The Appointed with Purpose
Gospel of Mark: Jesus a life to serve • Sermon • Submitted
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· 43 viewsThe Ministry work of the Apostles started with the chosing and then the mission
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Appointed with Purpose
Appointed with Purpose
In the ministry of Jesus the appointing of the Apostles from the disciples is important for they would carry on the work after Jesus is gone. Today we will look at the ministry of the Apostles with a purpose as it relates to the ministry of Jesus and how it impacts us today.
Important aspects of the appointed: They would be ones who would carry on the work after His death
Important aspect: They would share in the suffering and even martyrdom after His death.
So appointing the apostles, they were appointed with a purpose and that purpose would require faith, require training, require perseverance and that is seen in the Apostles.
In our passage today, we see the appointing and the purpose laid out before us.
To be with Him
To prepare them to be sent out to preach
To prepare them for the authority to be given to them to heal and cast out demons.
The disciples who were called and appointed with a purpose would serve as
Witnesses for the resurrection
Ambassadors for Christ
Teachers for the disciples
Part of the foundation of the church
First we need to start with the passage to get the ball rolling.
13 And He went up on the mountain and summoned those whom He Himself wanted, and they came to Him. 14 And He appointed twelve, so that they would be with Him and that He could send them out to preach,
15 and to have authority to cast out the demons. 16 And He appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom He gave the name Peter),
15 and to have authority to cast out the demons. 16 And He appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom He gave the name Peter), 17 and James, the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James (to them He gave the name Boanerges, which means, “Sons of Thunder”);
17 and James, the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James (to them He gave the name Boanerges, which means, “Sons of Thunder”); 18 and Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot;
18 and 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.
What do you see, what do you notice, what sticks out to you?
19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Him.
Before moving on to the first section, all of this transpired after a night in prayer
12 It was at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God.
12 It was at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God.
May we go to the Lord in prayer before making decisions too!
I. Apostles: Witnesses for the resurrection
I. Apostles: Witnesses for the resurrection
They were eyewitnesses of the resurrection (Act1:1-3, 1:8, 1:21-22, 2:32 and 3:15)
Jesus had shown Himself after the resurrection
1 The first account I composed, Theophilus, about all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2 until the day when He was taken up to heaven, after He had by the Holy Spirit given orders to the apostles whom He had chosen.
3 To these He also presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God.
They were witnesses of this.
Jesus then commissioned them to testify of Him
8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”
They were told what they were to bear witness of
21 “Therefore it is necessary that of the men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us— 22 beginning with the baptism of John until the day that He was taken up from us—one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection.”
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Witness of His resurrection. Oh and they did that, testified of it, over and over again
32 “This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses.
Act
15 but put to death the Prince of life, the one whom God raised from the dead, a fact to which we are witnesses.
They are an example for and a solid basis for our faith (Jn17:20-21; 2Cor11:23-28)
Jesus in His prayer was that people would believe because of the words of the Apostles. Oh wait, let me give you the scripture
20 “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; 21 that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.
Without the recorded words of the Apostles there would be limited information about the life of Jesus, His miracles and even His resurrection.
The manner of their life, up’s and down’s, victories and failures, mountaintop experiences to suffering for their faith all give credibility to their testimony of the the resurrection of Jesus.
23 Are they servants of Christ?—I speak as if insane—I more so; in far more labors, in far more imprisonments, beaten times without number, often in danger of death. 24 Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes.
25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep. 26 I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren;
27 I have been in labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. 28 Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches.
The apostles served an important role in the ministry of Jesus, they provide a means of reliable testimony of the resurrection of Jesus, so that we may have faith in Jesus because of their words.
(transition) Their words were with authority as:
II. Apostles: Ambassadors for Christ
II. Apostles: Ambassadors for Christ
An Ambassador, oh we hear about it in the scripture, we read about it in the scripture and that is what the Apostles were. They were sent with a message, and a story, not their story, but His!
Ambassador, when you think of an Ambassador what do you think of? What do you think it means?
Ambassador, noun: an accredited diplomat sent by a country as its official representative to a foreign country.
