The First to Follow

John R. Claypool

Description

An examination of Jesus’s relationships with each of his first disciples other reveals ways to deepen our relationship with Him.

One of the first things Jesus did in his ministry was to reach out to twelve individuals and draw them into his circle of close companionship with him. This series is about those twelve apostles, their relationships with Jesus and with each other, and what dynamics of that community can teach us.

Jesus did not wait for people to be perfect in order to call them into the circle of God’s love. As we look at those who Jesus called, and consider ourselves as part of that ever enlarging circle, we gain not only a deeper sense of our reality, but also a deeper sense of how Christ wants to work with us.

Based on talks given at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, Birmingham, and more recently The Chautauqua Institute, these lectures have been edited by Ann W. Claypool in her husband’s memory.

Sujets

• Religion
• Christianisme
• Biblical Studies
• the Gospels
• Philosophie et théologie
• Acts
• Jesus
• New Testament

Informations

• Publié par: Church Publishing Incorporated
• Date de parution: 01 avril 2008
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780819226846
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

The First to Follow
The Apostles of Jesus
The First to Follow
The Apostles of Jesus

John R. Claypool
Edited by
Ann Wilkinson Claypool

An imprint of Church Publishing Incorporated
Harrisburg - New York
Copyright 2008 by John R. Claypool
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the written permission of the publisher.
Unless otherwise noted, the Scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Morehouse Publishing, 4775 Linglestown Road, Harrisburg, PA 17112
Morehouse Publishing, 445 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Morehouse Publishing is an imprint of Church Publishing Incorporated.
www.churchpublishing.org
Cover art: Giotto di Bondone (1266-1336). Washing of the feet . Fresco. Scrovegni Chapel, Padua, Italy. Credit: Scala/Art Resource.
Cover design by Jennifer Glosser
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Claypool, John.
The first to follow : the apostles of Jesus / John R. Claypool ; edited by Ann Claypool.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 978-0-8192-2296-1 (casebound w/o jacket) 1. Apostles.
I. Claypool, Ann. II. Title.
BS2440.C53 2008
226 .0922-dc22
2008000363
Contents

Preface
Introduction
Andrew, The First Disciple
Simon Peter, A Man of Extremes
Philip, The Careful Realist
Nathanael, Without Deceit
Thomas, A Truth Seeker
Simon and Matthew, Unlikely Companions
Thaddaeus, Three Names and One Question
Judas, The Traitor
James and James, The Greater and Lesser
John, The Disciple Whom Jesus Loved
Sources
In grateful memory of dearly beloved John
Preface

