| ----------------------------------------------------------------------- ( A ) THE FOUNDATION IS COMPLETE Are there apostles and prophets in the present day Christian church ? Jesus Christ is the chief corner stone of the church foundation mentioned in Ephesians 2 and 1 Peter 2. He is also described as the sure foundation mentioned in Isaiah 28. Since we will be examining a spiritual foundation which includes the apostles and prophets of God and whose very corner stone is Christ Himself, why would such a foundation need restoration ? And again, does not 2 Timothy 2:19 state that the foundation of God stands sure ? Moreover, Proverbs 10:25 says that the righteous is an everlasting foundation. So why the need to restore the positions of apostle and prophet for the church, since those roles are righteous in God ? The words restore or restoration denote that something or someone has been lost or stolen and thus in need of being returned. Restoration, to restore, can also signify that someone or something has been damaged, in a process of deterioration or else destroyed altogether and thus in need of restoration. Can it then truly be said that the foundation of God, ( which comprises Jesus Christ, the spiritual corner stone, and the apostles and prophets of God ), has been at some point in time either lost or stolen ? Has the foundation of God ever at some time been in a process of deterioration or completely destroyed ? What scriptural evidence proves such a situation ? Is God restoring the spiritual roles of the apostle and prophet in the Christian church ? What scriptural evidence justifies a need for a restoration of the apostle and prophet if indeed a restoration has been taking place ? Moreover, if we are to embrace a mentality which holds to a restoration of the apostle and prophet, then what of Christ, the very Son of God ? Since Christ, who along with the apostles and prophets comprise the spiritual foundation of the Christian church, does there also need to be a restoration of Christ, the spiritual corner stone ? Does Christ, the very sure and unmovable spiritual cornerstone Himself, also need restoration ? Obviously such questioning is vain, it is pointless. Yet this is the exact same vanity of a mindset which concludes that the apostle and prophet are being restored in the present church age. Gods� Word reveals that the apostle and prophet are spiritual positions of authority and responsibility which are a finished foundational work. These two church positions were not, ( due to their purpose and qualifications ), meant to be prevalent nor ongoing among the Christian body. Not only are the two spiritual positions uniquely selective, but, scriptural evidences show that these spiritual roles ended during the years of the early Christian church. Once the revelation knowledge of Gods� Word was completed and when the last apostle and prophet died, those two roles concluded. There simply was no more reason to have an apostle or prophet in the churches because the church now had in final completion the very Word of God. That spiritual, holy Word which provided all the sufficient prophecy, doctrine and teaching of the apostles and prophets which God provided for His church. Therefore, the fruit which those spiritual roles produced, ( that fruit being holy scripture ), carry on and work in the lives of Christian believers of today. Let me begin this study by first focusing on the foundational quality of the prophet and apostle of God; 19. Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; 20. And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; 21. In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: 22. In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit. - Ephesians 2:19-22 One unique quality of the role and purpose of the apostle and prophet is described here in Ephesians. These roles are foundational. Paul describes in these verses of scripture, that the Christian church is like a building, a holy temple of God which is being built in the Lord. The apostles and prophets being the foundation which of necessity includes the Lord Jesus Christ as He is the chief corner stone, ( see also 1 Peter 2:4-8 / Isaiah 28:16 / Acts 4:10-12 ). The corner stone of a building is a necessary functional part of support and stability. It is that primary, indispensable part of a buildings� foundation upon which the entire structure rests. Therefore, once the corner stone is set in place along with the remaining foundation, there is no need nor justified reason to relay that foundation anymore. It is a finished work upon which the rest of the buildings� construction can begin to take place onward toward its� completion. Jesus Christ is the foundation of the foundation. That is to say, without Christ there would be no Christian foundation. For the apostle and prophet alone are by no means sufficient to be the spiritual foundation in and of themselves, without Christ. If there were no Jesus Christ, what need would there be for prophecy ? None. And thus no prophet. If there were no Jesus Christ, what gospel would there be to preach and send into all the earth ? What need for Christian doctrine and spiritual teaching on the things of God ? None, and thus no apostle. Therefore, because Jesus Christ does exist then we have had prophets and apostles. And so, Jesus Christ is rightly the chief corner stone of the foundation who Himself upholds and supports the rest of the Christian foundation of whom are the apostles and prophets. With this said, then what is it about Christ and the apostles and prophets which reveal that they are the churchs� completed foundational work and therefore helps to prove that the role of apostle and prophet is not being restored for the present day Christian church ? ----------------------------------------------------------------------- |