The Master's Men Series

THE MASTER’S MEN

Mark 6:7-13

Someone has said “The most significant contribution we can make in this life is passing our faith on to the next generation.” Unfortunately many Christians see evangelism as a burden. Statistics show that very few professing Christians actually share their faith with others. Many of those who share their faith only do so out of obligation. While it is true that sharing the Gospel is our responsibility as Christ followers, it is also a great privilege.

In Second Corinthians chapter 5, Paul tells us that through Christ, God has reconciled the world to Himself. And He has “committed to us the Word of reconciliation.” We who have received Christ are “Ambassadors of Christ”. An ambassador is a respected individual who acts as a representative of a nation. He is sent to a foreign land to represent the nation and its leader. His message is not his own, he speaks on behalf of the one who sent him. We are God’s Ambassadors in that we have been entrusted with the Gospel and sent out by Him. (1 Thessalonians 2:4 …we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, even so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who tests our hearts.)

Though we live in this world, we are not of this world. And while we live in this world we are to represent our King and His Kingdom. We have been empowered by the Holy Spirit and commissioned to take the message of our King throughout this world. Remember what Jesus said to His Apostles just before His ascension - Acts 1:8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."

Like those Apostles, we are to go into the world and share the Good News of Jesus Christ. Our selected text tells of the time when Jesus first sent out His Disciples to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom. There are many similarities between their mission and the Great Commission that we are to be involved in today. As we consider their story, I would like to preach about “The Master’s Men”.

These men were very special; they had been chosen and called by Jesus for an important task. This passage describes for us the occasion when they were commissioned and empowered to accomplish this task. Let’s begin in verse 7 and examine:

I. THE COMMISSIONING OF CHRIST’S DISCIPLES

The word “Commission” means an instruction, a command or a duty given to a person of a group of people. Later, these men would receive “The Great Commission” (Matthew 28:19). On this occasion, they were commissioned for a short term preaching assignment. I want to consider a few things about this commissioning. Verse 7 shows us that They Were Selected For A Purpose, They Were Sent To Preach and They Were Supplied With Power.

- Notice that:

A. THEY WERE SELECTED FOR A PURPOSE - v7a And He called the twelve to Himself,

There were many faithful followers of Jesus among the multitudes that followed Him. In Luke 10, we are told that Jesus chose 70 of them and sent them out on a similar mission. (Luke 10:1 After these things the Lord appointed seventy others also, and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself was about to go. 2 Then He said to them, "The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest. 3 Go your way; behold, I send you out as lambs among wolves.)

When Jesus sent out the 70, He gave them the same instructions that He gave the 12 Disciples here in Mark 6. On this occasion, He sent out the men who we also know as the “Apostles”. In the parallel passage found in Matthew 10, we have the names of the 12 men that were chosen and sent out by Jesus. (Matthew 10:2 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; 3 Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; 4 Simon the Cananite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him.)

Throughout their time following Him, Jesus had been preparing these men for this moment. When He first called Peter and Andrew He said to them “"Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men." (Mark 1:17) Jesus had been teaching and training His Disciples so that He could entrust them with a great responsibility. Now, He would send them out to “fish for men”. He would use these trained Disciples to reach the people with the message of the Kingdom.