T his book evolved from a study of the twelve apostles that my husband, John, presented at Saint Luke s Episcopal Church in the fall of 1992, and that was the only time that he gave all twelve of these presentations about the original disciples. He did have the occasion to lecture on Peter, John, Thomas, and Judas at The Furman Pastors School in South Carolina, in 1998, and at The Chautauqua Institute in New York, in 2000, where he added talks on Andrew, Matthew, and Simon, also. These teachings on the apostles helped me to understand and identify each of them better than I ever had before. Their individual personalities came alive to me as I gained a greater appreciation of the challenges they faced and the ways they were affected by Jesus. The series was so enlightening to me that I encouraged John to put it in book form for the benefit of many more people than the limited groups with whom he had been able to share it personally. Sadly, he did not have the opportunity to do so.
In June of 2003, John was diagnosed as having a form of cancer called multiple myeloma, and our lives were caught up in a medical vortex, as he described it. He underwent a stem cell transplant in March 2004, and we were ecstatic when we learned that it had been successful. Naturally, we hoped he would remain free of cancer, but the disease reoccurred and he needed a second stem cell transplant by June 2005. Worse yet, he experienced serious complications from the second stem cell transplant that he had not suffered during the first one. By the grace of God and John s incredible courage, he made it through many grueling weeks in the hospital, and we were full of hope and joy when he came home cancer-free again. Only one week later, an abdominal aortic aneurysm ended his life on earth, after two years of bravely battling cancer. Within a six-month period, my mother had died; John and I had watched the television coverage of Hurricane Katrina, in horror, as it devastated my hometown of New Orleans and overwhelmed my family and friends living there; then just days later, John passed away on September 3, 2005. My world was turned upside down, and learning to live without him was the most difficult thing I have ever had to do.
Soon after his passing, John s long-time friend and former editor, Cynthia Shattuck, offered me the opportunity to put more of his work in writing, by transcribing and editing his audio recordings for a manuscript to be published by Church Publishing Incorporated. I was still experiencing an enormous amount of grief when we talked about such a task, but I remember thinking that she and her colleagues were giving me a rare chance to honor John s memory in a very special way. I felt close to him as I listened to his recorded voice and converted his spoken words into a manuscript to be published. I had helped John type and edit the last eight of the eleven books that he wrote and, in that process, had many telephone conversations with his publishers and editors to save him some time and effort. He was extremely loving and generous, and I thoroughly enjoyed working with him. I am thankful for the opportunity to share more of his work through this book, in hopes that his words will be a gift to many readers.
I appreciate immensely those friends whose interest, encouragement, and help made this book possible. I am indebted especially to Keith Miller, Barbara Brown Taylor, George Wirth, Hardy Clemons, Alan Culpepper, William Hull, Fisher Humphries, Russell Levenson, Nancy Ford, Cathy Randall, Macon Riddle, Allen Samford, Carleton Sokol, Brooke Wallace, Carole and Howard Hovde, Dorie and Pat King, and Judy and Guy Parker. I am truly blessed by my family s support and understanding during my long periods of preoccupation with this project, especially our children and grandchildren, Rowan and John Claypool VI, C. T. and Ashley Williams, Laura Williams and Marty Vanderploeg. Most of all, I am grateful to Cynthia Shattuck, Ryan Masteller, and Church Publishing Incorporated for their confidence in me and for all they have done to bring The First to Follow to fruition. My personal thanks go to Cynthia for not only doing the hard work of editing, in order to produce something worthy of being published, but also for her friendship and encouragement through much of the emotional roller coaster of grief.
Last, but definitely not least, I have special gratitude for John s dear sister and her husband, Marie and Bob Piper, who read every draft of every chapter, corrected many mistakes, and made brilliant editing suggestions to improve the clarity and flow of the manuscript before I sent it to Cynthia. They helped me research the references, as well, and the three of us shared a strong commitment to honoring the memory of our John by making this book a reality. Their help was invaluable, and working with them on this project was an unexpected gift that deepened the loving family bond we already shared. Our collaboration was one of many blessings that I received in the process of bringing about this book, and I hope that you will be blessed by reading it.
Ann Wilkinson Claypool
Introduction

O ne of the first things that Jesus did in his ministry was to reach out to twelve individuals and draw them into a circle of close companionship with him. This book is about those twelve apostles, their relationships with Jesus and each other, and what the dynamics of that community can mean for us today. It is obvious from the gospels that Jesus was deeply connected to other people; Saint Augustine said that Jesus loved each person he ever met as if there were no one else in all the world to love, and he loved all as he loved each. I have never known which aspect of Jesus is more incredible, his capacity for individual affection or the amazing inclusiveness of his love.
Jesus not only loved others, but also let people know that he wanted them in his life as much as they wanted him in theirs. I think that this mutuality gives us the best image of how God wants to relate to us. I believe that we can understand more fully what the Holy One is doing in our own life and time by looking at the disciples whom Jesus selected and at how their relationships with him developed. I will concentrate on aspects of personality and biography as we study the lives of the apostles, in the belief that one of the best ways to understand ourselves is through stories about other people. We can learn great truths by studying Jesus and his disciples. The apostles are the link between Jesus and the kingdom of God. They are the very foundation of the church, and it is important to look through the prism of their experiences at what we can learn about how Jesus did his work.
Jesus began his ministry alone, but it soon became a communal movement as he called followers to his side, not only because he sensed their potential in helping to build the kingdom of God but also because they were so curious about what he was doing. After he told a particularly intriguing story about the parable of the sower, some of the listeners came to him and asked Jesus to tell them more about the parables. It was to those who showed the greatest curiosity about what he was teaching that he gave the most of himself, saying, To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God (Mark 4:11). One of my wisest seminary professors told his classes, You need to distinguish between the people who really want to hear what you have to say and those who are not interested. It is important to remember that you cannot bless them all. I think he was right on the point that the key to effective ministry is to answer readiness rather than to press reluctance. As we read Scripture, we clearly see that Jesus was answering readiness in others, rather than pressing those who were less inclined toward him. He sought those who showed the greatest interest, and drew them into a close, intimate relationship. As we look at the fi rst disciples that Jesus called and consider ourselves as part of that enlarging cir