A common question that I hear from my Christian Friends is, “What is the difference between a disciple and an apostle?” Although it has become common to use the terms interchangeably, they really do refer to specific groups of people. Adding confusion to the issue is the fact that all apostles are disciples, but not all disciples are apostles. Hmmm …
First, we need to understand that these words are not applied only to followers of Jesus Christ. We hear them used most in Western Literature to refer to followers of Jesus, but really, anyone can have apostles and disciples. Others across history have also had followers described by these two terms. Buddha, Mohammed and even Hitler had (and still have) followers who fell into these designations.
Disciples.
A disciple is anyone who emulates or “follows” the work, ideas, ideals, philosophy, or teachings of someone they hold in high esteem. Aristotle, Gamaliel the Elder, and Confucius are examples from ancient times of men whose lives and teachings attracted others so that they, in turn, became disciples of these men and their methods. Abraham Lincoln, C. S. Lewis, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Martin Luther King, and Christian Barnard are examples from more contemporary times.
The word “disciple” does not always have to have a religious connotation. All the men mentioned above had disciples in their own time, and still have them today. Most listed had nothing (or very little) to do with “religion.” But they all were (or are) revered by their followers, their disciples. Any great thinker is bound to attract followers who will wish to incorporate the best of the teacher’s thoughts and ideas into their own lives and/or careers. Any follower who associates closely with the master’s thoughts and ideas can be accurately described as a disciple of that teacher.
Furthermore, it is not necessary that disciple have had personal contact with or personal knowledge of the person whom they elect to follow. The disciple simply must know enough of the “master” and his teachings to admire him and to desire to “follow” him.
[Parenthetical clarification. I use the term “him” throughout this post to indicate the teacher/master referenced or in question. I realize that there have been numerous female’s who have had disciples and it is not my intention to ignore or slight those women of accomplishment and renown. It’s simply more concise to refer to ALL who have had disciples by one gender title or the other.]
The depth of a disciple’s adherence to their master’s/teacher’s ideals and ideas can run the gamut of conformity. I consider myself to be a disciple of Paul Volcker who, among other distinctions, was the former Chairman of the United States Federal Reserve. As a younger man I followed his pronouncements and his actions closely and adopted several of his ideas about economics and money theory as my own. His view of governmental monetary policy greatly influenced mine, and I owe much of my perspective on such matters to the ideas he expressed when he was the Chairman of the “Fed.”
However, I did not follow him so closely as to allow his every thought, word and deed to impact or influence my subsequent actions or life choices. For example, while I admire him greatly, his ideas and philosophies do not influence my decisions regarding my children, or which restaurant I’m going to visit this evening. So, while I consider myself to be a disciple of Mr. Volcker, I am not an ardent follower.
So, you see, one can be a disciple without having one’s life consumed by the person one decides to emulate.
Such was the case with Jesus. In his travels throughout Palestine, Jesus was able to expose thousands of people to His teachings. [“…as many as five thousand men sat down… John 6:10] And many of those people accepted those teachings and began to incorporate them into their lives. Some more so than others. Consequently, by the time of His death, many of His followers had become disciples, but some disciples were more fervent and dedicated to His “cause” than others. His disciples at the time represented the whole spectrum of discipleship; from “Yeah, I think He’s great,” to “He’s so awesome that I’m going to reconstruct my life around Him and His teachings.”
Then, for our purposes, a “disciple” is, “Any person who is sufficiently attracted to another person’s ideas, ideals, actions, teachings, moral code, lifestyle, or professional accomplishments to desire to emulate that person in at least some aspects of their own life and professional career, whether they have had personal contact with the admired person or not.”
For all professing Christians today, it means that we are all disciples of Christ. Some of us are more faithful to His Ideal than others. But anyone who sincerely professes to be a Christian and attempts to lead a Christian life can be justly referred to as a disciple.
Apostles.
OK, we now understand what a disciple is. But, how does that relate to or affect the definition of “apostle?”
Briefly, and to put it in common contemporary vernacular, an apostle is a disciple “on steroids.” Before one can be an apostle, one must first be a disciple. But, an apostle is also specifically chosen by the master to spread his teachings.
An apostle is typically someone who has had personal contact with and learned directly from the master. He’s had personal exposure to the master’s ideas, thoughts, teachings, methods, religion, etc. He is someone who has known the master but is also someone whom the master has known and recognized. They have had an interpersonal relationship.
