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Now for the lesson (you can look at babies when you are done, I promise):
How does one follow Jesus? There are many ways, many perfect
ways in which one can live their life as a follower of Jesus. Catholics have a
good number of orders such as Franciscans, Dominicans, and others. These are disciplined
and orderly successions of priests and laity following in the footsteps of
their founders. One thing on common with all of these is discipleship.
In the Gospel of Mark there is a clear message of
discipleship as Jesus recruits the Apostles. What we see when Jesus offers the
Apostles the opportunity to follow Him is the perfect way in which one responds to the call of Jesus to
discipleship.
As Jesus approaches and seeks out the first, being Simon and
Andrew (1:16-18), James and John (1:19-20), we notice four distinct
interactions: Jesus passing by, Jesus offering with “follow me”, the new disciples
immediately responding leaving their nets, and following. The seeking, the
offering, the leaving, and the following; four elements for discipleship in
Christ. Notice Jesus, the Son of God seeking out individuals for His own
discipleship. The same man that said if he is lifted up he will draw the whole
world to Himself, sets out in the region to find the Apostles. They refer to
Him as their rabbi. The usual rabbi would sit, Jesus would stand. The usual
custom is for disciples to stand and listen, while the disciples of Jesus sat
and asked questions if necessary. Perhaps this is one contributing reason to
people thinking of Jesus approach as “a new teaching” or “one who teaching with
His own authority.” Certainly following Jesus is not like following other
teachers.
So the disciples respond in perfection: they immediately leave everything behind. But
their leaving is not meaningless and Mark is gracious enough to supplement this
for us. They leave for the purpose of following.
Leaving with a purpose, following with faith. There is an Old Testament
parallel to this scene. In 1 Kings 19 we see Elijah passing Elisha by, and
offering discipleship in the manner of “throwing his mantle over him.” Elisha
responds by catching up to Elijah (probably a little surprised by the gesture)
and informing the prophet that he will say goodbye to his family and then will
come and follow. Acceptable? I think so. I mean, Jesus tells us to “count the cost”
before following. Faith moves and if it moves fast, fine. If it moves with
carefulness, fine. There is only one Peter, and he even needed some proof when
His brother told him he believed he had found the messiah.
G.K. Chesterton says “no one comes to conversion at the same
angle”. Mark the Evangelist is not recording this account like a journalist by
leaving out some teaching or agenda. Instead he gives two accounts (1:16-18,
1:19-20) with the same pattern as if to say “look, this is the right way to do
it!” Response to Jesus is a daily task in the truest meaning – and it can be
one to be taken with some consideration – but the perfect disciple stands firm,
saying “your will be done” or in the words of the Mother of God, “let it be
done to me according to your will.”
