Discipleship Sunday 2021 2

Introduction

Opening Story/Illustration:

Over the last year and a half our society has quickly shifted in numerous ways. The Pandemic, when we were on lockdown and unable to meet together with others, able to go about life as we normally would, had tremendous effects on us as individuals and as a society.

We know that because of the pandemic and the isolation it fueled, that depression and anxiety rates went up.

We know that because of the pandemic and the isolation it fueled, substance abuse went up.

Even in Children, there was a rapid rise in mental health problems and emergencies during the pandemic. According to a news article from June 22, One Children’s hospital in Colorado declared a “State of Emergency” because the number of kids they treated for anxiety doubled and the number of kids they treated for depression tripled compared to pandemic levels.

I know we are all aware of it - but I think this has taught many things - but one thing in particular, in regards to the Church - We need one another. You and I were not created to do this thing alone.

Trying to do life by ourselves is like slowly dying of thirst. We need interaction like we need water. When we are deprived of it, we slowly begin to dry up. Imagine being outside in the Florida heat and you’re mowing your lawn and you begin to sweat out all the moisture in your body. Imagine that feeling of thirst - and now imagine that you can’t get that thirst quenched. That you crave it, need it, but are unable to access it. How tired your muscles and your joints feel. If you go long enough without, you eventually dry up and die. This is life without connection.

This is discipleship Sunday, and so we are going to talk about discipleship.

What does it mean to be a disciple? We use that language a lot in church. Maybe you don’t know what it means.

Discipleship is a call to be with and follow Jesus

What does it mean to be a disciple? A disciple is simply someone who follows Jesus.

Transition to Text: This morning, I want to look at a passage in Mark where Jesus calls his disciples.

Text: Mark 3:13-19

Mark 3:13–19 ESV

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.

State or Setup Main Idea: Discipleship is a call to be with Jesus

Transition to Points: Let’s look at this passage this morning.

Points

Jesus calls the twelve to himself so that they might be with Him

Disciples are people who are with Jesus

Jesus has climbed up the mountain, and he’s likely praying.

He’s come off a long run of ministry and he’s probably a little tired and needs a moment.

In Luke’s account of this, Jesus spends all night praying.

It’s in this context of Prayer that Jesus calls these men to himself.

The idea here is that Jesus did the calling. They did not volunteer.

He called them out of the crowd to be with him.

This is a powerful statement by Mark here.

Jesus calls his apostles that they might “Be with Him.”

This is the first call is TO BE WITH JESUS!

The idea here in the Greek is one of constantly being with Jesus

Before Jesus ever has these men do anything, he simply calls them to be with him.

This was the small, close knit group that Jesus has called out from the crowds of people and asked to follow him. To spend time with him. To fully dedicated their lives to being with him.

Jesus is going to give them something to “do” and we are going to look at that in just a moment - But before they do, they are to simply be with Jesus.

To learn from Jesus

To listen to Jesus

Jesus here gives them something to do - But they don’t go do it until Mark 6:7. I think Mark is making a theological statement.

Mark is a book of Action.

It’s interesting that in a book of action, Jesus gives these men a job to do BUT we sit for 3 chapters before they do it.

Why? He’s stressing the importance of simply being with Jesus!

We are Called to Be With Jesus

John Mark Comer, pastor of Bridgetown Church, puts it best. He Says that discipleship is a call to

Be with Jesus

To become Like Jesus

To do what Jesus did

We all remember the day Jesus called us out of the crowd -

Out of the life that we were living.

Out of our sin and our shame and our mess

He called us out of that and called us to be with him.

If discipleship is learning to follow Jesus and be more like Jesus, then we are going to have to be with him.

Illustration: In almost every Job I have ever taken or every place I have ever worked at, I wasn’t just thrown into the job. I was put with someone who knew what they were doing and I was trained. I used to work at the cafeteria at Southeastern. My first Saturday working, they made me clean ovens and fryers. But the first week I didn’t do it alone. Someone was there to show me what to do. I was with someone who showed me by example how to clean the ovens and the fryers. And that individual stuck around for a few weeks to make sure I understood what I was doing.

