Jesus' First 100 Days: Calling His Earliest Disciples (38
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Jesus calls his first disciples after his baptism in Judea. He encounters Andrew and Peter and calls them to "come and see" where he was staying. Later in Galilee, Jesus gives Andrew, Peter, James, and John a deeper calling to follow him and promises to make them "fishers of men." Luke notes that Jesus gave Peter special attention during this second calling in Galilee.
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Jesus' First 100 Days: Calling His Earliest Disciples (38
- 3. Jesus’ Calling His First Disciples
- 4. First Point Jesus’ first call was a call to come and see.
- 5. Jesus’ first encounter with His earliest disciples immediately follows His baptism.
- 6. John 1 35 The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, 36 and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!”37 The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus.
- 7. 38 Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, “What are you seeking?” And they said to him, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?”
- 8. 39 He said to them, “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour.
- 9. 40 One of the two who heard John speak and followed Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. 41 He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means Christ).
- 10. 42 He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of John. You shall be called Cephas” (which means Peter). John 1
- 11. Jesus first encounters Andrew, another disciple of John and Peter immediately after Jesus’ baptism in Judea. Jesus’ Baptism Jesus first calls Andrew and Peter, then Philip and Nathanael Jesus’ Temptation 40 Days
- 12. It’s easy when you know it!
- 13. Second Point Jesus’ second calling of the same men was a call to deeper commitment – a call to fish for men.
- 14. Matthew and Mark show us that Jesus has a second encounter with his disciples in Galilee. Jesus’ Baptism Jesus first calls Andrew and Peter, then Philip and Nathanael Jesus’ Temptation 40 Days Re-calling of the fishermen
- 15. Mark 1 14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God,
- 16. 15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”
- 17. 16 Passing alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.
- 18. 17 And Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.”
- 19. 18 And immediately they left their nets and followed him. 19 And going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, who were in their boat mending the nets.
- 20. Mark 1 20 And immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and followed him.
- 21. Luke shows us that Jesus gave Peter special attention. Jesus’ Baptism Jesus first calls Andrew and Peter, then Philip and Nathanael Jesus’ Temptation 40 Days Re-calling of the fishermen Peter and the miraculous catch
- 23. Pursue Jesus’ Call Pursue Jesus’ call a step at a time.
Editor's Notes
- During this series, as we’ve been keeping one eye on the first 100 days of President Trump’s administration. As we’ve done this, we’ve seen that there are some unmistakable parallels between a President’s first 100 days and the first 100 Days of Jesus’ earthly ministry. There are certain leadership principles that all movements have in common during their earliest days.
- One of the first challenges of a new presidential administration is putting a national leadership team together. An important part of this is the President’s cabinet. During the transition between presidencies, the President-elect recruits his team. Certain team members require no additional process. The Vice President is not confirmed by the Senate. He has already been confirmed by the electorate in the election. The Chief of Staff and Senior Advisor also require no confirmation. However, the rest of the cabinet requires confirmation. As you can see, only two have been confirmed so far. Why did the founding fathers introduce this confirmation process with all its hearings and process? I think that they acknowledged the falleness of mankind. If Jesus picks the team, there is no need for such measures. But since we are a nation of sinners led by sinners, a certain process is needed. Over the next few weeks we will see further confirmations and perhaps one or two rejections. At the end of the day the President will have a team. Most if not all will be his first choices. All will ultimately make or break his presidency. A team is that important.
- Today we will look at Jesus’ Cabinet… his team. However, they will look very unlike President Trump’s team. They will have far fewer obvious qualifications as leaders. Not as educated. Not as experienced in leadership. But the Son of God has a discernment beyond that of any great human leader. He can see qualities beyond the obvious, and the team He selected did more than define His earthly ministry… they changed the world forever. You may have noticed that I took two of these messages out of sequence. There was a very good reason for this. Last week I was way too sick to sort out the sequence of events in Jesus’ calling of His first disciples. The 4 gospels each describe different aspects of Jesus’ first encounters. The accounts are not contradictory, but they do require some effort to seam them together. My goal today is for us to figure out this sequence and then answer a more important set of questions. What kind of men did Jesus call? Why did he call those kind of men? And as we look at all of this, to understand how God calls us, why he calls us and what he calls us to.
- I would like for us to see was that the call of Jesus’ first disciples was not a single call, but a series of callings. It is not a single incident. It does not take place in one place. In order to make sense of this, we will need to build a timeline of sorts by looking at each of the gospels
- John’s gospel will give us the first part of the story of the call of Peter and Andrew. Jesus’ first encounter with his earliest disciples immediately follows His baptism.
- 35 The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, 36 and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!”37 The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus.
- 38 Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, “What are you seeking?” And they said to him, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?”Â
- 39 He said to them, “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour.
- 40 One of the two who heard John speak and followed Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. 41 He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means Christ).Â
- 42 He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of John. You shall be called Cephas” (which means Peter).
- Jesus first encounters Andrew, another disciple of John and Peter immediately after Jesus’ baptism in Judea. The red line on the chart signifies Judea. Whereas Matthew’s gospel gave us the impression that Jesus immediately was driven by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness, John reveals that there was a small gap of time between Jesus’ baptism in Judea and his temptation in the wilderness. Matthew does not use the word immediately before describing Jesus’ temptation, so this is not inconsistent. During this brief time, Andrew, and an unnamed disciple of John are following Jesus. Andrew fetches Peter and brings him to Jesus. John’s gospel goes on to describe the calling of Philip and Nathanael the next day. But then there is a gap. Jesus disappears for 40 days. During that time Andrew and Peter clearly return to their fishing. They are not ignorant of Jesus. They have spent time with him and are clearly pondering his call. They probably don’t know where He is and may be perplexed as to his sudden disappearance. I think that this gap probably worked to their advantage. It takes time to come to terms with who Jesus claims to be.
- Many of us in the room are believers in Jesus. I think that we forget how hard it was for us to put the pieces all together. Once you understand something it becomes simple to you. I remember I had a study partner for Organic Chemistry. Her name was Vivian Tengzelius. It’s amazing that I can remember that name after 37 years, but you don’t easily forget a name like Vivian Tengzelius. Vivian was really smart. She was getting straight A’s in organic. I was not. I remember how I was so confused in class that I didn’t know how to ask a question. Have you ever felt like that? So I began studying with Vivian. And when I got stuck she’d say, “you just do this and this and this and you get that. See… It’s easy!” It was easy. And I was too embarrassed to admit that I didn’t get it. I think that after we’ve been a Christ-follower for a long time we forget what a struggle it is to cross the line of faith. It’s like organic chemistry. You need to learn a whole new vocabulary like redemption and sanctification. And you have to come to terms with big issues like the problem of evil… why does God allow evil to exist? Why is there a Hell and a devil? Couldn’t God create a better world than a world where children are born deformed? If you’re still struggling through those questions, I’m so glad you’re here. I hope we never make you feel like you are asking dumb questions. I hope we never just say, you just do this and this and this and you’re saved. Any question that leads you closer to Jesus is a great question. And we believers need to remember how hard it was for us to first understand Jesus’ gospel. Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness were a tough time for Him, but they were an important opportunity for His earliest disciples to begin to put the pieces together. Now, let’s consider what Matthew and Mark have to add to our understanding of this calling of the disciples. This leads to my second point:
- Second Point Jesus’ second calling of the same men was a call to deeper commitment. Let’s go back to our timeline.
- Now we are in Galilee. Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee and Peter and the others were in the boats fishing or washing nets. In essence it is a recalling of the disciples. We see this calling of the same men in Matthew and Mark’s gospels. Both are very similar, so let’s look at just one… Mark’s account.
- Mark 1 14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, 15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” Before we move forward, let’s pause and take note of the important details that Mark is providing. Mark makes it clear that this is a later incident than the calling that Jesus gave to Peter, Andrew, Philip and Nathanael in John 1. These events take place at a later time… after John the Baptist was arrested. And they take place in a different location… in Galilee. Galilee was not a small backwater region. According to the ancient Jewish historian Josephus, Galilee was an area of about 60 by 30 miles and had 204 villages, with none less than 15,000 people. This means there were more than 3 million people in the extended region. So, the average town was almost 3 times the size of Geneseo. Let’s continue.
- 15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”
- 16Â Passing alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.
- 17 And Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” Let’s pause for a moment. The language of this text makes it clear that these men are not innately fishers of men. Jesus says that “he will make them to become” fishers of men. This does not suggest an instantaneous transformation, but rather a gradual process of training. I think that there is an important application for us here. Just as we are not born fishers of men, we are not reborn as fishers of men. It’s not like you get saved and boom, you are an effective witness. There is an equipping process that we must pursue if we are to become effective witnesses and disciplemakers. For the more mature, there is a call to be like Jesus in pursuing others to follow. And for the less mature, there is a call to seek this out… understanding that we are to seek first God’s kingdom. We are not to sit around waiting for a disciplemaker to show up, but should seek out someone to help us grow. Let’s continue.
- 18 And immediately they left their nets and followed him. 19 And going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, who were in their boat mending the nets.Â
- 20 And immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and followed him. You’ll notice as we were reading this text, I singled out one word… immediately. Mark’s gospel has been called the Gospel of Immediacy. This is Mark’s favorite word. He uses the word “immediately” 11 times in this chapter alone and 41 times in his gospel. Mark wants us to appreciate that Jesus is God’s servant. That he immediately embraced his mission and began to fulfill it. As amazed as we have been with the flurry of activity during President Trump’s first week, Mark especially shows us that Jesus began strong and was relentless in His pursuit of God’s calling. However, given Mark’s penchant for brevity, we could come to a point of confusion. How is it that Jesus calls and these men just come? It almost seems cultic to us. This stranger calls them and they abandon their business and their father and just follow. We see this in the cults. We see how a charismatic leader gains quick influence and immediately creates a wedge between the new convert and their family. I read this verse and I could easily feel bad for Zebedee. One minute he’s fishing with his sons. He’s secure. As he ages, he knows that his boys are well trained. The business will continue. He and his wife will be taken care of when he can no longer handle the riggers of fishing. And then Jesus sweeps in, puts a wedge between father and sons and off they go. But remember, these men have previously encountered Jesus. They have already been called. For some brief period of time, they followed Jesus. And then he was driven into the wilderness. During that time they have had time to consider Jesus’ claims and even to communicate his calling to their father… which may, in part, explain his lack of response. He is at the very least resigned to their departure. Next weekI will make the case that Zebedee was actually thrilled.
- Now, I believe that it is apparent that there is another calling, a re-recall of Peter described in Luke’s gospel. Rather than reading yet another gospel account, Let’s look at the events of Luke 5 by going to the moves. Show Video. There is so much that I love about this video. I love the way that Jesus climbs into the boat with Peter, and how Peter says, “What are you doing… you can’t just come into my boat.” It’s great theater, but probably the biggest error in the video because it assumes that Jesus is a total stranger. Peter is known to Jesus. He has been called and he has been called again. And yet, Jesus is still calling Peter. He performs a miracle that is clearly intended to help Peter fully embrace this call. What is making it so hard? Why does Peter need so much attention? I came across an interesting article in Sower magazine that does a great job explaining what is happening here. John Schoenheit writes: The final time Jesus called Peter and the other fishermen is recorded in Luke 5:1-11. This record is significantly different from the records in Matthew 4:18-22 and Mark 1:16-20. In Matthew and Mark, Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee and Peter and the others were in the boats fishing or washing nets. In Luke, Jesus was teaching the people and the boats were empty, while the fishermen were washing their nets from the previous night’s work. This time Jesus got into the boat with Peter, and James and John were close by, likely in another boat so they could help with the nets. This time, in Luke 5, Jesus calls the apostles from fishing to being full-time disciples. He said, “From now on you will be catching people.” Jesus’ words, “From now on” are important—they mark the start of the apostles’ full-time discipleship. So it was at this time the apostles left the fishing for fish to others and followed Jesus on a full-time basis. Remember, I said that Jesus did not call them once, but that there were a series of callings. This is so incredibly important for us to understand. Jesus didn’t just call you… he is calling you. He is calling you to surrender more and more of yourself. He is calling you to be more than a convert with fire insurance. He is calling you to be a disciple who is fired up with commitment. He wants you to take further steps into deeper waters with Him. For some it may mean full-time vocational ministry. For some it will not. But for all it will mean that Jesus is your first priority and your highest commitment. That is what a disciple is… a fully devoted follower of Jesus.
- In this series, we have been building a checklist of simple steps that we can take, based upon Jesus’ first 100 days of ministry, that will help us make the first 100 days of 2017 truly amazing. I’d like to add two more action steps this week. Pursue Jesus’ call. We saw that Jesus called his first disciples several times. He called them to come and see…. To get to know Him by spending time with Him. He called them again. This time it was a call to full discipleship… to follow Him completely. Everyone I know can trace a series of steps forward. Identify one sin that you cling to. Or one discipline that you shrink back from. Or one thing you need to release in order to embrace Jesus’ call more fully.
- Let’s pray.