English
Português
Español
Français
Answer
The Greek verb apostello [αποστελλω] appears 132 times in the New Testament, meaning to “send away,” “send out,” or “send off.” The noun form is apostolos, which means “one who is sent out” and is the root of the English term apostle. It is used in the New Testament to describe individuals or objects being sent. Morphologically, apostello is created by combining the Greek preposition apo, meaning “out of” or “from,” and stello, meaning “to put in order” or “arrange.” Etymologically, apostello evolved to simply mean “send.”
At least 25 verses in the Bible use apostello to depict God “sending” Jesus (see Matthew 10:40;Mark 9:37;Luke 9:48;John 3:17). Another 28 verses use apostello to describe God or Jesus sending someone or something (see Matthew 10:16;Mark 11:1;Luke 9:2;John 17:18). In Luke 11:49, Jesus mentions God’s declaration, “I will send [apostello] them prophets and apostles [apostolos].”
Due to its frequent use in the New Testament, apostello has been adopted by numerous churches, Christian organizations, missions agencies, and causes as part of their name. Every Christian is essentially a “sent one” (Matthew 28:19-20;Acts 1:8). We are all sent to proclaim the gospel to the lost and dying world around us. Whether it is to a nearby place or a distant location, we are all sent as God’s ambassadors.
