He Called His Disciples
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
We are continuing in our series called CRISTOS where we are diving deep into the life of Jesus the Christ to see what more there is that we can each learn from His story. And one of the things that we have to get our minds wrapped around in order to understand the public ministry of Jesus is the Rabbi / Disciple relationship as it was known in the days of Jesus. This relationship does not have a modern western culture equivalent that we can quickly access to understand it. We have to see it as it was in Jesus’ day, and it is worth the effort because I think it will illuminate for us so many new things about the life of Jesus.
Tension
First of all, just like the act of Baptism, the Rabbi/ Disciple relationship did not begin with Jesus. When Jesus took on flesh and became the God-man he chose to utilize this recognized system of influence and education. Even the Greek Philosophers Socrates, Plato and Aristotle had disciples, so it was not even knew to the Jews. I believe that Jesus chose this kind of leadership so that the people in His day would be able to have great starting point in relating to him, even as they eventually saw that He was much more than any Rabbi that they had ever experienced before.
So how did one become a Rabbi, or even a disciple? Every young Jewish boy would spend some time in schooling, but only a select few would ever make it to becoming a disciple of a great rabbi. At around 5 years old both boys and girls would attend “Beth Sefer” which was something like an elementary school where they would learn to read, write and memorize the Torah, or the first 5 books of the Old Testament. After this was completed, at about age 10, most of them, and especially the girls would stay home to learn how to care for the homestead or learn the family trade. The most promising of the Jewish boys, however, would continue on to a secondary school called “Beth Midrash” where they would move beyond the Text and into the many of interpretations of the Torah, the writings and the prophets. The rest of the Old Testament.
Finally, a very few of these students who showed great promise would seek permission to study with a Rabbi. These excellent students were called “Talmid” in Hebrew which in English would be “Disciple”. This new level of education went far beyond the walls of the local synagogue, as the disciple would often leave home to travel with the Rabbi for a lengthy period of time. It is important to understand that at the pursuit of a disciple was not simply a desire to master a bank of information. It was about the pursuit of the Rabbi’s lifestyle. As the Rabbi lived out and taught through his understanding of the Scripture, the disciple would listen, watch and then imitate so as to become like him in every way. Eventually these “talmid” or disciples would become teachers who would pass on this same lifestyle of the Rabbi on to the next wave of disciples.
Do you see how our understanding of Jesus’ life, ministry and mission expands with this fuller understanding of the Rabbi / Disciple relationship? I don’t know about you, but as I look at this definition of a disciple I start to wonder if I truly am a disciple of Jesus, or have I just been calling myself one? Clearly being a disciple is about more than our “religion preference” or the Church you attend.
And what about Jesus as a Rabbi? Certainly that is not a complete picture of Jesus’ but it is an accurate part of who He was while here on earth? Well Scripture gives us many examples of people calling Jesus Rabbi. His disciples of course did, but also lawyers or legal experts, the common people, wealthy people, religious leaders, members of both the Pharisees and Sadducees referred to Him as a Rabbi.
Jesus fit the description of a first century Rabbi in just about every way but one. Typically a prospective disciple would approach a Rabbi and formally ask to become his “talmid” - even offering reasons for why he would make a good disciple. The rabbi would listen, maybe ask some questions and then if he thought the student worthy, He would respond with “Follow Me”. But Jesus goes up to men who knew they were not worthy and says: “follow me”.
To see what difference this makes, open your Bible with me to Mathew chapter 4, which is found on page 809 in the Bibles in the chairs and we will look at how and who Jesus first chose to be his disciples. As you are turning there I will pray.
Truth
18 While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. 19 And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” 20 Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21 And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them. 22 Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
The first thing we see in the lives of Jesus’ first disciples is that...
Jesus' call can require us to change our focus (Matthew 4:18-22)
Jesus' call can require us to change our focus (Matthew 4:18-22)
This day by the sea was not the first time that Jesus had met Peter. The Gospel of John tells us that Peter’s brother Andrew introduced Peter to Jesus much earlier and it was at that point that Jesus gave Simon the name Peter. But Jesus had more in mind for Peter than just a new name.
The call of Jesus was for these “fishermen” to become “fishers of men”. Jesus was making some sort of connection here between what these men were doing when He called them, and what they would do from here on out. At this stage in their life, they were not looking for this! They had accepted their role as fishermen. They were still devout Jews who faithfully got themselves to the synagogue each Sabath…but the next day they were back to fishing. This is who they were. This is how they provided for their family. This was track that they laid all their future plans on…but when Jesus called them it changed their focus. They are now to take everything they have ever hoped for in the pursuit of fish and change that focus to people.
Jesus doesn’t tell them exactly what “Fishing for men” will look like, but if we think about it, we can probably see a lot of ways in which the role of the disciples turned out to be similar to what they were doing when they were fishing for fish:
How about their skill in broadcasting the net over a great area, never really knowing what the response will be until it hits?
