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Pastor Scott L. Harris
Grace Bible Church, NY
December 8, 2013
The Twelve Apostles
Mark 3:13-19; Luke 6:12-16; cf. Matthew 10:1-4
Introduction
Jesus is God’s chosen servant (Matthew 12:1-14) and the model of servant leadership (See: Jesus, The Servant of God & Jesus, The Model of Servant Leadership). Since every true Christian is a sinner saved by God’s grace, a disciple of Christ and a slave of righteousness, for the last couple of weeks we have been examining how we are to follow Jesus’ example servant leadership in both the home and the church (See: Servant Leadership in the Church & Servant Leadership in the Home). This morning we are returning to Luke 6 and Mark 3 to look at twelve disciples of Jesus that also became examples of servant leadership. Jesus called these men to serve Him in a special way as His apostles. We often think of the apostles as men who accomplished great things for God because they were extraordinary and then conclude that we could not be like them nor accomplish such things. However, as we shall see this morning, these men were ordinary people just like you or me. They accomplished great things not because they were exceptional, but because the God whom they served is extraordinary. They qualified themselves to be used by God by learning to submit their will to the Lord in His service. God was able to use them to lead His church because they first learned to live as His slaves. God can use you in similar ways according to the spiritual gifts He has entrusted to you if you will learn to humbly serve Him as they did.
Jesus’ Preparation – Luke 6:12, Mark 3:13
Turn first to Mark 3:7-12. From this passage we recall that Jesus had been very busy in the region around the Sea of Galilee in teaching, healing and casting out demons. A great number of people had come out to see, hear and touch Jesus, not only from Galilee, but from Judea, Jerusalem and even Idumea to the south, from beyond the Jordan to the east, and Tyre and Sidon to the northwest.
Mark 3:13 then states, “And He went up on the mountain and summoned those whom He Himself wanted, and they came to Him. And He appointed twelve . . . “. Put a book mark there and turn to Luke 6:12-13 which adds some very important detail. “And it was at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God. And when day came, He called His disciples to Him; and chose twelve of them, whom He also named as apostles.” Luke puts an emphasis upon Jesus spending “the whole night in prayer to God.” He did not call the disciples to Himself until it was day. Jesus was not haphazard in the decisions He was making.
Spending time in prayer was a characteristic of Jesus. Back in Mark 1:32-35 we saw that even after Jesus had spent much of the previous evening in healing the multitudes that had come to His home in Capernaum, Jesus got up in the early morning while it was still dark in order to go away to a secluded spot to pray. He did a similar thing here by going to the mountain at night where He could pray without being disturbed. It would seem that the more pressure there was upon Him, the more important prayer was to Him. That is an example that all of us would be wise to follow. When things get hectic, it is easy to put prayer off because so many other things are absorbing the time, yet that is when we are in most need of praying.
More to the point with this particular example, the greater the importance of a decision that has to be made, the greater the importance of prayer. While we need to do the necessary research to gather the facts needed to make a wise decision, we are in even greater need of having such decisions directed by the Lord, and prayer is a critical part of that. How can you claim to be seeking the will of the Father about a decision if you have not talked to Him about it?
Their Calling – Luke 6:13, Mark 3:13-15
Luke 6:13 notes that after Jesus spent the night in prayer, He called His disciples to Himself when the day came. Remember that a disciple is simply a “learner,” a “student” if you will, those who attach themselves to a teacher in order to learn from that teacher. By this point, there would have been many that would have considered themselves to be disciples of Jesus to one degree or another. Mark 3:13 adds the specific point that Jesus summoned to Himself only those whom He Himself wanted, so this was not a general call. It is a summons to specific disciples. In addition, Mark uses proskale;w / proskaleo instead of prosfwne;w / prosphoneo as does Luke, so this is not a casual call, but an urgent invitation for them to come – a summons.
Out of this group of disciples that come to Him, Jesus specifically chooses twelve of them for a special relationship with Him and a special assignment. They will no longer be just disciples. They will now be apostles. What is the difference? A disciple is a learner that follows a teacher, but an apostle is someone sent by an authority with both the power and the right to act on behalf of the one that sent him. You might get the idea when you think of an ambassador that represents one nation to another. The ambassador himself has no authority, but as the representative of his nation, he carries the authority of the nation that sent him. Jesus is entrusting to these twelve men His authority to carry our specific responsibilities on His behalf. The harvest is plentiful and Jesus needs more workers. Jesus is commissioning these twelve men as His co-workers in the harvest, and He gives them His authority to carry out the work.
