God’s Gang
We tend to picture Jesus’ disciples as the great saints they became, depicted in longs robes and wearing halos in some churches. Have you ever thought about who the twelve disciples might be today?
Simon-Peter – a slightly-overweight middle-aged, grizzled, graying-bearded man with callused hands steering his fishing boat out to sea before dawn, his wife and children snug in their beds at home
Andrew – a thirty-something man who prefers to be on land where the action is rather than stuck fishing with Peter – his hard-working, ill-tempered, opinionated and controlling older brother who can never shut up
James and John – hot-tempered, affluent, know-it-all teenagers who are ambitious and eager to get ahead in the world, thankful for a mother with family connections who is willing to ask for a private consult with the boss in order to get her boys promotions
Philip – a UC Berkeley grad philosophy student who is looking for the truth, and then one day hears it from a homeless man in dirty clothes standing on the front steps of Boalt Hall yelling, “Get ready for God. He’s coming!”
Bartholomew – the quiet guy next door who mows his lawn and treats his wife like a lady and his children like treasures
Thomas – a cynical lawyer in a three piece suit who has seen and heard it all in court
Matthew – the hated IRS auditor sitting in your living room going through your tax records with an attitude of “you’re guilty until you prove yourself innocent”
Simon the Zealot – the gang kid who is armed and looking for a fight
Judas Iscariot – the smiling church-goer who looks like a good Christian – then again, he could be a politician who never answers a question with yes or no, but shakes your hand and kisses your baby
Matthias – the quiet deacon no one knows by name, but who always arrives first on a church workday and stays to lock up after everyone has gone home
In my opinion, the most amazing miracle Jesus ever performed was getting this gang of guys to work together! It took the indwelling of the Holy Spirit to make men who once ran and hide in fear for their lives to understand Christ’s love is stronger than any power on Earth – and stronger that death itself.
One hundred and twenty miracles took place in an upper room in Jerusalem on Pentacost. Three thousand more followed within hours. Millions have taken places over the years since. Miracle upon miracle, male and female in every color, race, shape and size!
Thank You, Jesus!