It is very popular, even trendy in today's Christianity to be know as an apostle or to be speaking with prophetic authority in the Name of Jesus. Much of what the Church does in the Name of the Lord is not done unto the honour and praise of Y’Hovah and is not necessarily acceptable to Him. Most is done for the glory of the denomination or the local Church, or even the leadership parading ones position and popularity, or its great charitable service and acceptance by the community.
The Christian Church loves to be loved by the world around it! If you live only for today and not the future you will fail the test of Scripture. You may be popular with the people who love
to have their ears tickled, but please don’t challenge or correct me.
If you can’t see the bigger picture of Elohim’s plan and His coming Kingdom here on earth, then you will forever be caught up in the backwaters of personal pursuit. No matter how
big and grandiose they are, personal goals and dreams without Elohim’s (God) input and His will being at the forefront will leave us empty and unfulfilled and locked out of the coming
Kingdom. The millennial Kingdom will be a world wide fulfilment far greater than anything we could dream of or envisage in the natural. Only Y’Hovah Ruach (Spirit) can make
this alive to us.
It’s All About Discipleship
The Kingdom of Heaven is about discipleship, true discipleship, the true Body of Yeshua, the true Body of Kingdom believers, called the Kahal, or Ecclesia, or Messiah’s Community, doesn’t have as their emphasis, our apostolic authority, gifts of the Spirit, or its prophetic power, or its ability to draw great crowds.
It’s about discipleship in the Kingdom of Elohim!
Matt. 4:17, 6:9-10, 22:1-14, 24:3-14; Luke 21:25-36
You are not serving the purposes of Y’Hovah if your teaching does not embrace the truth of the coming Kingdom of Elohim. The Sabbath is a type and memorial of that coming Kingdom.
Yeshua is Looking For Disciples Not Apostles, Prophets Teachers, Evangelists or Pastors For His Kingdom
The “Twelve” were know as Disciples of Yeshua. Yeshua and others always addressed them as disciples not apostles. Matthew 10:1-6,24; Luke 6:12-13
Disciples first, apostles second.
They were known as and lived as disciples of Yeshua, and functioned as apostles out of that place of discipleship.
Disciples are who they were, it was their position and their relationship to Yeshua. Matthew 14:13-21. (Loaves & Fishes)
Apostle was their function and job description.
(Of the four writers of Yeshua’s history, Mathew, Mark, Luke and John, together they only used the term apostles 8 times. Once in Mathew (10:2), once in Mark (3:14) and six times in
Luke. Not once by John. Disciple was used about 270 times)
So where does the importance lie?
In the meaning of the word disciple!
A Disciple Is
The word here for disciple, Greek Mathetes, means - to learn, become a pupil, enrol as a scholar, that is a disciple. The Twelve were under the tutorship of Yeshua.
As His followers and learners, ie disciples, they were to come into an understanding of who He was, why He came, where He came from, what was His message and therefore theirs.
If we are true disciples of Yeshua and His Kingdom, our life and our message will mirror His. If it doesn’t we are not His disciples and will not be part of His Kingdom at the first resurrection.
Discipleship is not about one who studies, who goes to Bible College or seminary or uni and gains academic and theological knowledge. A disciple is one who understands truth as it is
taught by Yeshua, the apostles and prophets and one who follows and actively involves himself in what he is learning, without deviation or altering any of it. The Twelve disciples served, honoured, followed and obeyed Yeshua implicitly as their number one priority and it was relationship based. Luke 14:25-35. Otherwise you “cannot be My Disciple.”
This is Scriptural or Biblical Discipleship.
Matthew 15:1-20. Where wrong teachings and the traditions of men are sacrosanct and followed religiously, Yeshua says, leave them, have nothing to do with them, they are the blind leading the blind. (v14)
John 8:25-31. If you follow Me and My teachings, then you are following the truth as defined by My Father, then you will really be My disciples.
John 15:1-10. Here our Heavenly Father is doing a pruning work in our lives through Yeshua and the Ruach HaKodesh from all that is false and not of Him. This He says will make us
very fruitful. This fruitfulness will show that we are genuinely His disciples, that we are true learners and followers of Him.