Apostles were accredited and sent with a message (Mk16:15-16; 2Cor5:20-21; 2Cor5:18-19, regardless of circumstances Eph6:19-20)
The Message was not originated with them (expand)
15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. 16 “He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned.
There is the message they were to give
20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
2COr
They were not making their own appeal, they were appealing on behalf of Christ, the message of reconciliation, with a purpose so that people may become the righteousness of God in Him (in Jesus; through Jesus).
18 Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, 19 namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.
A message, a ministry, a responsibility regardless of circumstances
19 and pray on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in proclaiming it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
Regardless of chains, regardless of prison, regardless of any circumstance they were to tell the story.
Apostles telling the story of Jesus (2Cor5:20; 2COr6:1; 2The1:7-9)
They were pleading with others to be reconciled to God
20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
As Ambassaors making the plead, pleading with a purpose
1 And working together with Him, we also urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain—
Not to receive God’s grace in vain nor even refusing it
7 and to give relief to you who are afflicted and to us as well when the Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire, 8 dealing out retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.
9 These will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power,
What is the result of those who refuse, ignore the grace of God through faith (see v.8-9)?
The Apostles who were appointed with a purpose, with a message, the message is the story of Jesus that is revealed through the good news. May we be reminded of it always.
Again, it was not their message, it is His. An Ambassador carries a message of another.
III. Apostles: Teachers for the disciples of Jesus
III. Apostles: Teachers for the disciples of Jesus
I don’t think anyone who say that teachers are not important, and I don’t think anyone would say that teachers are perfect. The appointed apostles with a purpose, a message, a story were going to be teachers who would continue the work of Christ, they would become the authority for the church.
Apostles would continue the work began by Christ (Jn16:12, 13-14; 14:25-26; Mt28:19-20 and Act20:27)
Jesus did not tell them everything during his earthly ministry, they could not handle it all
12 “I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.
Jesus had a plan to send the helper who would.
13 “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. 14 “He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you.
Look at (vv.13-14) what is the job of the Spirit, according to the scripture?
Look at (vv.13-14) what is the job of the Spirit, according to the scirpture?
25 “These things I have spoken to you while abiding with you. 26 “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.
The Spirit would lead, teach, disclose, remind so they could fulfill their purpose - the great commission (Mt28:19-20; ref only)
The Apostles become the authority for the church (Act2:42; 1The2:13; 1Cor14:37 and Lk10:16)
Look at this
42 They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.
What did they do?
Now look at
13 For this reason we also constantly thank God that when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but for what it really is, the word of God, which also performs its work in you who believe.
How were people to receive the word of the Apostles?
Now adding to this
37 If anyone thinks he is a prophet or spiritual, let him recognize that the things which I write to you are the Lord’s commandment.
What they wrote were the Lord’s commandments, not theirs, His
And rejecting their words was equal to, rejecting Christ as well as the Father
16 “The one who listens to you listens to Me, and the one who rejects you rejects Me; and he who rejects Me rejects the One who sent Me.”
We continue to be taught through the apostles doctrine. It teaches the church how to be the church how to act as the church and how to lead others to the church. For they are Christ’s ambassadors sent with authority, purpose, message, story and they are united in Christ as the foundation of the Church.
IV. Apostles: With Christ for the foundation of the Church
IV. Apostles: With Christ for the foundation of the Church
Foundation is important, Jesus spoke of it, the Apostles help to build the foundation of the church.
Together with Christ (who is the cornerstone), the church is built (Act4:10-12; 1Cor3:11; Eph2:19-22)
10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by this name this man stands here before you in good health. 11 “He is the stone which was rejected by you, the builders, but which became the chief corner stone.
12 “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”
Jesus is the chief cornerstone and the apostles are a part of helping to build the spiritual building
19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, 20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone,
21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, 22 in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.
In the foundation of the church, in which Jesus is the cornerstone, the apostles serve as the basis of:
Our faith, through their testimony (2Pt1:16-18)
Our doctrine, through their teaching (Act2:42)
And our hope, through their message (Eph3:5-6)
May we understand after prayerful consideration the choices Jesus made in appointing with a purpose the Apostles for without them we would not have the full counsel of God would we?
May we be devoted to the apostles doctrine!