WHO IS A DISCIPLE?
A disciple is someone who learns from his master. He is a follower that is being led by a leader. After learning from his master, he goes out to practise what his master had taught him.
IMPORTANCE OF THE CALLED DISCIPLES TO JESUS MINISTRY. MATT. 28: 19-20; MK. 16: 15-19
Since Jesus knew that His presence and ministry here on earth were for a short period of time, He chose and trained His disciples to carry on His work(ministry) of teaching, preaching and healing. The primary aim of Jesus chosen of the disciples was to spread the Gospel and build up the body of Christians who would emerge after His departure.
Before His ascension to heaven, the Lord gave them the Great Commission to go and make disciples of all nations. Baptising them in the the of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that the Lord (Jesus) had commanded them. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.
Christ also promised signs that will accompany believers, They will speak in new tongues, pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly things, it will not harm them. They will lay their hands on the sick and they will recover.
CALL OF THE DISCIPLES AND THEIR RESPONSES. MATT. 4: 18-25; 9: 9, 13; 10: 1-4;
A disciple is a pupil, student or follower who receives instructions from his teacher. The first four disciples were Peter and his brother, Andrew; and the two brothers, James and John.
According to Matthew and Mark, one day, as Jesus was walking along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Peter and Andrew casting their net into the sea, for they were fishermen. Jesus called them to be his disciples saying: “follow me, and l will make you fishers of men.” And immediately, they followed Jesus. A few meters away from where Jesus called Peter and Andrew, Jesus met the two brothers, James and John, the sons of Zebedee. They were with their father mending their broken nets. Jesus called them and immediately, they left their father and followed him.
The gospel of Luke gives another account of how Jesus called the first four disciples. Jesus met Peter, Andrew, James and John by the Sea of Galilee. They had just returned from fishing all night without making any catch. Jesus told Peter to go and fish. Peter said they had toiled all night without any fish, but they would try again at his word. They had a great catch of fish. When Peter, Andrew, James and John had brought in all the fish, they left everything and followed Jesus.
JESUS CALLS THE TWELVE DISCIPLES/APOSTLES: MK 3: 13-19
Apart from the first four disciples, Jesus called Matthew or Levi, a tax collector to be his disciple and he did. The Gospel of John also tells us of the call of Philip. Many other people also followed Jesus though he had not called them. When Jesus saw that there were many people who were prepared to sacrifice everything to follow him in order to learn from him, he decided to select twelve of them to be his disciples.
The day before Jesus selected the twelve disciples; he left everybody and went to a quiet place. There he prayed all night to God to help him select the right men. Jesus wanted honest, faithful and loyal disciples who would devote all their lives to the service of God. God listened to Jesus prayers and in the morning he called all the people together and selected twelve disciples from among them. The disciples were:
- Simon Peter
- Andrew
- James and
- John the sons of Zebedee
- Philip
- Bartholomew
- Matthew
- Thomas
- James the son of Alpheus
- Simon the Zealot
- Thaddeus
- Judas Iscariot.
The Disciples Responses To Their Call To Discipleship
From the account of the call of the first five disciples, they responsed promptly to the call of Christ to them.
Significant points and lessons
The folowing lessons could be drawn from the responses of the disciples to the call of Christ.
1. Discipleship requires prompt response.
2. Discipleship requires self-denial and abondonment of earthly glory.
3. Discipleship requires humility and selfless service.
4. Any person could be called, rich or poor. Willingness to serve is more important than position.
5. The repentance of sinners is paramount in the ministry of Jesus.
