“…Follow me,” Jesus said to him” (Luke 5:27 NIV).
We American Christians love that Christ calls us individually. What we don’t always appreciate is that following Jesus means hanging out with his other disciples. We prefer an individual religion. One that we can follow alone. One that caters to our individual needs.
I wonder if Simon Peter ever felt this way?
“Yes Jesus. I want to follow you. But do I have to hang out with Judas?” He may have asked.
The three years he spent following Jesus were also the three years he spent hanging out with the other eleven disciples. There were the “Sons of Thunder,” James and John, with their fiery tempers and pushy mother wanting junior thrones for them. There was the skeptical Thomas, always questioning everything. And Judas Iscariot pestering them to turn in their receipts with their monthly reports (definitely a “bean-counter”). Even Peter’s brother, Andrew, could get on one’s nerves with his naive faith (“Here’s a boy with a bag lunch, Lord!” … when there were thousands to feed.).
Following Jesus for Peter meant becoming one of the Twelve. It meant becoming one of Christ’s disciples. It meant becoming part of his body.
Following Jesus today still means the same thing. We must reject our rugged individualism. There is no place for it at the Lord’s table. We enter into his body individually, but having entered we become a member of his family.
We know that Peter learned from the Lord during those three years. I’m sure of that. But I suspect he also learned a lot from the other disciples too.
There are surveys, books, and websites these days discussing how people in this generation love Jesus but hate the church. I understand much of what they mean. There are things about the church that need correction.
But there is also much in this generation’s individualism that needs correction. We are a splintered society. Fatherless and divorced, we struggle forward alone without spiritual direction. We prefer a buffet religion with a plate of this and a side of that. While what we really need are spiritual fathers and mothers, spiritual brothers and sisters. What we really need is to be part of a family.
Even one with the occasional Judas.