Jesus went to the mountain to pray and spent the whole night praying to God. And when the day came, he called his disciples and chose twelve of them, whom he also called apostles. (Luke 6:12-13). Twelve men responded to the call to be disciples of jesus. They were Jews, uneducated commoners and men of faith who gave up everything to be followers of Christ.
Jesus spent three years training these men to be leaders. Jesus’ plan was for the disciples to eventually take over and continue the work he had begun. What we know to be true about Jesus is that he chose ordinary and unrefined men to be his apostles.
They were the most common of the common. They were from rural areas, farmers and fishermen. Christ deliberately passed over the elite, aristocratic and influential men of society and chose mainly men from the dregs of society. So it has always been in God’s economy. He exalts the humble and humbles the proud.
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Who were the 12 disciples of Jesus?
We find the names of the disciples in the books of the Gospels of; Matthew 10:2-4, Mark 3:14-19 and Luke 6:13-16. The names of the twelve apostles are these: the first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James who was the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip and Bartholomew (Nathanael); Thomas and Mateo, the tax collector; Santiago the son of Alfeo (Santiago el Menor) and Tadeo (Judas, son of Santiago); Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, the one who betrayed him (Matthew 10: 2-4)
Now that we know the names of the apostles, let’s take a deeper look at each man’s life story. Although Jesus’ disciples were all different, when the Early Church began, they were known for their unwavering faith.
Peter and Andrew
Pedro and Andrés, sons of Juan, were born in Betsaida. Later they settled together in a house in the city of Capernaum. They were fishermen. They were partners and probably had known each other for years. Peter and Andrew were the first followers of John the Baptist.
Andrew was the one who first introduced his older brother Peter to Jesus when they were in the desert with John (John 1:40-42). It is believed that they became spiritual followers of Jesus at this time. Once Peter was introduced to Jesus, they left John and became followers of Christ.
1. Peter
Also known as Simon Simon Peter or Cephas (Rock), Peter was a natural and gregarious leader, and an obvious spokesman for Jesus’ twelve disciples. Peter’s name is mentioned far more in the New Testament than any other of the disciples. He was the older of the two brothers and the only married disciple (Luke 4:38).
His wife was known to travel with him when he was on mission (1 Cor. 9:5). His mission was to bring the Gospel to the circumcised (Galatians 2:7). Peter is well known for denying Christ three times after Christ was arrested.
After his own arrest many years later, he asked to be crucified with his head bowed. He did not believe that he was worthy of being crucified in the same way as his Lord. He died as a martyr in Rome during the reign of. Some speculate at the same time that Paul was beheaded.
2. Andrew
One of the first disciples of John the Baptist, Andrew, the Son of Zebedee, was present when John the Baptist said: “Behold the Lamb of God!” (John 1:35). Andrew was the first to follow Jesus, and his enthusiasm was evident when his desire to introduce his older brother to Jesus revealed what was already in his heart: a deep love for God.
He was not a domineering person next to his brother. He was a passionate preacher and boldly shared the gospel, and was a significant contributor to the early church. Andrew died as a martyr. He faced the crucifixion with boldness and courage.
James and John: sons of Zebedee
There is some evidence that Zebedee was a wealthy man. He was able to hire enough servants to help with his fishing business (Mark 1:20). In the Scriptures, James appears before his younger brother John, however, it remains somewhat obscure except for the fact that he is part of Jesus’ three inmates.
John is much more in the forefront of what is happening during the three years of training with Christ. Both Santiago and John were known to be men of intense passion and fervor. That is why Jesus nicknamed them the Sons of Thunder (Mark 3:17).
3.James
Santiago is Juan’s older brother. He represents a very quiet part of Jesus’ team of disciples. He was allowed to be present when Jesus raised the daughter of Jairus from the dead (Mark 5:37). Furthermore, she was with Jesus on the Mount of Olives (Matthew 17:1), and was present in the Garden of Gethsemane with Jesus (Mark 14:33). James was the first disciple to be martyred (he was beheaded) and the only disciple to record his martyrdom in Scripture (Acts 12:1-3).
4.John
Known as the “disciple loved by Jesus”, he was also part of the three inmates (John 3:23). He wrote a large part of the New Testament: the book of John, 1, 2 and 3 John, and the book of Revelation. He wrote more about love than any other New Testament author.
His proximity to Jesus taught him a lot about love. He was exiled to the island of Patmos, but after his death, John was allowed to return to Ephesus, where he ruled churches in Asia until his death around AD 100.
