The Disciples

Jesus calls a rather eclectic group of men together to help Him in launching His work on this earth. They were a mismatched group of men that upon closer examination leaves us scratching our heads in wonder as to why Christ would ever have assembled such a seemingly clashing group of men. They rebuked children (Mark 19:13-15), they argued over who was the greatest (Matthew 18:1-5), they were riddled with doubt (John 16:21-22, Luke 24:25-27) and they continually questioned Jesus on everything (Mark 13:3-4, Mark 10:10, Matthew 24:3).

Upon closer examination of the 12 disciples and their backgrounds I had a understanding as to why Jesus would frequently rebuked them for being of little faith. It was so interesting to compare the disciple's the personality traits one against the next. Jesus truly had an intriguing group of men to train up in sending forth His gospel. I hope this background picture of each disciple helps you better understand the unique dynamics that Jesus was working with during His three years of teaching and ministry.

Background facts

One thing I found interesting in my research of these men was the uniqueness surrounding the names of that time period. It was common in the Middle East during the time of Christ for men to have two names. Many of the disciples had more than one name as you will see below.

11 of the 12 disciples were Galileans. Judas was the only one who was not, he was a Judean.   

Peter, James and John were the three disciples who were considered to be in Jesus' “inner circle.”

Andrew

Andrew was a fisherman by trade. He was an original disciple of John the baptist (Mark 1:16-18). He often times stood in the shadows of his brother, Peter. Andrew died a martyr by being crucified on an X shaped cross. He was bound but not nailed to the cross.

Bartholomew/Nathanael  

Bartholomew means "son of Tolmay" or "son of the furrow," which could mean he was the son of a plowman or a farmer. Nathanael means "God has given" in Hebrew. We don't have an abundance of information on him from scripture, but he did died a martyr. He was put to death by knives.

James (the older of the two James’)

James was inseparable from his brother John. In fact his name is never mentioned in scripture without his brother’s name being mentioned as well. He was labeled as a man of courage, great strength, full of forgiveness, a man without jealousy, and a man of great faith. He was the first of the twelve to become a martyr.

James (the younger of the two James’)

He was the brother of Jude. He wrote the book of James. Some scholars believe him to be the brother of Matthew the tax collector. He was a man of strong character, full of fire and exuberance. He died a martyr by being sawed into pieces.

John/Boanerges

John was the older brother of James. John was a fisherman. He was known as the beloved disciple. He wrote John, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John and Revelation. He was held was prisoner on the isle of Patmos. He was known as an ambitious man, and a man of action. John’s second name, Boanerges, means Thunder and he lived up to this name in his younger years. He was quick tempered, easily angered and explosive in his expression of his anger. As he got older he learned to embrace a Christ like attitude. John died of natural causes in his old age.   

Judas Iscariot

Judas was labeled as the traitor, because of his blatant betrayal of Jesus. He was the treasure. He committed suicide by hanging himself.

Jude/Thaddeus/Lebbeus

Jude is referred by different names in different parts of scripture. Thaddeus means “the man with three names.” He was thought to be a fisherman. He is the brother of the younger James. He died as a martyr by being clubbed to death.

Matthew/Levi

Matthew was a tax collector. Jew’s abhorred tax collectors. The tax collectors were notoriously unjust and dishonest. The Jews believed the only one they should give monetary tribute to was God. Matthew became the first man to write down the teachings of Jesus when he wrote the book of Matthew. He died a martyr.

Peter/Simon Peter

Peter was a fisherman. He was the only disciple that we are certain was married (1 Corinthians 9:5), because he had a mother in law. Peter was the leader among the twelve. He was strong willed and outspoken. He was known for asking some reckless and challenging questions. Peter died a martyr by being crucified upside down on a cross.

Philip

Philip was thought to be a fisherman as well. He had a warm heart but a skeptical mind. He wanted things done for others, but did not see how they could be done. He died a martyr by being hanged.

Simon the Zealot

Simon was a fisherman, devoted to the law. He hated Rome and anyone who would compromise with them. He did learn to overcome this hatred. He was a man of faith who died a martyr.

Thomas/Didymus

Thomas was also called Judas at times. We call him “Doubting Thomas” because he is the disciple who said unless he sees the nail marks in Jesus’ hands and his pierced side, he would not believe. Thomas was a man who did not believe until he saw. He was a pessimist by nature. He died as a martyr by the spear.

Can we see the vast differences that Jesus had to work with here? With these vast differences in personalities I’m not so sure I would have been as patient as Jesus was in training this group of men. In fact, it truly baffles me how He ever trained them at all. This just goes to show us that Christ never gives up on any of us. He has plans and purposes for even the most unique of individuals. His kingdom is never too full that He doesn’t have room for us to play a significant role in spreading the gospel. I am thankful that Jesus never gave up on the disciples. He is never going to give up on any one of us either! What beautiful encouragement that is to my soul! I hope this resonates with your spirit today as well.

Lord, we thank you that you took the time to invest in the 12 disciples. You even invested in the life of the one disciple who handed you over to be crucified and you did it with love and compassion. You have set such a beautiful example of just how miraculous you can work in the hearts and lives of people. You have shown us that you love and care for each one of us just as you cared for your disciples. I thank you that you desire for us to go into all the world and preach the gospel (Mark 16:15) just as the original 12 were called to do. You are also calling us to do greater works (John 14:12). We count it an honor and privilege to be part of such a heritage in the kingdom! Thank you Lord for training us, teaching us and trusting us with spreading the gospel to the ends of the earth.