Quote:
Originally Posted by Timmy
How is the case for 1st Century Apostles any different from those of the 21st Century?
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Apostle comes from the word "sent" so in a way whenever God sends someone somewhere, that person is an apostle. I'm using that pretty loosely.
The New Testament speaks about the 12 apostles of the Lamb in
Revelation 21:14. Yet there are over 20 people (including one woman) called apostles in the NT.
Ephesians 2:20 speaks about the church being built upon the apostles and prophets. Some consider this a reference to the NT writers (apostles) and the OT writers(prophets). Some distinguish between apostles of the Lamb (chosen personally by Jesus when here as a man) and ascension apostles (chosen by Jesus after He ascended to Heaven). This MAY explain why we look at the writings of the foundational apostles of the first century in a different way than we look at the writings of current apostles. It MAY explain why we look at the writings of the Old Testament prophets in a different way than we look at the writings of current prophets.
Now, one problem this theory presents is, Where does Paul fit in? He was definitely not chosen by Jesus when Jesus was here in the flesh, but he did receive a personal post resurrection visit from Jesus. And, Paul considered himself an Apostle.