"God Uses Ordinary People"

Hi there this is on Solomon and I'd like to welcome you to our program today. You know it's a tremendous honor that God is given us to be on stations all around the nation bringing the truth of God's word as it is uncompromising and straightforward and I'm so glad you tuned in to listen and be part of that.

Thanks again for your support and your generosity that keeps us on the radio and now let's get to the word of God. One day I was standing in the waiting room of a gas station here locally and I noticed the poster on the wall and here's what it said it said see Rinker paving company need some good men workers must meet the following qualifications and then there was a list number one you must know your address or the make and model of car you are living in a number two you must be able to tell time. Number three you must not hair short enough to see and hear number for your earrings must be light enough that you can look the boss in the face and last of all, it said you must be able to go eight hours without drugs or alcohol and be able to work at least 30 minutes straight without going to the restroom Nairobi now… These were hilarious, and it's fairly obvious if you've been there you would not have written these down.

That's pretty obvious, but I thought they were funny. Anyway, what's the point. The point is that every job has certain requirements, certain qualifications that you have to meet in order to work. That job and when it comes to the job of serving Jesus Christ and letting your life be used by him which I believe frankly is the highest and the noblest job anywhere in the universe.

One of the qualifications that you and I have to have in order to do that this morning. Our passage looks at Jesus calling his 12 apostles and I want us to look at that passage and to talk a little bit about their qualifications wasn't that they had qualified them to serve the resurrected king of the universe and then from that. I want us to answer the question so what. So let's begin. Luke chapter 6 verse 12 one of those days Jesus went out into the hills to pray and he spent the whole night praying to God.

When morning came, he called his disciples to him and he chose 12 of them, whom he also designated apostle Jesus here was about to make one of the most strategic decisions of his entire earthly ministry he was about to appoint his apostles. These are men who would form his inner circle. They would demand that Jesus would disclose himself to in a way that he would not disclose himself to anyone else.

Once he was gone. These men would be his ambassadors. That's what the Greek word apostle loss means. It means an ambassador they would be his ambassadors to the world and Jesus would count on them to write much of the New Testament to establish the Christian church to carry the message of salvation through Jesus Christ without compromise to the entire world. So this was an enormous task that Jesus was appointing these men to and it was essential that he had the right man for the job and so before making his choice. Jesus went out and spent the entire night in prayer seeking God's wisdom and God's direction. In the morning, Jesus was ready to make his decision and he came down from the mountain and he chose 12 men and their listed here beginning in verse 14 Simon, whom he named Peter his brother, Andrew, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alpheus Simon who was called the zealots, Judas, the son of James and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor. I want to take a quick look at these 12 men with urgency will count qualifications they had held for ministry. First there was Simon, whom Jesus named Peter knowing Peter Duke was a fisherman right and when you think of Peter. Certain adjectives fly into your mind. What are some of the adjectives that you would think of if I ask you to give me some adjectives that describe Peter.

How about uneducated.

How about unpolished.

How about class, how about impulsive. How about outspoken all of these are true. Peter Peter was one of those guys you will always enter the room mouth first know those people choice on the semblance people that was. And then the Bible says there was his brother Andrew who was also fisherman that we don't know much about Andrew, but he seems to be as brothers often are the exact opposite of his brother Peter, the Bible presents him as saying hardly anything ever and I assume that he was probably very quiet, very restrained individual, the exact antonym of his brother Peter: we know about Andrew is that he was the one John chapter 1 it tells us he was the one who actually led Peter to Christ, then there were James and John, who also brothers they were sons of a man named 70 that's right, and 70 when only thing about him, but we know that these were his two sons that these two men were also fisherman on the Sea of Galilee and Mark chapter 3 tells us something very interesting about it in Mark chapter 3 it says to them. Jesus gave the nickname bladder G which means songs of lightning and thunder. Now I don't know why but Jesus called these guys lightning and thunder, which gives you some idea what their temperament and their personality must've been like these guys must've been a couple of fireball we know very little about Philip, Bartholomew, James the son of Alpheus or Judas, the son of James.

We do know a little bit about Thomas's IQ knowing buys nickname, which is what doubting Thomas Wright. He was a twin. By the way the Bible says his name was didymus, which means my twin's twin was not an apostle, but he was and the Bible says that when Jesus appeared after his resurrection Thomas if you remember, wasn't there. And then when all of the apostles that he Thomas the Lord appeared to us.

