Companionship is what makes every journey enjoyable. Today, we continue our journey with Jesus. Join Scott Paulin as we make brief stops in the Gospel according to Mark. We trust you will enjoy the journey. They were 12 perfectly ordinary men, plainly average, until one thing happened. We've come in our journey with Jesus to what I think is one of the key verses of the whole Bible, one of the key verses of the Christian life. It's Mark chapter 3 and verse number 14. Let's begin in verse 13 where the Bible says, And he goeth up into a mountain, and calleth unto him whom he would, and they came unto him. And then here's the verse, Mark 3 verse 14, And he ordained twelve, that they should be with Him and that He might send them forth to preach. In Mark chapter 3 verse 14 is not only history, there is here great application to our present condition, to our life today, to everyone who would be a true follower, a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. These were just regular people. These disciples, these twelve, they were all very different. And frankly, as you looked at their background, you would say there's nothing special about them. But here was the secret. It was not who they were, it's who they had in common. The Bible says that they were all with Him. They were nothing until they were with Him. Him. You see, with Him, all things are possible, and without Him, we can do nothing. It's not about you, and it's not about me, and it's not even about the world around us. It's all about Jesus Christ. Think about this. With Him, 11 men, because one of them became a traitor, 11 men will turn the world upside down in a generation. Now think of that. 11 men are going to impact the entire world. And what was their secret? What was the thing? It was this, they had all been with Him. First, there was a reason they were with Him. The reason they were with Him was found in the preceding verse, in verse 13, because He called them. The Bible says, He calleth unto Him whom He would. May I ask you, are you a called person? You may say, well, I'm not a preacher, I'm not a missionary, I'm not a whatever. Oh, but you're a called person. The first calling, and the greatest calling, is the calling to be with Jesus Christ. The Lord's always wanted to be with us. That's why God came walking through the garden in the cool of the day. That's why God had a tabernacle in the wilderness and a temple in Jerusalem. It's why one of Christ's names is Emmanuel, God with us. It's why the Holy Spirit comes to indwell every believer because He wants to be with us and He wants us to be with Him. It's why He's created heaven for us. We get to be with Him for eternity. That's a powerful truth. You see, this little preposition, with, is actually a revelation of the heart of God. God's heart is always to be in union and in unity with His people. And so the reason they were with Him is because He called them, and not only did He call them, they came. That's so simple, isn't it? But it is the point of obedience or disobedience. It's a decision of the will. And I wonder today, have you come to Jesus? Have you come to Him in repentance and faith? Have you taken Him as your Savior? And then, if you have trusted Him as your personal Savior, have you committed your life to Him to say, I don't want to just go to heaven someday. I want to live with you right now. I want every day to walk with you. You see, the reason they were with Him is because He called them, and they came. And what is the result of them being with Him? Oh, it changed their life forever. You can never be the same again, and the world will never be the same again. Think of this, they heard Him speak. And then, not only did they hear Him speak, He sent them forth to preach. Notice the second part of our verse. Mark 3.14, He ordained twelve that they should be with Him and that He might send them forth to preach. When you read on, the Bible says in verse 15, "...and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out devils." I mean, think of the power of God that they get to participate in. They become heralds. One of the things that happens when you really spend time with Jesus is God will open you up. He'll take timid people and make them bold. You can't help but speak the things you've seen and heard. I mean, look, when God becomes real to you, He becomes real through you. That's a profound truth. The difference, the power was not in their numbers. There are only 12 of them. Mark uses that little expression, the 12, 10 times in his little gospel record. I think to emphasize that it's not the size of the group. No, it's the size and the power of our God. And when do we experience that power? When we are with Him. Don't miss this. Not only is there a reason they were with Him and the results of being with Him, but there will be a reproach of being with Him. The enemies are going to hate you just like they hate your Christ. and they're going to despise you. Could I read you the list of the names of these first followers of Christ? They're given to us in the following verses. Verse 16, In Simon he surnamed Peter, and James the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James. And he surnamed them Boanerges, that is, the sons of thunder. And Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddeus, and Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, which also betrayed him. and they went into a house. Why does God give us their names? Well, I think one beautiful truth here is that the Lord calls us all by name. He knows you individually, and He has a distinct plan and purpose for your life, something He wants you to do. But if you study the names of these men, now Judas Iscariot, of course, betrays Him, so we remove him from the list. But if you study these 11, you're going to find that every one of them is going to end up bearing the reproach of Jesus Christ. Simon Peter will be crucified at Rome. James will be beheaded. John will be dipped in a vat of hot oil and exiled to Patmos. Andrew will be crucified. Philip will be killed in Asia Minor. Bartholomew will be flayed alive and beheaded. Matthew will be slain with a sword in Ethiopia. Thomas will be run through with a lance in India. James the Less will be thrown from a tower and stoned and clubbed and sawed in pieces. Thaddeus will be shot through with arrows in Mesopotamia. Simon will be fatally attacked by a mob. Let me ask you something. How far are you willing to go with him? With him? You see, the reality is this group was pretty small. Oh, there were multitudes all around, but oftentimes the crowds just want to see something or hear something. I wonder, do you want to do something? Do you want to just be there, or do you want to be engaged in what God is doing in this world? And even within the list of the disciples, there's an inner circle. Did you notice the first three names? Simon, James, John? All three of them He surnamed. That's fascinating to me. The three men who were considered his inner circle, he gave interesting names to. He gave Simon the name Peter, which means rock. This is a man who's vacillating and emotional and unpredictable, and he says, I'm going to give you the name Rock. James and John, quiet, tender men that their mother had to stand up for, He's going to call them sons of thunder. How on earth would He give them such names at the beginning of His ministry when their personality seemed so different from their names? Watch this carefully. When you are with Him, He changes you. Jesus did not see them as they were. He saw them as they were going to be as they spent time in His presence. I tell you again, being with Him changes everything. It not only changes you, it will change your world. Surely as these disciples made a difference in the world because they'd been with Christ, I tell you those who get close to Jesus today, who are transformed by His presence, who have their lives and hearts touched by the holiness of Jesus Christ, they are the ones who make a difference in this world. And I wonder today, are you with Him? Thank you for traveling with us through God's Word. We would love to hear from you and share additional resources for enjoying the journey. Visit us online at scottpauley.org. May God bless you as you walk with Christ today. So, so