Rebel to Redeemed…Sharing HIS Kind of Love
The disciple Thomas is commonly known as doubt Thomas, but we’ll get to that in a moment. In the first three gospels {and book of Acts}, Thomas is only mentioned as one of the disciples of Jesus and nothing else is mentioned about him. The name Thomas is Hebrew and means twin. The name Didymus is Greek and means twin. […]
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Simon the Zealot is one of the most obscure of the disciples. The name Simon is a Greek name meaning to listen. Luke listed in the list of the apostles, “Simon called Zelotes.” {Luke 6:14-16} The Zealotes were a political movent in the Jewish temple of the first century. This group sought to incite a rebellion against the Roman Empire. […]
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Matthew once again is a disciple we do not know much about. Many scholars believe he is also the tax collector Levi and as with Simon Peter and Judas Thaddeus, his name is interchangeable. The name Matthew means gift of God, while Levi means joined and attached. “And as Jesus passed forth from thence, he saw a man, named Matthew, […]
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James the Less is often referred in this way, because there were two James in the apostle. The other was James, the son of Zebedee, who is often referred to as James the greater. We know very little about James the less, but let’s explore the little we are told. In the list of Jesus disciples, we discover […]
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We first meet Thaddeus in the list of disciples of Jesus. “…Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddeus.” {Matthew 10:3} The name Thaddeus is believed to be a Aramaic form of the Greek name, which means a courageous heart. The name Lebbaeus is a form of Judas or Jude, to which it is believed he is often referred to later in scripture. […]
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Bartholomew is almost always mentioned in connection to being with the disciple Philip. In the book of John, he is referred to as Nathanael. The name Bartholomew in Greek meaning son of Talmai or son of the furrows in Aramaic, while the Hebrew name Nathanael means gift of God or God has given. In the first three gospels, Bartholomew is […]
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Philip is a Greek name meaning friend and friend of horses. Many believe the disciple Philip may have spoken Greek. We first meet Philip right after Jesus has called Andrew and Simon Peter to follow him. It is possible that Philip was one of two {the unnamed} disciple who was following John the Baptist. When John the Baptist saw Jesus […]
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Andrew was a brother of Simon Peter. The brothers were from the village of Bethsaida on the Sea of Galilee. The Greek culture and language were very significant in the area. His name is Greek, instead of the traditional Hebrew, of the Jews. The name Andrew means manly, brave, manhood and valour. Peter and Andrew were both fishermen by trade, […]
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James was the brother of John. He was the son of Zebedee and his mother is believed to be Salome. The name James is a version of Jacob, meaning to supplant. James is always listed first, leading to the belief he was the older of the two. James and John, along with their father, were fishermen. The men were fishing […]
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After Peter, we probably know more about John than any of the other disciples. Many believe John and his brother, were followers of John the Baptist. However, these followers are never mentioned by name. {John 1:35-39} Scripture first shows Jesus interaction with John and his brother on the sea shore. Actually, Jesus came upon Peter and Andrew first and “going […]
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We have been looking at the life of Jesus through the eyes of the witnesses of his birth and death. However, what about his life? Other, than his mother, those who knew him best were his inner circle, the twelve disciples. But who were these men? What do we know about them and what happened to them after Jesus ascension […]
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