We are blessed to have many deeply committed, very capable people on our church staff. One of them is our chief of security, Reggie Johnson. He does so much more than just keep the church campus safe. Reggie learns and remembers the names of our worshippers. In fact, he knows your children and what kind of cars you drive. When a funeral takes place, Reggie grieves with the family. If your left front tire is a bit slack, Reggie will notice and let you know. If a soccer ball is kicked over a fence, Reggie will likely retrieve it. If your car won't start, Reggie will find a way to get it running. As a servant of Christ, he goes the extra mile for others.
Reggie is a good example of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. Discipleship is our theme today. Our scripture is about the naming of Jesus' twelve disciples or apostles. The word "disciple" just means "learner." Surely all of us who have claimed Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord regard ourselves as learners, being taught daily by the Holy Spirit.
Look with me at Luke, chapter 6, beginning with verse 12. At this point early in Jesus' ministry, he had perhaps seventy-five to one hundred disciples who spent time regularly with him. But he needed a smaller group who would be with him constantly, in full-time training and service. So, in preparation for selecting twelve special disciples, Jesus spent all night in prayer. Wow! Have you ever prayed all night? I'm afraid that if I tried, I would fare no better than Peter, James and John who kept dozing off.
Verses 13 through 16 tell us that Jesus chose twelve to be with him constantly. We usually refer to those twelve as the disciples, but he actually designated them to be apostles. The word "apostle" comes from the Greek "apostolos" and means "someone who is sent out." The first thing that strikes you about the twelve whom Jesus chose is how ordinary they were. None of them was educated, famous, or influential. Only one, Matthew, had much money, and he had gotten it dishonestly.
The other thing that strikes you about the apostles is their diversity. Though all of them were from Galilee except Judas Iscariot, the band included fishermen, a fanatical nationalist-Simon the Zealot, and a man regarded as a traitor-Matthew. How do you suppose Jesus kept Simon the Zealot from slipping a knife between the ribs of Matthew the tax collector? As soon as Jesus named the twelve as apostles, he put them to work.
Verses 17 through 19 tell us that Jesus did not even take them on a three-day retreat to learn how to be effective apostles. Jesus believed in on-the-job training. He just led the twelve down the mountain to where all the human hurts were and put them to work. Though you and I are certainly not apostles, we are committed to being disciples of Jesus. What does that mean? What are the implications? Let me suggest three.
First, To Be a Disciple Means That Someone Is Praying for You, and His Name is Jesus!
I don't know how the living Christ-Spirit manages to pray over his millions of disciples but he is not limited by time and space as we are. How do I know that he prays for us? The Bible says so, in I John 2:01. "We have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous." Advocate is another term for defense attorney. It's wonderful if you have two hundred people praying for you; but it's even more important that Jesus, who knows everything about you, is pleading your case before the Father.
Ruth Bell Graham, wife of Billy Graham, tells about a time when their pet cat had a litter of six kittens. They were born in a pasteboard box in the kitchen. But the mother cat decided to move them to the carport. One by one she moved each kitten, carrying it by the back of the neck, from one end of the house to the other. She moved all of the kittens except the last one, the runt of the litter. Perhaps she was exhausted from her efforts or was busy playing lunch counter for the others.
Finally that tiny runt in the bottom of the box let out more of a squeak than a mew. It was almost a non-sound. Instantly, the mother cat appeared, grabbed that little runt in her mouth, headed for the carport. Three doors, two rooms, and two hallways away, yet she heard that tiny sound. If a mother cat could hear so well, how much more does God respond to our sighs, our tears, our murmurings, our longings. God can hear a tear roll down a cheek anywhere on the planet. Instantly the living Christ is before the Father, pleading our case, and sending a guardian angel in our direction. We have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.(1)
Here is the second distinctive thing about being a disciple of Jesus: You Are Placed In Great Company!
