Other Christian missionaries & church planters

This continues my series on apostleship.

Others beyond the twelve and Paul are also given the title Apostle, and are sent (“apostled”) by God an a manner similar to the twelve and Paul.

Before God sent Paul anywhere, he sent (Greek apesteilen) Ananias to Paul (Acts 9:17). God used Ananias to heal Paul’s blindness and give him the Holy Spirit by the laying on of Ananias’ hands. Ananias thus shared apostolic privileges, at least on this one occasion.

Similarly, Philip – not an apostle but one of the table-waiters (deacons?) (Acts 6:1-6) – performed the apostolic function of proclaiming Christ, and performing miracles, in Samaria (Acts 8:5-7). Barnabas is differentiated from the apostles in Acts 4:36-37, but is called an apostle alongside Paul in Acts 14:4 and 14. Paul placed Barnabas alongside himself as having the same rights as the other apostles and the “Lord’s brothers” and Peter (1 Cor. 9:1-6). Paul does not here explicitly describe Barnabas as an apostle; but the extension of apostolic privileges to him strongly indicates that Paul considered him as one.

Andronicus and Junias are probably deemed apostles in Rom. 16:7. The phrase may mean “esteemed in the apostle’s opinion”, without according them a place among the apostles – but this goes against the tenor of Romans 16, where Paul goes out of his way to honour people as his fellow-workers, not distance himself or the other apostles from them.

Similarly, by using plural pronouns, Paul places Silvanus and Timothy alongside himself as Christ’s apostles to the Thessalonians (1 Thess. 2:6). James the Lord’s brother received a resurrection appearance personally (1 Cor. 15:7), is termed an apostle in Gal. 1:19, and placed alongside Peter and John in Gal. 2:9. Paul notes that people will not hear the gospel unless preachers are sent (apesteilen) (Rom. 10:15). John requested Gaius to send (Greek pempo) unnamed brothers, previously unknown to Gaius, who went out (Greek erkomai) for the sake of the name. These unknown brothers were probably itinerant missionaries.