2025/04/14
191. The Seven Disciples and the Seven Letters (Sixth Letter)
Previously, we have examined the validity of applying the letters addressed to the angels in the seven churches in Revelation to the seven disciples who met the risen Jesus while fishing by the shores of Lake Tiberias, as described in the Gospel of John. The Gospel of John reads, "Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathan'a-el of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zeb'edee, and two others of his disciples were together" (Jn 21:2). If we go by this order, the sixth letter would be one of the "two others of his disciples".
The sixth letter of Revelation begins as follows: "And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: 'The words of the holy one, the true one, who has the key of David, who opens and no one shall shut, who shuts and no one opens" (Rev 3:7). These words are reminiscent of the words Jesus once said to Peter: "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven" (Mat 16:19).
The following passage, "I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name" (Rev 3:8), reminds us of the words Jesus said to Peter, "Truly, truly, I say to you, the cock will not crow, till you have denied me three times" (Jn 13:38). From these facts, we can presume that the addressee of the sixth letter, "the angel of the church in Philadelphia", is Andrew, Peter's brother, who first introduced Peter to Jesus. He was also a fisherman.
The letter continues, "Behold, I will make them come and bow down before your feet, and learn that I have loved you. Because you have kept my word of patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial which is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell upon the earth. I am coming soon; hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown" (Rev 3:9-11), and ends with a reward for the "conqueror". The "angel of the church in Philadelphia", along with the "angel of the church in Thyatira", who is assumed to be James, in the fourth letter, where "Jezebel" appears, is not given the stern warning given to the other angels. Both James and Andrew must have been outstanding disciples. That may be because they were disciples of John the Baptist before they met Jesus.
According to the Gospel of John, the first to follow Jesus were two disciples of John the Baptist, and the Gospel says one of them "was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother" (Jn 1:40). Based on the reason above, the other disciple could be supposed to be James, the sons of Zebedee. That is because John the Evangelist could describe the details of the incident in his Gospel: "The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples; and he looked at Jesus as he walked, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God!" The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus" (1:35-37). The two had gained knowledge about Jesus from their teacher, John the Baptist, that he was "the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world" (1:29), "he was before me" (1:30), "this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit" (1:33), and "this is the Son of God" (1:34).
The actions of the two after that were remarkable. When Jesus saw them following him, he asked, "What do you seek?". In response, they asked him, "Rabbi (which means Teacher), where are you staying?" (Jn 1:38), and drew from Jesus the words, "Come and see" (1:39). Then, as invited, they followed Jesus and saw where he was staying. It was evening, so they stayed with Jesus that day. Their actions were intuitive and without hesitation. Later, Andrew went to see Peter and said, "We have found the Messiah (which means Christ)" (1:41), and took him to Jesus. He was a man of keen insight who acted with great precision.
This trait of Andrew did not change even after he became a disciple of Jesus. When Jesus saw a multitude coming to him and said, "How are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?" (Jn 6:5), he intuitively understood what Jesus was about to do and replied, "There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what are they among so many?" (6:9). He thus provided the opportunity for Jesus to perform a miracle (cf. 6:10-13).
In this way, he was a steady disciple of Jesus, accurately following his intentions, and Jesus had great confidence in him. So, when Jesus went out with only Peter, James and John, he must have been able to entrust him with the responsibility of looking after things while he was away. Eventually, the other disciples also came to rely on him. When some Greeks in Jerusalem asked to see Jesus, Philip, the first to receive the request, spoke to Andrew before reporting it to Jesus (cf. Jn 12:20-22).
Andrew was a person worthy of receiving the following promise: "He who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God; never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name" (Rev 3:12).
To be continued
Maria K. M.
