The Gospel According To Mark. Day 5, The First Disciples

Mark tells us today about the calling of Simon (also known as Peter), Andrew, James, and John. But first he informs us of the sad circumstances of John the Baptist, "After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God." (Mark 1:14) Mark will give a more detailed account of John's fate in Chapter 6, but we know John had some forewarning that his ministry was about to come to a close. Prior to his arrest, while John was baptizing at Aenon, his disciples came to him and complained that many of the people of Judah who formerly followed him were now following Jesus of Nazareth. These disciples were indignant about what they perceived as desertion, but John said, "He must become greater; I must become less." (John 3:30)

John ends up in prison because he dared to speak against the immorality of Herod Antipas. Herod, while visiting his brother Philip, fell either in love or in lust with his brother Philip's wife, Herodias. Herod and Herodias divorced their spouses to marry each other. Some scholars believe Herodias instigated John's arrest, for from that time on she plots to have him put to death. The level of resentment Herodias harbors for John is equal to the level of sin in her heart. His denouncement of her sin has touched a sore spot. Rather than recognizing her wickedness and repenting of it, she wants John silenced. How dare he judge her way of living? How dare he drag her dirty laundry out into the open? Herodias wants John to pay for her humiliation, and because Herod is a weak man (at least where women are concerned), she will eventually get her way.

When Jesus hears of John's arrest, He moves on into the region of Galilee to preach the gospel. "'The time has come,' He said. 'The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!'" (Mark 1:15) Jesus takes up John's message of repentance and goes a step further to announce that the kingdom of God is near. The kingdom is near because the King is near, so close the people can see Him and touch Him.

"As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 'Come, follow Me,' Jesus said, 'and I will send you out to fish for people.' At once they left their nets and followed Him." (Mark 1:16-18) The Apostle John tells us that Simon and his brother Andrew had a previous encounter with the Lord in John 1:35-42. Andrew was a disciple of John's and was present when John pointed to Jesus and cried out, "Look, the Lamb of God!" Andrew and another of John's disciples followed Jesus and spent the evening hearing Him teach the Scriptures, after which Andrew hurried to find his brother Simon and tell him, "'We have found the Messiah.' (That is, the Christ.)" At this news, Simon went to meet Jesus. Jesus, knowing the type of man Simon would someday become because of his faith, gave him another name: "Peter" in the Greek and "Cephas" in Aramaic. This name means "rock". A dark day will come when Peter will look nothing like a solid rock of faith, but there will also be a day when he will boldly step out and begin to preach in Jesus' name, becoming a firm pillar of the early church.

"When He had gone a little farther, He saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat, preparing their nets. Without delay He called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed Him." (Mark 1:19-20) In the first century, becoming a student of a particular rabbi was a process similar to that of a modern-day student applying to attend a top college. The rabbi would test the religious knowledge of the candidates and would examine their character to determine whether or not they had the potential to become like him. To every candidate who passed the rigorous testing, the rabbi issued the invitation, "Follow me."

Simon Peter, Andrew, James, and John did not fit the typical mold of men who might become great rabbis themselves. They were rough and uneducated fellows who made their living by doing the backbreaking work of casting nets over the sides of boats day after day after day. Fishing had probably been their family occupation for generations, and these men never expected to do anything other than doing the same thing their fathers did. But Jesus, like any good rabbi, sees their potential. He knows these men can be taught to boldly proclaim the good news of the gospel just as He does. He sees all the way into their hearts and finds there a hunger to know the God of the universe. These men have not applied to be His disciples, at least not consciously, but their immediate response to His calling tells us that they were not satisfied with their current occupations. They wanted to do something for the Lord but up til now they didn't even know where to start. So when this rabbi whom they believe to be the Messiah says, "Follow Me," they don't hesitate for a second.

Jesus offers the same invitation to us. He may leave us in our current occupations or He may lead us into various forms of teaching and ministry, but there is one thing of which we can be certain: He will make more of us than we ever dared to dream.