by devout women and leading men (13:49-50). but the apostle-missionaries shook the dust off and not let the persecution bother them (13:51). They moved on to the next unevangelized area. They kept going.

16. More bold preaching

They spoke boldly in the synagogue and outside it. A great many Jews and Greeks believed (14:1-2). The apostles remained a long time to strengthen the new disciples (14:3).

They went on to the town of Iconium in Lycaonia. Unevangelized territory, again. And they did the daily grind of discipleship. No aloofness and remaining on the platform to avoid the daily grind, either.

I have the impression that Paul and Barnabas moved around a lot. They stayed here for a long time, but they eventually moved on. It looks like they depended on hospitality, which was so important in the ancient world (Acts 28:7; Rom. 12:13; 16:23; 1 Tim. 5:10; Heb. 13:2; 1 Peter 4:9; 3 John 8).

Jesus commissioned the twelve and told them how to live:

¹¹ Whatever town or village you enter, search there for some worthy person and stay at their house until you leave. ¹² As you enter the home, give it your greeting. ¹³ If the home is deserving, let your peace rest on it; if it is not, let your peace return to you. ¹⁴ If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, leave that home or town and shake the dust off your feet. (Matt. 10:11-14, NIV).

In those verses Jesus matter-of-factly assumes that his apostles were missionaries who traveled around, itinerantly. Jesus himself set the example and had an itinerant ministry. The twelve apostles or “sent ones” were in training to do what Paul and Barnabas are doing right now. It makes sense that the Holy Spirit would call them to follow Jesus in this way.

17. Genuine signs and wonders

The Lord worked many signs and wonders through their hands (14:3). The Lord himself worked through them. No word on outlandish platform displays by them. They don’t appear to have exalted themselves in front of people by histrionics. They did not use soul power to impress people with shriekin’ and freakin’ and dancin’ and prancin’.

18. More persecution, so they moved on

The city was divided, and persecution erupted, so they fled when they heard they were about to be stoned (14:4-5). They preached the gospel in two towns and surrounding regions (14:7).

They went to Lystra and Derbe, two towns in Lycaonia (14:6).

Persecution again in an unevangelized territory. The two men are first called apostles in 14:4. This title comes in the context of their first missionary journey. Thus apostles are missionaries who break new ground in unevangelized regions. They do not build on another man’s work. And missionaries keep moving, after their church plants are established.

19. Miraculous healing

A man lame from birth was healed in Lystra. He sprang to his feet, healed (14:8-10).

This sign and wonder astonished the crowd that had never heard the gospel before Paul and Barnabas got there. Genuine miracles, with visible results like the lame walking and blind eyes seeing, open the door to evangelism. This was not a fake miracle which no one verifies.

20. Saul-Paul and Barnabas corrected the local leaders

The people of the town, including the pagan priests, exalted them as the gods Zeus (Barnabas) and Hermes (Paul). The two true apostles said no to the excessive attention. Paul delivered a short sermon about God’s creation and his provisions to pagans in times past, but now Jesus is the way (14:11-18).

The two genuine apostles rejected the hype. What about todays apostle-claimants in America, Africa, or Latin America (and elsewhere)? These two genuine apostles knew their theology and told the people how God cared for them even when they were not saved by the gospel, which they had never heard before.

21. Stoned almost to death

Jews and others stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, as if dead (14:19). The disciples gathered around him. He got up and reentered the town (14:20). Luke implies that he may have been dead. If not, he was badly wounded. His recovery was miraculous.

These Jews came from Pisidian Antioch and Iconium and stirred up the people of Lystra. Trouble followed Paul and Barnabas around.

Paul wrote of his apostleship: “We have become the scum of the earth, the garbage of the world—right up to this moment” (1 Cor. 4:13). He also testified that he was pelted with stones (2 Cor. 11:25).

