The Fourteen Apostles

Complied by Levite based on what passed for 'his lesson', Oct 2015
© assigned to CCPC's website

the 12
"Jesus summoned His twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every kind of disease and every kind of sickness. Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; and James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot, the one who betrayed Him. These twelve Jesus sent out after instructing them: 'Do not go in the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter any city of the Samaritans; but rather go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.'"
Matthew 10

1. Simon Peter, Cephas(brother of Andrew) - Writer 1 & 2 Peter. Possibly dictated most of Gospel of Mark.
   Called: Matthew 4:18-22 As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will send you out to fish for people." At once they left their nets and followed him. Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
   'Greatest Hit' Scripture: Matthew 16 : 21 - 23 "From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life. Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 'Never, Lord!' he said. 'This shall never happen to you!' Jesus turned and said to Peter, 'Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.'"
   Acts 2 : 14 - 16 "Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:..."
   Death: nothing in Scripture.
   Traditionally: Crucified in Rome.
   "But, to pass from the examples of ancient days, let us come to those champions who lived very near to our time. Let us set before us the noble examples which belong to our generation. By reason of jealousy and envy the greatest and most righteous pillars of the Church were persecuted, and contended even unto death. Let us set before our eyes the good Apostles. There was Peter who by reason of unrighteous jealousy endured not one nor two but many labours, and thus having borne his testimony went to his appointed place of glory."
   -Clement Of Rome (AD 80)
   "We read the lives of the Caesars: At Rome Nero was the first who stained with blood the rising faith. Then is Peter girt by another, when he is made fast to the cross."
   - Tertullian, 'Scorpiace (Antidote For The Scorpion's Sting)' Ch 15 (200 AD)
2. James (son of Zebedee and older brother of John, also called "James the Greater", Sons of Thunder 'Boanerges' Mark 3:17) Most likely did not write Epistle of James, but it is possible. Probably is not the 'James' of the Council in Acts 15.
   Called: Matthew 4:18-22 (as above)
   'Greatest Hit' Scripture: Mark 5 : 35 - 43
   "He did not let anyone follow him except Peter, James and John the brother of James. When they came to the home of the synagogue leader, Jesus saw a commotion, with people crying and wailing loudly. He went in and said to them, "Why all this commotion and wailing? The child is not dead but asleep." But they laughed at him."
   Death: Acts 12 : 1- 4
   "It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them. He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword. When he saw that this met with approval among the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Festival of Unleavened Bread. After arresting him, he put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover."
   Traditionally: The assertion that James traveled to Spain to preach between Pentecost and his Martyrdom in Jerusalem is baseless.
   
