Jesus picked these three men—James; Simon; and Judas, son of James—to serve in the highest office in the New Testament church. He appointed them to the Twelve, the apostles of Christ. Their names are all we know about them. What can we learn from these men who served without special recognition?

Read John 14:21-24

²¹[Jesus said,] “Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.” ²²Then Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, “But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?” ²³Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. ²⁴He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.”

1. Beyond their names in the listing of the Twelve, these verses are the only mention of any of the last three apostles. Verse 22, however, gives insight into the character of Judas, son of James. Name three insights.
2. How do those insights explain the willing service of these three men—even to death—though they would get no recognition?
3. When we serve Christ in the church, what kinds of recognition do we like to receive? Why?
4. What problems can stem from our desire for recognition when we serve Christ?

Read Luke 17:7-10

⁷“Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, ‘Come along now and sit down to eat’? ⁸Would he not rather say, ‘Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink’? ⁹Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? ¹⁰So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.’ ”