Or the tediousness of working through every knot in the net to make sure that there was no weak spot where they might loose one.
Or the patience and perseverance that it took to continue fishing long into the night, even when you were not seeing the results you hoped for.
Or the courage that it took for someone to even be out in these waters in the dead of night, trying to navigate you way towards the next successful catch.
And maybe you can see other ways that these two types of fishing were similar. All we know is that Jesus saw in the rough hands, tough skin and brave hearts of these fishermen things they probably never saw in themselves, at least outside of the world of fish! But now that they have answered the call of Jesus, their focus has changed and all their past skills, talents and experiences will now be employed in the service of Jesus…to be “fishing for men”.
You see, unlike the typical Rabbi of the day, Jesus wasn’t looking for the “best and the brightest in the classroom” or even those who thought they were equipped to follow after Him. He doesn’t call the equipped, He equips those that he calls. And this is good news for all of us. That no matter what aptitude we think we have in following the Rabbi Jesus, He can change our focus and make us into what He desires to accomplish His mission through us.
Secondly, while this doesn’t always happen, sometimes...
Jesus' call can require us to change our vocation (Matthew 9:9).
Jesus' call can require us to change our vocation (Matthew 9:9).
This is what happened for at least one of Jesus’ disciples. Turn over some pages with me if you will to Matthew 9 starting with verse 9 on page 814. Here we find the story of the calling of Matthew the tax collector.
9 As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him.
The truth is we don’t really understand the significance of Jesus even talking to a tax collector - let alone inviting one to join Him! Tax collectors were the hated enemy of all Jews, but they were especially disliked up here in Galilee.
A couple of weeks ago we talked about the Sadducees and the Pharisees who were the religious Liberals and Conservative of Jesus’ day. These two religious groups fought it out in the big city of Jerusalem quite often, but not so much in the region of Galilee. The northern region of Galilee was a simpler kind of place compared to Jerusalem. The people there were not uneducated, quite the opposite actually, especially when it came to the Torah.
While the drift toward “modern interpretations” of the Torah was common place in and around the big city of Jerusalem, up in Galilee they had something more like a “small-town, hometown” value system. They honored God, family and country in that order...and they were not afraid to fight for these values. Some of the most significant revolts and rebellions against the Roman empire were initiated by leaders from Galilee - even the one in 70 AD when Rome was forced to come in and wipe out Jerusalem and the Temple. That rebellion was led by the Zealots of Galilee.
So you can just imagine how tax collectors like Matthew were seen in this region. None of the Jews like them, but they were especially hated here because they struck out on all three of their valies:
They were collecting taxes for a pagan empire. This was an affront to their own God
They were collecting these taxes from the Jewish people - taking money from their own family
They were collecting this money for Rome - the empire that was occupying their own country.
So it was much more than just you or I not liking the guy from the IRS, Jewish families would disown any son who would dishonor them by taking a job as a tax collector. We are never told why Matthew chose this line of work in the first place, but what we do know is that any 1st century Galilean who heard that Jesus called a tax collector to follow him would not take it lightly.
And what was this tax collectors response? How did he respond to this new offer to give up his life as a wealthy tax collector who had probably hardened his heart against the harsh criticisms of his former family and friends?
He immediately rose from his tax booth and followed Jesus. This is not the same as leaving your smelly fishing nets behind. They could alway go back to fishing, in fact after Jesus died that is exactly what they did for a time. But Matthew was turning his back on Rome. Following Jesus meant a whole new occupation for Matthew. Sometimes the call of Jesus means that we have to change our occupation.
And don’t misunderstand me, I am not saying that Matthew’s story shows us how wrong it is to be a tax man. That is not the point. The point is that to answer the call to become a disciple means that you would never allow anything to get in the way of following your Rabbi, even your occupation.
And in this is easy to see if you are giving up some immoral occupation. For example, John Newton, the man who wrote the words to Amazing Grace. He was a slave trader before Jesus called him, and it actually took some time before he realized that he could not truly be a disciple of Jesus and still buy and sell people for a living. We would look at that at say, of course if I had a job as evil as that then I would know I would have to make a change.
But it might not be that cut an dry for some of us. It’s possible that the work that we are doing is not necessarily evil in and of itself, but the way that we do it, by either personal choice or company policy keeps us from being able to follow Jesus. This could be the long hours that we are forced to keep, the corners we are pressured to cut, the half-truths we tell to make a sale or meet a deadline.
No one else can answer these questions for you, but if you are committed to being a disciple of Jesus Christ then you have committed to adopting his lifestyle. So the question always is: Could you see Jesus doing the things that you are doing at your job? If not, then it may be time to look for a new one.
My wife and I have really enjoyed watching the new series on the life of Jesus called “The Chosen”. I would love for you to see the whole thing, but for time sake I thought I would just show this one clip on when Jesus chose Matthew. It paints a powerful picture of the things that we are talking about here. Second Movie Clip: Jesus calls the Tax collector?
