The Gifts of the Holy Spirit: - Vital Christianity

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3. They provided oversight or supervision of the churches (II Cor. 1:23). All the New
Testament letters were either written by the Twelve or those close to them and they were written
for the purpose of providing instruction, counsel, warning, rebuke, correction and encouragement.
In addition to the letters, these writers also supervised the churches through personal visits (I
Cor. 16:2-12; II Cor. 1:15-17; 12:20-13:2; I Thess. 2:17-18; 3:2-3).
4. They had the responsibility of the admission of new groups into the fellowship of the
church (Acts 8, 10, 11). They were guardians of the truth and they saw to it that false teachers
and unbelievers were not accepted into the fellowship.
5. They will one day sit on the 12 thrones judging the 12 tribes of Israel (Lk. 22:29-30).
Their names will also be inscribed on the 12 foundations of the New Jerusalem (Rev. 21:14) The
Twelve apostles were unique. Therefore the word “apostle” in its official use is limited to the
Twelve (Acts 9:27; I Cor. 15:7). With the death of the Twelve the apostolate ended. Those who
claimed to also belong to this apostolate were condemned as liars (Rev. 2:2).
The gift of an apostle, therefore, does not refer to this special and unique office. It is used only
in a secondary sense.
Donald Bridge and David Phypers convincingly argues for the continuation of this office and
gift in its secondary sense.
“There is a continuing need for the apostolic faith to be passed on from generation to
generation and for Christians constantly to be re-assessing their faith against the
touchstone of apostolic doctrine. Thus Paul can charge Timothy, ‘what you have
heard from me before many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to
teach others also’(II Tim. 2:2), and Jude can appeal to his readers ‘to contend for
the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints’ (verse 3). Here is true
apostolic succession, entrusting others with the truth of the gospel as displayed in
Holy Scripture so that they in their turn will be able to pass it on to others. Here
is the true task of the theologian. He is ever to re-examine Christian thinking by
the standard of the biblical revelation to the age in which he lives. Could not those
who are conscious of a specific call to exercise these ministries be truly said to be
exercising the gift of apostleship? 2
A further reason why, in our view, the gift of apostleship cannot be regarded as
having been withdrawn with the death of the apostles lies in the second function
committed to them, namely, the spreading of the gospel. Christ’s command to His
disciples to take the gospel into all the world and to every creature is explicitly
recorded in the Gospels and in Acts. The church was to be a missionary church