The Disciples of Jesus
By Peter Amsterdam
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We are told in the Gospels that at some point Jesus moved from His hometown of Nazareth to take up residence in Capernaum.1 Capernaum was a town on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee, along the road from the Mediterranean coast of Palestine to Damascus. Moving from the remote hill village of Nazareth to the more populated lakeside town of Capernaum put Jesus in closer proximity to other thriving villages along the coast of Lake Gennesaret. From this location, He was in a better position to speak, teach, and minister to a wider range of people, as the Jewish towns of Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Magdala were not far away.
It was in Capernaum that Jesus healed Jairus’ daughter, a demon-possessed man, Peter’s mother-in-law, a paralytic, the centurion’s servant, and the woman with an issue of blood.2 Matthew’s Gospel tells us that Jesus spoke a number of parables while there, as well as taught about humility, stumbling blocks, and forgiveness.3 He taught in the local synagogue, and it was in this synagogue where He said that unless His followers eat His flesh and drink His blood, they have no life in them, which caused many to stop following Him.4
Capernaum was home to a number of Jesus’ disciples, and it was there that they made their decisions to follow Him. The synoptic Gospels all tell the story of the events surrounding the decisions of Peter, Andrew, James, and John to become followers of Jesus. The Gospel of John tells of an encounter Andrew and Peter had with Jesus in the area where John the Baptist was baptizing. John may have been describing an earlier encounter, or it may have been John’s way of giving an example of how some of Jesus’ disciples came to follow Him. An earlier encounter is how I like to see it, as it gives added context to their immediately leaving their livelihoods upon Jesus’ call. Having already met Jesus and having had some experience with Him makes it more plausible that they would immediately respond to His call than if a perfect stranger approached and called them to follow him.
Matthew’s Gospel tells the story like this:
While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Immediately they left their nets and followed him. And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.5
This was the start of Jesus calling a number of people to follow Him. His calling had similarities to how Jewish teachers (rabbis) had students (known as talmidim) who often traveled with, lived with, and imitated their teacher. They learned not only from what their teacher said, but from what he did. The task of these followers was to become as much like the teacher as possible.6 The talmidim, having chosen their teacher, dedicated themselves to intense study of the law and their teacher’s interpretation of it.
While there were similarities between the typical Jewish students and Jesus’ disciples, there were also differences. Jewish students sought out their teacher rather than the teacher choosing the students. But Jesus called His disciples; they didn’t come to Him and ask if they could study under His teaching.
Jesus’ goal with His disciples wasn’t for them to learn and transmit His teachings of the Law in the manner of Jewish rabbis. He was calling them to undergo a transformation process. By coming with Him, learning from Him, remaining in His presence, in time they would learn to become fishers of men, which would be a radical break from their present occupation as fishermen.
Jesus’ call wasn’t without consequences. “Come and follow Me” meant leaving some things behind—their nets, boats, business, livelihood, and for James and John, their father. Answering the call was economically costly. These men were not poor. They were involved in a family business. The cost of following wasn’t only financial. Besides leaving their livelihood, James and John left their father.
Elsewhere in the Gospels, it’s clear that the disciples remained connected to their families and perhaps to some extent their family business. Jesus and His disciples returned to Capernaum on a regular basis.7 Peter lived there in a house with his wife and mother-in-law.8 The apostle Paul wrote of Peter and the other apostles traveling with their wives.9 James’ and John’s mother was involved in Jesus’ ministry and was present at His crucifixion.10
Though they stayed connected to their families, the disciples had a major change of lifestyle. Their focus became being part of Jesus’ community, being taught by Him, assisting Him in His ministry, and learning to become fishers of men. They spent substantial time away from their families, traveling around Galilee with Jesus during the years of His ministry.
Though we don’t know exactly how many disciples followed Jesus during His lifetime, Luke’s Gospel says: “The Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go,”11 so we know there were at least seventy-two others.
Later in the gospel accounts, we learn that there were also women among Jesus’ followers.12 At the time of Jesus’ crucifixion we’re told: “There were also women looking on from a distance, among whom were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome. When he was in Galilee, they followed him and ministered to him, and there were also many other women who came up with him to Jerusalem.”13
During His ministry, Jesus chose and commissioned twelve of His disciples to be apostles.14 The twelve apostles were those who were with Jesus from the early stages of His ministry, disciples who were constantly with Him, watching, listening, and learning. They often didn’t understand the meaning of what Jesus taught, and their understanding of the role of the Messiah was in alignment with that of first-century Jews in general, so they misunderstood much. But over time, through Jesus’ patient teaching and as a result of the time they spent with Him, they began to see enough that when Jesus asked them:
“Who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.”15
Though they didn’t fully understand who Jesus was or the meaning of all He taught, after His resurrection He further explained the Scriptures to them so they gained full understanding, and “He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.”16 After being filled with the Holy Spirit, these men preached the good news of the forgiveness of sins and reconciliation with God. Most of them were martyred for doing so, but they faithfully carried out the commission Jesus gave them to “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”17
As disciples, as followers of Jesus, we have been given the same commission: “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.”18 Like the first disciples, we may not fully understand everything there is to know about God, Jesus, theology, etc., but, as disciples, we know more than enough to do our best to love Him, live for Him, apply His teachings to our lives, and bring others to Him.
While Jesus had many disciples, the gospel writers seem to have seen no need to tell the story of how each one came to know and follow Him. In the specific instances they wrote about, we see the immediate response of those called and the radical change it brought about in their lives. From this we understand that following Jesus calls for more than just assent of the heart—it requires commitment. By their actions, these first disciples set the example of discipleship, of the willingness to sacrifice in order to follow Jesus. They repurposed their lives by changing their priorities. They no longer served their own interests, but focused on the interests of the one who called them to follow Him. This would have held true for all of the disciples who followed Jesus during His lifetime.
Jesus’ call to these men wasn’t only a call to belief, it was also a call to action—to follow Him, to allow Him to make them into those who would “fish for people,” who would change hearts and lives. The call to God’s service, to follow Jesus, wasn’t given only two millennia ago. He gives the same call to believers today. The question is: Do we answer it? Are we willing to orient ourselves, our lives, our actions, our hearts, toward Him? Are we willing to apply His teachings in our daily lives? Are we fishing for those who are searching for Him? If we are disciples, the answer to these questions is yes.
Originally published April 2015. Adapted and republished February 2021.
Read by Reuben Ruchevsky.
1 Matthew 4:13; Mark 2:1.
2 Mark 5:21–43; 1:21–28; Matthew 8:14–15; 9:2–8; 8:5-13.
3 Matthew 13, 18.
4 John 6:56–66.
5 Matthew 4:18–22.
6 Ann Spangler and Lois Tverberg, Sitting at the Feet of Rabbi Jesus (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2009), 51.
7 Matthew 8:1–5; 17:24.
8 Matthew 8:14–15.
9 1 Corinthians 9:5.
10 Matthew 20:20–21.
11 Luke 10:1.
12 Luke 8:1–3.
13 Mark 15:40–41.
14 Luke 6:12–16.
15 Matthew 16:15–17.
16 Luke 24:45.
17 Matthew 28:19–20.
18 Mark 16:15.
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