A General & Specific Calling
Mark 3: 7-19
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Back to Basics The
New Testament Witness of the Apostle
Peter |
Max
A Forsythe | |
My commentators understand that from this point on, there is a growing division between the Old Covenant Church of record and the growing independence of the new organization of Jesus Christ. Possibly to avoid conflict with the authorities, Jesus and company withdrew to remote areas for study, reflection and teaching. However, as we see in the first verse of our passage this morning, the multitudes followed Him.
Demon possession seems to be an all to common problem even amongst the elect nation of Israel. Jesus severely rebukes these demons as they try to expose who He is before He chooses to reveal Himself for who and what He really truly is. The time for that is Christ's to determine within the framework of the Father's providential will. The growing opposition of the priestly party makes a separate organization more than necessary.
The huge number of the crowds demands that Jesus have assistants who are willing to follow Him and to minister in His own Name.
I can well remember when we first started, the mother church would have preferred that we remain part of their group on the NorthWest corner. Unfortunately, that congregation was dying, much as was the Jewish Church of Christ's time. So for a while, we had to be circumspect in our own organization and quiet about our independent aims. We needed time to gather, to organize and to grow. Sometimes, I think we are still in that position as a congregation? We still have to be careful not to be too public in our doctrines, issues and attitudes towards generic evangelicalism and the institutional growth crowd who would control the course of Christ's work even in our own day and place.
Does it seem that the work of Christ is just as unpopular in all times, places and organizations? I am afraid so. Just as some people talk about the paradigms of educational process whereby alternate intelligences are being identified and discovered, other people simply see that the imperial professional movement are just as undressed, as the foolish storied Emperor of old. In a self-same way did the leadership of the Jewish Church in Christ's time miss not only their calling, but their salvation as well. Those who would oppose Christ and His work were not only out of touch real spiritual reality but also wreckers of havoc and prophets of doom who were absolutely clueless when it came to knowing Jesus Christ.
And so even as Jesus withdraws from potential conflict, he is still hounded by the crowds seeking health, wealth and every other snake oil potion that might just make them feel better. Of course, some do indeed see beyond the miraculous gifts that they receive. But this is not a common perception. Here we see that the press of the crowds is so great that Jesus must put a barrier of water, a moat if you will between Himself and those who want only the ministry of healing but not the burden of thinking about any teaching.
Well do people involved in mercy ministries understand that attitude. What do you mean I have to wash before sleeping in bed, why should we have grace before the meal and why can't I snuggle up with my bottle or favorite drug if I want? Well did Jesus say that the poor we will always have with us, those whose life focus is only on temporal daily fixes of food, warmth or whatever?
By removing to distant regions, perhaps our Lord meant to downplay the healing ministry in favor of the teaching one? Yet, ever and again, before people are willing to listen, many forests of ignorance, bad habits, selfish attitudes and all the other focal points of sin must be put out of the way.
Like Joshua and the ancient tribes, was Jesus and by extension the disciples cleaning out a hornet's nest of spiritual possession in the land of Judea before the new faith could be comprehended and accepted? What a damning declaration that idea is on the elect Old Covenant Church of Israel! A ritualistic, self-righteous organization that needed reforming as much or more than the Roman Church of the fifteenth century or even the evolving New Age Churches of the twenty-first century! That should be issues enough to discuss in context of verses seven through thirteen.
In the remaining verses of this section we see the Jesus in the loving work of laying the groundwork for His new Kingdom of the Spirit. Specifically we see that the Master chose His own disciples. A motley crew they were indeed. Not a promising bunch of scholars or gifted laymen to establish the greatest institution in all of history: Christ's own New Covenant Church.
Just this week in Bible Study we read in chapter seven of R.C. Sproul's book Faith Alone, that too much of the church wrongly assumes that when Jesus gives us responsibility to plant, organize and grow His church, we must by extension already have the abilities to do just that. Imagine if that attitude had been evident in the disciples when they went out to preach, heal and drive out demons! If they already had the ability to meet the responsibility why hadn't they thought to use those abilities already.
