Jesus and the Entourage

Meditation on Collaboration #5

When it came to bringing Good News to people, Jesus did not even try to do it alone. In Matthew 4, Jesus is being tempted in the wilderness. Power and recognition were shown to him, but Jesus didn’t take the offer. However, he did realize he wasn’t going to be able to do this ministry thing alone.

Why he chose 12 and why they are a mix of brothers and singles is probably formulaic. In good Hebrew tradition, it would be a good idea to have 12 representatives. This correlates with the number of tribes of Israel –12. But holy numbers are also 3 (trinity), 4 (points on a compass), 7, (number of days in creation) and 40 (days and nights of rain that created the flood, number of years in the wilderness). Why didn’t he choose any of these numbers?

The truth is, nobody knows. The whole thing could have been more practical than we suspect. In reading the newspapers or on entertainment analysis shows, it’s clear that stars all have an entourage: that gathering of folks needed for driving, traffic control, bill payment, food procurement, front men, and image. The point is not the number of disciples, which seemed to expand over time. The point is that Jesus did not try to create a movement by himself. He intentionally set out to gather a group large enough for the mission. Throughout the gospels we find Jesus with people. The only times he was alone was when he was praying, or gathering his thoughts away from the crowds, or when he was deserted by the disciples. Speaking of praying, if you read the Gospel of Luke’s version, Jesus prayed about this selection process and from many disciples, he chose 12 from among them.

When we do campus ministry, or any kind of ministry, we cannot do it alone, either. We must continue to offer invitations to those around us—and we must have a clear idea what we want these invitees to be and to do. Jesus didn’t say, “Well, hang out with me and we’ll see what happens.” Jesus tried all sorts of things and events—healing people, dinner going, preaching tours, and the like. If we want to follow the model of Jesus, it’s all about identification of followers, training, experimenting and deeper training, so these disciples will have the tools to offer Good News.

If you have any kind of faith life, you will want to be joined with others in the mission. We cannot do this alone. Look in the job jar and see what disciple activity you’d like. After all, there weren’t 12 Jesuses in the band. There was Jesus and the entourage of twelve.

Matthew 4:

18As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen. 19And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.” 20Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. 22Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him.

Luke 6

Jesus Chooses the Twelve Apostles
12Now during those days he went out to the mountain to pray; and he spent the night in prayer to God. 13And when day came, he called his disciples and chose twelve of them, whom he also named apostles: 14Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew, and James, and John, and Philip, and Bartholomew, 15and Matthew, and Thomas, and James son of Alphaeus, and Simon, who was called the Zealot, 16and Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.