Andrew and Philip
Introduction: Peter was very prominent among the twelve apostles of Christ, but his brother Andrew is the one who first brought him to Jesus. Andrew and Philip are in the list of the twelve apostles in all four gospels, but most of the detail about them is found in the gospel of John. The name Andrew appears only in the four gospel accounts and once in Acts. There are two other men in the New Testament with the name Philip, and the second one was the brother of Herod, and he was the tetrarch of Iturea and of the region of Trachonitis. The third man named Philip is one of the seven deacons appointed by the apostles, and passages about him are found only in Acts.
NOTE: Scripture passages are from the King James 21st Century Version.
A — Andrew and Philip Followed Jesus
John 1 “35 Again the next day John stood with two of his disciples, 36 and looking upon Jesus as He walked, he said, ‘Behold the Lamb of God!’ 37 And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. 38 Then Jesus turned and saw them following, and said unto them, ‘What seek ye?’ They said unto Him, ‘Rabbi’ (which is to say, being interpreted, ‘Master’), ‘where dwellest Thou?’ 39 He said unto them, ‘Come and see.’ They came and saw where He dwelt and stayed with Him that day, for it was about the tenth hour. 40 One of the two who heard John speak, and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. 41 He first found his own brother Simon and said unto him, ‘We have found the Messiah’ (which is, being interpreted, ‘the Christ’). 42 And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, He said, ‘Thou art Simon, the son of Jonah. Thou shalt be called Cephas’ (which is by interpretation, ‘a stone’).”
John 1 “43 The day following, Jesus would go forth into Galilee, and found Philip and said unto him, ‘Follow Me.’ 44 Now Philip was of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. 45 Philip found Nathanael and said unto him, ‘We have found Him of whom Moses in the Law and the Prophets wrote: Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.’ 46 And Nathanael said unto him, ‘Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?’ Philip said unto him, ‘Come and see.’”
Comments: In John’s gospel, Andrew and another unnamed disciple of John the Baptist followed Jesus after John had referred to him as the Lamb of God. The text then says that Andrew first brought his brother Peter to Jesus, and Jesus gave him the name Cephas. The next day Jesus was in Galilee and he found Philip and said to him “follow me.” Philip then found Nathaniel to tell him about Jesus, and this could be that Philip was the unnamed disciple of John the Baptist with Andrew, and he did a similar thing with Nathaniel to that which Andrew had done first in finding his own brother. Even though Nathaniel was skeptical because Jesus was from Nazareth, Philip simply said “Come and see” — the same phrase Jesus had used when the two disciples of John the Baptist asked him where he was staying.
B — Jesus Called Four Fishermen to Leave Their Nets
Mark 1 “14 Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God 15 and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at hand. Repent ye and believe the Gospel.’ 16 Now as He walked by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea, for they were fishers. 17 And Jesus said unto them, ‘Come ye after Me, and I will make you to become fishers of men.’ 18 And straightway they forsook their nets, and followed Him. 19 And when He had gone a little farther thence, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were in the boat mending their nets. 20 And straightway He called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and went after Him. 29 And forthwith when they had come out of the synagogue, they entered into the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.”
Comments: In the first part of the passage above we find that four men were called by Jesus from their livelihood as fishermen to begin a new occupation as fishers of men, and they immediately responded. As the passage continues they witnessed a miraculous event in the synagogue at Capernaum, and when they left they entered into the house of Simon and Andrew, which provides a small detail of the close living relationship between these two brothers. Once they were in the house, they witnessed an immediate healing of Simon’s mother-in-law.
C — Philip and Andrew and the Feeding of the Five Thousand
John 6 “1 After these things Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee which is the Sea of Tiberias. 2 And a great multitude followed Him, because they saw His miracles which He did on those who were diseased. 5 And when Jesus lifted up His eyes and saw a great company coming unto Him, He said unto Philip, ‘Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat?’ 6 And this He said to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do. 7 Philip answered Him, ‘Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little.’ 8 One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said unto Him, 9 ‘There is a lad here who hath five barley loaves and two small fishes, but what are they among so many?’ 10 And Jesus said, ‘Make the men sit down.’ Now there was much grass in the place; so the men sat down, in number about five thousand.”
Comments: This event is described in all four gospel accounts, and each one has differing details as those authors were guided by the Holy Spirit in their record. Only in John’s gospel is it recorded that Jesus asked Philip where they could buy food to feed the large crowd, as Jesus wanted to test Philip because he already had his plan. The remark attributed to Andrew in John’s gospel about a lad who had five loaves and two fishes is attributed in a general sense to the apostles in the other gospel accounts. From the time Andrew followed the Lamb of God as pointed out by John the Baptist, and with his interaction about the loaves and fishes, Andrew seemed to have an expectant faith about Jesus.
D — Jesus Was Questioned Privately by Four Disciples
Mark 13 “1 And as He went out of the temple, one of His disciples said unto Him, ‘Master, see what manner of stones and what buildings are here!’ 2 And Jesus answering, said unto him, ‘Seest thou these great buildings? There shall not be left one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down.’ 3 And as He sat on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked Him privately, 4 ‘Tell us, when shall these things be? And what shall be the sign when all these things shall be fulfilled?’ 5 And Jesus answering them, began to say, ‘Take heed lest any man deceive you. 6 For many shall come in My name, saying, “I am Christ!” and shall deceive many. 10 And the Gospel must first be proclaimed among all nations. 11 But when they shall lead you and deliver you up, take no thought beforehand what ye shall speak; neither need ye premeditate. But whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye; for it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Spirit.’”
