Sermon Central
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Just Like You And I Series
Contributed by Rich Dunbar on Feb 8, 2005 (message contributor)
Summary: This sermon is a look at the lives of the original twelve plus Matthias and Paul, and how their lives were radically changed for Christ and the price they paid for discipleship.
Just like you and I – The twelve, plus two
1. Simon (Peter, Cephas (Aramaic)/ Petros (Greek)) – is always listed first, fisherman, outspoken, leader and was crucified upside down
2. James (son of Zebedee) – fisherman, passionate, first murdered by the sword
3. John (son of Zebedee) – fisherman, apostle of love, not martyred
4. Andrew (Peters brother name means manly) – fisherman, first apostle called, stayed in the background, introduced people to Jesus, was crucified
5. Philip – name means lover of horses – he was the book keeper as it were for the apostles, was stoned
6. Thomas – (Didymus, the twin) – doubter, pessimistic, run through with a spear
7. Bartholomew – (Nathaniel) – quick to believe, tied in a sack and drowned or crucified
8. Matthew – (Levi) – tax collector, followed immediately, burned at the stake
9. James (son of Alphaeus) – the less, stoned, crucified, or beaten to death
10. Simon (the zealot) – looked for a political messiah, was killed for preaching the gospel
11. Judas (son of James) – name means Jehovah leads, also known as Lebbaeus (heart child), Thaddeus (breast child), perhaps had a tender spirit, was clubbed to death.
12. Judas Iscariot, or Matthias (stoned then beheaded), or Paul (beheaded)
A young man wrote this to his girlfriend. “Sweetheart, if this world was as hot as the Sahara desert, I would crawl on my knees through the burning sand to come to you. If the world would be like the Atlantic Ocean, I would swim through shark infested waters to come to you. I would fight the fiercest dragon to be by your side. I will see you on Thursday if it does not rain.”...
God doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the called.
A little boy constantly fell out of bed. No matter what his parents did, the boy couldn’t sleep without rolling out of bed. An uncle came to visit and in the middle of the night the usual thump and cry was heard. In the morning the uncle teased the boy and asked him why he fell out so often. The little fellow thought for a moment and then said, “I don’t know, unless it’s because I stay too close to the place where I get in.”
We too must move beyond where we entered into a relationship with Christ and mature so that He can use us for His glory.
