All About GOD - Growing Relationships with Jesus and Others

The Disciples … why them? How about you?

The Disciples … why them? How about you? Matthew 10.1-4

He works in and around a beautiful coastal harbor, with boats and people all around, but the fact is, he works as a deckhand on a fishing boat, and it is hard, tiring, smelly work. Then came the day Jesus passed by, and called him away…

There never was much money around his house and he certainly did not have the education or wherewithal to go to college, so he entered the trades and became a laborer, working on various jobsites. One day, a man like no other walked by, a teacher who spoke like no other, and the Man invited him to put down his tool belt and follow him…

Jose has been working as a busboy for years, the day shift and the evening as well, in two nice restaurants. Even though the work is tiring, being a mostly uneducated immigrant, he has been grateful for his employers—diligent, working his heart out, and so glad to support his family. ‘Always a smile, and a ‘God bless you, mum’ when I see him. Then came the day Jesus called to him, ‘Jose, leave all that, and follow me’…

These serve as examples of 21st century men akin to those Jesus called to be part of the Twelve in 1st century Palestine. The fact is,

when you hear Jesus call your name,

and you go with him,

life changes forever.

That was the case when Jesus called the twelve disciples—simple guys to a man. I have been thinking a lot--asking God, ‘why them? Why those men, Lord?’ Two sets of brothers, Peter and Andrew, James and John, sons of Zebedee, Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot. While the gospels do not give much personal description of the men, we know that most were fishermen, with several possibly working in agrarian positions, as Galilee was a heavy farming region.

Then there were two. Interestingly enough, had Matthew, a hated tax collector, encountered Simon the Zealot, a patriot for his country, in any other circumstances other than answering the call of Jesus, it would not likely have gone well for Matthew. The Zealots were effectively like the fourth party of the Jews—the other three being the Pharisees, Sadducees, and the Essenes. Josephus, the Jewish historian of the day, describes the Zealots as the most nationalist of all the nationalists, prepared to face any kind of death for their country; they called no man by the title of king and would go to any length to rid their country of foreign rule, including stabbing Roman soldiers caught alone.1,2

So, what do we immediately observe about the Twelve who Jesus called? The most striking thing about the twelve disciples is that they were not at all striking individuals! The Twelve were ordinary men ~ possessing no wealth, formal education or social position, and were not part of the religious establishment. They did however have faults and character flaws, yet Jesus chose them out of the crowd of other disciples (learners, students, devotees) who followed him. The men did not volunteer; they were personally selected by the Lord.3

The second thing I notice is that they were a somewhat motley crew, in that they would not have chosen to hang out at Cheers together. But Jesus had a plan. Part of it included them forming a community and working out their differences because of their calling. Jesus had noted that the ‘harvest of souls was ripe,’ so he assembled them at this time to bless and then send them out—the disciples became apostles, the sent ones.

I wrestle with the fact that he knew the character of Judas, what he would do, and he chose him any way. But I guess that is sort of like us, is it not?

And, have you noticed … there was no second string? These were the ones to whom the Gospel message was entrusted, the ones who would carry the early church on their backs when Jesus ascended into Heaven. These were the ones who would die for the One who called them, and the cause to which he called them. From our perspective two thousand years later, they do not seem so ordinary now, do they?

And yet, we are similarly called … to tell others today about the Jesus who loved, the Jesus who died, the Jesus who yet loves and redeems today. Will you answer with the ‘yes’ of your life?

Christine

1 – William Barclay, on Matthew’s Gospel

2 – Josephus, Antiquities, 8:1:6

3 – John MacArthur, Twelve Ordinary Men