Let us look at some verses. As nouns the difference between disciple and apostle is that disciple is a person who learns from another, especially one who then teaches others while apostle is a missionary, or leader of a religious mission, especially one in the early christian church (but see apostle) or apostle can be (legal) a letter dismissory. An apostle is sent to deliver or spread those teachings to others. The twelve apostles mentioned above were Jesus’ closest disciples. These were the men who were sent to far off lands to act as messengers. Apostle is a see also of disciple. In the Bible, all disciples are not apostles, but all apostles are disciples. In general both the words refer to a passionate student of certain philosophies and beliefs that he looks to spread by preaching people around him. Matthew 10:7-8, for example: “[7] And as ye [12 Apostles] go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. There were many more disciples referenced within Scripture who were not considered to be apostles. The apostles of Jesus were called on different occasions by Jesus to aid in His own work, irrespective of where they were from or their varied professional backgrounds. The 12 disciples that are listed in Scripture are: Peter, James, John, Andrew, Nathanael (Bartholomew), James (son of Alphaeus), Judas, Thaddeus (Jude), Matthew, Philip, Simon and Thomas. There were 12 disciples of Jesus, who later turned into apostles. In that sense, all apostles are disciples, These same men became the 12 initial apostles. Irrespective of their hard work the … The Apostles were given special authority of God—over sickness, evil spirits, and so on. While a disciple is a student, one who learns from a teacher, an apostle is sent to deliver those teachings to others. Jesus Christ selected the 12 apostles from among his early followers to become his closest companions. Out of his many followers, Jesus chose the 12 to travel and learn from him; also these men were originally the Disciples of Christ. In Christianity the words “apostle” and “disciple” are often interchanged, but in truth refer to different realities. "Apostle" means messenger, he who is sent. They were also to preach the Gospel valid for their dispensation. Disciple is a synonym of apostle. It was these 12 apostles who reclined at the table with Jesus to eat the Passover while Jesus predicted what was going to happen to him, one of them would deny knowing him and another would betray him. Another article: Apostle vs Disciple - Difference and Comparison | Diffen. Apostle vs Disciple Very often the words apostle and disciple are used interchangeably. In fact there is very well little difference between the two. Jesus saw the potential in them and told them He would make them fishers of men. We’ve seen in history how they were the founders of the modern churches as they spread the good news.