22. More success and encouragement of the new churches

Paul and Barnabas won a large number of brand-new disciples (14:20-21). The genuine apostles encouraged them to remain strong in the faith (14:21-23).

This was on their return to Derbe and Lystra, Iconium, and Pisidian Antioch. Revisiting the places where they had preached before is also a sign of apostleship. It makes sense to ensure that their first mission was successful.

Once again I get the impression that apostles are always on the move. They look for new ground to break, or they water the ground and seeds they had already planted.

Paul forewarned the people with these words:  “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God” (14:22, NIV). Entering the kingdom in this context means the kingdom age, when the Lord returns or when we die (and the Lord returns with us).

23. Appointing elders

The apostles prayed and fasted and appointed elders in each church (14:23).

First and 2 Timothy and Titus are long job descriptions about church governance. In no verse does Paul appoint apostles and prophets to lead the church. Elders. Always and only elders. And he gives special honor to the elders who work hard at the word and doctrine (or preaching and teaching) (1 Tim. 5:17). And so it is here in the towns in their first missionary journey. Barnabas and Paul appointed elders, not other apostles, nor prophets.

Paul had appointed elders in the thriving and large church in Ephesus (Acts 20:13-38). Overseers and deacons governed (that is, served) the church at Philippi (Phil. 1:1). Paul commissioned Titus to complete what was left unfinished and appoint elders in every town on Crete (Titus 1:5-9). And he commissioned Timothy to do the same in Ephesus, including male and female deacons (1 Timothy 3:1-13).

24. Return to Antioch in Syria and great report

They went back to Antioch in Syria and told their story to the whole church which they had gathered together. They completed their mission and were glad the door was opened to the Gentiles (14:26-28).

The two true apostle-missionaries were well-known enough to summon the church in an active Christian center, in Antioch. They reported that they had broken new ground in unevangelized areas. There is no record that they were called by the title apostle by the people there before they were sent out as apostle-missionaries (13:1-4). It seems Paul and Barnabas did not insist on the title before their first missionary journey.

Bottom line to their report: Mission accomplished, by God’s grace.

B. Summary

All those above twenty-four data points were hiding in plain sight, in Acts 13-14. I translated Acts and wrote an online commentary at this website, so I’m a little embarrassed that I never saw the connection between those two chapters and what an apostle really is. I’m glad i saw them now at least. Better late than never.

C. Objection about elders

Recall that in the twenty-third point Paul and Barnabas appointed elders.

Objection: But Paul did not establish elders in the Corinthian churches.

Reply: as far as we know he did not appoint elders. Or, for all we know, maybe the Corinthian Christians did not have very many mature, homegrown believers. But who were the leaders there at various times? Paul, Prisca and Aquila, Peter-Cephas, Apollos, Timothy, Titus, Silas, Crispus, Stephanus and his household, Erastus, Quartus, Lucius, Jason, Sosipater, and other unnamed brothers. Even a woman named Phoebe was a deacon in nearby Cenchreae. I have the impression that these names are just the tip of the iceberg.

And Clement (c. 35-99 A.D.), in his epistle to the Corinthians, told the Corinthians not to allow one or two persons to rebel against the presbyters or elders (47.6). Evidently either Paul appointed elders even though he did not write about it (It may be in one of the lost epistles), or he did this later and did not bother to mention it in one of the epistles, for appointing elders was simply done. It was standard practice. Or the list of men (and Prisca) named above were the elders. Clement does mention Paul, Cephas, and Apollos, who seem to function as an early team of elders (47.1-2). Or maybe later on the Corinthians saw the wisdom in appointing elders, modeled on the practice Paul did and wrote about in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1.

Therefore, it looks like Paul during his lifetime had a de facto team of elders or leaders. And he personally oversaw the assembly for a long time.

III. Definition of Apostleship

A. Brief intro.

We use the empirical method; that is, let’s put together the above data and then work out a definition of being an apostle.

