One of my friends gave me a book to read over the Christmas break. This book chronicles the life of a fellow believer. The one of the thing that really struck me was we were so different in so many ways. His approach to and views of life are so different from mine that we could best be described as polar opposites. And yet, he and I had that common thread, our belief in Christ and the salvation Christ offers. The book tells about how he was able to share Christ’s love with students at a local Liberal Arts College. This was in large part due to his ability to relate to these students & understand where they were coming from, something I would not likely be able to do.
Soon there after, the pastor of our church discussed the diverse backgrounds of Christ’s first apostles. The topic intrigued me and I decided to do a study of the lives of some of Christ’s followers. The profiles below list some of the results of my research:
Profiles of the 12 Apostles of Christ
- Simon also called Peter: Home town Bethsaida, married, occupation fisherman working with his brother Andrew & father John. tapped by Jesus to witness the transfiguration of Jesus. Christ tells Peter that he will use Peter to build his church. During Christ’s arrest, Peter cut the ear off of one of the High Priest’s servants in defense of Christ. Later on, Peter denies Christ 3 times first at the gate of & later in the courtyard of the High Priest while waiting to hear of Christ’s outcome. Peter was the first to reach the tomb when told that the body of Christ was gone. After Christ’s death, Peter returned to what he knew best, fishing. Christ, after his resurrection, met with Peter and reinstated him. In Acts 2, Peter began his role as the leader of the small Christian Church. God spoke to Peter in a vision and told him that it is not a sin to associate with the Gentiles. Peter is part of the leadership for the Christian Church in Jerusalem and spoke at the Jerusalem council working with the rest of the leaders to determine what the Gentiles should follow in terms of Christian religious practices.
- Andrew: Brother of Peter home town Bethsaida, he was a disciple of John the Baptist. He sought out Jesus after John the Baptist proclaimed Christ as the Lamb of God, introduced his brother Peter to Christ. During the feeding of the 5000, Andrew found the fish & bread Jesus used to feed the crowd
- James: Father Zebedee, Brother John, known as a son of thunder, worked as fishermen on the Sea of Galilee with his father, brother, & their employees, chosen by Jesus to witness the transfiguration of Jesus.
- John: Father Zebedee Brother of James, known as a son of thunder, worked as fishermen on the Sea of Galilee with his father, brother, & their employees. Chosen by Jesus to witness the transfiguration of Jesus.
- Philip: Home town Bethesda, he was a disciple of John the Baptist, sought out Jesus after John the Baptist proclaimed Christ as the Lamb of God. During the feeding of the 5000 Jesus asked Philip how he should feed them all & Philip responded 8 months wages wouldn’t feed this crowd.
- Bartholomew: He was an apostle that doesn’t have much written about him beyond Acts 1. As with most of the believers in this world, much of his work is not recorded, yet God knows & recognizes what he has accomplished.
- Thomas: When Jesus decided to go back to Judea, Thomas said, “Let us go that we may die with him”, when Jesus said he was returning to Heaven, Thomas said, "Lord, we don't know where you are going, so how can we know the way?" Of course Thomas is most known for doubting that Jesus was who he said he was after Christ’s resurrection. But Thomas’ response, after he understood that Christ had been resurrected was, "My Lord and my God!"
- Matthew (Levi): Son of Alphaeus, Matthew was a tax collector. Tax collectors had the reputation of being dishonest & usually amassed a lot of wealth through ill gotten gains. Later he recorded Christ’s linage & life in the book of Matthew.
- James Alphaeus’ son: James is another apostle that doesn’t have much written about him in the Bible. James is listed as being a part of the 12 apostles who saw Christ ascend into heaven. He continued with on Christ’s work.
- Thaddaeus (Judas): Thaddaeus also known as Judas James’ son. He asked the Lord why the Lord showed who he truly is to his disciples but not the rest of the world. Jesus replied, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.
- Simon the Zealot: Zealots were opposed to Roman rule, certain factions would carry daggers and murdered those who collaborated with the Romans. For a short period of time the Zealots were able to push the Romans out, but later they were defeated.
- Judas Iscariot: Son of Simon, Judas was the treasurer for Christ and the apostles. It was later noted that he took advantage of this role by skimming money off of the top. Judas betrayed Christ for thirty pieces of silver, paid by the chief priests. Judas later regreted his decision to betray Jesus and commited suicide.
-Matthias: Peter and the rest of the young church determined, based on scripture, that Judas’ position as an apostle should be filled with another person. The requirements were that the replacement should be someone who had been with them the whole time the Lord Jesus was with them, beginning from the time when John baptized Christ to the time Christ was resurrected. Matthias was chosen to replace Judas.
Other followers of Christ
- Nathanael: From Cana in Galilee, upon seeing Nathanael, Jesus declares here is a true Israelite in whom there is nothing false. After Jesus told Nathanael what Nathanael had done prior to their meeting, Nathanael declares Rabbi you are the Son of God
- Paul (Saul): Paul was a Roman citizen, from the tribe Benjamin, born in the city of Tarsus in Cilicia. He was a son of a Pharisee, studied Jewish law under the teacher Gamaliel. At first Paul was a strong persecutor of the Christian Church. Later he converted to Christianity after having a miraculous encounter with Jesus Christ while on his way to Damascus. Paul spent the rest of his life traveling throughout the ancient world telling others of Christ’s gift of salvation. He did this in the face of great adversity. He was whipped several times, beaten with rods, stoned, shipwrecked, nearly drowned in rivers, confronted by bandits, received death threats by his own people, & people of other countries.
As we scan through the backgrounds of the Apostles, we find men representing all walks of life. They were fishermen, anarchists, government officials & highly educated religious leaders. The bond that cemented this diverse group together was Christ.
Today's body of believers in Jesus Christ is no less diverse than that of the first church, and yet so many times we have a narrow image in our minds of how a Christian should act, speak or look. I think sometimes we doubt the authenticity of someone who clams to be a believer and yet doesn’t fit our image of a Christian. I will admit that from time to time, I am guilty of this mistake.
As believers, I would encourage all of us to lean on the Holy Spirit and that bond of Christ to knit us together and keep us from being judgmental. If you are a believer in Christ who has felt like you don’t fit in with the Christian norm, take heart, God has created you exactly as you are and given you the things you’ve experience to prepare you to share your life and Christ’s salvation with that one person, or group of people that only you can reach.
Reference:
zealot
Matthew 9:9, Matthew 10:2, Matthew 17:1-3, Mark 2:14, Mark 3:17-18, Luke 6:13, John 1:29-51, John 6:5-8,John 11:15-17, John 13, John 14:21-24,John 21,Acts 1,Acts 10,Acts 15,Acts 16,Acts 22,Acts 23,Romans 11,2 Corinthians 11:24-26
