Getting Acquainted with Jesus

The way in which Jesus picked his disciples is such an interesting story, because he chose to find disciples who were to become not just his students, but also his closest friends. He was soon known as a rabbi, a teacher, because of his knowledge of Scripture, but he did things no other rabbi would do. Right from the start of his public ministry, he demonstrated that his mission was to announce the Kingdom of God and he chose followers who he was equipping for future roles that they never anticipated.

"The Calling of Peter and Andrew,"
Caravaggio, c. 1602

The Gospel of John (1:25-51) tells us the fascinating story of Jesus’ first disciples and how their early friendship was formed. Two disciples of John the Baptist, Andrew and John, heard him refer to Jesus as “the Lamb of God” and they decided to follow Jesus to check him out. By the way, the Apostle John does not identify himself as one of these first two, but we know that he was. He never refers to himself by name in his writings.

When Jesus sees these two men following him, he asks them what they want and they respond with a strange question about where he is staying. They called him “Rabbi” (teacher) and he gives them an encouraging response: “Come and you will see.” This first encounter is very casual and informal. John tells us that Jesus spent the whole day with them and probably stayed with them overnight. They were just getting acquainted.

The next day, Andrew, leaves to find his brother Simon, and tells him, “We have found the Messiah,” and he brings Simon to meet Jesus. It seems likely that Andrew’s assertion about Jesus was the result of their conversation from the previous day and his evaluation of Jesus’ character. Andrew was hoping that Jesus might be a national deliverer, which was a widespread expectation in the early years of the first century in Palestine.

The circle of three has now grown to four. When Jesus first meets Simon, he says to him, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas [Peter].” What a way to start a friendship! Jesus accepts him as he is, but promises that he will become a “rock.” Volatile, impulsive Simon, a “rock” – who would have imagined, but Jesus knew what was in store for him.

The next day Jesus heads toward Galilee, his home territory, and he meets Philip, who is from the town of Bethsaida and is probably also a fisherman, and Philip in turn quickly finds Nathaniel and excitedly tells him that he and his friends “. . . have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote – Jesus of Nazareth.”

Nathaniel’s first reaction is one of doubt and he exclaims, “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Let me add a personal footnote here: I immediately identified with this comment, since a number of people over the years have made comments to me about my hometown -- Cicero, Illinois. Can anything good come out of Cicero, Al Capone’s hometown?

It is so interesting to me that as Nathaniel approaches Jesus, Jesus says, “Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false.” I especially love this comment since I have a new grandson named Nathaniel and I pray that the same will be said about him!

Jesus’ group of friends quickly totaled five in number and their initial time together was just to get acquainted. At a later point, Jesus will ask them to follow him, to leave their fishing businesses behind, and to become his companions. Jesus’ initial time with these men is friendly and conversational and he even gives them nicknames. He spends the day with them and finds out who they are. This is the Jesus that we meet in John’s Gospel.

Unlike other rabbis who did not recruit their own disciples, but chose a select few from many applicants, which was the common practice in the first century, Jesus took the initiative with most of his disciples. He chose them. He issued the call – “Follow me.” In fact, these men might not have passed the qualifying tests for the best-known rabbis of that time.

These men will quickly learn that Jesus is not a typical rabbi, but truly an exception. They have expectations about him, based on John the Baptist’s testimony, but now they have to see if these expectations will be met. Is he in fact the Messiah, the one the prophets wrote about? The only way to find out is to follow him.

John’s Gospel tells us that one of the first experiences these new friends of Jesus have is going to a wedding with him in Cana. As noted in my previous post, Jesus’ first miracle – the changing of water into wine – was surely a shock to these fishermen and this was only the beginning. The next three years of their lives will involve experiences that they could never have even imagined!

So What?

• One of the powerful insights that I gained from this study was how Jesus accepted these men as they were, but knew they would become different people after spending time with him. Peter, the impulsive one, would become a “rock” upon which Jesus would build his church. Andrew, Peter’s brother, who introduce him to Jesus, would also become a great leader in the early church. Common laborers, good fishermen, but Jesus knew they would be transformed over time into Apostles who would change the world after his resurrection. Doesn’t this give you hope? We too can be changed into agents of God’s Kingdom if we commit our lives to him.

• Spending time with each other, investing in each other’s lives, is what Jesus did with his disciples. He was especially close to three of his disciples, but knew all twelve very well. For me, investing in the lives of others is a practical “take-away” from this story. For those of us who claim to be disciples of Jesus, this is something we need to do.

