Why Are You There?

“Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus, by the will of God” Ephesians 1:1

Apostle – We are all familiar with Paul’s typical greeting.  Most of his letters begin like this one.  We know that Paul is an apostle.  But have we ever stopped to consider if Paul’s description of his choosing has anything to say to us?  Or is the title “apostle” just a relic from a past age?

If you’ve spent much time in the church, you know that the Apostles were men who were handpicked by Jesus, had seen him in the flesh and witnessed his resurrection.  On those terms, we don’t qualify.  But it’s not the title that is at issue here.  What matters is the source of your authority.

The word apostolos means “one who is sent on behalf of another”.  It is the equivalent of “ambassador” or “representative”.  The word is not restricted to the Twelve, or even to the Eleven plus Paul.  Barnabas, Andronicus and Junias are called apostolos.  In fact, so is Jesus (Hebrews 3:1).  Of course, there is the special designation for the Twelve, but the term has a broader meaning as well.  This is something we should not forget.  Why?  Because it applies directly to every one of us.

Are you “one who has been sent by another”?  If you are, then the source of your authority for what you are doing is not you.  It is the one you represent.  You have been elected to speak and do the things someone else entitles you to do.  Just like the members of our Congress, you are the voice of the one who sent you.  What you say and do reflects the sender, not you.

So here’s the question.  Have you been sent to the job you are doing today?  Have you been sent to the neighborhood you live in?  Have you been sent to the church you attend?  Have you been sent to the group of friends you have?  If you cannot answer “Yes” to any of these questions, why are you there?  Apostles do not go wherever they happen to feel like going.  They are sent.  They perform the duties that the sender wants them to perform.  They follow orders.

One of the greatest tragedies of life today is our failure to understand apostolos.  The church has convinced us that we are sent to the lost to evangelize the world, but it has failed to see that “Christ in me” means I am sent in every arena of life.  I’m not a part-time representative, acting on Jesus’ behalf when I am doing “spiritual” tasks.  My life is completely His.  I am supposed to be sent in everything I do.  My job is to represent Him everywhere He sends me.  I guess that means I better know where He wants me to go, right?

Are you listening to the sender or do you follow your own map?