Quote:
Originally Posted by Igzy
Hi Drake,
Thanks for the reply. I appreciate it. But, unfortunately, I think the above is not a compelling argument. The Bible never says that believers have to prove their validity as believers to each other. It also never tells us to test whether believers are true believers, and in fact seems to discourage such a course (parable of the wheat and the weeds, Matt 13:24-30).
However, the Bible does give us the ground to test those who claim they are apostles (Rev 2:22), and as you said, Paul felt to prove his apostleship.
There is a big difference between claiming to be a Christ follower and claiming to be an Apostle of Christ. Apostles in the mold of Paul, Peter, John and Timothy had a special commission and authority. They bridged the gap between Christ on earth and the establishment of the New Testament Scriptures as God's unique authority on earth. They were the original "Living Bible."
It's easy to see why people claiming such authority in the latter days are a problem. How do we know they are what they claim? What if there is disagreement? This can cause deep, intractable schisms with reasons to believe either way. Such a situation is exceedingly problematic. We have to look no further than the LCM history for this concern to be validated.
It's seems your argument is working against itself a bit, too. Paul proved his apostleship by performing miracles. This shows that God gave him the power to produce such proof. Why didn't he give it to Lee?
Witness Lee and the present Blendeds are welcome to produce proof of Apostleship. Until they do, as far as I'm concerned they have no authority from God to order churches around. They might have good ministry. They might be good teachers. But without further proof, that's where it ends.
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If miracles are the sign of an apostle then the problem is that the bible does not record every apostle working a miracle. There are about 25 apostles mentioned in the NT:
http://bmarkanderson.com/how-many-ap...ment-12-or-25/
On the other hand, perhaps those who work miracles today are apostles - Benny Hinn etc.
This idea that apostles must work miracles is equivalent to the idea that you cannot have the Spirit unless you speak in tongues.