Being a disciple is much the same

We are a lifelong apprentice to Jesus

We get with him and he teaches us what it means to live life.

He teaches us what it means to love others.

He teaches us what it means to be like him.

Some of you may be thinking - Jesus is not physically present. How in the world can we be with him?

We are with him in prayer

We are with him as we study the word

We are with him as we gather together with other believers.

We are with him as we worship

AND HE IS ALWAYS WITH US!

The words of a famous Worship Song say this, “Let us become more aware of your presence.” That’s my prayer. I want to become more aware of his presence in each and every area of my life.

When you realize that Jesus is with you, you start to see the world differently.

Jesus calls the twelve to himself so that he might send them out

Notice what Mark Tell us here.

Jesus calls them to be with him so that he can send them out.

The word “Apostle” means “sent”

Jesus is sending these 12 men out on a mission. What is the mission? What are they sent to do?

To Preach the good news

To have authority to cast out demons

If we read through the Gospels, we see that another element is often added to this - Healing.

Matthew talks of them being sent out to preach, to cast out demons, and to heal the sick Matthew 10:1

Matthew 10:1 ESV

1 And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction.

Luke talks of healing as part of the reason they are sent out as well. Luke 9:1-2

Luke 9:1–2 ESV

1 And he called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, 2 and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal.

Even Mark, when he talks about what they actual did, healing is included. Mark 6:7-13

Mark 6:7–13 ESV

7 And he called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. 8 He charged them to take nothing for their journey except a staff—no bread, no bag, no money in their belts— 9 but to wear sandals and not put on two tunics. 10 And he said to them, “Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you depart from there. 11 And if any place will not receive you and they will not listen to you, when you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.” 12 So they went out and proclaimed that people should repent. 13 And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them.

We are sent out in order that we might bring healing and wholeness to a broken and shattered world.

You’ve heard me say it many times - But sin means that you’re out of relationship with God, out of relationship with others, and out of relationship with yourself.

There’s a demonic element to that as well

That the world is held under the power of sin and darkness and there is an evil reality known as the devil who works to continually undermine God’s purposes in the world.

Jesus sends out the twelve and he sends us out in order to bring healing and wholeness to this broken world and fractured world.

So let’s boil this down - What is it that Jesus is having these disciples do?

Preach the Good News - That God’s Kingdom is here and that because of what Jesus, there is a different way to live. There is a different reality.

To push back against the powers of darkness, disease, and death - IN ALL THEIR FORMS.

For many their reality is darkness and death, depression, anxiety, Brokenness - BUT THE PEOPLE OF GOD ARE CALLED TO PUSH BACK AGAINST ALL OF THIS to Bring Hope and to bring healing to the world.

This means that through the power of the Holy Spirit and the authority that Jesus has given to us, we push back against:

Sickness

Depression

Anxiety

Demonic activity

Oppression

Systemic injustice

Racism

Sexism

Abortion

And all other forms of darkness, brokenness, and chaos.

We work to put the world back together the way that Jesus intended.

We show up in our workplace, in our homes, in our schools with this declaration - “The Kingdom of God is near.” There’s a new ruler in town. His name is Jesus. You don’t have to live that way anymore. Broken, bound, beaten up. Jesus is here to set free and to make whole!

Jesus calls 12

I don’t want us to miss an obvious point here.

Jesus calls 12 disciples here - Which should immediately harken us back to the 12 tribes of Israel

God Calls individuals - But his goal is never just individuals. His goal is to have a people to himself!

Just as God formed the 12 tribes of Israel together into his people, so he was forming these 12 men into the foundation of his people - The Church or the Kingdom of God!

In fact, one commentator points out the the word translated “appointed” here is usually translated “to make.” In other words, Jesus is calling these 12 men together to make something new.

In Mark 3:13-19 Jesus calls his disciples..but notice something. He lists all twelve of them here.