3. John 'the Beloved' (son of Zebedee and brother of James, Sons of Thunder 'Boanerges' Mark 3:17) - Writer of Gospel of John, 1, 2, 3 John, Revelation.
   Called: Matthew 4:18-22 (as above)
   'Greatest Hit' Scripture: Luke 9 : 28 - 31
   "About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. 29 As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. 30 Two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem."
   "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched - this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. We write this to make our joy complete."
   - 1 John 1 : 1 - 4
   Death: Not directly recorded in Scripture. Exile mentioned Revelation 1 : 6
   "I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus."
   Tradition: Died either on Patmos or at Ephesus around 100 AD.
   Justin Martyr mentions being with John at Ephesus after the writing of Revelation.
   "And further, there was a certain man with us, whose name was John, one of the apostles of Christ, who prophesied, by a revelation that was made to him..."
   Dialogue With Trypho Ch 81 see below
   Also- Matthew 20: 20 - 23
   The mother of Zebedee's children (James and John) came to Jesus with her sons. She got down on her knees before Jesus to ask something of Him. He said to her, "What do you want?" She said, "Say that my two sons may sit, one at Your right side and one at Your left side, when You are King." Jesus said to her, "You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to take the suffering that I am about to take? (Are you able to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?)" They said, "Yes, we are able." He said to them, "You will suffer as I will suffer. But the places at My right side and at My left side are not Mine to give. Whoever My Father says will have those places.
4. Andrew (brother of Simon Peter)
   Called: as a disciple of John the Baptist:
   John 1 : 35 - 42
   40 Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, "We have found the Messiah" (that is, the Christ). And he brought him to Jesus.
   Scripture: John 6 : 8 - 10
   Another of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, spoke up, "Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?" Jesus said, "Have the people sit down."
   Death: nothing in Scripture
   Traditionally, tied to a Roman cross in Patras, Achaea, Greece in about 60 AD. The tradition of the "X" shaped "cross of St. Andrew" developed centuries later. There is no evidence of him traveling to Africa.
5. Philip of Bethsaida (One 'L', not Phillip the Evangelist or 'the Deacon')
   Called: John 1 : 43 - 44
   The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, "Follow me." Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida.
   Scriptures: John 6 : 5 - 7
   When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, "Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?" He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do. Philip answered him, "It would take more than half a year's wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!"
   and: John 14 : 8 - 9
   Philip said, "Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us." Jesus answered: "Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'?"
   Death: Nothing in Scripture
   Various traditions have Philip preaching in Asia Minor where he was martyred at Hierapolis in about 80 AD. The speculation of the finding of his tomb in 2011 is interesting, but, that is all it is.
6. Thomas =(Didymus 'the Twin', "Doubting Thomas"). The assertion that he was the 'twin brother' of Jesus is nonsense. The so called "Gospel of Thomas" was written centuries after his death, as to whether he may have passed on some of the sayings to the Gnostic writer of the book is unknown, but is not outside the realm of possibility.
   Called: unknown, already listed among disciples in Mark 3
   Greatest Hit Scripture: John 20 : 26 - 29
   Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!"
   Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."
   Death: Nothing in Scripture.
   Traditionally Thomas journeyed and preached "in the East" and almost certainly made it to the Persian (Parthian) provinces of Rome in today's Iraq. Other legends have him going as far as India, but those are less credible. He is said to have been martyred in Persia and buried in Edessa in what is now south central Turkey.
7. Bartholomew, Nathaniel / Nathanael
   Called and Greatest Hit Scripture: introduced to Christ by Philip. John 1 : 45 - 49
   Philip found Nathanael and told him, "We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote - Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph." "Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?" Nathanael asked "Come and see," said Philip. When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, "Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit." "How do you know me?" Nathanael asked. Jesus answered, "I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you." Then Nathanael declared, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel."
   also John 21
   "Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together."
   Death: Nothing in Scripture.
   There is reasonable non-scriptural evidence that he traveled to the Northeast as far as Armenia where the Armenian Church regards him, and Jude as its founders, hence The Armenian Apostolic Church.... To wit:
   "Christianity in Armenia can be traced back to the age of the Apostles. The Apostles Thaddeus and Bartholomew were the first evangelizers of Armenia and, according to tradition, were martyred there."
   http://www.armenianprelacy.org/church-history/church-history
8. Matthew Levi of Capernaum (the tax collector) Writer of Gospel of Matthew
   Called: Luke 5 : 27 - 28
   After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. "Follow me," Jesus said to him, and Levi got up, left everything and followed him.
   Scripture: There is no direct quote from Matthew in the Bible. He is only mentioned after his Call in the lists of Apostles such as Acts 1 : 12 - 14:
   "Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day's walk from the city. When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers."
   Death: Nothing in Scripture