From this point on the gospel accounts will often refer to these twelve men collectively as “the twelve” which then becomes a synonym for Jesus’ apostles. The term, the twelve, is still used even in John 20:24 and 1 Corinthians 15:5 after Judas had betrayed Jesus and killed himself so that there were only eleven left. Luke 6:14 then continues on to name these twelve men, but Mark 3:14-15 also reveals what responsibilities Jesus was giving them. “And He appointed twelve, so that they would be with Him and that He could send them out to preach, and to have authority to cast out the demons.” Jesus had the authority – the power and right – over these things, and He is now giving that to them. At a later time, Luke 9:1 records that Jesus also gave to them power and authority to heal.
Who were these men that Jesus would entrust to represent Him with such authority? From a human perspective we would expect them to have been extraordinary men of high standing, integrity, will
and courage. Jesus had spent all night praying about the decision, so wouldn’t He pick only the best? Yet they turn out to be ordinary men who are at times sadly lacking in faith, courage, commitment, power, and even spiritual understanding and humility. They were weak, yet proud. Most churches would pass over men like these as potential leaders. They would not pass the psychological profile used by missions organizations to determine who will make it on the mission field. But that is the point I want us to note as we examine each of these men. These are ordinary men like us, yet God changed them and used them mightily.
In Acts 17:6 these same men are described by the heathen as those who “upset (or turned upside down) the world.” Please note that according to 1 Corinthians 1:26-29 that God’s choice is “not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised, God has chosen, the things that are not, that He might nullify the things that are, that no man should boast in His presence.” It is not the ability of the man or the woman, but the ability of God that makes the difference. MacArthur said it well, “The greatness of God’s grace is seen in His choosing the undeserving to be His people and the unqualified to do His work. It should be a marvelous encouragement to every believer to know that, just as Elijah (James 5:17), the apostles had a nature like ours.”
Let us now examine each of the men listed in Luke 6:14-16 and Mark 3:16-19 for what they were like and what they became.
Simon Peter the son of John is the first apostle mentioned. He is also called Peter. He is the foremost of the apostles and is mentioned more often throughout the New Testament than any other. He is brash and bold often asking and answering questions while the others shied away. As a result, he received both blessings and admonishment such as in Matthew 16 where he is praised for confessing that “Jesus is the Christ, the son of God,” and yet only a few verses later Jesus rebukes him saying, “Get thee behind me, Satan.”
Simon Peter is also a man of action. He wants to be in the middle of things and is bold and brave in what he says and does. It was Simon Peter that rose to the Lord’s defense in the garden when the soldiers came to arrest Jesus and took out his short sword and swung it cutting off Mathais’s ear. Only a few hours before, Simon had brashly proclaimed that he would stay with Christ and was ready to be put in jail or die, yet by the next morning he had denied Jesus three times.
We find a bit of an impatient spirit in him too. After His resurrection, the Lord told Simon Peter and the other Apostles to wait in Jerusalem, but he soon became tired of waiting and returned to fishing (John 21:3). The Lord choose a bold, brash, boastful and impatient fisherman named Simon to be one of His apostles, and then turned him into Peter, a fisher of men.
It is interesting to note the usage of his two names. Whenever he is acting out of his flesh, he is called Simon or Simon Peter, but when he is acting in faith for the Lord, he is called Peter. In the Gospel accounts we find he is called Simon more than Peter, but throughout the Book of Acts, he is consistently called Peter.
What changed Simon from a man that could not stand before a servant girl without denying Jesus into Peter, the leading preacher at the beginning of the church? Peter stood before the Sandhedrin on several occasions and boldly proclaimed that they were guilty of the blood of Christ. Peter boldly spread the gospel of Jesus throughout Jerusalem, then followed up on Phillip’s ministry in Samaria, then was the first apostle to take the gospel to the Gentiles (Acts 10).
The difference was a life turned over to the Holy Spirit. That same difference is available to you. Are you like Simon – acting before thinking, boastful, proud, impetuous? God can use you if you will put Him as your first priority and yield yourself to the Holy Spirit. God can also change you from a Simon into a Peter, a man who learned submission, restraint, humility, sacrifice, love and courage. All of these qualities become evident in the Book of Acts and in the two epistles he wrote.
Tradition tells us that after Peter was forced to witness the crucifixion of his wife, he was also crucified, but upside-down at his request because he felt unworthy to die as Jesus had died.