Think about that first group of twelve. It included the charismatic leader Simon Peter, the winsome and
approachable Philip, the humble evangelist Andrew, and the honest seeker Thomas. Think about the delightful company of disciples in Christ Church. We have about thirty adults who love kids so much that they are spending this weekend with 75 of our fourth and fifth graders, helping them get to know Jesus Christ better. You know they won't get much sleep! We have dedicated Christian coaches who are leading sports teams in our recreation ministry. Our Living Water ministry shares the heart-breaking grief of those who have lost loved ones. We have some of the most winsome ushers I have ever known. And, what about that 94-year-old saint among us who is such an awesome prayer warrior!
Yesterday one of our middle-aged adults, Diedre Rosemond, died of cancer. Several weeks ago she returned from the Anderson Clinic in Houston with the bad news that she had just a short time to live. Her Firm Foundations Sunday School class and the hospice ministry came to her assistance. Someone from that class was there almost constantly. They held an all-day prayer vigil for her on Thursday. After she died they stood by her bed and celebrated her home-going. That's the way Christian discipleship works. We come to the aid of each other. The writer of Hebrews, thinking about that vast multitude of saints who have touched our lives on behalf of Christ, declared, "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." (Heb. 12:01)
Here is a third implication of Christian discipleship: You Are Called To Be Christ-Extenders.
St. Paul expressed it this way: "All this is from God who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation." (2Cor. 5:18) Now if you are a seeker, just investigating a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, please disregard what I am about to say. We're just thrilled to have you here, listening, watching, and seeking. What I'm about to say is for disciples of Jesus Christ, those in a personal relationship with him. I'm talking about people who have confessed their sin and who are trusting in Jesus' sacrifice on the cross as the way by which their sins are forgiven and their souls saved. These disciples are so grateful to Christ that they have invited him to be the leader of their lives. They are disciples.
I have a question for you disciples-What is your ministry? What are you doing regularly for others that you would not be doing if Jesus had not saved you? There are no benchwarmers in the Kingdom of God. Everybody is on the field with a vital task, even if one is homebound and can do nothing more than pray daily for the church. If you write down two or three of your interests or passions on a piece of paper, with your name and phone number, and get that to me or to an usher, I will see that someone on our staff contacts you with a suggestion for a meaningful ministry.
Rebecca Pippert, a gifted layperson from Washington, D.C., tells an unforgettable story in her book, "Out of the Salt Shaker and into the World." It paints a wonderful picture of a disciple. Bill was a college student with wild hair and tattoos. He wore nothing but jeans and a faded T-shirt. He was brilliant but skeptical about Christianity. He had not been to church for many years. But one Sunday for some reason he decided to attend the church not far from his campus. He walked into the sanctuary about 11:30 AM dressed in his usual attire. The place was packed with well-dressed, rather formal folks. They were standing, singing a hymn. As Bill walked down the aisle looking for a seat, people glanced up at him and felt uncomfortable.
Finally Bill reached the front. Since he could not find a seat, he just sat down on the floor and wrapped his arms around his knees. The hymn concluded and the people sat down. The tension in the air was thick and the people were really uptight. It was time for the minister to preach, but before he could begin, he noticed that from the rear of the church, an elderly deacon was slowly making his way down the middle aisle. He was very dignified and elegant and walked with a cane. Everybody was thinking, "The old man is going to tell the boy that it's just improper to sit on the floor in church. He is going to ask him to leave."
It took an eternity for the old man to reach the front. The church was utterly silent except for the clicking of the man's cane. All eyes were on him. Finally the elderly deacon reached the place where the boy was sitting. With great difficulty he lowered himself, sat down next to Bill, and worshipped beside him. Everybody was touched with emotion. When the minister was finally able to speak, he said, "What I'm about to preach, you will never remember. What you have just seen, you will never forget."(2)
1. Graham, Ruth Bell, "Soft Cries" from Legacy of a Pack Rat (Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, TN, 1989)
2. Pippert, Rebecca, Out of the Salt Shaker and into the World (InterVarsity Press: Downer's Grove, IL, 1979)