Jesus called out to Andrew and Peter from the shore and asked them to come and follow him. There was no hesitation mentioned, they simply put down their nets and followed Jesus. In the same way James and John were called and they too left their nets, only these two also left their father in the boat with his hired helpers.

Mark 1:16-20

The First Disciples

16 One day as Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon[a] and his brother Andrew throwing a net into the water, for they fished for a living. 17 Jesus called out to them, “Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!” 18 And they left their nets at once and followed him.

19 A little farther up the shore Jesus saw Zebedee’s sons, James and John, in a boat repairing their nets. 20 He called them at once, and they also followed him, leaving their father, Zebedee, in the boat with the hired men.

The first disciples didn’t follow Jesus as a total stranger as it might first appear. It helps to also consider the passage in John 1:35-36. They first heard of Jesus from John the Baptist who told them he was the Messiah.

None-the-less, these men showed great faith from the beginning as they left everything behind to follow Jesus. What have we left behind to follow Jesus? Is there something in your life that is holding you back from following him? Just as the first commandment is ““You must not have any other god but me,” (Deuteronomy 5:7 NLT) we must not allow anything to hold us back from following Jesus.

Father God, help us to follow you wholeheartedly without trying to hold on to our old ways of doing things. Help us to always put you first.