The Apostolic Letters

With the growth of the church and its expansion to regions and territories outside Palestine, it was necessary for the apostles to choose a means of communication that allowed them to transmit the instruction, counsel—and often correction—to the churches and their leaders. The apostolic letters fulfilled that function. Like any other letter, these epistles contain names, addresses, greetings, farewells, and even common requests that, of course, required no special revelation from God. ^{3See, for example, Paul’s requests to Timothy regarding his clothing and books (2 Timothy 4:13).} Nevertheless, in contrast to ordinary letters, these missives contain divine instruction because they are produced by minds inspired by the Spirit of God.VOTS 71.2

The apostolic letters allow us to analyze yet another form or model the Holy Spirit uses to deliver the divine counsel. We might call it the “epistolary” model of inspiration. The apostles, as messengers of God and leaders of the church, were inspired and impressed by the Holy Spirit to write epistles that, besides greetings and requests, contained divine counsel for the church in general or for congregations or for individuals in particular.VOTS 71.3

This analysis of the apostolic letters can also help us understand the purpose and place of thousands of letters written by a modern prophet. The letters of Ellen White arrived in the hands of hundreds of believers and leaders of the church who were facing particular situations and needed counsel and instruction. Can these letters also offer counsel and correction to those of us who are not their initial recipients? Are the letters of a prophet just as inspired as his visions?VOTS 71.4