• Looking back over your life, can you think of changes in your character or your plans that took place once you decided to be a disciple of Jesus?

Jesus' Wedding Gift

"The Wedding Feast at Cana"
Julius S. von Carosfeld, 1819

Following his baptism in the Jordan River and his 40-day-and night struggle with Satan in the wilderness, the 30-year-old Jesus is now ready to begin his public ministry. But what a way to begin! Jesus surely did not consult with marketing experts on how to launch a campaign. This is not the kind of publicity blitz we are used to in the Nation’s Capital.

In John’s Gospel (2:1-11) we read about Jesus’ first miracle in the town of Cana, a city only mentioned in this story in the New Testament. Biblical scholars believe this small village was about nine miles north of Nazareth, so it was clearly not a major urban center. Why does Jesus perform his first miracle here? Once again it is clear that God’s ways are not our ways.

We know from historical studies of this time period that wedding feasts in the first century ordinarily lasted seven days. To help you imagine what the context was like, think of the wedding feast in “Fiddler on the Roof,” where the bridegroom and his wedding party make a gala procession to get the bride and her friends and then return with them to the house of the groom for a feast that could last for a full week with wine and food and lots of dancing. Weddings in small villages in Galilee brought lots of life to an otherwise drab existence for poor peasants.

"Fiddler on the Roof"
movie wedding, 1971

It is reasonable to assume that Jesus’ family knows the groom or bride since his mother is invited as well as Jesus and his disciples. The disciples would not be a part of this celebration if there were not some personal connection to the wedding party. The fact that Joseph is not mentioned after the family’s return from Egypt leads most Biblical scholars to believe he died earlier and Jesus may have been acting as the head of the family at this event.

It also occurred to me that for those disciples of Jesus who had previously been followers of John the Baptist, the contrast between John the Baptist and his desert diet and animal-skin clothes and this celebration would have been a remarkable change-of-pace.

As the wedding celebration continued, Jesus’ mother - who is not identified by name in this story, but neither is the bride or groom – informs him, “They have no wine” (v. 3). Why does Mary tell Jesus this? What does she expect him to do? It is hard to imagine what Jesus thinks after his mother tells him this. What if he choose not to respond? These are some of the many questions for which there are simply no answers.

What we do know is that Jesus decides to respond. Although he refused to turn stones into bread in the wilderness, as Satan requested, this time he orders the servants to fill the jars with water and this water turns into high-quality wine. This is not the last time that Jesus changed his plans to accommodate the wishes of someone else.

John makes clear in his Gospel that the wine comes from huge jugs, normally approximately 20-30 gallons in size, that are located near the front of the house and are used by observant Jews for ceremonial washing before they enter a home and eat a meal. Philip Yancey suggests that “Jesus, perhaps with a twinkle in his eye, transformed those jugs, ponderous symbols of the old way, into wineskins, harbingers of the new.” Jesus’ miraculous action is a powerful sign that the old religious practices are coming to an end and new Kingdom values are being revealed in Jesus. By the way, the wine Jesus made was excellent and the hosts and guests know it, although they do not know where it came from. It’s a great wedding present!

During the next year of his life, word will spread across the country about this new rabbi, this miracle-worker, and crowds will flock to him, but Jesus knows right from the start, witnessing miracles does not always result in faith. This miracle is a sign for his new disciples that Jesus has extraordinary power and John notes that “His disciples believed in him” (v. 11).

God is a “God of surprises” and we see this right from the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry. This miracle of turning water into wine occurs in an obscure out-of-the-way town, not in Jerusalem where the powerbrokers could see his power and be impressed. This first miracle appears to be an act of mercy and the disciples are there to witness it. It will be the first of many.

So What?

• It is so striking to me that Jesus begins his ministry with such a humble act of mercy, without drawing attention to himself and what he has done. Only a few know who brought – or made - the new wine; not the host or the bride and bridegroom. Just the servants, his mother Mary and his new disciples. He is the promised Messiah, but one who is humble, compassionate, and merciful. There is no other religion that believes in a God like this!

• It takes imagination to be able to put yourself into this first century Palestinian context, but if you can envision this scene, it helps you understand the radical character of what Jesus did and how he did it. Can you picture a scene like this in our time? What would it be like?