THE MISSION IN THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

Topic: Function of the apostles

Presented by: C. Lalruatkima, Roll No.1, B. Miss III

INTRODUCTION:

The spreading of the Gospel is started from the Apostles. When we stress the term “apostles”
there might be question about who the apostles were and what is there contributions in Christian
Mission. This paper deals with the meaning of “Apostles”and their function and contribution in
Christian Mission.

1. APOSTELS:

The word Apostle derived from the Greek word “Apotolos”, “to send forth. In classical Greek
word, it refer to a ship or a fleet either freighters or vessels of a naval expedition. 1 At the same
time, the adjective is used to designate an ambassador, envoy, or messenger, but the “apostolos”
is not an ordinary messenger. He is one sent in a special sense and for a special purpose.2

1.1 How many Apostles?

Obviously apostleship in the New Testament was not only confined to the twelve disciples of
Jesus and Apostle Paul. In the New Testament “Apostles” often refers “messengers of God”
(Luke 11:49; Ephesian 3:5; Revelation 2:2; 18:20). In these passages, they are not really different
from the prophets, unless these passages echo the Jewish conception of Moses, Elijah, and
Ezekiel. In Hebrew 3:1, Jesus Himself is also called an apostle.3

We clear that the position of the twelve disciples of Jesus but it is not equally clear that this is
synonymous with their position as apostles. It is not clear that the twelve are meant exclusively(1
Corinthian 4:9-13; 9:5; 15:7; 2 Peter 3:2).

Murphy has an excellent discussion of this point in which he distinguishes three categories of
apostles. InA-1 Category, the group of twelve called by Jesus (Mark 3:14; Acts 1:13, 26). They
had been chosen by Christ to share in His Mission, and they were eyewitnesses of His earthly life
and resurrection. They were a unique group centered in Jerusalem and ministering to the Jews:
“they will never more than the original twelve apostles”.

In A-2 category, Paul was not one of the twelve but it is clearly designated an apostle. As the
scene of God’s activity moves from Jewish Palestine to Gentile Asia Minor and Europe, God
takes a new step. He calls forth apostles to the Jews. The first team consisted of the apostles Paul
and Barnabas (Acts 13:2; 14:14) sent on the “first planned evangelistic and church planting
1
John L. McKenzie,S.J., Dictionary of the Bible(Bangalore : Asian Trading Corporation, 2002), 46.
2
Roger E. Hedlund, The Mission of the Church in the World(Michigan: Baker Book House, 1991), 210.
3
John L. McKenzie,S.J., Dictionary of the Bible(Bangalore : Asian Trading Corporation, 2002), 46.

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journey to take the Gospel beyond the confines of Palestine world.” Those in this second
category, though had not been among the intimate companions of Jesus and had not eye
witnessed resurrection, possessed “ a unique spiritual authority and leadership granted by the
Holy Spirit and recognized by God’s people”. Murphy says, the Church will always need this
aspect of Christian apostleship. This introduces the A-3 category – the perennial apostolic
function during the whole church age.The apostle is a church planter. “It is part of the apostolic
gift to start new churches. We call those who do this ‘pioneer missionaries’ today”. Murphy adds
that the apostolic function also entails establishing the new churches through encouragement and
continuing contact, teaching them, and correcting them when necessary. The epistles provide
evidence of this function leading to mature, autonomous, indigenous churches. The history of the
Christian Church since the days of the twelve apostles reveals men or teams of men fulfilling this
fourfold apostolic function.4

2. MISSION AND THE APOSTLES

Acts tells the story of the Apostolic Age of the Early Christian church, with particular emphasis
on the ministry of the Twelve Apostles and of Paul of Tarsus. The early chapters, set in
Jerusalem, discuss Jesus' Resurrection and Great Commission, his Ascension with a prophecy to
return the start of the Twelve Apostles' ministry, and the Day of Pentecost. The later chapters
discuss Paul's conversion, his ministry, and finally his arrest and imprisonment and trip to Rome.
Acts is the principal source of information on the origins of Christian Mission.

