Sept 6 | What If The Disciples Had a Group Chat? The Shocking Truth About Jesus' Twelve Followers
The Disciples Were Just Like Us
Picture this: Peter just attempted to walk on water, managed about thirty seconds of success, then face-planted directly into the waves. The other eleven disciples? They're watching from the boat with that look we all know – the "yeah, we saw that coming" expression. If they'd had smartphones, you know someone would have been recording for the ancient equivalent of viral content.
Here's what nobody talks about in Sunday school: we've completely sanitized the twelve disciples. We've transformed these beautifully flawed humans into untouchable stained glass saints, when the reality is far more relatable. They were an absolute mess – and understanding this truth might just revolutionize how you see your own faith journey.
The Ragtag Group That Changed History
Who Were These Men, Really?
Let's get brutally honest about who Jesus chose for his inner circle. These weren't seminary graduates or religious professionals with impressive credentials. The twelve disciples were:
Fishermen who perpetually smelled like yesterday's catch
A tax collector (Matthew) who everyone actively despised
A political zealot (Simon) who probably slept with a knife under his pillow
Brothers who argued constantly (James and John, Peter and Andrew)
A skeptic who questioned everything (Thomas)
A thief who managed the money (Judas)
They were following a rabbi who said things like "eat my flesh and drink my blood" and then seemed surprised when people got confused. Imagine trying to explain that to your family at dinner.
The Group Chat Nobody Talks About
If these twelve had access to modern technology, their group chat would have been simultaneously the most dysfunctional and beautiful thing you've ever witnessed. Let's look at Mark chapter 9 for evidence. Jesus had just explained – for the second time, mind you – that he was going to die and rise again. The disciples' response? Verse 32 tells us: "But they did not understand what he meant and were afraid to ask him."
Stop and think about that. They were afraid. To ask. God. A question.
Can you imagine their private messages?
Peter: typing and deleting for ten minutes John: "Maybe he meant it metaphorically?" Thomas: "I'm just saying, dead people don't usually come back" Judas: "Should we start looking for new jobs?" Matthew: "By 'three days,' does he mean exactly 72 hours or...?"
Their Most Embarrassing Moments
The Great Power Struggle
Here's what absolutely kills me about these guys – immediately after not understanding Jesus' prediction about his death, you know what they argued about? Who was the greatest among them. They literally transitioned from "we're too scared to ask what you mean about dying" to "but I call dibs on the best seat in the kingdom."
Mark 9:33-34 reveals that they were arguing about this ON THE ROAD. While walking. With Jesus right there. And when Jesus asked what they were discussing, they went silent like kids caught with their hands in the cookie jar.
The Night Everything Fell Apart
John chapter 6 contains a moment that rarely makes it into sermons. Jesus gives this intense teaching about being the bread of life. It's so difficult to digest (pun absolutely intended) that verse 66 tells us many disciples turned back and no longer followed him.
Imagine the group chat that evening:
Peter: "Did anyone understand the bread thing?" Andrew: "Bro, I thought we were following a carpenter, not a baker" Philip: "Sixty-two people unfollowed today. SIXTY-TWO." Nathanael: "Maybe we should workshop the messaging?" Bartholomew: "Has anyone considered he might be speaking in code?"
Then Jesus turns to the twelve with vulnerability in his voice. John 6:67 records him asking, "You do not want to leave too, do you?" The Greek construction here expects a negative answer – it's like Jesus is saying, "You're not leaving... right?" There's genuine vulnerability in that question. Even Jesus is giving them an out.
Peter's response in verse 68 has become famous, but consider the subtext: "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life."
Translation: "We don't understand half of what you're saying. This is exponentially harder than we anticipated. We're confused, scared, and probably in way over our heads. But... where else would we go?"
Why Their Struggles Should Encourage You
Faith Doesn't Mean Having It All Figured Out
We've created this toxic myth that real faith means having zero questions, zero doubts, and zero two-in-the-morning panic attacks about whether you're doing this right. But these twelve men who literally walked with Jesus, who ate meals with him, who heard his actual voice? They were confused constantly.
