What does Ellen White write about...
Adventistische Schriften über: "Were only those apostles allowed to be called apostles who had personally seen Jesus?"
Answer
The present quotations show a nuanced answer: For the office of the Twelve, it was a prerequisite to have accompanied Jesus during his earthly ministry and to be a witness to his resurrection. However, besides the Twelve there were other individuals who were called apostles—such as Paul, Barnabas, Silvanus, and Timothy—who did not all meet the same prerequisites. Paul is recognized as a legitimate apostle because he personally encountered Jesus after the Ascension and spoke with him.
The requirements for the apostolic office of the Twelve
»When Judas “fell by his transgression”, the apostles chose another to take his place... They said that this replacement for Judas must be one who “has walked with us the whole time while the Lord Jesus walked among us, from the baptism of John up to the day he was taken up by us.” ... Thus we see that the apostolic office of the Twelve should consist of those who actually accompanied Christ in his work and who saw and touched him after his resurrection.«
Other apostles besides the Twelve
»Because Christ chose twelve apostles as his special witnesses, some denominations have concluded that there must be exactly twelve apostles in the complete organization of the church. When we look at the New Testament account, we see that others besides the Twelve were chosen by the Lord as apostles. In Antioch the Holy Spirit said: “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” ... Shortly thereafter these two are called “apostles.” ... In his letter to the Thessalonians Paul associates the names of Silvanus and Timothy with his own. And finally he designates all of them as “apostles.”«
Paul as apostle – a personal encounter after the Ascension
»Here the two great personalities of the new faith met each other—Peter, one of Christ's chosen companions while He was on earth, and Paul, the Pharisee, who had encountered Him face to face since the Ascension of Jesus, had spoken with Him, and had also seen Him in a vision.«
- Apostolic office requirements criteria
- Paul apostle calling appearance
- Matthias selection replacement Judas
Original Sources (English)
Stephan Krol
Founder of EGW Vision
Why I built EGW Vision
Hello, I am Stephan Krol. I started this Ellen White website to make the writings of Ellen G. White and the Adventist pioneers easier to access for everyone.
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