Ephesians 2:19-21 “Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, (20) having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, (21) in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord.”
The third class in the ministry gift of the apostle are the foundational apostles. The church is God’s building which is being built by Him as His eternal spiritual temple. And so as with the construction of any building, the first step is to lay the foundation. Once the foundation has been laid then the building begins to take shape, as it is built on top of that foundation. So it is with God’s building, the church. The foundation of the church has already been laid, and the chief cornerstone of that foundation is the Lord Jesus Christ. I want you to notice however, that the above quoted passage of scripture states that the Lord’s apostles are also a part of that foundation. Notice that only two of the ministry gifts are included in this class, i.e. the apostle and the prophet. The ministry gifts of the evangelist, pastor and teacher are not included.
Hebrews 6:1-2 “Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, (2) of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.”
So what is the Holy Spirit referring to when He classifies certain apostles as being a part of the foundation of the church? The foundation that the Holy Spirit is referring to, are the foundation doctrines of the New Testament. In the above quoted passage of scripture the Holy Spirit refers to laying the foundation doctrines of the church. Although this passage refers specifically to the basic doctrines of the church, the principle remains the same, in that the foundational apostles are those who were used by the Holy Spirit to set out the doctrines of the New Testament. So just who was used by the Holy Spirit to write the New Testament doctrine of the church? The following apostles had their writings included in the New Testament, and were thus responsible for laying the foundation doctrines of the church. The apostle Paul (letters), the apostle Peter (letters), the apostle John (Gospel, letters and book of Revelation), the apostle Matthew (Gospel), the apostle James (letter), the apostle Jude (letter). We know that James was an apostle, for Paul refers to him as being an apostle (Galatians 1:19), and we know that Jude was also an apostle, for Paul also referred to him as being an apostle (1 Corinthians 9:5).
Colossians 4:16 “Now when this epistle is read among you, see that it is read also in the church of the Laodiceans, and that you likewise read the epistle from Laodicea.”
There can be no doubt that many letters were written by all the Lord’s apostles during the period that the Lord was revealing the doctrines of the New Testament, and the apostles that we have already mentioned would have written other letters as well. In the above quoted passage of scripture the apostle Paul confirms that truth to us, when he refers to a letter that he wrote to the church in Laodicea. That particular letter never made it into the New Testament however, and was eventually lost. The other letters written during that period however, would have revealed the same doctrines that we have received through the letters that the Holy Spirit ensured would eventually make up the New Testament.
Ephesians 3:1-5 “For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles-- (2) if indeed you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which was given to me for you, (3) how that by revelation He made known to me the mystery (as I have briefly written already, (4) by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ), (5) which in other ages was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to His holy apostles and prophets.”
The point that I want to establish in this section however, is that in the church at that time, there was a class of apostle that existed that no longer exists today. That class were the foundational apostles that our Lord had called to reveal the doctrines of the New Testament to the church. And so those apostles received a special anointing from the Lord to stand in that office. That anointing was given to them specifically to reveal New Testament doctrine, and the Holy Spirit through the apostle Paul confirms that truth to us in the above quoted passage of scripture.
Galatians 1:8-9 “But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. (9) As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.”
After the New Testament doctrine had been established however, the foundational class of apostle was no longer needed by the church, for the foundation had been laid. And so, just as with any building that is constructed, there can be only be one foundation. In the same manner, there is no new doctrine that needs to be, or can be, revealed to the church. And in fact, in the above quoted passage of scripture the Holy Spirit warns us against any who would try adding new doctrine to that which has already been revealed. The apostle John was the last of the New Testament writers that went to be with the Lord Jesus, and since then there have been no more foundational apostles given to the church.
Michael E.B. Maher
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