Andrew is next and he is Simon Peter’s brother. They were both originally fisherman from Bethsaida, but when we meet them in the Scriptures, they were fishing out of the town of Capernaum. Andrew was one of Jesus’ very first disciples. He is mentioned in John 1 as a follower of John the Baptizer who was looking for the coming of Messiah. After Andrew met Jesus, the first thing he did was go get his brother Simon. Perhaps that was a fitting beginning for we consistently find that Andrew lives in the shadow of Simon Peter. He is usually referred to as “Simon Peter’s brother.”
Andrew was like Peter in being inquisitive, which is why he found Jesus first, but was more reserved and would ask his questions in private (Mark 13:3-4). Andrew also demonstrated a simple faith. In John 5 when Jesus told the disciples to feed the thousands of people who had been following Him, Andrew simply found what he could, a lad with five barley loaves and two fish, and brought them to Jesus. Andrew had seen Jesus turn the water into wine. He did not know what Jesus would do, he simply trusted He would do something to meet the need.
Andrew was characterized by humility, openness and lack of prejudice. He saw not only the need to bring the gospel to his fellow Jews, “the lost sheep of the house of Israel,” but he apparently also understood the lesson given when Jesus revealed His messiahship to the Samaritan woman. The gospel was to go to all mankind. In John 12 we find him bringing some Gentiles to Jesus who were inquiring about the Lord. He later preached in Scythia and Achaia where he was crucified on a X shaped cross (St. Andrews cross).
Are you like Andrew? You have questions and are a diligent seeker of truth, but you do not like the limelight, you do not like to be the center of attention. Andrew is the example of what the Lord can do through you. He is the model for all Christians who labor quietly in humble places and positions.
James & John, the sons of Zebedee are next. Most of what is said about one is true of the other and throughout the gospels they are usually mentioned together. They were the sons of a fisherman in Capernaum and had become partners with Simon and Andrew. Both sets of brothers are called by the Lord to be disciples on the same day (Matthew 4:18; Mark 1:16). They became intimate friends with Jesus and part of the inner circle that was with Jesus when He was transfigured (Matthew 17) and in the Garden of Gethsemane when Jesus was praying prior to His arrest and crucifixion (Matthew 26).
James and John were characterized early on as being passionate, zealous, aggressive and somewhat vengeful. In Mark 3:17 Jesus described them as “boanerges,” which means “sons of thunder.” Luke 9:52-54 is an example of this. It was getting near Passover and Jesus and the disciples were traveling to Jerusalem. As they were going through Samaria, they became victims of some of the religious and racial animosity that existed between Jews and Samaritans and were refused lodging. James and John responded saying, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” Their passion for Jesus is commendable, for we too should be incensed when someone dishonors the Lord, but their quick sentence of judgement and quest for vengeance was rebuked by the Lord.
They could also be self seeking and were
not above asking their mother to help them gain what they wanted. In Matthew 20:21-22 they get their mother to request of Jesus the right and left hand seats of power when Jesus would come into His kingdom.
If you have that same sort of passion and ambition then take heart. Jesus choose not one, but two brothers that had those characteristics. God can use you, but beware. Those characteristics must be tempered and trained. Their zeal and ambition gained them positions of intimacy with Jesus and prominence among the disciples, but it also got them into trouble.
In the case of James, it was probably his zealous response that eventually caused him to become the first target in Herod’s effort to suppress the early church and consequently the very first martyr among the apostles (Acts 12:2). God needs men who will fearlessly lead and are willing to be martyrs for the kingdom. Such was James and men like the reformers Wycliffe, Hus, Luther, Calvin, as well as countless missionaries, but undirected passion and selfish ambition can be brash, loveless, insensitive and lacking in wisdom, and that only damages the cause of Christ.
While James was the first apostle to be martyred, John was the last to die and the only one that was not a martyr. The Lord extended his life and his epistles written toward the end of his life reveal he developed a very different character. He became gentle, loving and selfless to the point that he became known as the Apostle of love and the beloved Apostle. Part of the reason for this change was how overwhelmed John was over the fact that Jesus loved him. A point seen several times in John’s gospel (John 13:23; 19:26; 20:2; 21:7,20).