As Ferdinand Hahn and others have suggested, the structure of the book of Acts takes its cue
from this mission perspective. The sequence of “Jerusalem-Judea-Samaria-end of the earth”
(Acts 1:3-5) guides the basic movement of the story.

The decisive action for opening up the mission will be the conversion of Cornelius in Chapter 10
and the acceptance of the consequences of this step by the Jerusalem church in Acts 11 and 15.
But Luke already begins to illustrate the expansive nature of the mission in chapter 2 through 9.
If Paul will be the chosen Instrument” (Acts 9:15) who carries the message of salvation to the
“end of the earth,” it is Peter and other leaders of the Jerusalem church who are the agents of the
mission in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria.5

4
Roger E. Hedlund, The Mission of the Church in the World(Michigan: Baker Book House, 1991) 209-210.
5
Donald Senior, C. P. and Carroll Stuhlmueller, C.P., The Biblical Foundations for Mission (New York: Orbis Books,
1983) 269-270.

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 3. APOSTLES ANDTHEIR FUNCTION

3.1. Apostles with the power of the

Holy Spirit
The Final word of the risen Jesus to his disciples guarantee the gift of the spirit:
“While staying with them, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait
there for the promise of the Father.” And then since the day of Pentecost (2:1-47)
Peter, along with John, preaches too many in Jerusalem, and performs many
miracles such as healings, the casting out of evil spirits, and the raising of the
dead. As a result, thousands convert to Christianity and are baptized.

3.2. Apostles are the Healers

Healing ministry was the one important ministry of the Apostles, the book of acts
recorded seven specific healing - Lame Man-3:1; Sick and unclean spirits - 5:16;
Paul'sblindnesshealed-9:1-9;Aeneas'paralysishealedbyPeter- 9:35; Lame man-
Lystra - 14:8; Demon expelled - 16:16; Publius' Father-fever/dysentery 28:3-10.

The healing of these people does not just physical healing; it also resulted in their
spiritual life, it effect on their own spirituality and their relatives and the people who saw
and knew that healing ministry.

3.3. The Apostles as Witnesses

The center of the Books of Acts is the term and the action of witness of the apostles. In
chapter 1:8, they are called by the risen Christ to be his witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea,
Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. Right from the beginning the content of their
witness is clearly defined by the book of Acts. They will be witnessing to Christ’s life,
suffering and resurrection, which means, to the truths about the Messiah. In this the
witnessing task of the twelve apostles is very different from all other witnesses of those
days as well as throughout time. Witnesses offer firsthand authentication of a fact. It is
important to note that witnesses have no successors – there cannot be successors of the
twelve apostles, whose task and role are to serve as firsthand witnesses.6

The Apostle Paul is also called to be a witness to the risen Lord whom he met on the
Damascus road (13:31). Paul was called “to carry my name before the Gentiles and their
kings and before the people of Israel” (9:15). To carry is used here in the way of
witnessing to Christ as Savior and Lord. As the result of his calling Paul immediately
became a witness in Damascus, Jerusalem and many other places. Paul had received the

6
RevdDr Keith G. Jones, RevdDrParush R. Parushev and JudrPtraVesela, eds., Bible and Mission
(Schwarzenfield : Neufeld Verlag, 2008) 81.

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 same call to be a witness to the risen Christ as the other apostles, fulfill the requirements
of Acts 1:22.7

3.4. Apostles Mission to the Gentiles

The final commission, given at His final appearance, may have been announced to the
larger group of 120 believers (Acts 1:15). In this commission (Acts 1:7-8) Jesus stressed
the worldwide scope of the kingdom, the witnessing role of the disciples, the
indispensable work of the Holy Spirit, and the orderly geographic progress of the Gospel.

The mission of the Apostles was also slow in going to the Gentiles. Peter and the apostles
continue to preach, and Christianity continues to grow, and begins to spread to Gentiles.
Peter has a vision in which a voice commands him to eat a variety of impure animals.
When Peterobjects, the voice replies, "Do not call anything impure that God has made
clean." When Peter awakes from his vision, he meets with Cornelius the Centurion, who
converts. Peter baptizes the centurion, and later has to justify this decision to the other
Christians (Acts 10).

