For quite some time I was under the impression that a biblical disciple was the same thing as an apostle. But, one Sunday evening, I was listening to a sermon on 1 Corinthians 15; the text was verse 10, in which Paul states that God’s grace shaped him to be what he is. However, the verses before, verses 5-9, were the ones that caught my eye. These verses talked about all the people who saw Jesus after he rose from the dead. I found it peculiar how Paul uses the word “apostle” to describe only certain of those who saw him; specifically, the 12 disciples and himself. This led me to think: Why are the others mentioned not also called apostles?
The definition of “disciple” from Oxford Languages is “a follower or student of a teacher, leader, or philosopher.” Now, the Bible lists twelve main disciples of Jesus that followed him in his ministry; but weren’t there also crowds of followers that went after Jesus also? They would also be considered disciples. This could only mean that the word “apostle” has a slightly different, more meaningful definition.
Part of why certain individuals are considered apostles is probably because of their relationship with Jesus himself, while he was on Earth. The twelve disciples are considered apostles because they were appointed by Christ to spread the gospel throughout the Earth, to the best of their ability. Even though they had done nothing to deserve it, they were the people Jesus trusted and loved the most on Earth. The others mentioned in the verses did not have this same relationship with Christ, though they were certainly children of God.
The twelve disciples’ (and Paul’s) leadership roles in the churches of the first century is another reason why these men are called apostles, and not only disciples. Jesus had called them to these positions when he said, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost” (Matthew 28:19). That was the moment when Jesus showed them the entirety of their role as apostles. The other men who saw Jesus had strong faith in their Savior as well, but did not assume weighty offices of leadership in the church, like the apostles did. They witnessed for Christ on a smaller scale, the way you and I should do.
What sort of application does this information have for us? Now we can see that, though we are followers and disciples of Christ, we are not considered apostles, because we have not associated with Christ in the flesh. And that’s okay! We can still believe in Him and witness for Him, because that’s what He has called us to do. As His children, we are happy to do this to bring glory to our Father. God’s grace still works in us as mightily as it did in the apostles, and we can show that to be true in our daily Christian walk.
By Gavin Heyboer
Young Calvinists 