The closeness of John’s relationship with Jesus is also seen in that when Jesus was on the cross, He charged John, the only apostle bold enough to be there, to take care of His mother, Mary. Tradition holds that John did not leave Jerusalem until after Mary had died. Eventually he went to Ephesus, and later was banished to the small, barren Isle of Patmos in the Aegean Sea where he received and recorded “Revelations.” He died about 98 A.D. during the reign of Emperor Trajan.
John is the example of what Jesus can do with a person who is willing to follow Him. John’s zeal and ambition kept him uncompromising in God’s truth and a staunch defender of it, but God trained him and tempered him to be loving and compassionate. The Holy Spirit can do the same in your life, but you have to yield your temperament to Him.
Philip is the next apostle mentioned. He was also from Bethsaida and was a friend of Simon Peter and Andrew. He is first mentioned in John 1:43 when Jesus finds him and calls him to follow Him. Philip soon found His friend Nathanael (Bartholomew) and tells him, “We have found Him of whom Moses in the Law and also the Prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” Philip was a diligent student of the Old Testament for he quickly discerned that Jesus was the Messiah according to the Hebrew prophecies.
Philip also had a practical, analytical mind, which is generally a virtue, but something that hindered him from spiritual discernment at times. In John 6 where Jesus feeds the 5,000, Jesus asks Philip, “Where are we to buy bread that these may eat.” The text tells us that Jesus said this to test Philip, and Philip failed. He immediately calculated it out, “200 denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them . . .” (Vs. 7). That is interesting, but not even practical since they had neither the money nor a place to purchase food. It was an admission that the situation was humanly impossible, but Philip did not solicit the Lord to provide. Almost three years later his spiritual insight is still failing. At the last supper, Philip asks Jesus, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus then rebuked Him saying in essence, “you’ve been with me three years and you still do not understand that if you have seen me, you have seen the Father?”
Philip was also somewhat timid. When certain Greeks came to Jerusalem and wanted to see Jesus, they went to Philip first, but Philip did not take them straight to Jesus, he went and got Andrew first, and then they went to Jesus (John 12:20-22). Even so, God used Philip and these Greek men were brought to Jesus.
Maybe you see yourself somewhat like Philip. Your tendency is to be thinking and practical, but lacking in spiritual insight. Maybe you are like him in being somewhat timid, yet still want to help to bring others to Christ. God can use you even as He used Philip if you will let Him. Traditions tell us that Philip’s faith increased and he ministered in the Phygia area of Turkey were he also martyred. It is said he was stripped, hung upside down by his feet, had his legs pierced with sharp stakes and he slowly bled to death. It is said he asked not to be covered with a linen shroud when he died for he felt unworthy to buried as was the Lord.
Nathanael is also known as Bartholomew and was Philip’s friend. He, like Philip was also a student of the Old Testament and earnestly sought after God’s truth and the coming of Messiah. However, Bartholomew was affected by prejudice. Instead of judging Jesus from Philip’s report, he judged Jesus according to where Jesus was raised even saying, “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Jesus said of him, “Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!” (John 1:47). Bartholomew was skeptical and responded to Jesus with a question challenging Jesus to prove His words were true and not flattery. Jesus answered Him with an omniscient statement only the Messiah could give, “I knew you beforehand.” But Bartholomew was more controlled by truth than prejudice and so ended up following Jesus. God can use a skeptic who is not deceitful, hypocritical or phony, but a seeker after the truth. He is said to have ministered in many places, but primarily in Armenia were he was martyred by being flayed alive.
Thomas is also called Didymus, meaning twin, and also had a skeptical nature. We often call him “doubting Thomas” because he said he would not believe the Lord was raised from the dead until he saw and touched Him (John 20:24-25). But Thomas’ pessimism had already been established. When Jesus went to Bethany to raise Lazarus from the dead, Thomas, being aware of the danger posed by Scribes and Pharisees in Jerusalem, said, “Let us also go, that we may die with Him” (John 11:6). He fully expected the religious leaders to seize and kill Jesus. He was pessimistic, yet totally committed to Jesus for he was ready to go and die with Him. Thomas believed in Jesus and wanted to be with Him. That is also seen in John 14 when Jesus said that He would be going away and Thomas immediately wanted to know where He was going and how to get there too.
Having doubts is no hindrance when it is over come by a commitment to seek and find the truth and loyalty to Jesus Christ. “Doubting” Thomas responded to Jesus, “My Lord and My God.” Tradition holds that he took the gospel to India where the Mar Thoma church in southwest India traces its origin to him. He also died a martyr from a spear.
