"Again the next day
after John stood, and two of his disciples;
And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb
of God! And the two disciples heard him speak, and they
followed Jesus.Then Jesus turned, and saw them following, and saith unto them,
What seek ye? They said unto him, Rabbi, (which is to say, being interpreted,
Master,) where dwellest thou? He saith unto them, Come
and see. They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it
was about the tenth hour. One of the
two which heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's
brother. He first findeth his own brother Simon, and
saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ.And
he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the
son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone."
John 1:35-42
We often have the mistaken idea that
only the visible workers in the work of
the Lord are worthy of consideration. We must not overlook the contribution of
the steadfast supporters who are working for the Lord in obscure and less
visible areas of God’s kingdom. Some of the greatest workers in the kingdom are
too often little known and unnoticed. Yet the work they perform is much like
the seasoning in good food. Andrew, a disciple of Jesus, was such a person.
The day after John the Baptist made his
first public announcement of Jesus, his disciples began to seek Jesus out. The
first two disciples to follow Jesus were Andrew and his friend John, the
brother of James. When they found Jesus, they asked Him, “Where dwellest
thou?”. They probably thought that it would be good to get to know more about
Him.
Jesus invited these two disciples of
John to spend the evening with Him, exceeding their expectations. They became
convinced that John’s announcement that Jesus was the Christ was true. They
were compelled to tell their brothers about their discovery of the Christ and
to lead them to Him.
Andrew is barely noticed by Christian
historians and only mentioned six times by name in the New Testament. Yet we
are indebted to this little known disciple for bringing to Jesus his later well
known brother, Peter. What a readymade missionary field our families provide!
Andrew did not rush off to another field of labor. His first testimony was
given to those at home.
On one occasion when a large crowd had
followed Him, Jesus tested the faith of Philip when He asked him, “Whence shall
we buy bread, that these may eat?” (Jn. 6:5). Philip, the practical person that
he was, sized up the situation and with no faith for a solution replied, “Two
hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them that every one of them
may take a little.” The disciples suggested that Jesus send the multitude away
because it was late in the day. Jesus said, “Give ye them to eat” (Mr. 6:3).
The disciples failed the same test of faith that Philip had failed. They asked,
“Shall we go and buy...and give them to eat?” (Mr. 6:37).
Andrew brought a boy and his lunch of
five small barley loaves and two small fish to Jesus. He said, “But what are
they among so many?” (Jn. 6:9). Andrew’s skeptical question was touched with
just a hint of faith. Why would Andrew have bothered to bring the little lunch
to Jesus if he did not think that Jesus would do something with it? Jesus acted
upon Andrew’s suggestion at once.
It
is amazing to see what Jesus can do with our limited resources and little
faith. He starts with what we have and blesses it that it may become sufficient
for what we need. We should follow the example of Andrew and bring to Jesus
what little we have in order for Him to multiply it.
One day a group of Greeks came to
Philip and asked him to arrange for them to meet with Jesus. Philip consulted
Andrew and both of them brought word to Jesus. When Andrew and Philip brought
the request to Jesus for an interview with the Greeks, they opened the door for
Him to teach on the true purpose of His death (Jn. 12:23-36).
Anyone that is obscure could be defined
as not well known or not famous. Andrew, by comparison to his brother, Peter,
was not well known or famous. Yet his life was significant and full of meaning
and importance.
Jesus had an inner circle within His
group of apostles. Peter, James and John were with Him when Jairus’ daughter
was raised, at the transfiguration and during Jesus’ agonizing prayer in
Gathsemane. These three men shared a special place of closeness with Jesus
during several key events while Andrew and
the others were outside of the inner circle.
Andrew’s older brother Peter, whom he
had brought to Christ went on to be well known in the church. His experience
was similar to that of a teacher whose student rises to greater acclaim than
the one who taught him. Or, it was like a younger brother whose only public
identity is his relationship to an older brother. Andrew was quietly unobserved
as Peter boldly built a reputation of great acknowledgments of faith.
Andrew received no acclaim. There is no
biblical record of any sermon that he preached or sacred writing written. Jesus
did not recognize him for meritorious service or commend him for great
character. But that is not to say that he lacked greatness or was unworthy of
such commendation. Rather, he seemed to be great in a quiet unassuming way.
Indeed, the absence of a clamor for attention or personal credit are marks of his
greatness and still are traits greatly to be desired!
Andrew exemplified the concept Jesus
taught that “the first shall be last.” Although Andrew was the first disciple
he was not in the foreground of leadership. Andrew was content to remain
obscure. He did not make any effort to push ahead of the other apostles for
attention. James and John pressed Jesus for positions of prominence in the
coming kingdom, but this was not so of Andrew.
Apparently, there was no envy in the
heart of Andrew toward the popular apostolic spokesman and leader, his brother.
He displayed the pure essence of true love that “envieth not”. No evil jealousy
corrupted Andrew’s heart.
Small people drop names and snip at the
heels of those who are climbing past them. Few indeed are the individuals who
are able to love, lead and then linger on the sidelines to cheer while others
seem to pass them by.
THERE IS A
GREAT NEED OF
SUPPORT PEOPLE IN
THE WORK OF GOD
“For the body (the church) is not one
member, but many” (I Cor. 12:14). When
we think of the apostle Paul’s comparison of the human body and the body of
Christ, the church, we are reminded of how important little things are. There
is a need for more than just the prominent. Paul asked the question: “If the
whole body were an eye, where were the hearing?” The body would be out of
balance if the head were only one large eye, or ears, or nose. "
Each one of us provides for the church
a needed function that we have been called to do. Somebody must provide the
behind the scenes support to make possible each activity in the church. We
should be content to do our part in support of all who are depending upon us.
Ultimately, Christ is counting on us to do all that He has called and ordained
for us to do.
The value of small things in life can
never be understated. There are many small and seemingly insignificant things
in life upon which we depend completely. We know we can count on Jesus always
to be the same, but can He depend on us? Will we be in the place where He has planted
us? Every leader must have a dedicated staff of people upon whom he can depend.
It has been said that the greatest ability in life is availability.
Much harm can come by individuals who,
after serving successfully in a secondary capacity, grow restless and decide to
go elsewhere where they can be a prominent leader. Such an impulsive move can
cause confusion and disaster if the person has not been called to that place of
leadership. It is much better that a person be content to labor faithfully in
whatever capacity God has placed him until such a time as God would choose to
move him into another area of service.
Following in the footsteps of Andrew is
challenging. The unassuming character found in Andrew placed him quietly in the
background lifting up others. When he came to prominence, it was always on
behalf of someone else. He brought his brother, Peter, to Jesus. He brought a
lad and his lunch to Jesus. He brought the Greeks’ request to Jesus.
The kingdom of God today is in need of
dedicated people who, like Andrew, are loyal, faithful, and supportive.
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