5. Philip
What do we know about Philip? Almost nothing. Although he is Jewish, he is only known by his name Philip, of Greek origin. With a heart for evangelism, he was eager to tell Nathanael that he had been found the one prophesied by Moses and the prophets (John 1:45). They were fairly close companions, and possibly did some studying together. Philip was stoned and crucified at Hierapolis, Phrygia.
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6. Nathanael
Also known as Bartholomew, Nathanael came from Cana in Galilee (John 21:2). He expressed some local prejudices about Nazareth (John 1:46). Jesus recognized how sincere his love for God was from the beginning when he said: “Behold a true Israelite, in whom there is no deceit!” (John 1:47). Nathanael could have preached in India and translated the book of Matthew into his language. He was beaten, crucified, and beheaded. He died a martyr’s death while serving the people of Albinopolis, Armenia.
7. Matthew
He was a Levi, son of Alphaeus. He is about a tax collector. That is, he was a member of the most despised group in Israel. They take extra money from the people of Israel to make payments to the Romans, and to take extra profit. Many of the collectors were having dinner with Jesus, something that surprised the scribes, who asked why these people shared with Jesus. Jesus responded by saying:
It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick; I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners (Mark 2:16).
As Jesus left there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting in the tax collector’s booth; and he said to him: Follow me! And he got up and followed him (Matthew 9:9).
Matthew took the gospel to Ethiopia and Egypt. Hyrcanus, the king, killed him with a spear.
8. Thomas
Usually nicknamed “Doubting Thomas”, Thomas was also called Didymus, meaning The Twin (although a twin brother or sister is never mentioned in the Bible). He was an outspoken skeptic to the point of being known as a pessimist. No details about Thomas are given in the first three gospels other than the mention of his name.
Lazarus had died and the disciples feared for Jesus’ life, and for themselves if they were to return to Bethany. Thomas speaks: “Let us also go, so that we may die with him.“. (John 11:16) Here we see the character quality of courage and loyalty to Christ, a quality not often attributed to Thomas.
His devotion to Christ is further shown when Jesus told the disciples that he would go away and prepare a place for them. Tradition strongly suggests that Thomas started the Christian church in India. Some suggest that being run through with a spear killed him.
9. James the Less
He is the son of AlphaeusLuke 6:15). Her mother’s name is Maria (Mark 15:40), and has a brother named José (Matthew 27:56). Except for some details about his family, nothing else is mentioned about him in the Scriptures. Perhaps this is why he is called James the Less in Mark 15:40.
What is important to remember is that although James was a bit in the background, Jesus chose him to be one of the twelve disciples. He was a valued member of the team. As the story goes, he was crucified on Sinai or possibly stoned to death in Jerusalem.
10. Simon the Zealot
Simon was probably a political activist in his youth. Why would Jesus choose someone with this background? It is amazing that Jesus chose a man like Simon to be an apostle. But he was a man of fierce loyalties, passion, courage, and amazing zeal. Simon had believed the truth and had embraced Christ as his Lord.
The burning enthusiasm he once had for Israel was now expressed in his devotion to Christ. There is speculation about what happened to Simon. Tradition says that after preaching on the west coast of Africa, Simon went to England, where he ended up being crucified in AD 74.
11. Jude
The eleventh name on the list of disciples is Judas, also known as Thaddeus and Lebeo. Judas lived in obscurity as one of the Twelve. He asked Jesus a question John 14:22:
“Lord, why are you going to reveal yourself only to us and not to the world in general?”
Judas seemed overly concerned by this question. Christ responded by saying that he would reveal himself to anyone who loved him. Most of the ancient tradition says that Judas, son of Jamesa few years after Pentecost, took the gospel to the north of Edessa.
There he cured the king of Edessa, Abgar. Eusebius, the historian, said that the Edessa records contained the visit of Judas and the healing of Abgar (the records have now been destroyed). The traditional symbol of Judas is a club, and the story goes that he was beaten to death for his faith.
12. Judas Iscariot
The traitor. Nothing is known about Judas’s background. His encounter and calling by Jesus is not recorded in the Scriptures. He was not from Galilee, that is known. He obviously became a follower and stayed with Jesus for three years. He gave Christ three years of his life, but he certainly did not give him his heart, and Jesus knew it. Judas betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver (Matthew 26:15).
The other eleven apostles are a great encouragement to us because they exemplify how ordinary people with typical flaws can be used by God in extraordinary ways. Jude, on the other hand, is a warning about the evil potential of spiritual carelessness, wasted opportunities, sinful desires, and hardness of heart.
Here was a man who drew as close to the Savior as humanly possible, enjoyed all the privileges Christ gave him…