Thomas said I was talking to my finger and put it in the hole in his hand, and unless I can take my hand and stick it in a hole in his side will not believe a week later, Jesus appeared to Thomas sect finger insecure right here in the hole in my hand and take your hand and stick it right here my side and stop down and believe in John chapter 11, when Jesus was headed to Jerusalem to the very last time to go to the cross. Thomas is quoted as saying, well, let's just go ahead and go to Jerusalem with him so we may die. Also, any different than Peter, like night and day. Then it was Judas Iscariot. Did you ever wonder what Iscariot meant what a team through any means each county which means the man from the little town of carry-ons to that's it that God has convalesced and he was a traitor is a boy along Jesus's prayer life getting a lot of good shoes and this guy like night shows I got was a traitor. Got a prayer life is that will, discernment is that well emitted. Acts chapter 2 Peter said in acts chapter 2 in his sermon this man Jesus was delivered up by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God. That's why you could nailed into a cross and that's why you putting the death look choosing. This man was no accident. This man was exactly the choice that God wanted Jesus to me was all part of the plan Jesus's prayer life is fine.

Thank you. Is there were a lot of these guys are all a lot different yet they are but I suppose when we come to the last two apostles, we find the most striking difference among a whole bunch and their names were. Matthew and Simon the zealot that when we know about these two well several weeks ago we talked about Matthew here because earlier in Luke's gospel. He appears Matthew was a tax collector. He was a Jew who worked for the Romans the Romans controlled Palestine at this time and they decided what each province old admin taxes and then a Jewish tax collector like Matthew would go around and collect the taxes and pay the Romans and the Jews hated these people. They consider them collaborators with the Romans they considered them traders and they consider them extortioners of their own people. And then there was Simon the zealot, and if you notice the word zealots in the Bible is with a Z because this was an actual political party in the land of Israel. At this time. These people got their names and zealots because of their zeal to rid Israel of everything Roman and all Romans and therefore they were called busy… Or the zealots they hated the Romans. These people were fanatics they were the ones who prompted the nation of Israel to revolt against the Romans in 66 A.D. that led to the destruction of Jerusalem and the destruction of the temple. They were the ones who fled down to Masada. If you remember that story were for three years they held the Romans often. Finally, all committed suicide rather than let any Roman take them captive, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist doesn't to figure out how Simon the zealot, and Matthew probably felt about each other think they were bosom buddies. I don't think so any of the Lord Jesus Christ took Matthew and Simon zealots and people of all kinds of different stripes and personalities in between and put them all together on the same team is a will on how in the world any accomplish that. I mean people in our world today. Nobody can get along in our world today. So how in the world and Jesus put together Simon and Matthew and everybody else in between, and make it work answer is this that these 12 men had a unifying force that held them together that was greater than all the forces that push them apart and that force was their love for Jesus Christ and their devotion to him two years ago I met a guy out before you're here, who was from Egypt. He was there and we began talking and he told me that he had given his life to Jesus Christ. He was a Christian. Now that's great. We talked a while and he knew my background that I was a Jew would happen we got to talking. We shook hands and then he reached out and hugged me and I'll be back and after we let go. I said, the acuteness needs that only in Jesus Christ can a Jew and an Arab embrace and be brothers.

But in Jesus Christ we can because it's bigger than the differences between us and friends. We're all this talk today about world peace and it's all garage.

It's crazy not is ever going to happen. Not until Jesus Christ comes back again and is enthroned as the ruler of all mankind because he is the only force anywhere in the universe that stronger than our sinful hatred in our sinful biases in our sinful prejudices is the only force stronger than that, but he is stronger than that. And that's the good news strong enough that he took these 12 men were as different as different could be an email to them together into a team that loved one. The 12 apostles. That's our passage, but it leads us to ask the question, so what, that's right, you know, as I looked at these 12 men and how different they were. One thing that impressed me.

They had one thing in common and that is they were all very ordinary people. That wasn't a PhD among them.

There wasn't a professional athlete among them.

There wasn't a professional theologian among them.

They were just everyday people. But you know the Bible says that God loves to use everyday people because the reason is that when God uses the big shots to get his work done then those people get the credit. The world gives the credits available when God uses everyday people like you and me to do things beyond anything that we ought to be able to do that he gets the correct and that's what you want. I want you to see that here in the Bible. I want you to turn back with me to the first letter that Paul wrote to the church at Corinth. It's called first Corinthians chapter 1 is what it says. Where is the wise man. Where is the scholar. Where is the philosopher of this age hasn't God made foolish the wisdom of this world, and Paul goes on to say that all these philosophers and all of these wise men in all these college professors back them around in all the world looking to find all the answers to life in the answers. On the other side of the grave and how to get eternal life to all of their philosophy and all of their scholarship and instead, God uses the simple message of the cross to solve all those problems is they foolish all of us wisdom of the world looked down at verse 26 brothers.

