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Mark 3 English Standard Version (ESV)

The Twelve Apostles

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.

²⁰ Then he went home, and the crowd gathered again, so that they could not even eat. ²¹ And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He is out of his mind.”

 

REFLECTION

1. We know a few of the more famous (and infamous) disciples of Jesus, but there are many in this list we know nothing about at all.  Though they were also with Jesus for more than three years, received teachings and care from Jesus, were commanded to preach, heal, and cast out demons. However, they remained to be the unnoticed in the Bible and in the church history.
2. In our own discipleship, we may be asked to do some work or to take a stand that gets noticed by others.  But often discipleship consists of faithfulness in the small, even mundane acts of Christian service perhaps unnoticed by all except God.
3. Are you aware of any unnoticed servers at church, home, the office or any other places? Look for an opportunity to show appreciation, a smile, or a thank you to these people.
4. Are you willing to be an unnoticed disciple of Christ?  Is there any behind-the-scene work that needs to be done? Ask the Lord to give you the willingness to do the not-easily-noticed services faithfully even without people’s recognition or appreciation.

 

PRAYER

Lord, thank You for calling us, giving us different gifts, and assigning us different ministries, and that You love us the same, no matter how big or how much we do. Lord, may You make me continue to mature spiritually, so that I will not be driven by the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of this life, so that even though I am in Your church, my heart is chasing after the world’s fame and fortune. Lord, I would like to be a quiet servant, willing to do the unnoticed ministry. I know that even though I don’t get the attention of others, I do get Your attention and please You. It is enough to have You in my life, what else do I need? Amen!

 

HYMN

Make Me A Servant – youtu.be/r6U8O_WnPZY