   Tradition holds that Matthew preached in and around Judea and may have traveled as far as Persia and the Median area (northwestern Iran). The stories of his traveling to Ethiopia with Andrew are not credible. There is no historical consensus to how or where he died, some even say he died a natural death and was not martyred (Clement of Alexandria, for one).
   Also: The Cathedral in Salerno, Italy claims to be built over the tomb of Matthew, however, the church was not built until 1076, a thousand years, or so, after the Apostle died. There is no reason to believe he's beneath it.
9. James the son of Alphaeus, also called "James the Lesser / Younger".
   Called: Already a follower when listed with the twelve in Mark 3 : 13 - 19
   "Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him. He appointed twelve that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach and to have authority to drive out demons. These are the twelve he appointed: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter), James son of Zebedee and his brother John (to them he gave the name Boanerges, which means "sons of thunder"), Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him."
   Scripture: There are no other direct references to him or to anything he said or did with the terms associated with this James in the Gospels or Acts. Was he the writer of James and / or Brother of Jesus? (probably not). May or may not be the 'James' of Acts 15. There are at least four James's in the Gospels and Acts, they are not always identified with modifiers.
   Death: Nothing in Scripture.
   One tradition maintains that he was killed by the Pharisees by being thrown off the top of the Temple. Another has him martyred in Egypt. Neither is overly reliable.
10. Simon the Canaanite / Zealot
    Called: Listed with the 12 in Matthew 10, Luke 6, and Mark 3.
    Scripture: There is no other mention of him in the Gospels except as being with the other Apostles.
    Death: nothing in Scripture.
    Traditionally he is regarded as having been martyred by being sawn in half. However, exactly where this occurred is unknown. There are tales of his preaching everywhere from Britain to Russia along the Black Sea (Georgia / Colchis), from Egypt to Persia, but nothing reliable is found in historically credible documents.
11. Thaddaeus / Judas son of James (Lebbaeus, Jude) the brother of James the Lesser, (a Brother of Jesus, possibly a brother/cousin of Matthew of Capernaum,). Probably the author of the Epistle.
    Call, Scripture references. He is only mentioned in the lists of the Apostles such as Matthew 10 and Luke 6. No direct quotes or other mentions in the Gospels or Acts. Note: parts of 2 Peter reference topics from Jude, such as 2 Peter 2 : 12 and Jude 10.
    Death: Nothing in Scripture.
    Traditionally he is said to have been martyred in Beirut in about 65 AD. However, other legends differ, such as: See Armenia note under Bartholomew.
12. Judas Iscariot "who also betrayed him", always identified as such.
    Call: Numbered with the 12 as sent out in Matthew 10 and other references.
    'Greatest Hit' Scripture: Matthew 26 : 23 - 25
    Jesus replied, "The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with me will betray me. The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born." Then Judas, the one who would betray him, said, "Surely you don't mean me, Rabbi?” Jesus answered, "You have said so."
    Death: some discrepancy in Scripture between Matthew 27's hanging of himself and Acts 1 : 18: "With the payment he received for his wickedness, Judas bought a field; there he fell headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines spilled out."
    The so called "Gospel of Judas" is not credible.
13. The "Spare": Matthias
    After the Ascension, the Apostles chose a replacement for Judas. The lot fell to Matthias over Barsabbas (Justus), "and he was numbered with the Eleven." Acts 1 : 26
    Scripture: There is no other mention of him in the New Testament.
    Death: Nothing in Scripture.
    Traditionally it is related that he traveled to Cappadocia in central Turkey where it is said he preached to cannibal tribes, supposedly with Andrew, who was evidently very busy. These stories are without empirical basis. Works from the third century place Matthias in Jerusalem where he was either stoned by the Jews, or died of old age.
14. The Least: Saul of Tarsus / Paul
    Pharisee. Author of the Pauline Epistles, probably the author (or originator) of Epistle to the Hebrews.
    Prior to being called: Acts 23 : 6
    "Then Paul, knowing that some of them were Sadducees and the others Pharisees, called out in the Sanhedrin, "My brothers, I am a Pharisee, descended from Pharisees...."
    Called: Acts 9 : 3 - 5
    As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" "Who are you, Lord?" Saul asked. "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting," he replied.
    Scripture: The Least of the Apostles - 1 Corinthians 15 : 3 - 9
    "For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born. For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God."
    Greatest Hit:
    "I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand, which is the distinguishing mark in all my letters. This is how I write."
    - 2 Thessalonians 3 : 17
    Death: Nothing definite in Scripture beyond his two year imprisonment in Rome, Acts 28 : 30. Various traditions hold that Paul was beheaded by order of Nero. There is no reason to doubt this fate. There is no credible evidence that he ever made it to Spain.

Sources:
All Links Will Open In New Window

• http://BibleGateway.com
• http://BibleHub.com

• Justin Martyr, Clement Of Rome, Tertullian
  http://www.earlychristianwritings.com
• Christian Classics Ethereal Library
  http://www.ccel.org/
• Armenian Apostolic Church
  http://www.armenianprelacy.org
• The Catholic Encyclopedia
  http://www.newadvent.org

NOTE:This document is presented as a proof of concept of what can be done with "original content" for web display on the church's site to those associated with CPCC. Nothing More, nothing less.
The Sunday School Lesson so presented is probably the single worst such lesson ever presented in a church in the Brotherhood, but, as such, it makes an excellent bad example. Everything so presented by others, Will Be Better!