Now, let us be careful here, there is a spiritual movement within the Church today that would insist that Jesus came just to show us how to use what we already have! You only have to look as far as that devilish book Jonathan Livingston Seagull to see the utter nonsense of that attitude. I should think the author of that New Age emotional fixation should have named it instead: Johnny Pelagius Pelican! At least then he would be one third correct in his heretical murmurings.
Certainly, the men that Jesus chose had a certain character and attitude toward work and truth which could be transformed by the Holy Spirit into Apostolic greatness. However, verse thirteen makes it clear that these men were the ones that He wanted. Training went on for several years, yet before they were able to go about His work without Him, they had to receive the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Only then were they enabled to build up the Kingdom of the Spirit. In this last portion, the scribe Mark lists the twelve men who became the Master's own. Dr Cole interprets Mark's listing of the twelve as intimate and personal, they are given apt nicknames wherever appropriate. From further research, thus the list might read in this manner:
The first four included:
16 Simon Peter The Rock
17 James son of Zebedee The Sons of Thunder
John brother of James
18 Andrew Peter's Brother
The second four included:
Philip The Earnest Inquirer
Bartholomew/Nathanael The Man without Guile
Matthew The Publican
Thomas The Melancholy Twin
The third four included:
James son of Alphaeus James the Less
Thadddaeus "Great Heart": 3 different names
Simon the Cananite The Keen Zealot or Extremist
19 Judas Iscariot The Knifeman
Don't you just love nicknames, many times they are indeed a window into a soul. Indian names as well as the ancient Hebrew and Aramaic names had meanings which are just as poetic and accurate as human character allows. A.B. Bruce describes the humble beginnings here best: Here are exhibited to our view the infant church in its cradle, the petty sources of the River of Life, the earliest blossoms of the Christian faith, the humble origin of the mighty empire of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The crowds in the first portion of our text today clamored to see the Messianic King much as the worldly in our time worshipped Diana the princess. I find it humorous that two of the 20th Century Saints who passed away in obscurity, wished it so. C.S. Lewis died the same day as John F Kennedy, and Mother Theresa the same week as the "goddess" Di! Only those with a true spiritual perception noticed the greater loss to mankind on both occasions.
The same crowds welcomed the Messiah into Jerusalem and when He took up not the crown that they expected, they joined the satanic throng which clamored for His death, all in the space of a single week. Even one of the twelve, well noted by Mark, took exception to the spiritual nature of Christ's everlasting kingdom and turned State's Evidence to provide a Lamb for the greater Sacrifice.
The other eleven however, lost a portion of the frail human condition and in the saving work of Christ began to understand the spiritual revelation being outlined before their eyes day by day. Finally, towards the end, when Jesus asks them who He is, Rocky, as he might have been called in slang English admits that Jesus is truly the Son of God. Jesus is quick to point out that he could not have known it, unless the Father told Him by the Spirit. So by the end of Christ's life on earth, they had almost guessed it, barely espoused it and, being slow learners as are we all, scattered when the Great Shepherd of their souls was crucified.
Only with the full invigoration of the Spirit did they begin to speak with power and authority at Pentecost. There on that day, the Lord began to build up His true Church which still grows by the same means today: the working of the Holy Spirit. May we, who have come in out of the crowd and gathered around the precious table of our Lord learn well, our membership in the New Spiritual Kingdom. May we treasure that relationship as we more and more put on Christ to serve Him faithfully in the same manner of the first twelve! And may the Lord be gracious to us as He continues to grow His church. Amen.
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Resources Used | |
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Bruce, A.B. |
The Training of the Twelve. |
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Cole, Alan. |
Tyndale New Testament
Commentaries: |
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Keener, Craig S. |
The IVP Bible Background Commentary:
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Pringle, William. |
Calvin's New Testament
Commentaries: |
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The
New Geneva Study Bible
(NKJV) | |
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Mrk03b |
06 February 00 |