Written by Connie Bissen

Read: Ephesians 4:11-13; Luke 6:13; Acts 5:12; 1 Corinthians 12:27-30

When the Lord impressed upon me that I would be sent to unusual places to share the Good News of Jesus Christ, I had no idea what that meant. Over time, I sat with lepers in Central Asia to share God’s love, prayed with street kids in Central America who sniffed glue to get high, taught God’s Word to women being sex trafficked in Southeast Asia, preached to non-Christians in Africa, and much more. As I continued to grow in the knowledge of what an apostle was, I also received confirmation from leaders in my church that I had the gift of serving as an Apostle.

As a recognized leader with this gift, I led our outreach to the nations for many years. As a church, we went to many unusual places around the world under my leadership. We would equip God’s people to do the work of the ministry. As we read in the Word of God, Paul was recognized as an Apostle and sent as a messenger to equip God’s people for the work of the ministry. Not all believers have the gift of serving as an Apostle, but all believers are commissioned to go and make disciples. We see this in Matthew 28:16-20. This is known as the Great Commission.

We most often do not call individuals in the church “Apostles.” Yet someone who is sent to start a new work, such as a church plant or a ministry among an unreached people group, would be considered an Apostle. The word apostle means “a messenger” or “one who is sent out on a mission.” Most often, an Apostle is a visionary, a church planter, or an overseer of a ministry. They carry the heart of God and the vision to start or oversee a ministry. When someone is sent, it includes the teaching of God’s Word. That might be in a unique way, such as medical work, sports, teaching, or church planting.

It is worth mentioning that all who serve as Apostles are disciples of Jesus Christ, but not all disciples are called to serve as Apostles. In the book of Luke, we read that Jesus called His disciples, and He chose from them twelve, whom He also named apostles. The Lord now chose seventy-two other disciples and sent them ahead in pairs to all the towns and places He planned to visit. (Luke 10:1, NLT) Through these scriptures we read that not all disciples have the gift of serve as an Apostle, but all are commissioned by Jesus to go and make disciples as believers.