How do WE respond after hearing a letter from an Apostle of Jesus Christ written to our Church?
We are about to take a look at the faith of three Apostles through Epistles they sent to many churches.
But more than that:
The Gospel of Jesus Christ proclaims connections — relationships that matter.
We receive the same love evident through these connections to God and the Apostles, who continue to mean much to 21st century Christians who believe with Apostolic faith.
Apostolic Unity in the Gospels
When someone asks us about our faith, their questions may boil down to a single foundational question:
“Faith in what?”
or perhaps, “faith in whom?”
Let’s begin with what the Lord says about these connections. Jesus actually presents His clarifying question to the Apostles.
And out of all the possibilities of their answers, one stands out in every Gospel.
Peter’s answer to Jesus
- Gospel of Luke
9: And calling the twelve together, He gave them power and authority over all the demons and to heal diseases. And He sent them out to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick…
And departing, they were going from village to village, proclaiming the gospel and healing everywhere.
Peter Confesses Jesus Is the Christ
.. and He questioned them, saying, “Who do the crowds say that I am?”
.. And He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
Luke 9:18b,20a BSB
And Peter answered and said,
“The Christ of God.”
- Gospel of Matthew
And Simon Peter answered and said,
“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Mat 16:16 LSB
- Gospel of Mark
And He continued asking them, “But who do you say that I am?”
Peter answered and said to Him, “You are the Christ.”
Mark 8:29 LSB
Peter provided an answer communited to him by the Holy Spirit of God. And the Apostle John through the same Spirit says the same more fully and in mysterious revealed detail.
Gospel of John
Nearly all of us are familiar with John’s introduction of Jesus in his Gospel:
IN THE BEGINNING was the Word [logos]
(We will come to discover that John refers to JESUS as the Word in the flesh.)
and the Word
was with God [Theos]
[but now, in John 1:1, the Apostle clearly states:]
And the Word was God.
1:1 ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ λόγος καὶ ὁ λόγος ἦν πρὸς τὸν θεόν καὶ θεὸς ἦν ὁ λόγος
John 1:1 LSB – English translation from Greek New Testament
JESUS IS GOD !
The Gospels all record that the twelve Apostles witness God’s power personally MANY TIMES in JESUS.
“I and the Father are [in essence] one,” John records later in his Gospel [John 10:30].
The Apostle’s Gospel of connection to the Living God revealingly becomes even stronger and more forward-facing after Jesus’ resurrection.
We see this first in Peter and John, but with an additional absolute faith in Christ later proclaimed to all the world by the Apostle Paul.
John 20 – Apostolic Authority from God
ἐμφυσάω
emphysáō – John 20:22, where Jesus, after the manner of the Hebrew prophets, expresses by the symbolic act of breathing upon the apostles the communication of the Holy Spirit to them
He breathed on them and *said to them,
“Receive the Holy Spirit.
Gospel of John 20:22b LSB
Christ’s communication from the One God — Father, Son and now the Holy Spirit given — to His Apostles sent into all the world with Gospel Good News!
What is Apostolic Faith?
πίστις – faith, assurance,believe, belief,them that believe, fidelity occurs 244 times in 228 verses in the TR Greek.
conviction of the truth of anything, belief; in the NT of a conviction or belief respecting man’s relationship to God and divine things, generally with the included idea of trust and holy fervour born of faith and joined with it
- the conviction that God exists and is the creator and ruler of all things, the provider and bestower of eternal salvation through Christ
- a strong and welcome conviction or belief that Jesus is the Messiah, through whom we obtain eternal salvation in the kingdom of God
- the religious beliefs of Christians
- belief with the predominate idea of trust (or confidence) whether in God or in Christ, springing from faith in the same
- fidelity, faithfulness
- the character of one who can be relied on
Source: Lexicon :: Strong’s G4102 – pistis – faith
This is Apostolic faith,
which finds its roots in the eternal truth that GOD IS — the Person of JESUS IS God — and Christ chose Apostles to continue God’s work of redemption of sinners by proclaiming the Gospel to all mankind.
Who are Apostles?
Tens of Thousands of men, women and children witnessed the Son of God, JESUS, born as a man to a virgin.
