“Who are these guys?” That was the question Butch Cassidy kept asking the Sundance Kid as they were being pursued relentlessly by Pinkerton detectives.
That question comes to mind when thinking of the dead and risen Jesus from Nazareth. With the defection and suicide of Judas, these eleven were entrusted with the task of taking the story of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection to the known world. These were the men whom Jesus personally chose, prayed for and trained. They were a mixed lot. By profession, they were fishermen, simple hard working men. One was a tax collector, an IRS agent of his day. They were not highly educated. They were all Jewish, and one, such a zealous Jew, he was known as Simon the Zealot. He was a kind of first century Tea Party member. Some were apparently not too outspoken, for they seem obscure on the pages of New Testament. scripture. There was one whose name Jesus changed to Peter, which means a rock. He often seemed like anything but a rock. He was quite impetuous, though he meant well. He was the kind of man who wound up with his foot in his mouth. His failures are well documented. All of them were just as human as any of us.
Yet these men were unique, and hold a vital place in humanity’s history. They were witnesses of the greatest event to ever occur on planet earth. They were personally and intimately acquainted with the Creator. These guys touched God. They were changed because they experienced first hand the literal resurrection of Jesus Christ. They knew as fact that which they passed down to all future generations to know by faith.
– Terry Morrison