PT-2 "Apostles and Prophets" (Eph. 4:11)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 3/20/2019 9:48 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                Focus:  PT-2 “Apostles and Prophets”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Ephesians 4:11

 

            Message of the verses:  “11 And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers,

 

            We are learning more about the apostles and also the prophets in this section as seen in the very first part of Ephesians 4:11.  We ended up writing yesterday talking about two classes of apostles, those who were with the Lord Jesus Christ, including Matthias who replaced Judas and then the addition of Paul, as these are in the first section of apostles, and then we learned that people like Titus and Timothy were also called apostles using a different Greek word.

 

            Now we want to go on and state that the apostles in both groups were authenticated “by signs and wonders and miracles.”  Let us look at 2 Corinthian 12:12 “The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with all perseverance, by signs and wonders and miracles.”  “Neither group of apostles was self-perpetuating” (MacArthur).  Definition of Self-perpetuating:  “having a system that prevents change and produces new things that are very similar to the old ones.”  MacArthur goes on to write “In neither sense is the term apostle used in the book of Acts after 16:4.  Nor is there any New Testament record of an apostle in either group being replaced when he died.”     

 

            Now we want to move onto prophets and similar to the apostles they were also appointed by God as specially gifted men, and differ from those believers who have the gift of prophecy as seen in 1 Corinthians 12:10 “and to another the effecting of miracles, and to another prophecy, and to another the distinguishing of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, and to another the interpretation of tongues.”  John MacArthur writes “Not all such believers could be called prophets.  It seems that the office of prophet was exclusively for work within a local congregation, whereas that of apostleship was a much broader ministry, not confined to any area, as implied in the word apostolos (‘one who is sent on a mission’).  Paul for example, is referred to as a prophet when he ministered locally in the Antioch church (Acts 13:1), but elsewhere is always called an apostle.”

 

            Let us look at a couple of examples from Scripture that show us that the prophets sometimes spoke revelation from God as seen in Acts 11:21-28 “21 And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a large number who believed turned to the Lord. 22 The news about them reached the ears of the church at Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas off to Antioch. 23 Then when he arrived and witnessed the grace of God, he rejoiced and began to encourage them all with resolute heart to remain true to the Lord; 24 for he was a good man, and full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And considerable numbers were brought to the Lord. 25 And he left for Tarsus to look for Saul; 26 and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. And for an entire year they met with the church and taught considerable numbers; and the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.  27 Now at this time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28 One of them named Agabus stood up and began to indicate by the Spirit that there would certainly be a great famine all over the world. And this took place in the reign of Claudius.”  Sometimes the prophets simply expounded revelation that was already given which is implied in Acts 13:1, where they are connected with teachers.  “Now there were at Antioch, in the church that was there, prophets and teachers: Barnabas, and Simeon who was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.”  MacArthur writes that “They always spoke for God but did not always give a newly revealed message from God.  The prophets were second to the apostles, and their message was to be judged by that of the apostles (1 Cor. 14:37).  Another distinction between the two offices may have been that the apostolic message was more general and doctrinal, whereas that of the prophets was more personal and practical.” 

 

            Just like the apostles, however the office of prophets ceased with the completion of the New Testaments, like the OT prophets disappeared when the OT was completed, and this happened 400 years before the Lord Jesus came to planet earth.  Once again let us read in Ephesians 2:20 showing that the church “having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone,” So once the foundation was laid, the work of the apostles and the prophets was finished.

 

            After these two offices, the apostles, and the prophets were done they were not replaced as stated earlier, however the evangelists and also the pastors and teachers did pick up the baton from the first generation of apostles and prophets.

 

            The church owes much to the apostles and the prophets, for without the apostles we would not have much of a New Testament.  Luke and Mark were not apostles, but their writings were certainly inspired by not only the Holy Spirit, but also the apostles.  As for Hebrews we don’t really know who wrote that letter, but we can be sure that whoever did they were inspired by the apostles.

 

            MacArthur concludes this section by writing “The prophets, though they did not usually receive direct revelation from God, nevertheless were greatly instrumental in building up and strengthening the early church.  Both apostles and prophets have passed from the scene (Eph. 2:20), but the foundation they laid is that on which all of Christ’s church has been built.”

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I can praise the Lord for how He inspired the apostles and prophets so that I can read and study and know more about my Lord Jesus Christ.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Continue looking and studying Ephesians 4:7 along with Romans 12:3 to teach me more about being humble.

 

Verse that goes along with yesterday’s quotation:  “The kings heart is in the hand of the Lord, like the rivers of waters; He turns it wherever He wishes” (Proverbs 21:1).

 

3/20/2019 10:31 AM