Andrew was one of the twelve disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ. He was a fisherman by trade (Matthew 4:18, Mark 1:16) and the brother to Simon Peter – and is called out as such in each of the gospels. Unlike his brother Peter, who is mentioned 156 times in the New Testament, Andrew’s name is only mentioned twelve times throughout scripture. It is needless to say that Andrew’s role in establishing the Church was not as obviously impactful and as well-known as some of the other disciples. Regardless of how many times Andrew is mentioned in scripture, it is important to point out that what we do know about Andrew helps us identify character qualities that should be seen in the life of a true disciple of Jesus Christ.
One thing that made Andrew unique was how he desired so greatly to spend time with men who were noticeably holy. Even before Jesus Christ had fully engaged in his ministry, we see in the Gospel of John that Andrew was a disciple of John the Baptist (John 1:40). John the Baptist had a reputation of being strange and looking different from the religious authority’s standards. Additionally, John the Baptist was not communicating a religious message; rather, his proposition to those who would hear was to “Make straight the way of the Lord” (John 1:23). In response, Andrew did not question the message that John was presenting. Instead, Andrew followed him and desired to learn of what he was teaching. Which brings us to another important point about the character of Andrew – he was teachable. So much so, that at the moment John the Baptist announced to his disciples, “Behold the Lamb of God!” (John 1:36), Andrew obediently began to follow Jesus Christ.
Critical Observation 1: The disciple of Jesus Christ must seek to follow those who are holy and sanctified. Then they must be willing to be taught by them.
After spending a day with Jesus Christ, Andrew did what any good disciple would do – he evangelized. We see in John 1:38-42 that after following Jesus for a day and answering Jesus’ invitation to “come and see” where he dwelt, Andrew immediately went and found his brother, Peter, and claimed that, “We have found the Messias.” But Andrew didn’t stop at simply proclaiming this amazing news to his brother, he took the extra step and brought Peter to meet Jesus face to face. Because of Andrew’s desire to share Jesus with those he cared for, Peter would go on to be used greatly in establishing so much of the Lord’s work.
And this wouldn’t be the only time that we see Andrew introduce people to Jesus either! In John 6:8-12, we read about Jesus and his disciples at the feeding of the five thousand. After Jesus posed the question to his disciples, “Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat?” (John 6:5), the disciples began to brainstorm and doubt amongst themselves that they would be able to feed five thousand people. Andrew, however, had a solution in mind that required introducing a boy from the crowd to Jesus. We find out from John’s gospel that it is from this boy that Jesus received the five loaves and two fishes that would feed the five thousand. Andrew himself questions whether this would be enough to feed so many. Despite this, Andrew does not let his own doubts stop him from bringing this potential solution before Christ. He simply chose to introduce a boy to the creator of all resources and lets Jesus have his way. Again, we see someone Andrew took the time to introduce to Jesus. As a result, that someone was used mightily for the furthering of Jesus’ ministry.
In John 12:20-22, Andrew introduces even more people to Jesus! Interestingly, this passage indicates that it was a group of people, particularly Greeks. This group first approaches the disciple, Philip, making it known that they desired to see Jesus. Philip acts in bringing them to Andrew, but once they are with Andrew, they are then led to meet Jesus himself. Andrew didn’t hesitate in this moment to bring a group of Gentiles to meet his Lord. It did not matter that they were of a different culture and inheritance. It did not matter that Jesus’ ministry at this time was mainly focused on the Jewish nation. Andrew desired to introduce anyone and everyone to Jesus Christ! He is an awesome example for the modern-day believer in how he lived out the mission with the heart attitude of sharing Jesus Christ with all nations.
Critical Observation 2: The disciple of Jesus Christ must be an evangelist at their core. Bringing people to meet Jesus is something that we should always desire to be doing, without hesitation.
One last characteristic of Andrew worth covering from the other accounts of the gospels is how he was faithful and available when it came to the mission. Both in Matthew 4 and Mark 1, Andrew was amongst the different disciples which had taken up the trade of being fisherman. As it is described by Matthew, Jesus challenged them to forsake their nets and follow him. In time, Jesus would make them to become fishers of men. Andrew, along with Peter, James, and John would all choose to follow Jesus after hearing this call to discipleship. This response required faith and a willingness to be available for something outside of the norm. In that moment it required that they believe in something and someone that they had not yet had the chance to fully understand. But their faith allowed for that process to come to fruition. And that process is something that we all know and believe in, which is biblical discipleship.
Critical Observation 3: The disciple of Jesus Christ must be willing to take steps in faith, according to God’s will – even when they do not fully understand everything they are being called to.
Andrew may have only been mentioned twelve times throughout scripture, but in those mentions, we see that he was humble, faithful, an evangelistic, a brother, a student, a teacher, and a leader. Andrew sought out virtue and sanctification in his spiritual life and above all else, his actions exemplified that he loved the Lord Jesus Christ. From Andrew there is something all of us can learn and apply to our own lives and ministry.
Nick Hatton is a part of the discipleship team at Midtown Baptist Temple in Kansas City, MO.
