Christ uses His Apostles to Write the Written Word

Jesus Christ established the means by which His Word would be communicated to all areas and future generations. He called the apostles to follow Him, to "come away" from their other interests, and to learn from Him. These apostles were commissioned to "preach, saying the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Their preaching was to indoctrinate the house of Israel only, just as Jesus went only to them. After the Lord's resurrection, the apostles were sent to the whole world. They were also given "power against unclean spirits. . . , to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease," or to share in some of the things Christ Himself did to confirm the source of their preaching (Matt. 10; cf. Mark 3:13-19; Luke 6:12-16). Christ promised His disciples help in remembering His teachings after He would return to the Father. He promised a "Comforter, even the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name; he shall teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said unto you" (John 14:26 ASV). This promise is significant; it ties the apostles' remembrance of Jesus' words to Jesus Christ Himself. He promised that the Holy Spirit would guide the apostles in their teaching and writing, to enable them to recall and teach all things He had taught them. This promise was again made before His ascension, forty days after His resurrection (Acts 1:8).

Near the end of His earthly ministry, Jesus prayed for His apostles and disciples. He said He had "finished the work" His Father had given Him. He had "manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me: and they have kept thy word. . . . I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee." He repeated the words "I have given them thy word" and later added, "Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word of truth" (John 17:1-17). The apostles were given the word, and they were given the Holy Spirit to guide them in their teaching and writing the Word. The written Word thus had its source in the living Christ.

The apostles knew of this special "power of attorney" to represent Christ and of the Holy Spirit's guidance in carrying out their task. The Apostle Paul wrote to the Thessalonians, "When ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God" (I Thess. 2:13). To the Corinthians he wrote, "We have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God. . . . And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit" (I Cor. 2:12, 13 RSV). Paul wrote that he was "not, like so many, peddlers of God's word; but as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ" (II Cor. 2:17 RSV). Since he received it from Christ, Paul could tell his readers to "take knowledge of the things which I write unto you, that they are the commandment of the Lord" (I Cor. 14:37; cf. II Cor. 7:10 ASV), and that "if any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him; that he may be ashamed" (II Thess. 3:14). Paul also gave many other indications that he received his message from Christ (Acts 9:3-6; I Cor. 15:8; Gal. 1:12; Eph. 3:3), and that "it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit" (Eph. 3:5). The church is "built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord" (Eph. 2:20, 21). Christ is the corner stone, and the apostles built upon Him to form the foundational truths to guide the church.

The author of the Book of Hebrews also wrote of the same Holy Spirit guidance of the apostles: "How shall we escape, if we neglect so great a salvation? which having at the first been spoken through the Lord, was confirmed unto us by them that heard; God also bearing witness with them, both by signs and wonders, and by manifold powers, and by gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to his own will" (Heb. 2:3, 4 ASV).

John wrote that his function as an apostle was to bring the Word of Life, that is, the Divine Messenger, Jesus Christ, to the disciples:

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life. . . That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full. This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you. I John 1:1-5

Peter wrote "that you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles" (II Peter 3:2 RSV). John also knew of the same Holy Spirit guidance; he wrote, "The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show unto his servants, even the things which must shortly come to pass: and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John; who bare witness of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ" (Rev. 1:1, 2 ASV; 1:10, 11, 19; 2:1ff.; 4:2; 14:13; 19:9; 21:5). These Scriptures show that the apostles knew of the guidance that enabled them to write with Christ's authority. This was the method Christ established to communicate His Word to distant areas and to future times.

Today we know about Jesus Christ and His redemptive work and revelation only through the writings of the Lord's apostles and their associates. The written Word has its source in Jesus Christ's calling and commissioning of the apostles; the Word cannot be separated from Christ and the Holy Spirit.
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From chapter 1 of Authority of Scripture, © copyright 2000 by Leland M. Haines, Northville, MI.

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