The disciples were ordinary people who Jesus ask to follow him it is strange that Jesus did not pick any particular person, he just chose four fishermen to be his most loyal companions who would be prepared to die, suffer, be rejected, and go to prison.

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The disciples were ordinary people who Jesus ask to follow him it is strange that Jesus did not pick any particular person, he just chose four fishermen to be his most loyal companions who would be prepared to die, suffer, be rejected, and go to prison. The following story (1:16-20) tells us how Jesus called his first disciples.

As Jesus walked along the shore of Lake Galilee, he saw two fishermen, Simon and his brother Andrew, catching fish in a net. Jesus said to them, ‘‘Come with me and I will teach you to catch people’’ at once they left their nets and followed him. He went a farther on and saw two brothers James and John, the sons of Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and went with Jesus.

In chapter 2 verses 13-20 Jesus chose a tax collector Levi (who was considered as a sinner) to be one of his disciples and had dinner at his house when some Pharisee’s saw this they asked the disciples ‘‘why dose he eat with these outcasts?’’ Jesus heard this and answered ‘‘people who are well do not need a doctor. But only those who are sick. I have not come for respectable people but outcasts.’’

There are seven more disciples other than Levi, Simon, Andrew, James and John their names are: Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, James, Thaddaeus, Simon and Judas Iscariot. Jesus expected all these men to have certain qualities like putting their self last in all things, being prepared to follow Jesus no matter what, a disciples nature should not be one of privilege or position but a humble service, a disciple should not be arrogant but tolerant to other peoples beliefs, a disciple must be aware of dangers such as wealth and obsessions and must be single minded in discipleship, a disciple should imitate the life of Christ. The disciples were sent out on missionary work. They had no money one pair of clothes and a stick this showed they were obedient and willing to do the will of God.

One of the many tasks the disciples had to do was to go and drive out evil spirits, there orders were to go into every town they came to and preach the good news when they reached a town if someone was hospitable they would stay with them until they were ready to leave but if no one was hospitable in a town before they left they would shake the dust off their sandals, this would be a sign to the town residents. On one task the disciples came across an elliptic boy who they could not heal, they sent for Jesus and he healed the boy. He explained they could not heal him through their lack of faith.

Teachers around the time when Jesus lived thought that learning was such that the people who wanted to learn should come to them to be taught. But Jesus felt differently and rather than waiting for people to come to him, he went out to find them and then chose them to be his followers. He called them disciples and this word means one who learns. But Jesus chose his disciples carefully as we are told in Mark 1:16-20 and also in Mark 3:13-19. In the first passage, Jesus appoints his first four disciples, Simon, Andrew, James and John. They were two sets of brothers and were all fishermen. Jesus said to them “Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” (Mark 1:17) Immediately, they left their things and followed a man they hardly knew. This shows that they were willing to give up everything for someone who they knew they could trust. In Mark 2:13-17, Jesus calls up the fifth disciple, Levi who was a tax collector, and Jesus later renamed him Matthew. But Levi was not called in the same way as the other four disciples. Jesus was with him at the tax collector´s booth and Jesus simply said, “Follow me” (Mark 2:14) and he rose and followed Jesus.
These five men responded immediately to Jesus and this is very surprising as he is a man who they have never met before. But it appears that Jesus has some sort of authority, which causes them to respond immediately. The first five disciples were told to leave everything and just follow Jesus regardless of the value of the things they were leaving behind. They abandoned their families, homes and possessions for a man who they had never met before. It is quite clear that this idea of discipleship for the first disciples is very important and that Jesus is planning on building his faith in them and he wants them to spread the word around to the people. “He appointed twelve-designating them apostles-that they might be with them and that he might send them out to preach.” (Mark 3:14)
Jesus appointed 12 disciples in total and this number was significant because each one represented one of the twelve tribes of Israel. He chose them because he wanted to replace the old way of teaching with a new way in which the disciples were involved. After they had been chosen, they were called to meet him onto the top of a mountain, and he told them they were to be apostles, meaning one who is sent. (Mark 3:13-19) Jesus gave them the authority to cast out demons and preach to his people and they were known as his companions. It seems strange for him to choose those specific people as his twelve because he could have chosen from many of his disciples, but he chose a specific twelve to be his companions and apostles.

When Jesus chose his apostles, there were two unusual choices: Levi and Simon the Zealot. Levi was a strange choice because he was a tax collector who had managed to get more money out of people than they need pay and so many people hated him and many other tax collectors. Simon the Zealot was an unusual choice because he was a zealot and although they had a strong belief in God, they hated the Romans, and being ruled by foreigners.
In the mission of the twelve, Jesus calls them to him and sends them in two´s saying that they have the authority over evil spirits. (Mark 6: 7-13) They were sent out in two´s for their own safety but also so that they had a companion. He then said, “Take nothing for the journey except a staff – no bread, no bag and no money in your belts. Wear sandals but not an extra tunic. Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town, and if any place will not welcome you, shake the dust off your feet.” (Mark 6:8-11) They were told all these things because they had to rely on other people and if they were to need something, they should go to someone for help. They were to have faith that their needs would be provided for them. They were told that when they arrived at someone´s house and that person did not welcome them, then they should shake the dust from their feet. This was an old tradition as the Jews would do this as they crossed the border in to their own country, so that the Holy Land would not be contaminated by Gentile dust from their feet. By saying this, he was reminding them that this persecution might set them free.
The mission means that the disciples must face either rejection or acceptance and we can see many qualities displayed by the twelve disciples. They have to rely on other people and as it is said in Morley´s passage on discipleship, “For they set out with nothing but the word of God in their hearts.”
When Jesus tells the disciples about the cost of discipleship (Mark 8:27-33) he means that they should be prepared to put God and his commandments first before anything else, and they must be prepared to suffer for their beliefs. Jesus told them that the most important commandment is “Love God and your neighbour as yourself,” (Exodus 20: 3-17) and many disciples throughout the ages have made many sacrifices to try and put this teaching into practise. When the words of the cost of discipleship were first said by Jesus, they had a very strong meaning, but now these words do not have that meaning as they have been simplified and the mission is not in the same context. When Jesus says, “If anyone would come after me, they must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me,” (Mark 8:27-33) he means that by denying oneself they must put themselves last in everything, have no care about their own life, and have no desire for rights or privileges, except that of belonging to God. When Jesus said to take up the cross, we can assume that because we all have a cross to bear, we should take up our vocation, and that means for us to follow Jesus regardless of the sacrifices we have to make. When we are told we should follow him, it means that we should travel down the same road as Jesus and suffer the many trials of being a disciple.
But, in Mark 10:29-31 we are told about the rewards of discipleship and the strange reward they receive for their suffering. “I tell you the truth, no one who has left home or their family for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age, and in the age to come – eternal life,” Mark 10:29-30. Jesus says this to the disciples after he tells them the story of the Rich Young Man.

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In this passage, the rich young man asks Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus tells him that he must give up his wealth, but the man is unable to do so. The disciples are amazed at this story and then Jesus tells them, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” Mark 10: 24-25. Jesus tells the disciples this because they feel that they have given everything up ...

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