Miracle Of The Twelve The Apostles Share Their Testimonies

By Donna Phillips

No one but Jesus would entrust His Twelve to go into the entire world to reveal the good news of the Kingdom of Heaven! What a high calling, and what a mixture of culture, background, schooling and beliefs there were among these men""a tax collector, fishermen, an assassin, seekers of truth""all in one close-knit group who were together twenty-four hours a day and seven days a week. It could not have been easy, but little by little they bonded into a united flock as they listened to Him, and followed their Shepherd every day, witnessing miracles too numerous to count. Their vision was transforming them to embrace their future, and those who distrusted each other became friends and those who were hesitant were drawn in. In this Bible-based fictional account we watch as these men walk with Jesus and see the miraculous every day? Yet there were also various obstacles to pierce and prod them, and their tempers flared and their hearts repented as they journeyed through the process of becoming united into one heart and one mind for the Kingdom of Heaven. Gradually, His Word of Life became the very core of their character, and their dedication, commitment and fiery love for the Kingdom became a powerful force leaving behind them an eternal bold blaze of glory to shine for all eternity! (Not including Judas Iscariot.) Perhaps the transformation of the Twelve was His greatest miracle of all.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Sep 10, 2018
• ISBN: 9781641402637

Donna Phillips

Donna Phillips is a nutrition expert and body enhancement consultant. Donna originally trained as a Sports Therapist who later went on to lecture in Nutrition, Skill Acquisition and other studies in Sport. She has since set up her own slimming club and is a music radio presenter for a local charity radio station in her home town. It is Donna's work in the field of health, fitness and professional sport that prompted her to write. "I've always written" she says. "But after the response I got from my work, I felt it was time to share what I know and do, with those who want lasting results" Her unique, straight to the point take on fat loss, nutrition and body image is demonstrated in the mini-ebook, FAT...it's a State of Mind. More titles are due later from this author

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Miracle Of The Twelve The Apostles Share Their Testimonies

Donna Phillips

ISBN 978-1-64140-262-0 (Paperback)

ISBN 978-1-64140-264-4 (Hardcover)

ISBN 978-1-64140-263-7 (Digital)

Copyright © 2018 by Donna Phillips

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

I dedicate this book

to the treasured memory

of my loving mother and very dear friend,

Marian L. Hildebrandt

Acknowledgments

I was blessed when my Pastor, Rev. Paul Griffis, volunteered to edit the Apostles’ testimonies in order to correct any form of language that they would not have used back then, and to oversee that everything in this manuscript would line up with the Scripture. I was blessed again when Pastor Paul not only edited their words, but he enhanced the story by making their conversations more pronounced which added a deeper spiritual dimension to this work. He gave sixty to ninety minutes each week to this task by delving into the material by reading it with his suggested changes, while I edited his words onto my triple spaced copy. I am very indebted to Pastor Paul for his insight, patience, input and valuable support. This work is truly a combined effort between the author and the editor in an attempt to offer the best work possible.

Having a keen interest in Bible characters I was drawn to a book written by Dr. Lockyer entitled All the Apostles of the Bible, which greatly inspired me and eventually led me to write this book.

Dr. Lockyer was a theologian with a Dr. of Divinity Degree, who had knowledge of the early church historians as well as the great scholars of recent times, and this combined wisdom was gathered into his book, All the Apostles in the Bible. His teaching reveals many interesting facts about the Apostles, some of which are proven, and some are likely possibilities but history offers no conclusive records or evidence for it to be a proven fact. Some of the facts that I have gleaned from Dr. Lockyer’s study are included in story form in my book, Miracle of the Twelve. I am deeply indebted to Dr. Lockyer and his insights on the Apostles.

My first draft of the Apostles was a study with a sprinkling of three or four testimonies, but when my friend and prayer partner, Beth Kingsley, read it she urged me to write more testimonies. She also encouraged me to continue beginning each testimony with, Hello, my name is. I listened to Beth and rewrote the manuscript to contain all testimonies. I highly value and appreciate her input.

I am very grateful for the assistance of our son, Justin, who resides in Peoria, Arizona with his wife Geni. Both Justin and Geni have graduated from Bible College, and whenever I call Justin with a pertinent question, he directs me to where I need to go. One example is, Who would John have as a close friend in his later years? He suggested for me to look up Polycarp.

I have been very blessed by my husband’s (Tom’s) constant love, support and belief in me throughout this writing and each and every day of my life. He is the computer expert. Whenever I get into a computer jam, all I have to do is call Tom! His giftedness was especially appreciated as he collected all my single files of the Apostles into one format in preparation of sending it to the publisher.

Introduction

Jesus entrusted His Chosen Twelve to go into the whole world and preach the good news, and their life’s journey brings the light of the Gospel into our hearts and lives now some two thousand years later! Yet the Bible says very little about these men. In fact, other than their names being listed among the Twelve, we know nothing more about some of these great men of God.