I love that line when Peter questions Jesus’ choice in Matthew and says: “That was different, I am not a tax collector” and Jesus responds “Get used to different”. Those words are not found in Scripture, but the idea is sure there, and it reflects our third and final theme for the week:
Jesus' call can require us to change how we relate to others (Matthew 9:10-13).
Jesus' call can require us to change how we relate to others (Matthew 9:10-13).
Change our focus, maybe change our occupation, but certainly change how we relate to others.
Matthew is so excited about his new role as a disciple of Jesus that he hosts a dinner party for Him and the rest of his followers, but then a whole bunch of other people “crash” the party, but none of it bothers Jesus.
Continuing in verse 10 of chapter 9 we read...
10 And as Jesus reclined at table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were reclining with Jesus and his disciples.
It’s important to note that culturally Jews did not eat with those who they thought were ceremonially unclean, and this would certainly include tax collectors and anyone they deemed as being “sinners”. So even Jesus being there with Matthew was “different” and then Matthews’ colleagues and friends started showing up. It was becoming quite the celebration, so much so that it got the attention of the local religious leaders.
11 And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 12 But when he heard it, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.
What a great picture of the “different” that the Rabbi Jesus was, and the different that His disciples are called to be. The Pharisees questions were not asked in concern for the welfare of those who were suffering in their sin. Their questions were directed at Jesus, condemning Him for spending any time with “those kind of people”.
And isn’t Jesus’ response beautiful? He doesn’t excuse the sin of anyone in the room, but simply points to his mission. He is here, spending time with “these kind of people” because these are the kind of people who need him. If you have come to a place of righteousness on your own, if you are “self-righteous” then you don’t need Jesus. This is what the Pharisees were projecting, a self righteousness that has no need for Jesus…and that is why Jesus is here at Matthews house and not at theirs.
And then he says:
13 Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”
Here we go again. We are trying to learn about Jesus here from the New Testament and we keep finding ourselves being dragged back in to the Old Testament. I hope you are seeing how cannot love the New Testament without having at least some appreciation for the Old.
Throughout Jesus’ public ministry he often utilized a technique common to Rabbi’s in his day where he would reference a part of a verse from the Old Testament, relying on the familiarity of that verse to communicate everything else that He wanted to say. Often times it was the unspoken part of the verse that the Rabbi was really trying to emphasize.
Jesus quote is from the prophet Hosea...
6 For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.
Jesus is bringing the Pharisees back to a time in the history of God’s people where they were being rebuked by God for their empty religion. Apparently Jesus thought these “learned” men had more to lean on this subject. These Pharisees may be doing all the “right things” ceremonially, but they do not even know the God of mercy and steadfast love. They may claim to speak for God, but if they can’t see a reason to reach out in love towards “those kind of people” they don’t even know Him.
Makes me wonder, who have I been treating like “those kind of people”? Who have you?
Gospel Application
One of the Bible verses that I saw completely changed how I looked at my life as a “disciple” of Jesus is found in Matthew chapter 7 where Jesus says:
22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’
The call the follow Jesus is not a call to empty religious practices, it is a call to discipleship. Where we don’t let anything get in the way of our walking so closely with Jesus that we begin to become like Him. As Jesus lives out and teaches us His understanding of the Scriptures, we listen, watch and then imitate so as to become like him. We don’t just call Him Lord, or believe a bunch of things about him, or even do mighty works in his name, we are only true disciples when we know Him. Jesus' call to "follow me" is a summons to become attached to Him as an apprentice would become attached to a master––to accept His authority over our lives and imitate His actions.
Landing
Is that you? Do you just call yourself a “Christian” or would you say that you are a Disciple of Jesus Christ? The measure of a true Disciple is how much we are becoming like our Rabbi. Coming to church once in a while, praying when life gets hard, reading your Bible only when you think you need to isn’t going to make you like Jesus. When Jesus calls us to be His disciples he calls us change and be like Him. That cannot be done on a part time, once in a while, when I feel like it kind of plan. If that is the way you approach Jesus, then maybe you too need to “Go and learn what this means “I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice”.
If you wonder where you stand with this and want to talk about it, I would be glad to talk with you about this or any other aspect of discipleship. Maybe we can learn how to do this discipleship thing better together.
On the other hand, If you are one who is convinced that you are a Disciple of Jesus Christ, then let me ask you one question: Who are you discipling right now? Remember the Rabbi/Disciple process was never meant to end with you - it was meant to flow through you to someone else. This is what Jesus meant when he said:
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Every step that we have ever taken towards being more like Jesus should be something that we are working to pass onto to another disciple. You cannot be a disciple of Jesus if you are not contributing to this mission in some way. He has changed your focus, maybe even changed your occupation, but certainly changed how you relate to others - and now he wants to use you His disciple to teach others to observe these things as well.
Will you answer that call? I hope you do.
Let’s Pray.