The Twelve Apostles

The CEO of a company is only as good as the people that work under him. Nearly every great goal requires the efforts of many people to accomplish it. Using a sports analogy…a coach can practice his team for hours, can teach them proper technique, fundamentals, and implant wisdom as to how to strategically play the game. However, a coach cannot be on the field with his team. He must trust that his preparation, enthusiasm, hours of training, and knowledge is strong enough to give them the advantage they need to persevere and win. This situation is not very different from what the twelve apostles went through when they were called to follow Jesus. They were twelve ordinary men whom God used in an extraordinary manner.

What does "Apostle" mean?

It’s the Greek word apostolos, meaning "a sent one", (by the LORD). Today we may call them Missionaries: those who are sent into other countries to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. Apostles are part of the five-fold ministry of Ephesians 4:11 (Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers), and the word "missionary" is not found in the Bible.

The Twelve Apostles:

1 And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease. 2 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; 3 Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; 4 Simon the Cananite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him.

Matthew 10:1-4

After Jesus’ resurrection and before He ascended into Heaven, eleven of these men were commanded to “Go and Make disciples of all nations…”

All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.

Matthew 28:18-20

Final Thoughts:

"It is believed that all but one of the Apostles suffered and died a martyr’s death (even if we can’t be sure of all the details). Amidst some uncertainty, one thing can be made certain…the reason for each of their deaths were the same in every account. They were killed because they proclaimed to have seen Christ die and then to have seen Him alive. They all died because of an unwavering, unrelenting claim that Christ rose from the grave. "
– Sam Shaw

In the next couple of postings, I’ll talk more about the life and death of the twelve apostles of Jesus Christ and how they were charged with changing the world after Jesus’ ascension into Heaven.

God bless you. And this is for His Glory.