One of the Twelve

May 12, 2014 Monday Message:

2000 years ago, most Rabbis had some disciples, thereby training the next generation of religious teachers. They would instruct 1 or 2 people at a time, with 3 - 4 being the practical limit. No individual Rabbi had more than a half dozen disciples.

But Jesus called 12 disciples, way more than was customary. It’s as if he wanted to make a splash!

If you understand that Jesus is truth, then it all makes sense. Hearing truth right from God’s mouth holds a supernatural attraction for those of us in search of answers to first-order questions: Who am I? Why am I here? What is my purpose?

When studying Jesus, we need to remember that the congregation of believers numbers way more than just the 12. In Luke 10, Jesus sent 72 other disciples, 2 by 2, as an advance team, to the towns he intended to visit. The word “other” tells me that those sent are in addition to the 12. And the Bible is only counting male-heads-of-household. But many of these people were married and had kids. And some undocumented followers were single women. It would be fair to estimate that a short while after his ministry launch, there were hundreds of people following Jesus most of the time.

By Palm Sunday, the number had increased. By now, ALL of Jerusalem had heard of Jesus - the healings, the miracles, and his claims to be the Son of God. In front of Him, they laid colorful cloth and palm branches, decorating the road for his Triumphal Entry, shouting, “Save us; save us now!” They knew that only God could truly save them.

Nowadays, the number of disciples following Jesus seems to have increased. The number in His circle now stands at over 2 billion. If you’re reading this, you’re probably one of them.

Norton Lawellin

Let’s worship together! This week I’ll open Acts 3 – Peter heals a crippled beggar – Miracles in Jesus’ name are still possible AFTER the crucifixion! Jesus in the City Fellowship (JICF) meets every Sunday, at 10:30am, in the North end (gym) of the Oliver Ministry Building, 2647 Bloomington Ave., Minneapolis.