2. TWELVE COMMON MEN One Uncommon Mission

3. TWELVE COMMON MEN Real men –Real personalities Not priests or scribes –At least 4 fishermen Slow learners & spiritually dense (Luke 24:25) Politically Diverse –Zealot (Jewish extremist) to Tax collector (Roman collaborator) 11 Galileans –The rural backwater of a backwater province Men Like You Jesus knew their faults Trained on the fast track –About 18 months of... Theology and scripture Moral instruction Future prophecies –Then tested and failed Matt 26:55-56 –But strengthened again Given exclusive leadership and authority –Acts 2:42 The foundation of the NT church (Eph 2:19-22)

4. Common Men, Uncommon Calling Lk 4:28-30 –Jesus first public address almost got Him killed But His popularity with the masses grew –But He did not seek popularity Jn 6:66-69 –When other disciples left, the 12 stayed The continuation of Jesus’ ministry hinged on these men –No “Plan B”

5. Four Phases of Their Calling Called over a period of time in 4 distinct phases 1.Called to Conversion Illustrated in Jn 1:35-51 –Andrew, John, Peter, Philip, and Nathaniel called but continue their secular pursuits 2.Called to Service For example, Luke 5 –Peter, Andrew, James, and John leave their secular pursuits to serve with Jesus 3.Called to Apostleship (to be discussed next) 4.Called to Martyrdom 10 died for their calling (traditionally) Common Men… An Uncommon Calling

6. The Timing Luke 6:11-16 –Time of intense conflict with the scribes and Pharisees –In “these days” He calls The 12 The end of His ministry is less than 2 years away –Change in His ministerial focus From the multitudes to the few –Rejected by Jewish religious establishment He threatened their power over the people The 12 were chosen from the anti-establishment –Ordinary, working-class men Common Men… An Uncommon Calling The Call To Apostleship

7. The Twelve Not larger-than-life figures with haloes over their heads –Just plain, ordinary folk What about qualifications? –Morally and spiritually upright, but not extraordinary –Not from the religious elite or religiously trained 12 unworthy nobodies are all God has to work with –(Satan says: “Unworthy = Useless”) –But God shows He has the power to make the unworthy into useful servants Man does NOT make the Apostle, God does! The same is true of all followers of Christ Where are man’s great minds? (1 Cor 1:26-29) –Not in the church, because God gets the glory! Common Men… An Uncommon Calling

8. The Teacher Before He chooses the twelve... –He prays all night (Lk. 6:12) Greek word suggests He worked all night at prayer 8-10 hours of praying What was He praying about? –Who to choose? For those about to be chosen? He chooses from among the multitude (Lk 6:13) –Many desert Him after “hard sayings” later (Jn 6:53-66) –He did NOT ask for volunteers (Jn 15:16) Why 12? –Symbolism: 12 tribes of Israel, new Israel, new covenant –If there is new, then the old is being replaced Apostles – not messengers, but “one sent with authority on a mission” – ambassadors, representatives of Jesus Common Men… An Uncommon Calling

9. The Task Mark 3:14 –“Pulled in” – taught, trained, given power over a period of several months –Then “pushed out” – sent out to preach The timeline of their preparation: –They had followed Jesus on a part-time basis Learned from His sermons to the people –Mt 4 (Lk 5) called to service, full-time –Appointed as apostles (Mt 10:2-4; Lk 6:12-16) –Given miraculous power (Mt 10:1; Lk 9:1) and sent out on short-term missions (Mt 10:5ff, Lk 9) –After His death, return, and ascension they would take the gospel into the entire world Common Men… An Uncommon Calling

10. Their Uncommon Task What was the uncommon task the common men were being trained for? –Preach the New Kingdom to Israel –Found the church and lead it through its early growth –Write the New Testament (Eph 3:5) as inspired by God (2 Tim 3:16) –Be the source of all true church doctrine (Acts 2:42) –Edify the church (Eph 4:11,12) –Set an example of godliness and spirituality (Phil 4:9) –Use their miraculous powers to confirm the word (Heb 2:3,4) Common Men… An Uncommon Calling

11. The Training They became full-time students –An 18+ month work-study course They sat at the feet of the Master Teacher –Eyewitnesses of His teaching –Eyewitnesses of His interactions with large crowds, individual believers, and religious authorities –Given personal assignments: encouraged, corrected, and instructed by Him The scriptures do not whitewash their blemishes –Not always “the sharpest tools in the shed” Why? –They were lacking in many important areas Common Men… An Uncommon Calling

12. The Training They lacked spiritual understanding They lacked humility They lacked faith They lacked commitment They lacked power Jesus was patient with them Jesus continued to model servant-hood Jesus kept doing signs and wonders Jesus continued to pray for them Jesus sent the Holy Spirit Common Men… An Uncommon Calling

13. The Conclusion Why didn’t Jesus just pick other men? Two important reasons: –His strength is perfected in weakness (2 Cor 12:9) –The weak things of this world confound the mighty of the world (Acts 4:13) Their brief training bore eternal fruit for the kingdom of God –Hard to tell from the betrayal night –But after the Ascension! Common Men… An Uncommon Calling