Twelve Men that Changed the World
Stanford
E. Murrell
And
he ordained twelve, that they
Should
be with him, and that he might
Send
them forth to preach.
~*~
Mark 3:13
Go
ye therefore, and teach all nations
baptizing
them in the name of the
Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
~*~
Matthew 28:19
Twelve Men that Changed the World
Table of Content
The Calling of the Apostles
The Twelve Apostles
The Apostle’s Creed
Chapter 1 A
Sensitive Saint Named Simon Peter
Chapter 2 James:
The Son of Zebedee
Chapter 3 John:
A Son of Thunder and a Brother of Love
Chapter 4 Andrew:
The Man with a Passion for Souls
Chapter 5 Philip:
A Faithful Follower
Chapter 6 Bartholomew:
A Sermon from Silence
Chapter 7 Matthew:
Transforming the Treasures of Time
Chapter 8 The
Trials and Tribulations of St. Thomas
Chapter 9 James:
The Second Son of Alphaeus
Chapter 10 The
Last Question from the Lips of Thaddaeus
Chapter 11 Simon
the Zealot: Zealous for the Savior
Chapter 12 Judas
Iscariot: The Day a Devil Died
The Calling of the Apostles
And he goeth up into a mountain, and calleth unto him whom
he would: and they came unto him. And he ordained twelve, that they should be
with him, and that he might send them forth to preach, And to have power to
heal sicknesses, and to cast out devils: And Simon he surnamed Peter; And James
the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James; and he surnamed them
Boanerges, which is, The sons of thunder: And Andrew, and Philip, and
Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and
Thaddaeus, and Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, which also betrayed
him: and they went into an house. (Mark 3:13-19)
~*~
The Twelve Apostles
MARK MATTHEW LUKE ACTS
(Mark 3:16-19) (Matthew 10:2-4) (Luke 6:14-16) (Acts 1:13)
Peter Peter Peter Peter
James
Andrew Andrew James
John
James James John
Andrew John John Andrew
Philip Philip Philip Philip
Bartholomew Bartholomew Bartholomew Thomas
Matthew
Thomas Matthew Bartholomew
Thomas Matthew Thomas Matthew
James
(son of Alphaeus) James (son of
Alphaeus) James (son of Alphaeus) James ( of Alphaeus)
Thaddeus Lebbaeus
(Thaddaeus) Simon Zelotes Simon Zelotes
Simon
(the Canaanite) Simon (the
Canaanite) Judas (brother of
James) Judas (bro. of James)
Judas
Iscariot Judas
Iscariot Judas
Iscariot
The Apostles’ Creed
One
of the earliest confessions of faith is called The Apostles' Creed. It has received this title because of its
great age; it dates from very early times in the Church, a half-century or so from
the last writings of the New Testament.
I
believe in God, the Father Almighty,
the
Creator of heaven and earth,
and
in Jesus Christ,
His
only Son, our Lord:
Who
was conceived of the Holy Spirit,
born
of the Virgin Mary,
suffered
under Pontius Pilate,
was
crucified, died, and was buried.
He
descended into hell.
The
third day He arose again from the dead.
He
ascended into heaven
and
sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty,
whence
He shall come to judge the living and the dead.
I
believe in the Holy Spirit,
the
holy catholic [universal] church,
the
communion of saints,
the
forgiveness of sins,
the
resurrection of the body,
and
life everlasting.
Amen.
Twelve Men that Changed the World
Chapter 1
Mark 3:13-21
His body was slender and of
a middle size, inclining to tallness. His complexion was pale and almost white.
His beard was curled and thick but short. His eyes were black but flecked with
red due to frequent weeping. Eyebrows, thin or none at all. This
is the description from the ancient world of the man that is honored as St.
Peter, the apostle of Jesus Christ. By way of introduction to the Chief of the
Master’s Men several general facts should be noted. When we are first to
introduced to him, he is called Simon
(Mark 1:16; John 1:40,41), a very popular name in the Jewish culture. We read
of no less than nine Israelites in the Scriptures that bear this name.
¨ Simon Peter, the apostle of Jesus Christ.
¨ Simon the Zealot, another of the original Twelve Apostles. (Matt. 10:4; Mark 3:18; Luke 6:15; Acts 1:13)
¨ Simon, a brother of James and Jude and Jesus—according to the flesh. (Matt. 13:55; John 12:1-8)
¨ Simon the Leper, a resident of Bethany. (Matt. 26:6-13; Mark 14:3-9; John 12:1-8)
¨ Simon of Cyrene, a Hellenistic Jew who was born on the N coast of Africa and was present at Jerusalem at the time of the crucifixion. (cf. Acts 2:10)
¨ Simon the Pharisee in whose home a penitent woman washed the feet of Jesus with her tears and anointed them with oil. (Luke 7:40, 43-44)
¨ Simon, the father of Judas Iscariot. (John 6:71; 13:2, 26)
¨ Simon, the Samaritan magician, better known as Simon Magnus. (Acts 8:5)
¨ Simon the Tanner, a Christian who lived in Joppa by the seashore. (Acts 9:43; 10:6,17,32)
In honor of Simeon (lit. hearing), the second son of Jacob, devout Hebrew parents named their children.
