“Even before the resurrection of Christ, most of the people who could work miracles were not apostles. And the apostles had nothing to do with how these disciples gained their power. The apostles had always been a small minority of those who could work miracles. Supernatural power was never an exclusive right or power associated with the apostles.

…The apostles themselves were the minority among miracle-workers even before the death and resurrection of Christ. And then they became the super tiny minority of miracle-workers from the first hour that the Holy Spirit was poured out.”

— Vincent Cheung

The apostles were never the sole standard. They were not the model of miraculous power, but a minority within a much larger plan. From the early days of Christ’s ministry, others were already healing the sick and casting out demons. Some of them were unnamed and untrained, and had no authorization from any human authority. These people had no apostolic office and no connection to the Twelve. Yet Jesus defended them and assumed that their faith alone was sufficient. They were outnumbering the apostles before the resurrection. 

The real pattern was faith and obedience, not ordination and exclusion. Supernatural power was never tied to title or rank. It never belonged to a restricted class or official lineage. Miracles followed faith wherever it was found, because the power never belonged to the apostles. It came from God directly, and God gave it freely. Jesus trained the Twelve, but he also empowered the seventy and many others. He poured out power on men and women, on new believers and strangers to the religious community. The apostles were not the gate. They were a temporary witness to a gate that was never theirs to control.

God did not assign the Twelve to limit the work. Their role showed that the call was open to anyone. The moment they received power, many others also received independently of the apostles. As they began to preach, others were also performing miracles, often more powerful and spectacular than those the apostles performed. Any attempt to tie miracle power to their office, or to any office, betrays what Christ began. The Spirit was never meant to be hoarded. He was always meant to be shared, to fill many, and to work through all who believe.

Historic orthodoxy has not only misunderstood the apostles, it has weaponized them against the very gospel the apostles preached. By turning them into sacred gatekeepers of power and tradition, the institutional church has erased the biblical record and replaced it with a myth. Scripture never taught that the apostles were the sole bearers or regulators of miracle power. Jesus himself denied them that status. But generations of theologians, both Catholic and Protestant, have crafted a false image of the apostles to reinforce human authority, suppress faith, and centralize control. This is treason. It is an anti-Christian distortion that glorifies men and excuses unbelief, while rejecting the pattern established by Christ. The apostles never held exclusive power. More than anyone, they were the ones called to proclaim that no one is excluded from wielding the supernatural power of God.