In this daily Bible reading is the account of Jesus rising from the dead on the third day and appearing to the disciples. Interestingly, Jesus appeared first to Mary Magdalene at the tomb.
When Jesus first appeared to the disciples, He breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven. If you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.” I believe that this commission applied to the Apostles only, and not priests in general.
The Apostles knew Jesus personally and were given power to heal, cast out demons, and in Peter’s case, to raise the dead. Those powers do not exist today.
I do not believe that Apostles exist today. They existed to establish Jesus’ church and give it a good foundation. They also existed to write the New Testament or to guide the writing of the New Testament. I believe that when they died, Apostles ceased to exist.
