Jesus went up on a mountain and called out the ones He wanted to go with Him. And they came to him. Then He appointed twelve of them and called them His apostles. They were to accompany Him, and He would send them out to preach, giving them the authority to cast out demons. These are the twelve He chose:
Simon (whom he named Peter),
James and John (the sons of Zebedee, but Jesus nicknamed them “Sons of Thunder”),
Andrew,
Philip,
Bartholomew,
Matthew,
Thomas,
James (son of Alphaeus),
Thaddaeus,
Simon (the zealot),
Judas Iscariot (who later betrayed him).
We need to remember that these men were not perfect men, some of them were learned men and some uneducated. They had flaws just like us but they were chosen for the purpose to further the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ when He – Christ will no longer be here on earth. Remember that Jesus had another seventy-two disciples apart from the twelve disciples (Luke 10:1 – The Lord now chose seventy-two other disciples and sent them ahead in pairs to all the towns and places he planned to visit). Jesus taught the twelve disciples His lifestyle, and works, and who to depend on at all times – God the Father. As a pastor who is in the early stages of work in the body of Christ, you need to follow the steps of the Master – Jesus who has commissioned you. When you walk with Jesus then you will know what and how He wants you to work for Him.
Step 1……SEEK THE FACE OF GOD: Jesus Christ first went up to the mountain to pray and seek the face of our Father (Luke 4: 1 – 2). As a child of God you need to ask the Father for the guidance on the following:
- Location: Where He (God) wants you to stay and do His work.
- Name of ministry.
- The vision and mission of the ministry: what and how He wants you to do.
These are the major keys that hold the foundation of any church denomination or ministry. Your location determines your allocation; the name given to the ministry bears His unction and the vision and mission determine your destiny. Though having these three keys does not give the final guarantee to your success in the area God has called you to work. What guarantees your success is your study and meditation and making sure you carefully obey the Word of God (Joshua 1:8 KJV) and your continuous obedience to the leading of the Holy Spirit (John 6:63; Romans 8:14).
Step 2…… EVANGELISM: From then on Jesus began to preach, “Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near (Matthew 4: 12 – 17; 28: 18 – 20). This is the heart of the Christian matter; for souls to be saved, for disciples to be raised, for members to be guided and watched over, and for more soul to be won for Christ. This step was shown to us by our Lord Jesus Christ on how He chose His twelve disciples (Luke 6: 12 – 16) and the seventy-two (Luke 9: 1 – 6; 10: 1 – 3) others. They kept growing even while He was not there up till now (Acts 2: 41 & 47).
Step 3…… DISCIPLESHIP: Jesus often takes His disciples on the mountain to teach them (Matthew 5), and to teach them how to pray (Matthew 6: 7 – 14). You need to be a person who is never shy about the things of God, and who correctly explains the word of truth. You need to be a man who prays fervently (James 5:17). Prayers enable your gift to manifest. Teach your workers/members to pray. Teach them the word of God, this will enable to build others and as well manage the grace of God upon their lives so as not to abuse it.
Take note: Do not grow your church based on prophecies rather build your members up with the Word of God, and be rest assured that you will have solid disciples of Jesus whom will take over when you are not there and by the mercies of the Lord make it to heaven.