He says think of what you were when you were call. Not many of you were wise by human standards, not many of you were influential by human standards, not many of you were of noble birth.

But God chose the foolish things of the world. That's us. By the way, to confound to shame the wise God chose the weak things of the world. That's us.

By the way to shame the strong.

He chose the lowly things of the world. The despised things. The things that are not in the world! Guess who that is as us right and he didn't to nullify the things that are something in the world estimation so that no one may boast before God. Verse 31 if you're gonna posted anything as it's written. Let him who boast, boast in the Lord, you know what folks history shows it is not the big shots who made the big impacts for Jesus Christ to back off and they just get in the way its ordinary people, ordinary people like these 12 apostles ordinary people like you and me. If you want your life to make a difference for Jesus Christ and I hope you do you have to be rich you have to be handsome. You don't have to be beautiful or brilliant. You have to be a jock or cheerleader at school you have to be a big shot at all.

If you are an everyday ordinary person you are a perfect candidate to make a difference in this world for Christ. But there are two qualifications you got to meet and here they are number one.

You gotta be related in number two, you gotta be committed related and committed estate related to what know not what to whom you have to be related to Jesus Christ and to God only lets family serve him, that's all. You don't let people outside the family, serve it and the Bible refers to those people are part of God's special family is she or is his own children. I told you last week. If you were here everybody in this world may be one of God's creatures, but not everybody in this world is one of God's sheep.

He said to the religious leaders of Israel. In John 10 he said you do not believe what I'm telling you because you're not one of my shooting and the converse is true. The way to become one of the sheep is to believe in him as your personal Lord and Savior, then the Bible says God adopts you into his family as his special child in a way that the rest of the world isn't as one of his sheet and then and only then is God prepared to let your servant and you know there are people sitting in churches all over America this morning who got it exactly backwards there sermon in the Sunday school are singing in the choir working outside of the buildings and grounds are given their money to do everything they go saying God when you become one of you. She would've I served you nothing. God says you don't understand it will become one of my sheep by serving you become one of my sheep. I believe accepting Christ personally, as your Lord and Savior and then your service flows out of how much you love me for what I did for you in terms of giving you eternal life and making you one of my children are not serving earn anything you're serving because you love.

Maybe some of us here have it inside out. If you had it inside out for years. I hope we can straighten it out this morning, you have to become want to God sheet before the service you do for God makes any difference to them anyway. God only lets family serve.

And God wants to make you a member of his family this morning and it's easy you have to do anything. These same people in John six and what must we do to do the works that God requires is what Jesus said.

Jesus said the work of God is this that you believe in the one God is sent severe here this morning and you been trying to serve your way into being a sheep and never happened you to believe your way to being once you do that then you're ready to serve, and that leads me to my second word.

Not only do we need to be related, but we need to be committed is a committed, how will committed in the same way these 12 men were how were they committed. They left everything to follow Jesus. They left their employment.

They left their homes. They left their families. They left all they had decided to put Jesus Christ is the number one priority in their life. They were committed to obeying him whatever he asked of them.

They were committed to being outspoken for him your member in acts chapter 5 the Sadducees and the religious leaders called the man and he said all right you guys we got a deal for you were not going to put you in jail. When I go to beach when I can kill you.

You can go free. All ASCII is don't go out there and talk about this Jesus stuff anymore and the apostles said you crazy.

You can vote is in jail you what is under the jail. You can kill us if you want to buy the way they all were killed for their faith where he talking about Jesus Christ anybody the list you see my dear friends. God is looking for Christians who may be ordinary in every other way, but they are not ordinary when it comes to their commitment to Jesus Christ. Why don't Moody may have been the greatest evangelist Americas ever produced, but you know if you looked at why don't Moody at the age of 18 when he became a Christian, you would never have bet on anyone him ever amount to much anything. He was more ordinary than the most ordinary person you can ordinarily think of is dad died when he was age 4, when Moody was. He was raised in poverty was overweight. He was awkward he was clumsy.

He never finished elementary school. He could hardly read or write hero letters the way his mom talking to without any capitalization or any punctuation never used.

Never use commas and never use capitals DR never finished any kind of formal education had no formal skills of any kind, and at age 18 when he gave his life to Christ in the back of his uncle shoe store in Boston. He barely even knew I do so soon, and he spent the first few years