PONDERING... Who does Jesus call and why? (Mark 3:13-19)

Who Does Jesus Call and Why? (AM Sermon Notes)

GIST: Jesus calls the undeserving to abide with Him, to be sent by Him, and to stand firm through Him.

SCRIPTURE: Mark 3:13-19

13 And he went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him. 14 And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach 15 and have authority to cast out demons. 16 He appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter); 17 James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James (to whom he gave the name Boanerges, that is, Sons of Thunder);18 Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot, 19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

We are booking right along in Mark chapter 3. This morning, we come to a very familiar passage, or at least, a passage with some very familiar names (and some that might not be as familiar): The Twelve Apostles.  I have seen this passage tackled many different ways. In fact, one of the sermon series I have been learning from took this passage over the course of 13 weeks, taking one week for general observations and one for each of the 12 apostles. It’s a beneficial study, but not the approach I’m taking today. Looking at the lives of these men is interesting, but the main thing we see is that they were...just men. The difference maker was Jesus. So, today I want to spend just a short amount of time looking at the who of this call, and then try and take more time on the why. The gist? Jesus calls the undeserving to abide with Him, to be sent by Him, and to stand firm through Him.

1. JESUS CALLS THE UNDESERVING

Bookends. Last Sunday night, we briefly considered verses 7-12 where massive crowds were again drawn to Jesus. However, it did not seem that most in these crowds were coming to Jesus for the right reasons. That wanted to benefit from His miracles, but weren’t interested in the having their lives truly changed by His salvation! The passage we’re looking at this morning is bookended with responses like this. We have the crowd missing the point right before it, Jesus’ family missing the point right after it, and then, in the passage we’ll look at tonight, the religious leaders missing the point so much as to accuse Jesus of being satanic.

Mountain + 12 = New Israel. That’s the context, so what’s happening in this passage then? Aside from calling the 12 apostles who would be the closest associates of Jesus during His life and His first witnesses after His death, we also have a culmination of sorts in regard to what Jesus had been saying to the Pharisees in the previous “controversy scenes”. They have wanted to put Him into their box, and He has been very clear about not coming to fix Judaism, but to fulfill what the entire Old Testament had been pointing to. He wasn’t an amendment; He was the way, the truth, and the life. We see this because Jesus goes up on a mountain (think Moses, 10 commandments, meeting with God) and calls...12. The number twelve to this original audience would have immediately rang one bell: the 12 tribes of Israel. In a sense, Jesus is establishing a “new Israel”; His Church is His people..

12 Common and Conflicted People. So, let’s take a really quick look at who made up this twelve. Now, there are some fantastic resources out there on these men. I’m just going to give you a few bullet point highlights. There are four lists of the apostles provided in Scripture. Each list presents them in a slightly different arrangement. However, and this is just a fun-fact, they remain in these same groupings of 4 with Peter, Philip, and James the Less always beginning each respective group. (Here are all 4 passages together.) If we know their profession, I’ll list that first. Otherwise, I’ll just give you a main characteristic.

• Peter- Fisherman. Foot-in-Mouth-man. Jesus called him a Rock. (That was His purpose.)
• James & John- Fishermen. Sons of Thunder. Transformed by love.
• Andrew- Fisherman. Bringer of people. Brother of Peter.
• Philip- Fisherman. Asks some questions.
• Bartholomew- Son of Tolmai. Likely also called Nathanael. Straight-forward (blunt?) man.
• Matthew- Tax Collector. Also called Levi.
• Thomas- The Twin. Remembered mostly for his doubt, now, but was used.
• James the son of Alphaeus- Also known as “The Less/The Little”. Importance or size?
• Thaddaeus- “Momma’s boy”Also known as Judas, not Iscariot/son of James. Big hearted?
• Simon the Zealot- Likely a terrorist. (Cananaean=Transliteration of Greek “Zealot”)
• Judas Iscariot- Betrayer of Christ.

I don’t want to spend too much time here, so I’ll just make this note. These were common people with no exceptional qualities. In fact, as we noted a few weeks ago, apart from Christ uniting them, they probably wouldn’t have even gotten along. Matthew was likely the fishermen’s tax collector, who would have been involved, at the very least, in hurting people they knew, if not them personally. And Simon the Zealot would have previously been involved with a group of people who would have wanted to kill Matthew as a way of removing the oppression of Rome.

Focus: Those He desired. So, here’s the deal. These men did not become the renown apostles because of their personal merits, but because Jesus “went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him”. I know I’ve been doing this often, but I have to pause here and go ahead and give you one of the takeaways for today. These men had a special calling. We’re not called to be apostles like they were. Nonetheless, we’re called for the same reason and purpose. That purpose we’ll address in the next point. That reason is the unmerited love of Jesus.

2. WHY DOES JESUS CALL?

So, that’s who He calls: the undeserving. Why? Well, the passage provides at least three reasons.

1. To Abide With Him. This is the first in the list, and it’s central. Herschel Hobbs points out in his commentary that we aren’t ready to go until we’ve come. When we’re saved, we’re called into a relationship...which means we’re called to be with Jesus. When I was thinking about this this week, I was reminded of John 15:1-11 where we’re told by Jesus to abide in Him 10 times in one paragraph:

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. 9 As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. 10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. 11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.

