The First Disciples

This sermon explores what it means to truly follow Jesus as His apprentice rather than treating Him as an on-demand addition to our lives. Drawing from Mark 1:16-28, the message examines the calling of Jesus' first disciples and what their immediate response teaches us about discipleship. The sermon challenges the modern tendency to customize faith according to personal preferences, instead calling believers to embrace apprenticeship to Jesus—a relationship where He leads and transforms us. The message emphasizes that discipleship isn't merely about acquiring information or attending classes; it's about imitating Christ's way of life. Though following Jesus requires leaving things behind and facing uncomfortable challenges, what we gain in Him far surpasses anything we surrender. The sermon concludes by highlighting Jesus' authority over religious systems and spiritual forces, assuring disciples that no challenge is greater than the One they follow.

Key Points:

- The kingdom of God looks like apprenticeship to Jesus, not an on-demand relationship where we customize faith to our preferences

- Apprenticeship means learning to think, act, and respond like Jesus, eventually representing Him in the world

- The kingdom of God looks like a new purpose with Jesus—shifting from self-focused living to others-focused mission

- Jesus calls us to follow Him first, then He fashions us into fishers of people; we don't have to be qualified before we follow

- The kingdom of God looks like leaving things behind for Jesus, though the cost pales in comparison to what is gained

- Jesus didn't fully explain what following Him would entail because His disciples weren't ready to understand, but they could trust Him

- The kingdom of God looks like the authority of Jesus over established religious systems, demonic forces, and every challenge we face

- Being amazed by Jesus is different from believing in and following Jesus; we must choose active discipleship

Scripture Reference:

- Mark 1:16-28 (primary focus on verses 16-20)

- Mark 1:14-15 (Jesus' core message about the kingdom)

- Mark 8:34-35 (denying self and taking up the cross)

- Mark 10:45 (Jesus came to serve and give His life)

- Luke 5 (referenced but not primary—the miraculous catch of fish)

Stories:

- The calling of Simon Peter and Andrew from their fishing nets

- The calling of James and John, who left their father Zebedee in the boat with hired men

- Jesus casting out an unclean spirit in the Capernaum synagogue as His first recorded miracle in Mark

- The rabbinic blessing: "May you be covered in the dust of your rabbi"

- Personal illustration about how we don't read TV schedules anymore but live in an on-demand world

- Premarital counseling illustration about not laying out every challenge a couple will face over 20 years

- Pharmaceutical commercial illustration about side effects applied humorously to marriage

- Reference to Jim Elliot, missionary and martyr, and his famous quote: "He is no fool who loses what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose"

- The contrast between bathroom breaks during TV commercials in the past versus today's on-demand viewing