They were about to spend the next three years with Jesus - BUT they didn’t just spend the next three years with Jesus. They also spent the next three years with one another.

I think that they learned some stuff about themselves and about God and they were formed - Not just by Jesus, but also by each other.

Think of some of the personalities in this group Let’s just compare two of them:

Matthew the tax collector - Being a tax collector, Matthew would have worked for the Roman government. Tax collectors earned their living by charging tax payers more than they had to pay in to the government. It’s the way the system worked - and it led to wide spread greed and corruption. AND if you’re Jewish and you dislike the fact that the Romans rule over you, being a tax collector would make you a bit of a traitor. Not only do you work for the enemy, but you’re charging and getting money off of your own people in the process. There’s a reason in the gospels that tax collectors are lumped together with sinners. There’s a reason that the religious leaders hate tax collectors. They were seen as immoral, greedy thieves who were traitors to their own people.

Simon The Zealot - This guy was all in for the Jewish people. Scholars differ over whether he was part of a revolutionary group who may have been violent and was willing to go to war against Rome to win Jewish independence OR if simply someone who was passionate or “zealous” about following the rules and regulations of his people. Either way - Simon was a man who was passionate about Israel and passionate about his people.

These men are on opposite ends of the spectrum!

But Jesus brings them together.

I wonder what they learned from each other?

I wonder how God used their relationship with one another and with Jesus to shape them into powerful men of God?

You wonder if, as their time with Jesus started, Matthew didn’t have to watch his back around Simon.

Jesus is calling you to be a part of something bigger than just you

Discipleship is a call to follow Jesus - But it is not a call to follow Jesus all by our lonesome.

Discipleship is about a connection with Jesus - But it almost alway also involves a connection with others.

In other words, it’s a call to both be with Jesus AND to join with others who are following Jesus.

I think this is super important - Why? Because for some reason God has chosen to use other people to forms us and shape us to be more like Jesus.

God almost always chooses to use other people as he shapes us and forms us and helps us become more like Jesus.

We could go around this room and you could share story after story of people who have been influential in your life as they impacted you for Jesus.

For some of you it was a pastor or a Sunday school teacher, a youth worker, or a close friend - Who really made an impact on your life and because of that relationship you’re serving Jesus today.

Illustration: I was talking to a friend of mine this last week. We were talking about life and he was sharing his experience. He had made some mistakes in his life and because of that he was told by someone in ministry that God could never use him. Well, he didn’t buy into that. But through life’s situations he met another pastor and this pastor took him by the hand and led him through some of the most difficult moments of his life. Today my friend is an elder in his church. You see in that moment of crisis, he needed Jesus - But he also need that pastor to be Jesus’ hands and feet. Maybe he would have never encountered Jesus in that moment, if it had not been for that pastor who was willing to walk with him.

So here’s the thing, you were not intended to follow Jesus alone.

Paul’s going to make this clear in Romans 12:3-8

Romans 12:3–8 ESV

3 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. 4 For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, 5 so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. 6 Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; 7 if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; 8 the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.

When you get saved you become connected to the Body of Christ. Like it or not. You are connected.

Here’s my challenge to you this morning - Be with Jesus. Go for Jesus. But remember that you don’t go alone. That we need each other.

If you don’t have people in your life who are following Jesus With you - You’re missing the point and you’re missing a way in which he wants to grow you, to change you, and to help you.

If you’re just coming on Sunday mornings and sitting, man you’re missing the point.

We offer Sunday School classes, Wednesday night classes, Women’s Ministry Groups, Young adult groups, and so much more - Get involved somewhere.

Jesus called 12 - Not just one. He didn’t call you to do this thing alone.

Restate or Reveal Main Idea: We are called to Jesus, to be a part of His Body, that we might be sent to the world.

So what? Where are you struggling in this journey of discipleship? Are you with Jesus? Are you going pushing back the powers of darkness with your life? Are you with others?

Now What?

Maybe you’re in this room and you’re not following Jesus...

Make it a point today to find a place to be involved.

Prayer