Matthew is next. He was also called Levi. He was a publican, a collector of taxes for Rome, and so was considered a traitor and a thief by the Jews. Matthew 9:9 records that he was sitting in the tax collectors booth when Jesus said to him, “Follow Me,” and Matthew got up and followed Him. There would be no returning to this lucrative position. Matthew knew the cost and willingly paid it without hesitation. He also had compassion for His friends, which were tax collectors and other sinners, and invited them to a banquet so they could meet Jesus.
Matthew is a wonderful example of the change the Lord makes in a life. A man considered to be a traitor and worse than thieves and prostitutes is changed into an apostle who becomes selfless and compassionate. Your past is no hindrance to what God can do with you
! Legend has it that Matthew lived in Jerusalem for 15 years or more after Jesus’ resurrection, then ministered in Persia, then Ethiopia where he died by being stabbed.
James, Thaddaeus and Simon: There is not much known about three apostles them. James the son of Alphaeus is also called James the lesser. Both names are to distinguish him from James the son of Zebedee. He was called, “the lesser,” either as a reference to being younger in age, or possibly smaller in size. Nothing he said or did is recorded. It is claimed he preached the gospel in Persia and was crucified there as a martyr.
Thaddaeus, a name usually used as a reference to the youngest child in a family, is also called Judas the son of James. The only words of his recorded in Scripture are in John 14:22 when he asks Jesus, “Lord, what then has happened that You are going to disclose Yourself to us, and not to the world.” He was looking, like the rest of them, for Jesus to establish an earthly kingdom and he did not understand how Jesus could do that and keep it hidden from the world. Jesus then further explained the nature of the kingdom and who it would be manifested too. Nothing else is recorded about Thaddaeus. Traditions say he ministered the gospel in Syria and was eventually martyred by being beaten to death with a club.
Simon the Zealot – (called “Canaanite” in the KJV – which is an unfortunate transliteration. The Greek word does not mean a Canaanite, but a zealous person). Only this title gives us some insight into him as probably a member of radical political party of the Zealots. They wanted Rome overthrown and used guerilla tactics such as assassinations and ambushes in an effort to achieve their ends. There is nothing to suggest Simon continued to favor the methods of the Zealots after he became a follower of Jesus. Unrighteous zeal was replaced by zealous devotion to the Savior. He is said to have preached in many lands before being crucified in Syria.
James, Thaddaeus and Simon join the many other Old Testament saints of whom little is known except they were faithful to the Lord and endured many things on His behalf (see Hebrews 11:36-39). You may feel you are obscure and unimportant, but God can and will use you if you will let Him. God will use those who seek Him regardless of personal characteristics or prominence.
The last apostle is Judas Iscariot, meaning, “Judas, man of Kerioth” – a small town in Judea. He is the greatest tragedy of human history for He walked with Jesus for three years, yet remained controlled by self desire and covetousness. He even stole from the group’s purse for he was their treasurer. His greatest act of covetousness was his betrayal of the Lord for 30 pieces of silver. His greatest hypocrisy was using a kiss as the sign of betrayal to the Lord. There is much that could be said about this the man, but all of it is negative and that does not fit my purpose this morning except as a warning. God will use even the wicked to fulfill His own purposes. God needed a man with a wicked heart who would betray the Messiah. Jesus found him and choose him. Judas fulfilled the reason he was chosen.
Conclusions
My point this morning is that regardless of whom you are and what you are like, God can and will use you for His glory if you will follow Him. There are those who are bold and brash like Simon who can be turned into Peters. There are sons of thunder like James and John who can become the bold spokesmen the church needs as well as those with great capacities to love. There are those whose past lives are like Matthew, but they can be made righteous.
The ability to serve God is not based on your abilities, but on God’s ability. He can change you, equip you and empower you to serve Him. But you have to be willing to follow and yield yourself to the Holy Spirit just like the Apostles did. They were ordinary men who accomplished extraordinary things because they became slaves of Christ who served the living God. They became servant leaders. What can God do through you? He as the ability, do you have the availability?
