It is said that sacrifice is giving up something you love for something you love even more. And that’s what happened here.
These four left everything at once to follow Jesus. Jesus wasn’t unfamiliar to him. By this time they had probably known him for at least a year as his ministry was going. But they knew he was different. And when Jesus called, they left without hesitation.
Peter left a thriving business. If you have been to the holy land you know that a fisherman was on the upper economic ring of society. They were blue collar workers but they did very well. Peter didn’t even flinch.
Peter also had a wife so there was going to be a balancing act between his marriage and his following Jesus. It would take sacrifice on everyone’s part. Thankfully his brother Andrew was going with him.
James and John, sons of thunder, were partners of Peter’s in the fishing business. When they were called, they left their father.
It sounds mean, to leave your father right there? And while I’m sure it was hard, it was important to remember that they weren’t leaving their father destitute. He had a job working with and for Peter along with the other hired hands. And the boys were “Sons of Thunder.” Might not have been bad they left as they sounded like trouble.
It also makes me think of what one global has often said. He observes that the biggest hindrance to missions is parents who try to hold back their adult children. I’ve seen that countless times, and it doesn’t stop based on age.
But they left it all. James and John. Peter and Andrew. Without question. For the “glorious unknown.”
They were not “good” men but very rough around the edges and full of sin. But Jesus something in them would made them the best disciples he could choose. Sometimes it works that way. Some of the people most likely to do great things for God are not the “good” people the world sees, but the ones who are fighting their demons and freedom is near.
What does it look like today for us to follow Jesus. What will we sacrifice? What will we leave behind without thinking? And to where is Jesus calling us? We are all called to follow him. But where and how is the question. And are we willing to go where he calls us? To do what he asks? To trust him for it all?