What a mixture of culture, background, schooling and beliefs there were among these men—a tax collector, fishermen, an assassin, seekers of truth—all in one close-knit group who were together twenty-four hours a day and seven days a week. It could not have been easy, but little by little they began growing in unity as they heard Jesus teach every day and witnessed miracles too numerous to count. Their vision was transforming them to embrace their future, and those that distrusted each other became friends and those who were hesitant were drawn in.

What would it have been like to be there with these men during their years with Jesus? There were varied obstacles to pierce and prod them, tempers flared and hearts repented, but they were held together by the love, wisdom, and patience of Jesus and the call of the Father.

This writing is intended to lead us into the lives of this special group of Twelve, and walk with them as they transform into the powerful force whose dedication, commitment, and fiery love for the Kingdom of Heaven become a bold blaze of glory that shines eternally. (Not including Judas Iscariot.)

These testimonies are based upon biblical truths with much inspired imagination to fill in the blanks. It is not intended to be a teaching, but a picture of Twelve very diversified and ordinary men who came to know the Father’s love for them through the teaching of Jesus, their Messiah. His words of life became the very core of their character, both individually and collectively, creating within them a shining Beacon of Light for all generations.

Chapter One

Hello, My Name is Peter

As young Jewish boys, my brother Andrew and I attended the synagogue where we were taught portions of the Law and prophets. In our training, we were encouraged to commit many of these truths into memory. As we grew to be young men, we went to the synagogue on the Sabbath where these lessons became engrained into our character. Although Andrew and I were raised in Bethsaida, at the time that John the Baptist and Jesus were to come upon the scene of our lives, we lived in Capernaum. My home there had a spacious courtyard where we would host large gatherings, and we enjoyed many good times of fellowship in that courtyard.

Andrew and I were in the fishing trade, and we often worked with our close friends, James and John, who were in the same business. All four of us made a good living in the fishing industry, and we believed that we would be fishermen the rest of our lives. James and John and Andrew and myself became an intimate group of friends as we shared our trade together, often had meals together, and went to the synagogue together every week, and we found ourselves attending social activities together, which made us all very happy. In our wildest imagination, we would have never foreseen the vast transformation that we would encounter as John the Baptist and the Messiah entered into our lives.

It seemed to us that the news of John the Baptist was heard everywhere, even in Capernaum. The Baptist was an outlandish topic of conversation to say the least! We heard that the clothes he wore were made from camel hair, and his diet consisted of honey and locusts from the wild locust tree! That alone would get anyone’s attention because no one ate or dressed in this peculiar way in the culture that we lived in. In addition to his mannerisms, when you add his strong message of repentance to it, it stirred up livid conversations all around Capernaum. The message that John spoke on repentance directed us toward preparing the way for the coming of the Messiah, although we did not understand what it meant at the time. This was all very curious and newsworthy to us! We had heard about the coming of the Messiah all of our lives and it seemed to us like that was just a distant thing, but now John is talking as though this is the time for Him to appear. This was truly strange to our ears.

The first time that I heard the village gossip about John the Baptist ministering and baptizing people at the Jordan River and how he was dressed and what he ate, I roared with laughter!

And then I turned and said, Surely, you must be mistaken! This must be a joke! Are you sure that you heard correctly? Did you have a funny dream last night?

Because of the strangeness of the information, it took a while for me to realize that these reports were genuine and not someone’s wild imagination! It was hearing about his strong message of repentance that made me very curious and caused me to have a desire to hear more.

Andrew was more sensitive to this new development of godly thinking than I was, and eventually, Andrew and John took leave of their work and traveled many miles to hear John the Baptist for themselves. As James and I stayed with the boats, we wondered what we would hear when they returned, for we trusted Andrew and John to bring us a true report of what was going on at the Jordan.

Andrew and John were changed somehow and not the same when they returned home. Andrew excitedly told me, John’s words were so captivating to my heart and they seem to burn within me with the truth that seems to be changing me from the inside out somehow.

I was unsure of what he meant and replied to Andrew, I know something happened to you, but that sounds so very strange to me and the words you used were strange to my ears and I don’t understand what you mean by ‘captivating to my heart and burning within me.’ And what does John the Baptist mean by repentance? How does that take place?

When Andrew and John understood my confusion, they started at the beginning and explained to us the Baptist’s message in detail, starting with repentance. Andrew explained, John says that repentance is not something that you do for show to gain God’s acceptance like the Pharisees taught us by their example. The repentance that John taught us is one of being sorry for our sins from our heart which gives us a personal encounter with God, and it is not intended to be a religious show in front of others.