The Twelve Apostles – December 8, 2013
Mark 3:13-19; Luke 6:12-16
Introduction
Jesus is the model of servant leadership that ____________ Christian should follow
God used the apostles for extraordinary things because they first learned to be His ____________
Jesus’ Preparation – Luke 6:12, Mark 3:13
Mark 3:7-12 – Jesus had been __________around the Sea of Galilee teaching, healing & casting out demons
Mark 3:13 – Jesus went up on the ______________, summoned His disciples and chose twelve of them
Luke 6:12-13 – Jesus first spent the _______________________ in prayer to God
Spending time in _______________ was characteristic of Jesus – Mark 1:32-35
The more hectic the pace; the more important the decision – the greater ___________________ to pray
Their Calling – Luke 6:13, Mark 3:13-15
A disciple is a _______, a follower of a teacher – Jesus summoned a group of particular disciples to Himself
Jesus chooses 12 of them to be His ______________- those sent with His authority to act on His behalf
Mark 3:14-15 – The Twelve are given _________to preach and cast out demons; Power to heal is given later
These are __________________ men who have many weak points
Acts 17:6 – these men turned the world upside down, because God uses __________people – 1 Cor. 1:26-29
Simon Peter, son of John
Brash and ________ , asking questions, speaking up and gaining both praise and rebuke – Matthew 16
A man of ___________ (Jesus’ arrest), who could be overcome by fear (Jesus’ trial)
_______________ , and a man that others followed (John 21:3)
He is referred to as Simon when acting in the flesh, and ___________ when acting in faith
Peter was changed by turning his life over to the ______________ of the Holy Spirit
Andrew, brother of Simon Peter. Originally from Bethsaida, he and Simon fished out of Capernaum
He is the ____________ disciple mentioned (John 1:35-40) and he his brother soon after meeting Jesus
Inquisitive, but more ______________ than Peter (Mark 13:3-4), with a simple faith (John 6:5-9)
______________, open and lacking prejudice – but avoided attracting attention to himself
James & John, the sons of Zebedee. Fishermen from Capernaum that partners with Simon & Andrew
Intimate ______________ of Jesus and part of the inner circle with Peter
Passionate, zealous, aggressive & somewhat vengeful – boanerges: “Sons of ______” (Mark 3:17/ Lk 9:52f)
Self seeking and _______________- Matthew 20:21-22
James zeal probably made him Herod’s target and the first of the apostles to be _____________(Acts 12:2)
John was the ______________ apostle to die and the only one not martyred
John became ____________, loving and selfless to the point he was known as the beloved Apostle
At His crucifixion, Jesus entrusted ______________with the care of His mother, Mary
Philip – From Bethsaida – a friend of Simon & Andrew and Nathanael
A diligent student of the Scriptures with a practical and _______________ mind (John 6:5-6)
&
nbsp; He was not always spiritually discerning (John 14:8-9) and could be ___________(John 12:20-22)
Nathanael – also known as Bartholomew
A student of the Scriptures seeking God’s truth, but also affected by ____________and somewhat skeptical
He was controlled by truth
Thomas who is called Didymus (twin)
Doubting (John 20:24-25) and _____________, yet totally committed to Jesus (John 11:16)
Doubts are not a hindrance when overcome by a commitment to seek and find the ______in loyalty to Christ
Matthew, also known as Levi, was a _______________ (tax collector) and considered a traitor and thief.
When Jesus called, he followed immediately and then sought to bring his _______to Jesus (Matthew 9:9-10)
James the son of Alphaeus, also known as James the Lesser (younger or smaller?)
Preached the gospel in ___________ and was crucified there as a martyr
Thaddaeus, also known as Judas, the son of James
Ministered the gospel in ____________ and eventually martyred by being beaten to death with a club
Simon the Zealot – had probably been part of the political Zealot party that sought the _________of Roman rule
He became zealous in ___________ to Jesus – he preached in many lands before being crucified in Syria
God will use those who seek Him regardless of personal characteristics or ________________
Judas Iscariot – from Kerioth in Judea – controlled by self desire and _________________
God can even use the ____________ to fulfill His own purposes
Conclusions
God can use you for His glory if you will _____________ Him
The ability to serve God is not based on your abilities, but on __________ ability.
KIDS CORNER
Parents, you are responsible to apply God’s Word to your children’s lives. Here is some help. Young Children – draw a picture about something you hear during the sermon. Explain your picture(s) to your parents at lunch. Older Children – Do one or more of the following: 1) Write down all the verses mentioned in the sermon and look them up. 2) Fill in the blanks in the notes above, then talk with your parents about the sermon.
THINK ABOUT IT!
Questions to consider in discussing the sermon with others. How did Jesus prepare Himself to choose the apostles? Why was that important. What is an apostle? What did Jesus call them to do? Examine the characteristics of each apostle. Which are similar to you? What do you think God can do through you?
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