Apostolic Authority: Part 1 (Ephesians 1:1)

EPHESIANS 1:1:

Paul, by the Spirit of God declares that he is "...an apostle of Jesus Christ, through the will of God...". Right at the forefront of this potent letter he boldly asserts that he was:

1) sent by Jesus Christ, as His representative, and

2) all of the authority and power of God Himself, has willed it to be.

APOSTLE

The word apostle, is almost a direct transliteration of the Greek word (apostolos), [652, Strong's]. The word is used 79 times in the NT, 80% of the uses are in Luke; Acts; and the Pauline epistles. The word derives from (apo), meaning, "from", and emphasizing origin, and (stolos), meaning 'the dispatch of a fleet or army, on a military expedition'.

MARITIME MISSIONS

Originally it related to maritime missions of expedition, authorized by a ruling authority or king, to colonize a foreign area by conquest. The (apostolos) was the title of the owner or commander of the vessel, who was given legal right, by the ruler to officially make the territory a colony of the ruler, and in doing so, to bring it into subjection, by force, if necessary, to the will of the king.

APOSTOLIC AUTHORITY

There are several interesting facts related to this action:

1) The (apostolos) had the full authority of the one who sent him, and was fully equipped for the task. The ship, his vessel, had the men and provisions necessary to accomplish what needed to be done, to fulfill the will of the king.

2) The saying was, "the emissary of the king, is as the king himself". This meant that how he was treated, and his mission, was how the king was treated, and accepted, or rejected. Jesus Himself said, of His disciples, the principle that, "The one who listens to you, listens to me, and the one who rejects you, rejects me; but the one who rejects me rejects the one who sent me" (Lk.10:16). Stress was always placed on the ONE who sent, and the ONE who gave the authority.

3) (a)Whatever the apostle said or did, the king would back his words and actions 100%, because the apostle represented the king, and therefore, the king gave full authority, in word or deed, to do whatever the apostle deemed necessary to fulfill the mission. The king or ruler didn't necessarily set out a "plan of attack", or strategy with which the apostle was to follow. The ruler gave him leave to do what he needed to do, and declare and establish what he needed to say, without reservation.

    (b) Since the mission was a band of colonists; a colonizing expedition, (and this is crucial), the whole group of colonists by legal decree of the king, operated under the same apostolic authority of the apostle, and carried out the will of the king, through the proxy of the apostle!

4) What is more amazing, especially in relation to apostolic authority, is that not only did the apostle have full authority in what he did or said, but, as the authorized representative of the king, the words and actions of the apostle were binding upon the ruler. In other words, good or bad, the king was legally obligated to fulfill the words and actions of his apostle!

5) This authority extended not only to what the apostle said or did, but it also extended to their words that were written down. A letter or written decree, by an apostle of the king, carried the same force and authority as what they said and did. [It is interesting, that basically, what we generally term as the OT, was written by prophets, and the NT, was written by apostles].

6) All uses of the word had both the ideas of (a) an express commission, and (b) being sent across the seas, in a naval expedition.

7) What also became prevalent, in the use of the word, especially at the time the NT was written, and was common among the sect of the Gnostics [ by general definition, a false belief that one would attain a higher plane of spirituality, by the more mystical knowledge they gained], was that apostles were mediators of divine revelation from the gods; and Paul freely used this term of himself and other followers of Christ, that stood in this office. [ (apostellein) is a technical term for commissioning by a deity].

TODAY

To those who stand in this office, this word study is meant to be freeing, giving not only the origin and understanding of the word, but also the factual presentation, that these same aspects of this calling still apply today, and the truth that can generally apply to every believer, in relation to the authority of God, our Father, specifically applies to His apostles today, and the calling on their lives. It would be extremely helpful, for those who are apostles, to meditate and review this word study, that not only defines the Greek word, but the authority and commission that they have, under God.

You are God's Best and God's Best is Yours