Consider their track record:
Peter cuts off someone's ear, then denies knowing Jesus three times
James and John try to call down fire from heaven like they're in some divine video game
Thomas refuses to believe without putting his fingers in the wounds
All of them fall asleep when Jesus asks them to pray during his darkest hour
They argue about who's the greatest while Jesus is explaining servanthood
They try to send hungry crowds away instead of feeding them
The Spectacular Failure That Changed Everything
Luke 9:40 records one of my favorite disciple disasters. There's a father with a demon-possessed son. The disciples try to cast out the demon. They fail. Publicly. Embarrassingly. In front of a crowd.
The father has to go to Jesus like, "Yeah, so your guys couldn't handle it..."
That night's group chat would have been devastating:
Peter: "We literally did exactly what he taught us" John: "Maybe we said the words wrong?" Matthew: "I took notes. We followed the formula perfectly." Thomas: "Starting to think the formula isn't the point" Andrew: "Anyone else considering going back to fishing?"
When they later ask Jesus privately why they failed, his response is revealing: "This kind comes out only by prayer and fasting." But Mark adds something crucial. The father's words in Mark 9:24: "I believe; help my unbelief!"
That's the honest conversation Jesus actually wants. Not "we've got this figured out," but "we believe... help our unbelief."
The Chat That Changed The World
From Confusion to Transformation
After the resurrection, these same confused, doubting, arguing disciples become the foundation of the church. But here's the key: not because they finally got their act together. They transformed the world because they stayed in the relationship.
Look at their transformations:
Peter who denied? Preaches to thousands at Pentecost
Thomas who doubted? Tradition says he took the gospel all the way to India
Matthew the despised tax collector? Writes the first Gospel
John, who wanted to call down fire? Becomes known as the apostle of love
James? Becomes the first apostolic martyr
Andrew? Brings the gospel to Scotland and Russia
They Still Didn't Get It (And That's the Point)
Even after the resurrection, they're still confused. Acts 1:6 shows them asking Jesus, "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?" This is AFTER he spent forty days explaining the kingdom of God to them. Forty days of post-resurrection teaching, and they're still missing the point.
But they stayed in the conversation. They kept showing up. They continued asking questions.
What This Means For Your Faith Journey
Your Questions Aren't Disqualifiers
Maybe your faith feels like that dysfunctional group chat right now. You have questions you're afraid to voice. Doubts you're scared to admit. You're following Jesus but honestly? Half the time you're not sure what he's doing or where he's leading.
Welcome to discipleship.
The twelve didn't understand the cross until after the resurrection. They didn't grasp the kingdom until Pentecost. They were literally with Jesus and still asked tone-deaf questions at the worst possible moments.
Staying in the Chat IS Faith
Here's the revolutionary truth: What if staying in the conversation – with all your questions, doubts, and confusion – what if that IS faith?
What if Jesus isn't looking for people who have him figured out, but people who'll keep showing up, keep asking, keep wrestling, even when they're typing and deleting their questions at 2 AM?
The disciples' group chat would have been an absolute mess of theological confusion, personal insecurities, and probably way too many fishing metaphors. But they stayed in it. And that messy, beautiful, human group of confused followers? They turned the world upside down.
It's Time to Be Honest
Stop pretending you've got it all together. Stop acting like faith means having no questions. The twelve men closest to Jesus were constantly confused, regularly failed, and persistently misunderstood his mission – yet Jesus used them to launch a movement that changed history.
Your doubts don't disqualify you. Your questions don't make you less faithful. Your struggles don't mean you're doing it wrong. The disciples' hypothetical group chat would have been filled with the same concerns, fears, and confusion you're experiencing right now.
The difference between the disciples and those who walked away wasn't perfection – it was persistence. They stayed in the conversation. They kept showing up. They continued following even when they didn't understand.
Maybe it's time to stop pretending you're a stained glass saint and embrace being a beautiful mess who's staying in the chat. After all, that's exactly the kind of person Jesus chose to change the world.
An Invitation to go Deeper….
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