B. Apostle-missionary

Apostles back in the NT era and today are missionaries to brand-new, totally unevangelized territories.

True apostleship can be boiled down to a simple equation:

Apostle = pioneering missionary who plants churches in unevangelized territories

The apostle-missionary plants the churches in person. He does not send people out to plant a church in his place and then call himself an apostle. He can indeed send people out to plant a church, but then he is still not apostle, nor are the sent ones. They are like Timothy and Titus, messengers and leaders of the churches, but not apostle-missionaries who break new ground. Or they may be pastors-elders-overseers who oversee and shepherd churches that are already planted.

So, this (negative) equation:

Apostle ≠ a church planter in evangelized territories

Planting churches in New York or  Los Angeles or Dallas / Fort Worth or Atlanta or any number of other large cities or towns or smaller towns does not make the church planter an apostle. He is probably an evangelist, but I cannot affirm his calling. I can only tell him what he is not. He is not an apostle.

In 14:4 Luke uses the term apostle for the first time in Paul’s and Barnabas’ ministry, in the context of their first missionary journey in unreached areas. The two men of God traveled around often, without a home. Are today’s apostles willing to give up that much?

Therefore, after this study I now don’t believe that church planters in America can call themselves apostles. It is true that many Americans are unsaved, particularly in urban areas, but Christianity has been the foundation of this nation for centuries. But they can call themselves evangelists.

Think of the pilgrims and the revivals in colonial times and in the nineteenth century and D. L. Moody (and others). Think of Billy Sunday and Billy Graham and the Harvest Crusade and all sorts of TV and radio programs. Think of the churches on every other corner in any given city. Think of parachurch ministries like outreaches to homeless encampments. The gospel has blanketed this nation, whether people accept the gospel or not.

America is not a totally unevangelized area.

It is true that Simon-Peter-Cephas traveled through Corinth, where the church was already established; he preached there (1 Cor. 1:12). And he should have preached too.

(It must have been amazing for the Corinthians to hear Peter tell his stories about Jesus. Did you really see Jesus walk on water? Multiply the loaves and fishes? Calm the storm? Preach the gospel? Rise from the dead? Yes, yes, yes, yes, and yes. I’m amazed just thinking about it!)

But while at Corinth, Peter did not try to take over Paul’s work as the super-apostles tried to do (2 Cor. 11:5, 12:11), even though he, of all apostles, could have attempted this, with his bona fides. As an apostle-missionary he moved on, eventually to Rome.

Yes, Peter led the church in Rome, which he did not plant, but he had Jesus himself calling and training him for three (or more) years. For him, a humble fisherman from Galilee, Rome was a new territory. It was the most populous and biggest city in the world (or one of the biggest) and was not blanketed with the gospel as America has been for centuries and now is, especially with modern media. He earned the right to be an apostle because he was sent out to new territories before Pentecost (see no. 16), and he preached in Jerusalem after Pentecost. The Jerusalemites and Judeans needed to be saved and filled with the Spirit, and the Spirit was sent by the exalted Jesus himself. Peter paid the final price and died a martyr’s death. This is the ultimate example of being a servant of all. Somehow I don’t imagine that today’s apostles would be willing to do that.

For more information about other forms of apostleship, like a messenger of the churches, see this post:

Do New Testament Apostles Exist Today?

But as noted the basic meaning of an apostle is a pioneering missionary who plants churches in unevangelized, brand-new regions. A “messenger of the churches” is simply an envoy who delivers a message or a letter or does another task, like appoint elders. They do not plant brand-new churches. But if they do so, in unevangelized territory, then test them to see if they have earned the title apostle.

C. Commissioning

Paul and Barnabas got the fullest commission and endorsement from the highest and second-highest sources. Jesus (highest source) commissioned Paul, and the twelve  (second highest) approved of Barnabas. The Spirit sent both of them out, so their commissioning was equal.

