Editors note: The devotionals that appear from this month on will be taken from the summer archives because I want to go over the Gospel of Mark from the beginning.. It is possible they will have updates and will be highlighted in pink.

Quiet Times: (Psalm 29,  Proverbs 29,, and Mark 3:16-19)

"He will give his people strength; He will bless them with peace." (Psalm 29:11, TLB)

"Fear of man is a dangerous trap, but to trust in God means safety." (Proverns 29:25, TLB)

"These are the twelve he appointed: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter, James son of Zebedee and his brother John (to them he gave the name Boanerges, which means Sons of Thunder Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him." (Mark 3:16-19, NIV)

Observations:

I asked myself what sticks out in this passage!

What stuck out to me is v.16: “These are the twelve he appointed”

Interpretation:

I asked myself the significance of this verse!

Three things stood out:

I asked myself why twelve?

Everything Jesus does there is a reason for it. Jesus never does anything for the sake of doing it. So, I looked for the significance of twelve in Scripture.

Twelve is represented in Scripture 131 times including the New Testament! The Old Testament included it 74 times and the New Testament 57 times.

“When the whole nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the LORD said to Joshua, "Choose twelve men from among the people, one from each tribe, and tell them to take up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan from right where the priests stood and to carry them over with you and put them down at the place where you stay tonight." (Joshua 4:1-3, NIV)

Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. (Matthew 19:28, NIV)

”The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.” (Revelation 21:14, NIV)

Throughout Scripture, I saw TWELVE being emphasized. Jesus had a reason for choosing the twelve and those that knew the Old Testament would have known the reason why Jesus specifically chose TWELVE.

‘Appointed’ is mentioned 148 times in the Bible!

The key in all this is that Jesus appointed the twelve to be with Him, preach the Word, heal the sick, and cast out demons. Jesus gave them the invitation to do ministry. This is so significance because they would not have been able to do it on their own.

Implications:

I saw important implications for my own life. I cannot choose Jesus but Jesus has to choose me. That is so profound. I cannot do ministry on my own because true ministry is an out flowing of the power of God working in me and through me. Those that go into the ministry on their own without being taught by Jesus, preached to by Jesus, and led by Jesus will not last in ministry.  Also, I learned when Jesus chooses us, we have to choose to do His will and follow His ways. He will not force us to do things His way. Jesus gives us the training and the tools and we have to use them for His honor and glory. I know because I have been there!

Lord had used His servants to appoint me to ministry where I would work 40 – 80 hrs a week in ministry. Sadly, I was choosing to do ministry but not spending enough time to be ministered by the One who gives us the power and guidance to do ministry for Him. I went my own way and wanted to do things my own way and it cost me. Jesus showed me a way of doing things but I wanted to do things my way and failed miserably. This cost me what I loved to do.

When Jesus appoints us for something, He also has the power to disappoint us by taking that appointment way. That usually happens because when Jesus appoints us, He appoints us to do His will and for a specific purpose. When we decide to go our own way and not spend at the feet of Jesus learning from Him and being guided by Him, things will fall apart. It happened to me in ministry! That is the worst feeling to be appointed to ministry and then being let go!

But you know what the Good News is that our Lord is so loving, merciful, and gracious! I believe because of what had happened in my life, there are a lot of things Lord helped me improve on. In God’s Goodness, He has opened doors for me to do ministry again! This is a blessing! Being appointed by the Lord to do ministry with Him is the best feeling there is!

I have focused on ministry but appointments do not have to be singled out to ministry. The Lord can appoint you to a leadership post for an organization, company, job etc but the way you live out the principles by which our Lord wants you to live by will determine if you keep the post or not. At other times, the Lord Himself will move us to another position to carry out His will through us for greater things as we are obedient to Him. Praise the Lord!

I ask you now dear friend, where is your appointment in?

Dear friend, each of us is appointed to something whether we realize it or not. When we are in a leadership role it is usually through appointment whether that appointment comes through the votes of the people, through a direct Word from the Lord, etc. Whatever your appointment is in, you have the opportunity to make a difference for good. When they see you, they should see a man or woman of God doing God’s work in the field they are in. That would bring praise and honor to the Lord!

 What is very important to remember is that our private lives affect our public ministry. If we live our private lives in sinful indulgence and then try to act holy outside, it will come back to haunt us. I have seen so many situations like that where ministers fell because their private life with the Lord did not match their public life of doing things for the Lord. In their private life, they did not take into application what Jesus has taught them!

I do not want that to happen to you! If you are in a leadership position, please remember any leader is also a follower. Jesus appointed the disciples to be in leadership positions but they were also followers of Jesus Christ. Whatever our appointment is in, we need to be followers of Jesus Christ and let Him guide and lead us!

 Taking it to a deeper level, you can have an appointment in Heaven or Hell but the choice is yours!

