Explain what a study of St Marks Gospel can tell Christians of Disciples?

        Jesus tells Simon and Andrew that they are to become “fishers of men”. This phase means that they will go out and capture peoples attention with the word of God and turn others into disciples so that they too will spread the word of God. The next disciple was Matthew, a tax collector. All the first five disciples follow Jesus immediately, this shows Jesus must have been very convincing to make five grown men want to follow him when normally they could choose when they wished to become disciples.

        The turning point of Marks Gospel comes when Jesus is treating a man with a withered hand. The Herodrians and Pharises are plotting to kill Jesus and this is where Jesus picks his twelve disciples from a much larger crowd to go out and spread the word of God. Jesus wants those men to do three main things. One they must be companions to Jesus. Two they must preach and three they must cast out demons. Jesus set missionary work for the twelve. He sent them out in twos and gave them strict instructions to follow. They must take nothing but a stick. They could not take food or a pack bag. No money was allowed and no second coat however they could wear sandals.  

        Disciples today tend to be priests or bishops. They preach to people in churches every Sunday and in the Roman Catholic church the priest for fills one of the disciples duties by casting out sins in confession.

        The cost of discipleship in the time of Jesus was very high it was normally death. When Jesus called the disciples he told them to leave all their belongings. “Anyone who which’s to follow me must leave self behind. He must take up his cross and come with me” 8:34.

        Discipleship means that you are a follower, a pupil or student. Jesus called his disciples and they followed. Jesus taught them to preach and cast out demons. For disciples to do all this meant that they would have to give up their belongings and family. Once all this was abandoned they could become messengers of God and preach the word of God. They went out to preach and create more disciples. This is what I believe is the nature of the disciples referring to the Gospel of St Mark.