Today’s apostles are commissioned by … who, exactly? A strange dot.org or a pastor who engages in strange platform displays and dresses in show-off. white or bright clothes and asks people to kneel before him as they give him money? (I have seen this on youtube.)

D. Apostles are to be tested

In the Revelation, Jesus praised the Ephesian church for testing apostles and proving them to be false (Rev. 2:2). I believe that American Christians who claim the title apostle are at risk of being declared false by Jesus himself after the church tests them rigorously. The church can start with the twenty-four points, above.

These self-appointed or oddly appointed apostles must repent and drop their title, immediately.

E. Willing to suffer persecution

Apostle-missionaries must be willing to suffer persecution. Real persecution. Youtube critics don’t count. Even Peter was crucified in Rome, and Paul was beheaded there (so says church history).

Paul said apostles were considered “scum” and “garbage” because that’s how some people saw them (1 Cor 4:13). The ministry of apostleship was not glamorous.

Further, here is Paul’s long testimony about his suffering persecution and hardships:

I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. ²⁴ Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. ²⁵ Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, ²⁶ I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. ²⁷ I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. ²⁸ Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. ²⁹ Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn? (2 Cor. 11:23-29)

It appears to me that self-appointed or oddly appointed apostles today want the glory without the genuine suffering. They are not true apostles.

F. Servants of all

Jesus said to the twelve apostles:

³⁴ But they kept quiet because on the way they had argued about who was the greatest. ³⁵ Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, “Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.” (Mark 9:34-35, NIV, emphasis added).

It seems that today’s apostles want the authority and glory without traveling as missionaries to unevangelized regions. Are they willing to give up their comfort and wealth? In America that has been covered with Christianity for centuries, they want to build on other men’s work, which Paul warned against (1 Cor. 3:10-17). They are not servants all, but they appear to lord it over all.

G. Scripture and doctrine

Apostle-missionaries must know Scripture and doctrine thoroughly.

To offer only a few examples, as we saw above in some of the twenty-four points, can they sort out how God reached pagans before the gospel came to them? Can they relate the Old Testament to the Messiah? Paul explained salvation by faith in Christ, as distinct from law keeping. Do they know these doctrines as well as Barnabas and Paul did (or at least are they trained in Scripture)?

Warning, however. Do modern apostles attempt to make new doctrine and novel interpretations of Scripture? Bad idea. They don’t have that much authority. As a first-generation apostle, Paul did have it, and perhaps Barnabas did too, though we do not have a record of his doctrine (unless he wrote Hebrews). But it’s a sure thing that as he associated with Paul in their missionary journey, their doctrine was in alignment.

As for the twelve who did not have formal education like Paul and Barnabas did, the twelve had a basic education in the Torah, growing up. During their calling and training to apostleship, they spent time in “Jesus University.”

Even the Sanhedrin noted this.

When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were  astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. (Acts 4:13, emphasis added).

Caution. Your spending time in prayer with Jesus ≠ being trained and taught by him as the twelve were, in person. He was on earth training and teaching them. At the end of his earthly ministry, after his resurrection, “Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures” (Luke 24:45).

Today, Jesus has raised up teachers to train us. The teacher is one of his gifts of the Spirit to his church (1 Cor. 12:28; Rom. 12:7). No wonder Paul highlighted the elder who works hard at word and doctrine or preaching and teaching (1 Tim. 5:17) and the teaching pastor (Eph. 4:11).

And so, apostle-missionaries have to study and know doctrine and Scripture. They cannot just wing it with the same old rehashed sermons and evangelize already saved Christians over and over again.

IV. Application

A. Brief intro.

We can keep this short.

B. No

If a modern apostle seeks to take over your church, tell him no.

C. Genuine apostle

He spends time in the mission field and plants churches. He lives and itinerant and unsettled life. If he returns home and claims the title apostle, he may be eligible to have it. Just ask him about signs and wonders and commissioning. Does he have sound character? In my experience missionaries do not want the claim the title, apostle.