Jesus loves you so much and went to the cross to pay for your sins. He bore all the sins of your life on the cross as He shed His precious cleansing Blood. He did that so by His grace you can be saved! Why be saved you may ask? God in His Holiness cannot allow sin to enter into His presence. Even if you have done 99.9% good works but 0.1% of what you did was bad in your life, you are not in a position to be appointed to Heaven! That is scary but there is hope too! God is not saying that there is no way for you to come in because you have that 0.1% bad works (which can be compared to 99.9% pure water with 0.1% cyanide, making it not pure).

God loves you so much that He sent His only begotten Son so that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have Everlasting Life. This is for you friend! His love can reach you where you are! How so you may ask? It is through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. When Jesus went to the cross, He was offering Salvation to the world. But, to be written for an appointment to Heaven, your name needs to be written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

It can happen when you acknowledge that you have sinned and need Jesus to cover you with His precious cleansing blood. Now when God looks at you, He will see Christ’s blood and righteousness covering over you. So, God’s judgment will pass over you! This is so exciting to have an appointment in Heaven!

What I have written below in prose format is what Satan does not want you to know!

Love to see people in the fire, they call me the evil one

Once in my dominion there is no where to run

People turn to me for all kinds of fun

When they listened to ideas I liked to tell

Now I am glad they are not well

For all eternity love to see them scream and yell

In my clutches so glad no one can win

In your life I love to be in

You can join the rest of my kin

I have a way of invading the heart, soul, strength, and mind

My deadly virus has a way to keep you forever in a bind

When I fell from grace I took angels numbering one-third

I love to see people not following God’s Word

I specialize in offering lies as the truth

So in humans they can fully take root

Just as I tempted Adam & Eve to eat the fruit.

Cause my favorite event is called “Burn, baby Burn”

 I am the Fallen Angel Lucifer, people come to learn

As Satan, I love to see people burn and mourn

Only tremble when to the Savior Jesus Christ, people turn

What I have written below in prose format is what God wants you to know!

Love to see you in my presence, I am the Holy One

I love you so much, for you I gave my only begotten Son

Whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Being delivered from the deadly power of  sin’s strife

No matter what the sin virus has done

With my antidote, in life, you can victoriously run

My Son went to the cross to produce it

As His hands and feet ,with 3 nails, were pierced with

And his body, for you ,was bruised & broken by every hit 

Now for humanity His cleansing blood flowed bit by bit

He died and came back to life to save you from Hell’s pit

Heaven and Hell are real and it is no myth

In Heaven, at my Right Hand, my Son does sit

Jesus is His Name!

For your redemption, He came.

To save you from Hell’s flame

And to give your life a new aim

His antidote of blood can rescue you from sin’s deadly game

But you gotta a choice whether Satan or Jesus, you pick

Remember all of Satan’s ways are a trick

Jesus wants to deliver you from the sin that makes you so sick

Won’t you accept His free gift of Grace

Letting His Spirit help you overcome the virus you face?

His grace is what sets you free to win life’s race

Because of the antidote of blood shed to deliver you from sin’s ways

It is by grace you are saved through faith

Not of any works that you should boast,Jesus saith

You coming to me, Satan does hate

Because he is all evil to this date

Upon me He does not want you to wait

For He knows I can deliver you from Hell’s place

And set you on Heaven’s base

Come to me my child

No matter how your life has been wild

For I am gentle and mild

You, with love, joy, & peace I want to treat

And One day in Heaven personally greet

I want to receive you with the power of my love

And give you my Holy Spirit that came upon me like a dove

Sin separated you from me

But my blood was shed to set you free

So together we can once again be

Life with me you gotta experience and see

Though trials and tribulations come, I will be your Key

No matter how your life has been

I want to take you by my side

In my presence, you can abide

I want to help you in life with all my might

Helping you do what is right

To escape sin’s destructive bite

“Appointment Places People Over Immanuel’s Nurturing Truth Making Everyday New Truly!” (A.P.P.O.I.N.T.M.E.N.T)/”Where is your appointment in?”

If you would like to invite Jesus Christ into your heart and make Him a daily part of your life, you can this very moment. You will never be alone. You can claim God's promises for you in the Bible and see them come true, before your eyes, in His wonderful timing. You don't have to wait for a special time to come to the Lord. You can come right now as you pray this prayer, meaning it in your heart.

Friend, you may feel something or you may not but this you can be assured that the Lord Jesus has come into your life and will give you a new beginning! Amen!

Get yourself involved in a campus Bible study, fellowship, and most of all find a Bible believing church and be involved to grow in your Christian walk with the Lord. They all need to be supplements for your own precious time with the Lord in prayer and meditating on His Word. If you need a Bible, please let me know!

If you need anyone to talk to, pray with, or study the Bible with this Fall of October 2005, you can email me at reddy4hisglory2004@yahoo.com or call me at 412-720-4579.

Love in Christ,
Ramesh

Next Devotional:
Where is your A.P.P.O.I.N.T.M.E.N.T in?

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