CALLED TO DISCIPLESHIP
Mark 3:13-20
CALLED TO SPREAD THE WORD
V:13 Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him. 14 He appointed twelve — designating them apostles — that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach 15 and to have authority to drive out demons. 16 These are the twelve he appointed: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter); 17 James son of Zebedee and his brother John (to them he gave the name Boanerges, which means Sons of Thunder); 18 Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot 19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.
John the Baptist prepared the way for Jesus' ministry. He preached in the wilderness
and baptized those who followed him. He preached the coming of the Messiah.
Many of John's followers became Jesus' disciples.
John 1:35-37
35 The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, "Look, the Lamb of God!"
37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus
John was six months older than
than Jesus so perhaps he preached six months before Jesus started His ministry.
Jesus began teaching at thirty years old. Crowds followed Him because He taught the Word
and His healing powers.
Luke 5:15-16
15 Yet the news about him spread all the more so that crowds of people came to hear him and to be healed of their sicknesses.
We have to spend time in the Word to develop a relationship with Jesus and to know His
power and authority over our lives.
It was Jesus who called us out of the crowd to be His disciples. Those He calls He ordains to be
preachers and teachers of the Word. Jesus gave His apostles power and authority over demons.
Today believers have that same power in the Word.
James 4:7-8
7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come near to God and he will come near to you.
We must study the Word before we can teach and preach the Word. Our mission is to proclaim
the Word of God to those we come in contact with (Matthew 28:19).
Jesus knows each believer by name. He knew us before we were born and predestined us
to be with Him (Ephesians 1:4).
Jesus chose 12 apostles after the 12 tribes of Israel. You and I are adopted sons and daughters of
the Father. Jesus is our elder brother.
Some are called to preach. Some are called to teach. Some disciple gets a lot of attention. Others
serve in the background and are never mentioned. Peter, James, and John got the most attention
during Jesus' ministry. Other disciples record the Gospel and the work of Jesus. We all are called
to serve whether in the foreground or the background. Those who get the most attention get
the most criticism.
Throughout the Gospel mission, Jesus adds others to serve; like Paul, Barnabas, Mark, Luke, and James the half-brother of Jesus. Others serve quietly and are never seen.
Ephesians 1:5-6
5 he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.
All believers have a place, a purpose, and a mission.
TRAINED TO SERVE
Mark 6:6-14
Then Jesus went around teaching from village to village. 7 Calling the Twelve to him, he sent them out two by two and gave them authority over evil spirits.
8 These were his instructions: "Take nothing for the journey except a staff — no bread, no bag, no money in your belts. 9 Wear sandals but not an extra tunic. 10 Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town. 11 And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave, as a testimony against them."
12 They went out and preached that people should repent. 13 They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.
Jesus is our example for spreading the Gospel. Where ever we go, we are the voice of Jesus.
We have been called to serve, We have been sent to preach with Jesus’ power and authority.
We wrestle not with flesh and blood but with spiritual wickedness in high places. We have to
have to follow the directions of Jesus to be successful in the mission He has given us.
Our armor is the Word of God. We are to depend on Him for provisions and protection.
Jesus has prepared the way, we have to be willing to go where He sends us.
We can expect that some will reject the Word of God. Our job is not to convince or
prove the Word, it is to proclaim Jesus as Lord and Savior. If we are not received it
our job to leave that person in a corrupt state. We have no further obligation to
those who reject the Word.
We must be careful not to condemn those who reject the Word. They are hearing the word
about Jesus for the first time. Some other believers may come and water what was planted
and their belief begins.
In the Church, there are believers and pretenders. Judas was chosen by Jesus, but
he was a pretender. The pretenders remind us of ourselves. How much of the Word do
we accept and how much do we reject because of the lust of our flesh? We are all in
a growing process. We may have Jesus as Lord and Savior cemented in our faith, but
not be completely submitted to all the Word of God.
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