Only Disciples Understand and Inherit The Kingdom.
If there is no genuine heart for the truth and the ways of Elohim, then the Almighty will keep you deaf and blind to the truth. Matthew 13:10-19.
The Kingdom of Elohim and its purpose in the earth for 1000 years, between the first and second resurrections is very important, and only for the “few”, the “remnant”, the “chosen.”
He closes the door to everyone He doesn’t want in it, until the second resurrection comes.
Now look at v33-35 and 51-52. (Disciples ask why parables)
Yeshua said I speak in riddles, parables or hard sayings, revealing things old and new to those who are true Torah scholars. He says these people, the disciples and those like them, have been discipled “into” (not “for” but “eis”, Greek for into) the Kingdom of Heaven. To hear, understand and obey is to be discipled into the Kingdom.
What is the purpose of Yeshua’s ministry and for hiding important truths and teachings in parables? To prepare those He has chosen to be disciples as worthy of His Kingdom, and to
rule and reign with Him. The Sadducees and Pharisees, and those like them in today's religious and sectarian world, stuck in their systems and traditions, who cannot see or hear because of the hardness of their hearts, religious beliefs and unrepentant souls.
Only Disciples Can Make Disciples.
If one is not a true disciple of Yeshua, then you cannot make disciples fit or ready for the Kingdom of Elohim.
Matthew 28:16-20.
These are the last and final words to the eleven disciples before Yeshua departs from them. They are therefore the most crucial words to get right if we are going to do the work to which His disciples and us are called to do.
Christianity calls this “The Great Commission”. They say it’s the call to the evangelisation of or the taking of the Christian gospel to all the world. Their emphasis is to make the world Christian. But this is nothing like what Yeshua said at all.
Yeshua gave His disciples authority to go and make disciples - just as He did of them - from all nations or peoples, or pagans or Gentiles. Then He tells them to immerse them “into” the
Name of the Father, Son and Ruach HaKodesh. To be immersed “into” (not in) the Name, is to be discipled into the Kingdom.
The collective Name in this verse for the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, in this Scriptures is Y’Hovah. They are all Y’Hovah manifest in these three ways to accomplish salvation for all
mankind. Christianity calls this the Trinitarian Baptismal Formula of the gospel message.
But this Scripture properly translated has no such formula in it.
I will explain it this way.
Y’Hovah is Elohim of Gen 1:1 fame. Yeshua is also Elohim. Y’Hovah Elohim of Genesis 1:1 is called the Creator, the Law giver, the Life giver, Judge, Saviour, King of Israel and I Am.
Yeshua was also called Elohim, Creator, Redeemer, Saviour, Messiah or King and Law giver, Judge and the I Am. When Y’Hovah Elohim of Israel reveals Himself as Yeshua, the relationship between the two is spoken of as a Son to a Father. Yeshua’s relationship to Y’Hovah Elohim is not seen as Elohim to Elohim, for Yeshua is subordinate to the Father, but
is not inferior.
The exercise of “all authority in heaven and on earth” given to Yeshua, will be returned to Y’Hovah the Father when all His work is finished. That is when all the earth is brought into subjection to the will of the Father by the Son. 1 Cor. 15:22-28. The Ruach HaKodesh (or Holy Spirit) is Elohim. Ruach’s relationship to Y’Hovah Elohim is spoken of as the Breath, Wind, Fire, Revealer of the will and reminder of the words of the Father and the Son. Y’Hovah Ruach is described as one which Sets us Apart or makes us Kodesh, who Indwells us, Clothes us, Regenerates and gives us New Life. Y’Hovah Ruach guides, leads, teaches, unites and anoints us, and enables us to live righteous, good and spiritual Law abiding lives.
Finally what are we told to teach all other peoples?
We are to teach them to observe or keep and obey everything that Y’Hovah Yeshua has commanded, changing nothing, adding nor subtracting anything. Deut. 4:2,12:32, Rev. 22:18-19
We are to walk as He walked, teach what He taught. That is the Good News of the Kingdom of Heaven. We need to focus on true discipleship and the Kingdom of God This is the narrow way that leads to life. Yeshua often said, “The one who has ears to hear, let Him hear.” Luke 14:35.