Other Apostles Sent by Jesus

On one occasion, Jesus sent out 70 men. Those 70 men were just as much apostles as the Twelve because the Scriptures say that they were sent out by our Lord. Remember: The word apostle means “one who is sent out.”

… the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them in pairs ahead of him (Luke 10:1; NASB).

Jesus had enough confidence in these 70 men to charge them with the preaching of the Gospel. He asked them to open the way for him as he went from city to city, and they did so. They cast out demons, healed the sick, and preached the Kingdom of God. These were legitimate apostles if there ever were legitimate apostles because they were sent out by Jesus himself!

… the Lord appointed 70 others, and sent them in pairs ahead of him “… heal those in it [the city] who are sick, and say to them, ‘The Kingdom of God has come near to you…’

The 70 returned with joy, saying, ‘Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name…’

‘I have given you authority… over all the power of the enemy…’ (Luke 10:1, 9, 17, 19-20; NASB).

Another 70 Apostles

The passage in the original language puts the emphasis on the word another, which is a special word in Greek, it's the word allos. In Greek there are two words for another. This another (allos) does not mean another of a different kind—that’s the Greek word heteros (from which we get the word heterosexual—meaning someone who is attracted to someone from the opposite sex). Hetero means "another of a different kind" like women and men. We are different kinds. We are different genders.

But the word others here in Luke 10:1, the word allos, means "another of the same kind." So it says ‘the Lord appointed 70 others’ and that means that the 70 were "other men of the same kind as the Twelve." In other words, it means that the 70 were the same kind of person as the Twelve—the 70 were also apostles!

So, a good way of translating the passage would be “the Lord appointed an additional seventy,” the emphasis is that there was another group of the same kind of people, apostles. God is telling us that Jesus didn’t have only 12 apostles, he had 70 more. The passage expresses that that these 70 men were also apostles and we should understand it to mean that the 70 were just as much apostles as the original Twelve.

Justus and Matthias

There was a pool of men who had been with the Twelve during the +3 years of Jesus’ earthly ministry—from that group the eleven apostles needed to pick a replacement for Judas Iscariot after he committed suicide. So they started a candidate search. Here's what they said:

‘… it is necessary to choose one of the men who have been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus was living among us, beginning from John’s baptism to the time when Jesus was taken up from us. For one of these must become a witness with us of his resurrection.’

So they nominated two men: Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias (Acts 1:21-23).

It's logical to deduce that Justus and Matthias were among the 70 who were sent out as apostles because they fulfilled the requirements of having been with Jesus and the Twelve from the time of the ministry of John the Baptist to up to the time of Jesus’ resurrection.

These 70 were among those who persevered with Jesus even after he told people that they needed to eat his body and drink his blood.

Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them… On hearing it, many of his disciples said, ‘This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?’

… From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him (John 6:56, 60, 66).

Cleopas and a Friend

Among the select men commissioned and sent by Jesus himself is also Cleopas. Cleopas was a companion of the Twelve Apostles. He and another apostle (who remains anonymous in the Bible) got a lengthy teaching from the resurrected Lord Jesus who disguised himself as they walked together on the Road to Emmaus the afternoon of his resurrection.

Their story reveals how close Cleopas and his companion were to the Twelve Apostles.

… that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus... As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them…

One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, ‘Are you the only one visiting Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?’ ‘What things?’ he [Jesus] asked.

‘About Jesus of Nazareth,’ they replied… ‘we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel… In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning but didn’t find his body…  Then some of our companions [John and Peter] went to the tomb…’ (Luke 24:13-15, 18-19, 21-24).

The them in verse 13, at the beginning of the passage where it says ‘two of them were going to a village called Emmaus’ means two apostles. It means 'two apostles were going to a village called Emmaus.' Grammar proves it.

In grammatical terms, the pronoun’s antecedent is apostles. We know this because verse 10 demonstrates that apostles are the subject of the sentence. Verse 10 says that Mary Magdalene and the women related the story of the empty tomb and ‘…told this to the apostles.’

Furthermore, verse 9 states that the women came from the garden to speak to ‘the Eleven and to all the others.’ Who were all the others? Men like Cleopas and his friend--men who were also apostles of Jesus Christ. This passage reveals that the original Twelve apostles had many other close associates who were just as much apostles as they were.

Is This Your Calling?

Do you think that you are called to be an apostle? You have to have a deep desire to see congregations established in sound doctrine, strong traditions, Truth, and love. If you will be an apostle, you need to be grounded yourself first. Apostles are sent out because they are capable of establishing and grounding others in the Faith. They live to see believers advance in the Faith.

Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ to further the Faith of God’s elect (Titus 1:1).

Do you want to be sent out? That’s a good desire, but since the key to going out is settling in, make sure that you are fulfilling your ministry in your local congregation first--before you seek to be sent out from it. Are you serving God faithfully already in your church? If you are, then ask the leaders of your church what it takes to be sent out from it. Investigate the path of apostleship by asking the pastors. Ask them if they think you are ready to be sent out—and if they would send you.

If you do everything you can possibly do in your local church, the leaders will eventually be left with no other option but to send you out. Just as it’s the nature of good parents to send out an adult son to college or the military (because he has reached the age of maturity), it’s the nature of a good Christian church to send out mature believers.

But don't forget this: You should be sent with someone else. The New Testament churches never sent out men alone. Like Jesus, they sent out missionaries in pairs. Do you have a partner in ministry? If you want to be an apostle, get one.

The Making and Sending of Apostles

Paul and Barnabas were serving diligently in the church at Antioch, and the Holy Spirit separated them for a missionary ministry and sent them out. Observe that the Scriptures say that these two men were teachers and prophets before they became apostles.

… in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas… [others] and Saul. While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’ So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off (Acts 13:1-3).

There you have it. The making of two apostles! Paul and Barnabas were formed in a local congregation and served there until the day they were sent out. The Holy Spirit let everyone know that that’s what he wanted, and the church obeyed by sending this missionary pair out. Does your church do the same thing?

Does your church send out missionaries? Jesus did. The Early Church did. But it's likely that they don't because churches are so far from the original model. Still, you might be crying out to God "Send me!"

I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?’ And I said, ‘Here am I. Send me!’ (Isaiah 6:8)

Let’s say you're called to be a missionary, but your church is not willing to send you out. If you ask him, God will send you out even if without the actions of a church. God is very capable of overriding the Church’s stubbornness. I should know. He did that in my case. He has sent me to four countries without the support of a church: Oman, El Salvador, Israel, and Nigeria.

God will send out apostles until the Gospel has been preached to all the nations. The sending of missionaries is an activity God will make sure is carried out until the End--whether the Church cooperates or not. You can count on it!

… this Gospel of the Kingdom will be preached in the whole World as a testimony to all nations, and then the End will come (Matthew 24:14).