As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the lake—for they were fishermen. And he said to them, ‘Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.’ Immediately they left their nets and followed him.
Matthew 4:18-20 (NRSV)
Andrew (c. 60)
Fisher of People
Andrew was a Galilean fisherman, going about an ordinary day’s work when Jesus called him to be an apostle. Without hesitating, Andrew and his brother Peter left behind the safety and familiarity of what they knew and embarked on an extraordinary journey following in Jesus’ footsteps, ultimately to death.
Andrew is recorded as having preached the Gospel far and wide: in Scythia, Colchis, Greece, Epirus and Achaia. It is also reported that when he was crucified, he was tied to the cross rather than nailed. This was believed to have occurred at Patras in Achaia, on a cross in the shape of an X, called a saltire or decussate. An ancient writer wrote of the apostle’s courage as he faced death and recorded his words:
O cross, most welcome and oft-looked for; with a willing mind, joyfully and desirously, I come to thee, being the scholar of Him who did hang on thee; because I have been always thy lover, and have longed to embrace thee!
Andrew hung on the cross for three days and continued to proclaim Christ, with the result that onlookers began to believe in Jesus and asked the governor that he should be taken down. The governor consented, but by the time Andrew was taken down, he had died.
No sacrifice can be too great to make for him who gave his life for me.
C T Studd (1860-1931)