Then Andrew went on to say, I want you to know, Simon, that as I discovered this kind of repentance, it made me feel clean and light on the inside, because I began to believe that I am forgiven by God as a result of my repentance of faith. I discovered that I do not have to work for this forgiveness because it is God’s gift of love to me. I found this kind of repentance to be very real and personal!

Andrew talked with such earnestness and conviction that I began to desire to know this kind of repentance for myself. But this was just the beginning of what Andrew and John had to say to us, and they continued on by declaring, John the Baptist said that the Messiah is coming very soon and that we need to make the way straight and prepare the way for His coming.

I said, Wait a minute. Slow down! The Messiah is coming very soon? For real? How does John know this to be the truth?

Andrew continued, John told us that God has sent him at this time to prepare the way for the Messiah and that His coming is very soon. John said that he is the voice crying out in the wilderness that the prophets spoke of which would establish the timeframe for the Messiah to appear. After hearing the Baptist first hand, John and I now believe this truth without question, and we are looking for the Messiah’s coming as though it could happen at any time.

If I heard this information from anyone else but you, Andrew, I would have questioned it, but coming from you and John, who I trust with my life, and seeing the light that is in your eyes, I am beginning to believe what you are saying, but this is all new to me and it is like water seeping into a sponge, but it is soaking in.

We understand that, Simon because John and I had several days with the Baptist in person, and we had the time necessary given to us for this revelation to be established in our thinking and understanding. As we traveled back home we came to understand even more of this truth in our conversations with one another, and the more that we talked with one another the more we believed that the message of John is very real and that the Messiah is really coming soon.

After hearing this, I asked the question, So let me get this straight, you are saying that God sent John the Baptist to prepare us so that we can be made ready for the Messiah to come?

Yes, Simon. And there is more to understand about that preparation. When we came to experience the repentance as John taught us, we then were encouraged to be baptized in water, and it was explained to us that this water baptism is an outward sign of being cleansed from our sins from within. This baptism set us aside as identified followers of the truth of the cleansing of repentance and that the Messiah is coming. We came to understand that repentance followed by baptism is the way that we were to personally prepare our hearts for the soon coming of the Messiah––so we were quickly baptized!

James and John, Andrew and I, spent many hours talking about this new development and how it would not only affect our lives, but what the Messiah’s coming would mean to the Jewish world. As time went on and we grew as far as we could in our understanding of the message we had heard, James and I were very much in favor of Andrew and John making another trip to the Jordan to seek for more truth to be found in the presence of the Baptist. Because of that agreement, Andrew and John took leave of us and left on their journey again as James and I stayed at the boats.

How well I remember that wonderful day when Andrew and John returned home from being in the presence of the Baptist for the second time. We were anxiously waiting for their return so that we could learn more of what was being taught by the Baptist, but once again I found that I was not prepared for the news that I was about to hear.

As I was tending to the nets, I looked up and saw Andrew running toward me, so I arose from my work and went to meet him wondering, ‘What’s wrong?’ As Andrew and I approached each other, I could see a glow upon his face and I could clearly see that he was excited about something.

He almost shouted in my face when he declared, We have found him, Simon! We have met the Messiah! He is here! John and I actually spent time with Him and even had a meal with Him! The Messiah is—is—Oh, Simon, He is so much more than anything that we have ever experienced! He is so amazing! We have never met anyone like Him!

I was shocked and hesitant to hear this kind of news and not prepared to hear it or believe it. I wondered if perhaps Andrew and John were the only ones who thought that He was the Messiah. But as I quickly pondered that in my mind, I immediately pushed it aside and I stayed open to hear more of what Andrew had to say.

With great excitement, Andrew continued on saying, John and I were standing with John the Baptist, and as Jesus of Nazareth was walking among the crowd all of a sudden, it looked like a revelation came down upon the Baptist from heaven above. John was quiet for a moment and then he pointed to Jesus of Nazareth and said with admiration and awe, Behold the Lamb of God who will take away the sins of the world!"

As I was taking this revelation in I could clearly see the awe glowing on Andrew’s face, which made me aware of how very real his encounter with the Messiah was.

Andrew continued to speak about his experience with great enthusiasm, In the light of this great revelation, John and I could not take our eyes away from the Messiah. We found that our hearts were beating wildly within our chests and that our feet just automatically followed Jesus as He left the group of John’s disciples. As we followed Him, we found ourselves wondering, ‘Where does the Messiah live?’

John could hardly contain himself as he said, We were shocked and amazed when He turned around and asked us, ‘What do you seek?’ and I replied, ‘Sir, where do You live?’ Jesus then smiled and gave us––us! this invitation, ‘Come and see.’ This was around 4:00 that afternoon and we went to His dwelling and spent the rest of the day with Him, and what an amazing time that was!

Then Andrew broke in with excitement, As soon as John and I left the Messiah, Simon, I could not wait to come and tell you about Him and to bring you there to meet Him! Come! Let’s go quickly so you can meet Him for yourself!

