Mark 3:13-19
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“And he went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him. And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach and have authority to cast out demons. He appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter); James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James (to whom he gave the name Boanerges, that is, Sons of Thunder); Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.
Out of the larger group of disciples, Jesus carefully selected those whom he wanted to be apostles. Many followed him but after a night of prayer, he called, chose, and appointed twelve to be apostles. He gave those men the power to heal and to deliver people from affliction whether it came from disease or demons. He sent them out to preach and the power was apparently provided out of concern for the hurting people they would encounter as well as to add validity to the message being preached. Time was short, Jesus, willingly limited to place and time, couldn't be everywhere at once so he sent out the twelve. But Jesus’ call to these men was first a relational one before it was to a task.
It challenges me to read, in verse 19, that though Judas was given the same power and commission as the others, three years later he could fall so far as to betray Jesus. It makes me wonder, could I get so irritated with Jesus’ way of doing things that my love for him could grow so cold that I would sell Jesus out for the month’s rent?
Jesus called ordinary men, imperfect men, and inconsistent men, to be with him, to learn from him by sharing his life. He still does so today. When Jesus died and rose again, the remaining 11 were filled with the Holy Spirit and their lives were changed. They were no longer such a prideful, quarrelsome, ignorant lot; they were made new in Christ! How about us?
Jesus still calls sinful, imperfect, unworthy people to repentance (2:17). This repentance is a relational turning from our old distractions to be with him, to learn from him along life’s journey. In this calling to come to him, he comes to us, and at the right time, he sends us out to preach the good news to the lost and empowers us to live as his ambassadors. The cool thing about this is that when Jesus sends us out, he goes out with us!
What is Jesus calling us to do together with him today? How is He empowering us together as a community of Jesus followers?
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