Relationships without time spent together aren’t relationships; they’re acquaintances. And the Christian life without Jesus...is not the Christian life. If we are not spending time with Jesus, in His Word, in prayer, growing closer to Him in our personal lives, striving to understand Him more, seeking to be more like Him, where’s the relationship? If you’re struggling to be a witness for Jesus, but you haven’t spoken to Him all week, who are you trying to witness for in the first place? If you’re trying to be a Christian, but make no effort to hear from Jesus daily, you’re not trying to be His. Maybe you’re interested in the idea of Christianity, or some sort of moralism, or a positivity club, but that’s not Christianity. Our relationship with Christ should be supreme. Again, I’m getting into my takeaways here, but it’s worth thinking about now. Where are you on this?

2. To Be Sent By Him. Dick Lucas made this observation: the called will be sent. This is huge. Just like a relationship with no time spent together is no relationship at all...well...James put it best didn’t he… faith without works is dead. We just addressed this last week, this does not mean works in anyway save you, but they will happen. If you have been made new, you will be new, and that’s not a passive transformation. No one in is ever called to sit and watch.

Now, the text says they were sent specifically to preach. But before you hit the “this portion of the message doesn’t apply to me because I’m not the preacher button” (that is a very long name for a button by the way), let’s consider what that means. When we hear the word “preach”, we think of… this (what I’m doing now), or maybe something like the definition I stumbled across in the Oxford dictionary comes to mind: “to give moral advice to someone in an annoying or pompously self-righteous way” (which is, hopefully, not what I’m doing now, but it, sadly, a common perspective on preaching today). But the word used here means to herald or proclaim.  We’re all called to do this. God’s plan for promulgating His message of salvation is using us. This doesn’t mean we all have to prepare sermons and deliver them formally, but it does mean that we all should let God so change us as we abide in Him that we live as an intentional sermon everyday--not just as “good people”, but as “God’s people” who have His Word on our lips. We should be living like Jesus and telling people about Him.

3. To Stand Firm Through Him. Originally, I had worded this “to stand firm for Him”, but I switched it to through Him because we’re not doing this for Him in the connotative sense that phrase often conjures. We should be living for Jesus; don’t get me wrong. However, sometimes I think when we say that, we mean “I’m doing Jesus a favor by giving Him my best. I’m sacrificing so He can be known.” The emphasis is all messed up in that sentiment. Look at what these apostles were given: authority to cast out demons (and the other accounts add: and to heal the sick). It is His authority that both permits and enables these actions. Now, these signs were specific evidences of their apostleship, and they do not directly carry over to us. We don’t cast out demons like they did, or heal the sick with a touch as they did. This was to show the world that they were from Jesus. However, it is a lesson for us.

When I first read this passage, I wasn’t sure how it crossed over. And honestly, I wasn’t sure how to address it in this message. I didn’t want to ignore it, but I just wasn’t sure if it had any real application for us today. Then, this week happened, and I came face to face with several heartbroken people, and frustrated people, and situations that were doing their best to take our eyes off of all Jesus was and is doing in our lives, and I realized this. The disciples were given authority over demons and sickness so that people would see that they were from Jesus, because He was always healing the sick and casting out demons, but He also gave them this authority because they were going to face demons and sickness. So will we. God is blessing so much. Be ready for opposition.

TAKEAWAYS

1. Your calling is not based on your merits, but His desire. You can’t earn it, nor can you be so wicked as to not be loved by Him. He calls the undeserving...because He loves.
2. You have been called to abide in Him. How’s your relationship? Are you claiming to serve your acquaintance?
3. You have been called to serve Him. This is the expectation. Now I know this is a frequent sermon application point, and I don’t want to just say go serve without at least speaking to what that looks like. So let me give you this. First, read 1 Peter 2. It’s an awesome passage with a lot to say about ministering for Jesus. Verse 9 says, “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” (emphasis added). It then goes on to describe was that proclamation looks like. In short, live above reproach, love God, and love people. You’re not all pastors. Praise the Lord! There are so many opportunities you will have that I could never have...precisely because I’m a pastor. This might be a relatively new gig for me, but I’ve been an active part of ministry my entire life, from being a pastor’s kid, to a missionary kid, to a youth pastor, to now. I’m weird enough as it is, throw in the ministry part, and people can’t hardly stand me sometimes☺! God has placed you in your particular place with those particular people for His particular purpose.
4. You will face demons and sickness. Put on your armor! As I was thinking about the trials we will face, Ephesians 6:11-20 came to mind.  “10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. 14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. 16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one;17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, 18 praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, 19 and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.” I love this passage and could start chasing a whole new rabbit here, but just want to point this out. As we face demons and sickness in our lives, we need this armor to remind us:
• Truth: God is in Control.
• Righteousness: The focus needs to be abiding in Him, and being like Him.
• Peace: Peacemakers are called the children of God. Are we?
• Faith: Trust Him...again, because He’s in Control!
• Salvation: Remember His Grace and your purpose.
• Prayer: Pray for each other.