Are the apostles the foundation?

On Sunday, October 26, 2008, in Zoetermeer, I gave a presentation in which I explained how Peter and Paul, as authorized individuals (apostles), have ensured the establishment of the canon of the NT. On the basis of Ephesians 2:20, I told the assembly that the called-out-ones have not laid their own foundation, but that the apostles, themselves, constitute the foundation of the ecclesia. I was, at that point, interrupted by a listener, but said that I first would like to finish the presentation. Anyway, afterwards the brother came to me and said: “With all due respect, I fundamentally disagree with you on one point. You said that the apostles are the foundation, but I ab-so-lute-ly do not believe that to be correct. The apostles have laid the foundation, because I read in 1 Cor. 3:11, ‘For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.’ In Ephesians 2:20, it says that the Ecclesia is built on the foundation of the apostles. That is different from the apostles being the foundation.” Of course, I could not do anything else but agree with this brother. And hereby, I am passing on the correction. The foundation of the apostles is the spoken and recorded word of the apostles. It are not the apostles themselves, but what they have written down about Christ, that constitutes the foundation of the Ecclesia. Also the explanation I gave, as an aside, concerning the cornerstone in the building, I consider dubious at second thought. A cornerstone could, indeed, very well be a capstone in the building, but not necessarily so. The same word that is used in Eph.2:20 for “cornerstone”, we meet in 1Pet.2:6, which is quoted from Isa.28:16. In both cases, it refers, undeniably, to the foundation stone, ‘Christ Jesus’, the ‘stone’ on which the building is built, and over which one can trip and stumble. All this, once again, confirms the fact: Take nothing at face value with respect to what this site puts forward, but search out the Scriptures yourself, “whether these things are so”. ——————————— translation: Peter Feddema

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