Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners but fellow citizens with the saints and of the household of God. And are built upon the FOUNDATION of the APOSTLES and PROPHETS, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief CORNERSTONE (Eph. 2:19-20).

A friend recently asked: Doesn’t the above verse mean the present body of Christ in 2025 is a continuation of the “little flock” in the gospels and the Pentecostal “church of God” in Acts since it is “founded on the apostles and prophets”?

Well, I must admit that for years I thought it did. And today billions of believers around the world still believe it does. But the truth it doesn’t and here’s why. The apostles and prophets of Eph. 2:20 are not the prophets of Old Testament times, nor are they the apostles Jesus appointed in the gospels.

Is there scriptural proof that, you ask? Yes, coming right up. But first let’s examine the important phrase “household of God”. It’s the Greek word for a man’s intimate household, his family, extended or otherwise. The tiny faithful remnant of Israel are part of it and so are believers saved in the present grace dispensation. And both we and they are included in God’s over-arching eternal household, the cornerstone of which is Christ Himself.

But there the similarity ends. For the foundation on which Israel’s faithful are built is different to the foundation on which later grace-saved Gentiles are founded. The reason, as summarised above, is that the apostles and prophets referred to in Eph. 2:20 are not the prophets of the Old Testament nor those the Lord sent in either the gospels or Acts periods. Nor are the apostles in Eph. 2:20 the apostles the Lord commissioned during his earthly ministry.

For proof of that we turn to the passage of Eph. 4:7-13. Here in verse 11 we see that that “some apostles and prophets”, along with “some evangelists, pastors and teachers” were given by the Lord AFTER He “ascended on high” (Eph. 2:8-9-10). Which is why they are rightly described as “ascension gift ministries”. Importantly, since these ministries were not “given” nor sent until after the Lord’s ascension, they cannot possibly be those He earlier chose and sent out prior to his ascension to glory in the highest heaven.

So, my friend asked, where do we find these apostles and prophets named in the Bible? Well, Paul is one. Not only was he “born out of due time” (1 Cor. 15:8), meaning he did not see Jesus when the Lord was on earth, but was saved and commissioned  only when the risen glorified Lord appeared to him from heaven on the road to Damascus. Thus, he was commissioned by the Lord from his throne above as an apostle and prophet.

Are there others? Yes. They include, Titus, Epaphras, Timothy and others as mentioned in Paul’s post Acts epistles. Please note, most of these men were given only temporary commissions. That is, their ministry ceased upon their death. Which by the way is why there no biblically validated, special ministries such as apostle, prophet, pastor or teacher sent by the Lord today. Instead every called-of-God believer is called as a minister to “edify” or build up the “body of Christ” (Eph. 1:22-2).

That said, please note that Paul is an exception. His ministry as an apostle continues to this day by virtue of his teaching being preserved in scripture but not that of the others.

But, you might wonder, why did the Lord send apostles and prophets as recorded in Eph. 2:20, when He no longer does so today? The answer is that they were given to help believers in the “church (i.e. calling) of God” (Acts 20:28) make the move from  Acts Pentecostal truth into the better, long hidden, but now revealed, dispensation of the grace and the mystery (Eph. 3:1-6, Col. 1:25-27) with its completed salvation and firm hope of glory.

Accordingly, Eph. 4:12-13 tells us the “ascension gift” apostles and prophets’ mission was to “perfect” these saints, meaning to bring them into something greater – i.e. the fullness of grace and the mystery. Evidently, without this “icing on the cake” their walk of faith in the Lord would be incomplete.  For, to be “perfect” does not mean made irrevocably holy. Rather the Greek word katartismos means to fully furnish or make complete.

But how would they made complete? Surely, by believing and being greatly changed by the truth of the new dispensation of grace and the mystery revealed by the risen all-powerful Lord to Paul when the latter was in prison.                

Let me say it again. In Eph. 2:20 the Apostle Paul is not referring to the 12 apostles of Jesus the Messiah to Israel. He is referring to the apostles and prophets declared in Eph. 4:7-12 to be the ascension gift ministries Christ Jesus the Lord gave in grace from his position exalted high above the heavens in glory. Thus in a very real sense GRACE from on high is now the foundation of our new calling, since Paul says his apostleship (post Acts 28:28 ) is entirely by GRACE.

As to why such ministries ended in the first century, Eph. 4:7-8 declares that now, in this new dispensation, “unto EVERYONE of us is given GRACE according to the measure of the gift of Christ. “Wherefore … He gave some apostles and some prophets and some evangelists and some pastors and teachers” expressly to equip sanctified believers (saints) “for (that is, to do) the work of the ministry”. Logically then, the entire work of ministry is now the function of ordinary believers with no especial prophets, apostles, evangelists, teachers or pastors called of God to occupy special positions above them.  

And this grace ministry has a huge and stunning purpose. Every saint is called to “hold forth word of life” (Phil. 2:16) “… until we all come in unity unto a perfect man” (Eph. 4:13.) Evidently, Paul expected Acts period believers to take hold of the new grace and mystery message from the Lord and thus become the “perfect man unto the measure of the stature of the FULNESS of Christ”. (Note that you are only “complete” when you have been filled with all the fullness of God in Christ Jesus, He who now “filleth all in all” (Eph. 1:22-23) with Himself).

Sadly, most believers in the Pentecostal Acts period calling refused to heed the higher calling. Instead they tried to cling to supernatural miracles and gifts of the Acts period after it had closed even though they, and even Paul, could no longer make them work. (For example, after Acts ended the Apostle to the Gentiles could heal neither Timothy’s tummy nor Trophimus whom he “left sick at Miletum” (2 Tim. 4:20).

The supernatural instant healings had ceased but the real tragedy was that most believers would not receive the good news of unlimited grace and perfected salvation. Sadly Paul has to write to Timothy: “All those that be in Asia be turned away from me” (2 Tim. 1:15).

Note, they didn’t turn away until Paul by grace declared the mystery that it is now “Christ in you” that is “the hope of glory”, not any form of self-effort, and that those that believe this new truth are “complete in Christ” (Col. 2:10).  After all, raising us to live in glory is something only God, not man, can do. But they rejected it, as many Christians still do today.

Reading the context of Eph. 2:20 it is clear that Christ Himself is the corner stone – the foundation (vs. 20). The chapter is addressed to “you Gentiles” (vs 1). Today Paul is still the apostle and prophet to us Gentiles. And he declares through scripture that God is still calling those who trust Him to be made “one new man” (vs. 15), his new creation in which both Jewish and Gentile believers are made one.

Of course, it is true that in the earlier Acts Pentecostal dispensation Paul did indeed lay a foundation. 1 Cor. 3:10):

According to the grace of God which is given unto me (Paul) as a wise master builder I HAVE LAID THE FOUNDATION, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereon.

But, emphatically this is not the foundation laid in the grace and mystery dispensation. That is laid by Christ Himself in the full abundance of GRACE, which I hope you will agree, is in itself now the one and only lasting FOUNDATION.

John Dudley Aldworth

Email: john.aldworth@hotmail.com

Website: https://www.dayofchristmnistries.com/rss/all.xml