I stood there stunned, trying to soak in all that I was hearing and I realized that Andrew was pulling me along saying, Come on, Simon! Let’s go! And so I went.

As we made our journey toward the Jordan, Andrew continued to fill me in on all the experiences that he had since I had seen him last, and I listened intently to what Andrew was saying. I hoped that this was all true, but I was still hesitant. To tell you the truth, I simply did not know what to think! The Messiah has come? This was the biggest news that I had ever heard. Could I really believe it and not be deceived?

In the midst of my thinking, Andrew cut into my thoughts declaring, There He is, Simon! There is the Messiah! There was true excitement and worship wrapped up in his words, and my eyes automatically turned and were fixed upon Jesus of Nazareth, then something strange happened. It was as though something unseen began to draw me toward this man.

As we drew closer to Jesus, His eyes captivated me, for they were so alive with such a welcome that I immediately felt at home in His presence. I found myself captivated by the love and joy that I saw shining through those eyes and this light of love seemed to illuminate my soul to its very depths. This must be what Andrew meant when he said that he was captivated by the presence of Jesus, and now I understood what it meant because of how He captivated me. I had never experienced anything like this before, and I felt myself unusually drawn and connected to Jesus before He even spoke a word to me.

The first words that Jesus spoke to me were, You are Simon, son of John, but you will be called Cephas (which is translated, Peter, or Little Rock").

I exclaimed, How do you know me? and He just smiled with a smile of welcome and reached out and put a hand on my shoulder. As I stood there feeling His touch, I got the feeling that Jesus knew more about me than I knew about myself, and that took some getting adjusted to. The more that I was in His presence the more I discovered a desire growing within in me to repent of my sins. As that was happening, I remembered what Andrew had said to me about his experience in the Messiah’s presence and I could relate to that now.

I could see that Jesus was receiving me as I was and loving me over and above all of my imperfections. As He looked at me so tenderly and with such love, I felt it again—the feeling like I was home. He had given me a new name, Peter or Little Rock, which gave me a new picture of myself of one who is unshakable and dependable, which was not the Simon anyone else knew before that time! I was often too quick in my thinking which would cause me to speak and act without knowing all the facts and in doing so this had gotten me into trouble far too often!

This name, Peter, or Little Rock, grew as my identification throughout the years and would develop to become my very identification as I walked with Jesus and grew in faith. Through all the trials and failures that I experienced in my growth, Jesus never lost heart in me, instead He continued to teach me and mentor me until I was finally transformed into His vision of me. This transition more profoundly happened on the Day of Pentecost. And what a day that was! Unbelievable, unless you were there!

He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, We have found the Messiah (which is translated, the Christ). And he brought him to Jesus. Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas" (which is translated, A Stone).

John 1:41-42

Now let me go back. Yes, I believed Jesus of Nazareth was our Messiah on the day when I met Him. I had no idea what to expect the Messiah to be like, but I never even considered that He would be so loving and so personal toward me and my brother, Andrew. Because of our connection with Him, a whole new world was opening up to us!

As Andrew and I left His presence and walked toward home, I felt such lightness inside of me; it was as though I was walking on air! Andrew and I talked about how great the Messiah was and how His presence greatly influenced us in a strange and wonderful new way. As we continued to talk, I was able to connect with many things that Andrew and John had shared with us concerning their first encounter! As we continued to make our way toward home that day, we didn’t have any understanding about any call of God upon our lives or that we would ever be leaving the fishing trade to become followers and disciples of the Messiah––but God knew.

Andrew and I, along with James and John, had a life changing experience in the presence of the Messiah, and as we continued on in our jobs as fishermen we often talked about Him as we worked. As time went on, there was a strong desire growing within us to be with Jesus more and more and we felt empty and dissatisfied when we were not with Him. The fishing trade that had been our way of life up until now seemed much less important than it did before, and all these feelings and thoughts were very confusing to us. We did not understand that we were being drawn away from being fishermen to becoming disciples of the Messiah to be trained for His purposes.

One day as Andrew and I were at home and working on our boats, we heard the news that Jesus was in Capernaum, so we immediately cleaned up to go see Him. As we started out in that direction, we saw Jesus coming toward us, and our hearts raced with joy as we looked forward to being in His presence again. We were quite taken with surprise that He seemed to be looking for us as though He were seeking us out.

As we ran to meet Him, Jesus smiled and seemed just as happy to be with us as we were to be with Him! What a day that was, for that day changed our lives forever! I chuckle as I realize that you have the right to ask the question, How could that be?

As I remember it, Jesus held out His hands to us in a gesture of complete welcome, inviting us to embrace Him, and as we came into His embrace, we experienced this godly love we had been longing for, and that love would continue to be our experience as time went on. After that hug of acceptance to both of us, Jesus stepped back