Andrew and Simon Peter
John 1:35-42
Jesus Calls His
First Disciples
John 1:35–51
35Again the next day, John
was standing with two of his disciples†.
36When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look! The Lamb of God!”
37The two disciples heard him say this and followed Jesus. 38aWhen
Jesus turned and noticed them following Him, He asked them, “What are you looking for?”
38bThey said to Him, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are You staying?”
39“Come and you’ll see,” He replied. So they went and saw where He was
staying, and they stayed with Him that day. It was about ten in the morning.
40Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was
one of the two† who heard John and followed Him. 41He first found his own brother Simon† and told him, “We have
found the Messiah!” (which means “Anointed One”) 42aand brought him
to Jesus.
42bWhen Jesus saw him, He said, “You are Simon, son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which means “Rock”).[1]
[1]
Knight, G. W. (2001). A simplified harmony of the Gospels (pp.
32–33). Holman Bible Publishers.
The following day as John was standing with two of his disciples, Jesus walked by. John looked at him intently and then declared, "See! There is the Lamb of God!" Then John's two disciples turned and followed Jesus. Jesus looked around and saw them following. "What do you want?" he asked them. "Sir," they replied, "where do you live?"
"Come and see," he said. So they went with him to the place where he was staying and were with him from about four o'clock that afternoon until the evening. (One of these men was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.)
Andrew then went to find his brother Peter and told him, "We have found the Messiah!" And he brought Peter to meet Jesus.
Jesus looked intently at Peter for a moment and then said, "You are Simon, John's son—but you shall be called Peter, the rock!"
Names of Jesus
These new disciples used several names for Jesus: Lamb of God (1:36), Messiah (1:41), Son of God (1:49), and King of Israel (1:49). As they got to know Jesus, their appreciation for him grew. The more time we spend getting to know Christ, the more we will understand and appreciate who he is. We may be drawn to him for his teaching, but we will come to know him as the Son of God. Although these disciples made this verbal shift in a few days, they would not fully understand Jesus until three years later (Acts 2). What they so easily professed had to be worked out in experience. We may find that words of faith come easily, but deep appreciation for Christ comes with living by faith.
One of the two disciples was Andrew (1:40). The other was probably John, the writer of this book. These were Jesus' first disciples, along with Peter (1:42) and Nathanael (1:45).
Philip and Nathanael
John 1:43-51
The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and told him, "Come with me." (Philip was from Bethsaida, Andrew and Peter's hometown.) Philip now went off to look for Nathanael and told him, "We have found the Messiah!—the very person Moses and the prophets told about! His name is Jesus, the son of Joseph from Nazareth!"
"Nazareth!" exclaimed Nathanael. "Can anything good come from there?"
"Just come and see for yourself," Philip declared. As they approached, Jesus said, "Here comes an honest man—a true son of Israel."
"How do you know what I am like?" Nathanael demanded.
And Jesus replied, "I could see you under the fig tree before Philip found you."
Nathanael replied, "Sir, you are the Son of God—the King of Israel!"
Jesus asked him, "Do you believe all this just because I told you I had seen you under the fig tree? You will see greater proofs than this. You will even see heaven open and the angels of God coming back and forth to me, the Messiah."
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Don't Miss Jesus
When Nathanael heard that the Messiah was from Nazareth, he was surprised. Philip responded, "Come and see for yourself." Fortunately for Nathanael, he went to meet Jesus and became a disciple. If he had stuck to his prejudice without investigating further, he would have missed the Messiah! Don't let people's stereotypes about Christ keep them from his power and love. Invite them to come and see the real Jesus.
Nazareth was despised by the Jews because a Roman army garrison was located there. Some have speculated that an aloof attitude or a poor reputation in morals and religion on the part of the people of Nazareth led to Nathanael's harsh comment. Nathanael's hometown was Cana, about four miles from Nazareth.
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