Women, Called and Serving in Leadership

Why the 12?

April 13, 2009 on 3:48 pm | In Women in Ministry | No Comments

As I was pondering the often asked question concerning “why Jesus chose 12 male disciples” the Lord brought several things to my heart.

The first is that there were both male and female disciples of Jesus and the twelve were chosen out of the midst of His disciples and named as His apostles. I think the fact that the word disciple is usually seen as portraying the male gender has caused women and their contribution to the ministry of Jesus to be overlooked.

The other thing the Lord brought to my heart as I considered the 12 male apostles question was the fact that only ONE tribe – the Levites – could serve in the house of God(2 Chr 29:11). In Jesus’ choosing of 12 apostles who represented the 12 tribes of Israel I saw God showing a new day manifested in Christ – all twelve tribes through Jesus able to freely serve in God’s house. No longer would only one tribe have access to God’s service but in Christ all would have access to serving Him.

I saw in the 12 apostles God showing a new way established through Jesus. I saw God showing forth Jesus as the high priest in a new temple made up of living stones and with a priesthood of all believers. I saw a new and living way being exampled before Israel and established through the death and resurrection of Jesus.