From the time of His conversion Paul was called to minister to the Gentiles (Acts 9:15).
In Acts 13, Barnabas and Saul were commissioned to preach the Gospel, and then they
visited Cyprus, Antioch of Pisidia, Iconium, Lystra and Derbe. And after they separated
Paul visited many other places in order to preach the gospel among the Gentiles.

3.5. Apostles and Church Planting

The church is built upon the foundation of the apostles by their witness and teaching
(Acts 14:21-23). The great demonstration of the apostolic gift is seen in Paul. His primary
ministry was the planting and nurturing of new churches.

And the primary mission of the church and, therefore, of the churches is to proclaim the
gospel of Christ and gather believers into local churches where they can be built up in the
faith and made effective in service, thereby planting new churches throughout the world.8

3.6. Encouraging ,Appointing, and

training the initial leaders of a church (Acts 14:21-23)

7
RevdDr Keith G. Jones, RevdDrParush R. Parushev and JudrPtraVesela, eds., Bible and Mission
( Schwarzenfield : Neufeld Verlag, 2008) 81.
8
Roger E. Hedlund, The Mission of the Church in the World(Michigan: Baker Book House, 1991),212.

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 In Acts 14:21-23, after when they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch, they
strengthen and encouraged them to continue in the faith. And said to them “It is through
many persecutions that we must enter the kingdom of God.” If we go through the New
Testament, the Epistles are the messages to encourage the churches and some particular
new believers to stand firm in faith.
And also the Apostles appointed leaders of the church and gave training and
appointed them to look after the church. In Acts 6:1-5, the twelve apostles called
together the whole community to choose elders for distribution of food.

3.7. Prayer is the foundation of

Apostles ministries
As Jesus always prayed to His Father the Apostles prayed to God whenever they
went and whatever they did. Praying is the most important part of their ministries.
In Acts 6 the apostles laid their hand in prayer upon the chosen elders. And also in
Acts 14 they appointed elders with prayer and fasting for Lytra, Iconium and
Antioch.

Remembering the teaching of Jesus, the essential foundation of the

Apostlesmissionary spirituality is prayer since Christian mission does not depend
on Human resources.

3.8. The Apostles were the Preachers

Preaching is the main instrument of the Apostles to spread the Gospel. From the
first chapter of the Book of Acts, Peter started preaching among the believers
(1:15),it is just the beginning. The whole book of the Acts of the Apostles is
permeating with preaching of the Apostles.Their most important themes was The
Kingdom of God (8:12; 14:22; 19:8; 20:25; 28:23…); Witnesses (1:22; 2:32;
4:33; 5:32; 14:3; 22:15; 26:16 . . .) .

CONCLUSION:

The Apostle is always known about the twelve, but in Acts of the Apostles, it also included Paul
and his co-worker in Christ. Jesus specifically chose the twelve to extend His mission to the
Jewish and confirm Gentile mission. Paul’s personal mission was to implement, defend, and
clarify the mission to the Gentiles. Anyway, the Apostles of the book of Acts pave the way for
Christian Mission and Church growth. The Apostles were clothed by the Holy Spirit.They could
fulfill the command of Jesus Christ; they left many models for our contemporary world. Till
today their functions of what they acts is very important for our mission.

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. HedlundRoger E. The Mission of the Church in the World. Michigan: Baker Book House, 1991.

2. McKenzie , John L., S.J. Dictionary of the Bible. Bangalore: Asian Trading Corporation, 2002.

3. RevdDr Keith G. Jones, RevdDrParush R. Parushev and JudrPtraVesela, eds., Bible and Mission.
Schwarzenfield : Neufeld Verlag, 2008.

4. Senior , Donald, C,P. and Carroll Stuhlmueller, C.P. The Biblical Foundations for Mission. New York: Orbis
Books, 1983.

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