What Jesus Sees in Us
While sitting at a banquet table, a couple passed by; and I heard a lady behind me say loudly, “I’ll never know what he sees in her.” That made me wonder what people see in me or, more importantly, what does Jesus see in me?
The ministry of Jesus was growing. He would need help. He could not deliver God’s message to the entire world alone. He chose twelve men to be his helpers, his disciples. If we had been there, we might have shuddered at His selections. They were a motley group---fishermen who may very well have been unable to read or write, a Zealot (one who hated the Roman rule so much He believed it was okay to murder them) and who would have hated the tax collector, Matthew. William Barclay said, “If Simon the Zealot had met Matthew anywhere other than in the presence of Jesus, he would have stuck a dagger in him.” Jesus’ wisdom in choosing this group could be seriously questioned.
Anyone who has ever worked with groups knows how difficult it is to keep even a friendly group of twelve people focused and united. As one might expect, the disciples were not only different, but they also had personal difficulties. The brothers James and John sought to finagle the left and right seats beside the throne in Jesus’ new kingdom. As you might expect, this did not sit well with the other disciples. That whole affair proved the disciples had no idea about the nature of Jesus’ Kingdom. Judas was so displeased with Jesus’ Kingdom concept he became a traitor and then killed himself.
Despite all these differences and difficulties, these disciples led a Jesus movement that turned the world upside down. Ten of the twelve died martyrs’ deaths. Peter, who rose to be the leader of the group, was joined in the ministry by his wife. The two of them were martyred together in Rome. Peter was forced to watch his wife being slaughtered and shouted words of encouragement to her in the process. Then, he was crucified upside down.
These were the same men who hid in an upper room during the crucifixion of Jesus. In answer to one’s doubts about Jesus’ selection of disciples, we must say Jesus saw this courage and character in them when no one else could. Jesus saw something in these men that others could not see. That leads me to ask, “What does Jesus see in me? What does He see in us?”