Christ was not the only person to have had apostles. Anyone who learns directly from an original thinker and then disseminates that learning can be described as an apostle. Many teachers have founded “schools of thought” and their students (or disciples) became their apostles.
Famous religious/philosophy teachers who had apostles include Socrates, Buddha, and Mohammed. Mahatma Gandhi, Mao Zedong, Lenin, and even Hitler are examples from the discipline of politics of men who had apostles. Additional disciplines include: architecture (Frank Lloyd Wright), science (Albert Einstein), economics (John Maynard Keynes) and art (Michelangelo).
Others too numerous to mention also exist, but the point is made. Apostles come in all ‘flavors’ from all disciplines and in all times in our history. It is they who take the responsibility for popularizing and explaining their teacher’s thoughts and ideas to the rest of humanity. This is exactly what Jesus’ Twelve Apostles did.
Christian Apostles.
In Christianity, the Apostles were the twelve men specifically selected by Jesus to learn His message, and then charged with taking that message across the world. They were: Simon (later renamed Peter), Andrew, James, John (brother of James), Phillip, Thaddeus, Bartholomew, Thomas, James (Matthew’s brother), Matthew, Simon, and Judas. Judas was replaced by Matthias, but Matthias had known Jesus personally and was close to the original ‘circle.’ So, although he was selected to be an apostle after Jesus’ death, his prior association was close enough for the other Apostles to ‘count’ him as one of them.
Then there was Paul (originally known as Saul of Tarsus). While Paul may have seen and heard Jesus before His death, he was most definitely NOT a believer. In fact, he self-affiliated with the Pharisees, a group that was actively anti-Jesus. [Acts 23:6]
It wasn’t until Paul’s conversion on the road to Emmaus [Acts 9:1-19] that he became a disciple of Christ. By that event, he was converted from an active enemy of the fledgling Christian Movement into a fervent believer and supporter. Then, he spent the next few years in relative seclusion praying, studying Jesus’ teachings and, in his belief, learning directly from the risen Savior [Galatians 1:11-12]. It was during this time that he was commissioned by the risen Christ to become the apostle responsible for carrying Jesus’ message into the gentile world. [Acts 9:15]
By virtue of his personal encounters with Jesus on the road and subsequently in the desert, Paul could claim with authority that he had come to know Jesus personally. And for the same reasons, to be able to say that Jesus knew him. And finally, his specific commission from Jesus to take the message into the gentile world qualified him to refer to himself as an “Apostle.” This designation was also recognized by the other apostles who were working, primarily, to take Jesus’ message to the Hebrews. [Acts 22:12-16]
Christian Disciples and Apostles today.
It’s easy to understand how someone in today’s time could refer to himself as a Disciple of Christ. We have enough historical and traditional information to allow a modern-day person to know enough about Christianity and its founder, Jesus the Christ, to become a believer in the Christian message and to learn how to incorporate its principles into their lives. Even though we may not be able to say that we have physically seen or heard Him, we can relate to His message enough to become believers and adherents. We can identify with Him and become His disciples.
But how about becoming an apostle of Jesus? Is that still possible given that He was crucified, died and was buried over 2,000 years ago? For Christians, the answer is a resounding, “YES!”
That is because Christians do not believe that Jesus is dead. We believe that He is alive! [Acts 1:8-9]
Not only that, but we also believe that because He is alive, we can know Him, be known by Him, and have a relationship with Him.
And, we believe that as His followers, we too are commissioned by Him to take His message into the world and to deliver it to as many other people as possible. [Acts 1:8]
So, for active committed Christians, even we today can fulfill the requirements for becoming not just disciples, but also apostles for Christ. We know Him and He knows us. We have knowledge of Him and receive revelation and direction from Him. And, we are commissioned by Him to convert others into believers as well. All the requirements are met. We too have received a Great Commission!
As such, modern-day apostles are able to speak with the same conviction and authority as did the original Twelve. We too are able to claim to know Him … not just the idea of Him, but HIM personally. We can claim that He knows us … individually and personally. And we know that our Mission is to take His message to everyone we meet and to give them the opportunity to become Disciples in and Apostles for His Kingdom.
We are His apostles today. Let’s each one of us find someone today that we can give this Good News to and then find another person tomorrow, and another the day after that …
God’s Blessings on You All.
Richard
February 1, 2019
