Twelve In or Twelve Out?

It would be best for us to begin this subject by asking the question, “have you ever thought to ask if the 12 apostles became members of the body of Christ or not?”  If you have never asked that question, if you have always assumed that the 12 apostles rolled right into a transformation from Israel to the body of Christ, if you have always viewed the New Testament as being the story of Old Testament Israel becoming the Church, then you have been influenced by tradition and you are in need of deeper study within the word of God (2 Tim 2:15).

The question of “did the 12 become members of the body of Christ” can be asked in a similar fashion: “did the 12 apostles and their Kingdom saints that they represented become members of the Church, the body of Christ?”  It is evident from Scripture that some of the Kingdom saints did transition into the body of Christ (Barnabas, Timothy, etc.), but that is not the case for the majority of the Kingdom saints and it is not the case for the 12 apostles.

The answer to this question has doctrinal ramifications.  What you believe about this subject does matter.  If the 12 did become members of the body of Christ that would mean that some of the Hebrew epistles are written to us, the body of Christ, for today.  

There is not a single verse within the Bible that states that the 12 became members of the body of Christ.  There are, however, verses that indicate that they DID NOT become members of the body of Christ:

  • Galatians 2:1-9, read carefully, provides the best passage that demonstrates that the apostle of the Gentiles and the twelve apostles to Israel had different ministries.
  • Galatians 6:15-16 – The “Israel of God” is the Little Flock, the believing remnant of Israel (Lk 12:32).  These verses tell us that there were two groups that the apostle Paul focused his ministry upon: 1) the body of Christ and 2) the Little Flock of believing Israel.
  • Matthew 19:28 – The 12 apostles to Israel could not possibly become members of the body of Christ or they would forfeit being judges to the 12 tribes of Israel during the Millennial Kingdom and future eternity.  The 12 have an inheritance on the earth and not in the heavenly places with the body of Christ (Eph 1:3). 
  • Romans 11:29 – When God gives someone a gift or He calls them to a certain blessing, it is without repentance.  When God called the 12 into the Kingdom program, “the gifts and calling of God were without repentance,” and thus within the Kingdom program they remained.
  • Revelation 21:10, 14 – Paul’s name will not be found on the foundation of the New Jerusalem.  The primary inheritance of this city is believing Israel’s, not that of members of the body of Christ.  The 12 apostles will not be in the New Heaven, but within the city that has their names on its foundation.  
  • 2 Corinthians 5:1 – The apostle Paul expected himself to be “in the heavens” once his life was over.  The body of Christ has a heavenly destiny and the saints saved under the Kingdom program have an earthly destiny (Dan 2:35; Mt 5:5).  The 12 apostles are going to be on the earth after Christ’s Second Coming.  God has an earthly eternal purpose for the 12 apostles.  

The doctrine within the Hebrew Epistles proves that the 12 did not become members of the body of Christ.  The Hebrew Epistles do not even mention the three major doctrines revealed within the Church Epistles for the body of Christ during the age of grace:

1) Justification by the faith OF Christ (Gal 2:16)

2) The body of Christ, the “one new man” (Eph 2:15)

3) The PreTrib Rapture of the body of Christ (1 Thes 4:13-18)

These three subjects are found zero times within the Hebrew Epistles, which Peter and John contributed to.  What is taught in Hebrews through Revelation is contrary to these three foundational doctrines of the Church.

The 12 apostles and the majority of the Kingdom Church remained in their distinct calling.  One of the major errors within Christendom, as taught through the tradition of men, is the belief that the 12 apostles became members of the body of Christ.  They did not.  If one continues to believe this false teaching, varying forms of Replacement Theology, they run the risk of taking our Lord’s instructions for Israel and incorporating those instructions into our Christian walk.  That walk has been defined for us by our apostle, the apostle Paul, the apostle of the Gentiles (Rom 11:13), within his 13 epistles.  

Replacement Theology will quickly lead a person towards placing oneself back under the Law, seeking out water baptism for salvation, believing that “commandment keeping,” “enduring to the end,” and “overcoming” is what the Christian is to engage in when in actuality, those things are WORKS and indicate that that Christian is attempting to do those things while believing that they need to somehow aid in their salvation.  This makes Christ’s sacrifice, His death, burial, and resurrection, something that is not sufficient enough for their salvation.  That is nothing more than slapping God in the face and it will not get that person into heaven at the end of their life.

The twelve apostles to Israel were chosen by Jesus during His earthly ministry to be His representatives to that nation, sent to the “lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Mt 10:5-6; 15:24).  Their mission was focused on proclaiming the Kingdom of God to Israel, which was tied to the expectation of a restored Davidic kingdom (Acts 1:6).  That expectation still exists!  

 

Twelve in or Twelve out?  Did the 12 apostles to Israel become members of the Church, the body of Christ?

The Body of Christ is a distinct entity that began with Paul’s ministry.  The twelve apostles remained within God’s program for Israel.  Their role was to offer the Kingdom to Israel, and only after Israel’s rejection of their Messiah did God’s focus shift to a newly called apostle and to the Body that he, Paul, was the first member of.  The 12 did not join the body of Christ.

 

 


 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *