The Calling of the First Disciples

Collect for Monday in the Second Week of Lent

Let your Spirit, O Lord, come into the midst of us to wash us with the pure water of repentance, and prepare us to be always a living sacrifice to you; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

The Calling of the First Disciples

Matthew 4:18-22

Jesus’ ministry is beginning and he needs to put his team together and to build a community able to carry on his message – ‘Repent the Kingdom of God is near’ (Matt 4:17). How would you put such a team together? How would I? I would need to know what their role is and what are their expectations – what skills are needed? Let’s go back and look at what discipleship meant in Jesus’ time.

The role of the disciple (student, apprentice or follower) was to learn as much as they could from the rabbi to be able to carry on the rabbi’s work just as he did. They were the best of the best and expected to have memorized the Torah, the laws of Moses and be able to respect and honor the rabbi and his work. It was an honor to be chosen. If you were not chosen, believed not to have the knowledge and skills to be a disciple, you went back to your family and learned the family trade.

I see now why the disciples act as they do upon the invitation to follow Jesus. They are back learning their trade and have been passed by other rabbis and now to have Jesus come to them and say ‘Follow me and I will make you fishers of men’. Jesus has faith in them and he believes they can carry on his work – wow that is a powerful statement.

Jesus takes them where they are and builds on who they are. We see Simon and Andrew working on their own while James and John are still working with their father - and all of them leave their homes. They have hope and the desire for more. They know as a disciple they will learn, will be supported in community and moreover they will obey their rabbi by doing and living into his teachings and commandments. They are called into action and they are ready to go because of the belief and faith Jesus has in them simply by saying the words ‘Come follow me’.

Is discipleship different for us? If it means that we are learning, spending time with Jesus, living in and support of a community of followers, AND obeying the teachings and commandments of Christ then no it is the same. The question for us is do we understand discipleship to be the honor Simon, Andrew, James and John did?

Does Jesus have the same expectations of us as he had for the first disciples? Does he have faith in us that we can carry on his message and live into full discipleship (Matt.28:18-20)? I believe he does and I believe he takes us as we are and builds up our gifts and skills so that we can go and engage the world just as he did with Simon, Peter, James and John. To be on ‘the team’ and part of the community of followers is more than understanding about Jesus it is taking our whole self into action. It is trusting in the faith that Jesus has for us, that he has called each one of us – just as we are – to follow him. We know what the role of discipleship is and we know the expectations. I hope we also know Jesus has faith in us, hope in us and belief in us as he calls us into his community. He invites us to know him and to carry on his work as he continues to guide us, strengthen us and be with us.

Where are you on answering his call – “Come, follow me”?

Mrs. Peggy Bean

Bishop’s Assistant for Congregational Development

Diocese of Milwaukee