Many followed JESUS as DISCIPLES, listening to His teachings and commands. Sometimes Jesus taught thousands. At other times hundreds would follow their Master (Lord) as a Rabbi sent from God. Jesus would teach a houseful of guests or sometimes just one chosen by Him even without witness of the Twelve.
More than five hundred witnessed Jesus AFTER the Lord’s crucifixion and resurrection from the grave (even as several had seen Him raise Lazarus and others).
.. He called His disciples to Him and chose twelve of them, whom He also named as apostles:
Disciples followed their itinerant Rabbi from mountainside to village to city over three years, hearing the Messiah Jesus teach true faith. Yet even one of the Twelve had been chosen before time to betray the Lamb of God, our Savior redeeming our sins on a Cross in Jerusalem.
The APOSTLE’S sent out by Jesus were all chosen as witnesses to the Son of Man — an itinerant Teacher who was not of this world, but IS before all time — with God and was God.
Three Apostles nearer to Jesus
And He allowed no one to accompany Him, except Peter and James and John the brother of James.
And six days later, Jesus took with Him Peter and James and John, and brought them up on a high mountain alone by themselves. And He was transfigured before them;
Gospel of Mark 5:37, 9:2, additional references
James, the older brother of John, became the first Apostle martyred for his faith in Jesus just fourteen years into the establishing of the Church. Another would later replace him, as Matthias would replace Judas Iscariot.
It would be James the half-brother of Jesus who would later lead the church in Jerusalem, writing epistles to followers of The Way and conferring with the Apostles including Peter and John.
We witness these three Apostles nearest to Jesus on several occasions, both before and after the Lord’s resurrection.
Many witness the boldness of Simeon Peter and John in the Temple after Jesus is risen. It’s just once instance where Apostles proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the face of imprisonment, persecution and even death.
Σίμων Πέτρος – Simon Peter
So Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you also want to go?”
Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. And we have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.”
Gospel of John 6:68-69 LSB
“Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
Gospel of Matthew 16:17b-18 LSB
And I also say to you that you are Peter,
and upon this rock
I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.
Ἰωάννην Βοανηργές – John son of thunder
Jesus called these two brothers and close friends of His inner-circle of Apostles, “sons of thunder,” and more than once James and John had caused a commotion among his disciples.
And they [James and John] said to Him, “Grant that we may sit, one on Your right and one on Your left, in Your glory.”
.. And hearing this, the ten began to feel indignant with James and John.
Gospel of Mark 10:37,41 LSB
And nearer the time of their journey to Jerusalem for Jesus’ crucifixion:
And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?”
But He turned and rebuked them..
Luke 9:54-55a LSB
THEN on a hideous hill outside Jerusalem, as Peter and the other Apostles hid distanced from the iniquitous crucifixion of Christ, the youngest of these dared a nearby witness of this most ironic Sacrifice of all time — the Son of God, their friend, hanging and pierced on a cursed Cross.
When Jesus then saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His mother,
“Woman, behold, your son!”
Then He said to the disciple,
“Behold, your mother!”
From that hour the disciple took her into his home.
Gospel of John 19:26-27 LSB + Witness of the Disciple Jesus loved – youngest of the Twelve
The Lord Jesus entrusted His own mother Mary to the beloved Disciple John, who so often would cling to Him and His every word.
Christ would also restore Peter as the Rock upon which He would build His church.
Jesus’ love and connection to these two Apostles cannot be disputed.
Σαῦλος – Saûlos – Ῥωμαῖος Ταρσέα
After His resurrection the Lord will also embrace an arch-enemy who had not only denied a connection of the Son to God the Father, but even worse had persecuted and killed followers of The Way.
- Saul, Roman Citizen of Tarsus and Leading Jew of the Pharisees
And when Saul had come to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples; but they were all afraid of him, and did not believe that he was a disciple.
Acts of the Apostles 9:26 NKJV
Παῦλος – Paulos – ἀπόστολος ἐθνῶν
apostolos ethnos
But I say unto you, Love your enemies,
bless them that curse you,
do good to them that hate you,
and pray for them which despitefully use you,
and persecute you..
Gospel of Matthew 5:44 KJV – from Jesus’ sermon on the mount
.. and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man’s feet, whose name was Saul. And they stoned Stephen…
‘Lord, lay not this sin to their charge.’
And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
Acts of the Apostles 7:58-60 excerpt KJV
Next: Introduction to the letters of Peter
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