Matthew records that one-day as Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, He saw two men fishing. They were brothers by birth and partners in trade by choice. One was named Simon, called Peter, and the other was Andrew. As Jesus watched the rugged fishermen, He noticed their serious faces and sturdy backs. Fishing for a living was no easy work. It required strong individuals with physical strength and mental stamina. Jesus needed such individuals to build His kingdom. Suddenly the Lord called out to the men who were dripping with water while laboring over their nets. Simon, Andrew, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.
That is all the Lord said for the moment, but it was enough. There was divine authority in that voice. The Sovereign Son of God had issued forth a personal summons and it was compelling enough to be obeyed. Immediately Simon dropped his work and he followed Christ. A series of question soon emerged, no doubt, for Simon was a thinker as well as a talker. He wanted to know things for his curiosity and enthusiasm was unbounded. What did Jesus mean by becoming fishers of men? What did it involve? When would the work begin? What kind of bait was to be used? Simon had so many things to inquire about, but he would have to be patient. All of his questions would be answered, but it would take time. For the moment, all that mattered was that Simon had entered into the greatest adventure of his life when he met Jesus. The Lord would change his heart and then, through him, the Lord would change the world.
The first change had already taken place as Christ changed Simon’s occupation. From fishing for food that perishes, Simon would fish for the souls of men and do a spiritual work that was to last forever. As the Lord changed His occupation, so He changed the Fisherman’s name. John tells us how it happened. (John 1:42) One day Jesus gazed upon the strong disciple and said to him, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas (Aramaic) which is by interpretation, A stone.
From being the son of a ‘fluttering, timorous dove’—for such is the meaning of the name Jona, Simon would be a ‘solid rock’, which is the meaning of the name Peter. But it would not be an easy transition; change never is. To fundamentally convert what a person is by nature requires a dramatic—and often traumatic—inner revolution. Peter would undergo such a revolution. He had to because by nature he was impulsive, which means that he often talked and acted first and thought about the consequences later. This is not a criticism as much as an observation of comfort. Dr. F.B. Myer makes this observation. Peter comes nearer to us than any of his brother apostles. We revere James, the brother of our Lord for his austere saintliness. We strain our eyes in the effort to follow John to the serene heights, whither his eagle wing bore him. But Peter is so human, so like ourselves in his down-sittings and uprisings, so compassed with infirmity, that we are encouraged to hope that perhaps the Great Potter may be able to make something even of our common clay. Despite his volatile personality there are some great things that can be noted about Peter.
First, there is The Moment of Illumination whereby Peter realizes that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of the Living God. The Bible tells us precisely when this discovery was made. It was the third day after Peter met the Master. There was a marriage in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. And both Jesus was called, and his disciples to the marriage. (John 2:1- 11 cp. John 6:66-69; Matt. 16:18)
You are familiar with the story. The wedding feast ran low on wine. Mary appealed to her son to help her out of a socially embarrassing situation. The Lord helped His mother by turning water into wine. And the Bible says, This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth His glory; and his disciples believed on Him. (John 2:11) In a moment of time Peter learned that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the Living God, and the Messiah that was to come. It was a Great Discovery.
Second,
there is The Great Covenant whereby Peter was told that, in a specialized way,
he would be the foundation of the church. The words of Jesus are very plain.
(Matt. 16:18) Thou art Peter and upon
this rock I will build my church.
It is customary for conservative Bible commentators to be dogmatic in trying to stress a play on words in this verse by appealing to the original language so that the second word for rock (petra; a mass of rock) refers to Christ and not Peter (petros; a large piece of rock like a detached boulder). While anyone can be sympathetic to every effort to protect the honor of the Lord and His relationship to the Church, it is not necessary to reword biblical terminology—or church history. The truth of the matter is that the earliest records indicate that Jesus did indeed build His church upon Peter—as He said He would. The Lord honored His commitment. Even a casual reading of the Book of Acts will see that it happened as the Lord predicted.
¨ It was Peter who preached on the Day of Pentecost and three thousand souls were saved. (Acts 2:42)
¨ It was Peter who suggested the selection of Matthias to take the place of Judas as an apostle. (Acts 1:15-22) And while the outworking of that suggestion has a lot to be desired, it does show leadership among the brethren.
¨ It was Peter who healed the lame beggar in the portico of the Temple saying, Silver and gold have I none, but such as I have,
give I thee. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk. (Acts 3:4-6)
¨ It was Peter who was falsely accused by the Rulers of the People and the Elders of the Council of Israel; and it was Peter who gave a defense of Christ. (Acts 4:8-12,29)
¨ It was Peter who foretold the death by divine discipline of Ananias and Sapphira. (Acts 5:1-11)
¨&nbs