Comments: There are no names of the apostles given for this event as it is recorded in the gospels of Matthew and Luke, and this event is not recorded in the gospel of John. The above passage is unique as it includes Andrew, and his name is listed after the other three apostles as they had a private audience with the Lord. One of the important aspects of this discourse by Jesus was an assurance that there was no need to prepare in advance what to say before whom they would be delivered for ill treatment, because the Holy Spirit would speak through them.
E — Certain Greeks Came to Philip and Asked to See Jesus
John 12 “20 And there were certain Greeks among them, who came up to worship at the feast. 21 They came therefore to Philip, who was of Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, saying, ‘Sir, we would see Jesus.’ 22 Philip went and told Andrew, and again Andrew and Philip told Jesus. 23 And Jesus answered them, saying, ‘The hour is come that the Son of Man should be glorified. 24 Verily, verily I say unto you, unless a grain of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone; but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. 32 And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto Me.’ 33 This He said, signifying what death He should die.”
Comments: Certain Greeks were among those who had come to the feast to worship, and their request to Philip shows a desire to know more about Jesus. The text does not tell us why they had gone to Philip with their request, nor does it explain why Philip took Andrew along to tell Jesus. This is the third time that mention of Philip and Andrew has occurred within closely related verses in John’s gospel. The discourse from Jesus that follows must have become very significant to Philip and Andrew since it followed the request they brought to Jesus, and it likely helped them later to understand the significance of the cross and the resurrection for Jews and for Gentiles alike.
F — Philip Asked Jesus to Show Them the Father
John 14 “1 ‘Let not your heart be troubled. Ye believe in God; believe also in Me. 2 In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto Myself, that where I am, there ye may be also.’ 5 Thomas said unto Him, ‘Lord, we know not whither Thou goest; and how can we know the way?’ 6 Jesus said unto him, ‘I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me. 7 If ye had known Me, ye should have known My Father also; and from henceforth ye know Him, and have seen Him.’ 8 Philip said unto Him, ‘Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth.’ 9 Jesus said unto him, ‘Have I been so long a time with you, and yet hast thou not known Me, Philip? He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, “Show us the Father”? 10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me?’”
Comments: As Jesus had some private time with his apostles before the cross and the resurrection, he told them of some things that would not be clear to them until later. Near the end of John chapter thirteen, Judas Iscariot had gone out from the supper and would go to betray Jesus. The things Jesus said were somewhat distressing to the apostles and comfort was needed. Chapter fourteen opens with Jesus telling them to keep from being troubled in their hearts and to believe in him as they already believe in God. When the Apostle John wrote his gospel some years after the resurrection, he provided Holy Spirit guided truth about Jesus. Philip asked to see the Father to be satisfied with what was to come, and Jesus said after so long a time together, Philip should have realized that whoever had seen Jesus had seen the Father. None of the other apostles showed any evidence of a better understanding of the response Jesus gave to Philip, as all of them were present at this private meal. Later, those apostles became part of the foundation of the Lord’s church.
G — The Last Record of Andrew and Philip
Acts 1 “1 In the former treatise, O Theophilus, I have given an account of all that Jesus began both to do and teach 2 until the day in which He was taken up, after He had given commandments through the Holy Spirit unto the apostles, whom He had chosen. 3 To these also He showed Himself alive after His passion by many infallible proofs, being seen by them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God. 8 But ye shall receive power after the Holy Spirit is come upon you; and ye shall be witnesses unto Me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. 13 And when they had come in, they went up into an upper room where abode both Peter and James, and John and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas the brother of James. 14 These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brethren.”
Comments: In the time period as the book of Acts opens Judas the traitor is no longer alive. The listing of the eleven remaining apostles is the last time Andrew and Philip are in the record of the New Testament. Jesus showed Himself alive to his chosen apostles after His resurrection, by many infallible proofs, being seen by them forty days. He commanded them to remain at Jerusalem until they received the promise of the Father to be baptized with the Holy Spirit. They would receive power after the Holy Spirit had come upon them and be witnesses for Jesus both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. An ideal characteristic for local assemblies is summarized in verse 14 as they were all consistent and in agreement in their purpose of prayer and supplication.
Reflections in Prayer
Lord, I thank you for the record in scripture of Andrew and Philip that has helped me to see their relationship to each other, and some of the events that highlighted two apostles less prominent than Peter. Though they were of a working class in the district of Galilee, the residents of which were not highly respected by many Jewish leaders, you chose them to be part of the foundation of your church with the other apostles and prophets. Andrew applied his knowledge of scripture and the preaching of John the Baptist to seek you Lord, and after you had invited him to “come and see” he was excited to share with his brother what he had found in you. Help me, Lord, whether I talk or write about your kingdom, to be careful to base my content on scripture with my goal to bring glory to you. Philip was approached by others who wanted to see Jesus, and he and Andrew were together in their desire for them to have that opportunity. Help me, Lord, to have that type of desire to bring others to Christ when the opportunity is presented, and to be willing to partner with other believers in that process to the benefit of all involved. Guide me by your Spirit as I read your Word that I will come to a more complete understanding, realizing that you are ready to comfort me in my struggle to serve you in the way you desire for me. Help me, Lord, to remember that you want your disciples to be known by their love for each other so my actions will follow that pattern, especially when my old nature may tempt me to do otherwise. May I be consistent to meet faithfully with other believers in a local assembly for study of your Word that we may then apply what the Spirit reveals to us for prayer and supplication. Give me the patience to wait in eager expectation knowing you will come again. Amen.
Published 30 May 2014