“Jesus went up on a mountainside and called
to him those he wanted, and they came to him. He appointed twelve that they might be with him
and that he might send them out to preach and to have authority to drive out demons.”—Mark
3:13-15, NIV
When my pastor Noel Schoonmaker preached on
this passage about Jesus calling the disciples, he pointed out, “This roster
did not have a single all-star on it.” They were picked not because of who they
were but because of whom they were called to serve. Despite their limitations, Jesus selected
this diverse and sometimes clueless group to be in the vanguard of the Kingdom
of God.
Noel also emphasized the complementary nature of the relationship
to which these men were called. They
were called to be with Christ and to be his disciples, but they were also
called to be on mission for Christ and be apostles or “sent ones.” What they learned from Jesus was not to be
kept to themselves but shared with others.
This is a pattern that contemporary disciples often
forget. We gather to learn, worship, and
encourage one another, but then we are to go out into world and carry the
message of Christ wherever we happen to be during the week.
This is one of those “both/and” situations we find often in
the scriptures. Unless both actions are
taken—being gathered and being scattered—something is missing. When I was
campus minister at Mississippi State University, we adopted this mission
phrase: “To know Him and to make Him
known.” This is what the church is all
about.
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