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by Wayne Blank
Andrew, derived from the Greek name pronounced an-dreh-as, meaning
manly, was one of The Twelve Apostles. He was from Bethsaida in Galilee (John 1:44), and was the brother of Simon Peter (Matthew 4:18) (see Peter and Did Peter Have The Primacy?)
After witnessing John The Baptist identify Jesus as, "The Lamb of God" (John 1:29,40), Andrew immediately became a converted follower of The Lord, and was the one who introduced his brother Peter:
"One of the two who heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. He first found his brother Simon, and said to him, "We have found the Messiah," which means Christ. He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him, and said, "So you are Simon the son of John? You shall be called Cephas," which means Peter." (John 1:40-42 RSV)
After their first meeting with The Lord, Andrew and Peter apparently went back to their profession as fishermen for a short time, until after the Temptation of Jesus by Satan (Matthew 4:1-11) (see Go Ahead, Jump! and The Lame Duck), and John the Baptist had been imprisoned (Matthew 4:12). It was then, when Jesus' ministry had begun (Matthew 4:17) that they received their formal calling, as shown in the opening paragraph (Matthew 4:18-20).
Relatively little is written about Andrew, compared to his more famous brother, Peter. We do know that he was among the "inner circle" of disciples (John 6:8, 12:22), and while atop the The Mount Of Olives with Peter, James, and John, asked the now famous question of Jesus as to when His return (see The Return Of Jesus Christ) would occur (Mark 13:1-36).
As was the case with all of the others (with the possible exception of John), Andrew is believed to have been martyred. According to one account, he was crucified on an X-shaped cross, two ends of which were in the ground. Hence the origin of the term, "St. Andrew's Cross". (see Crosses and What Happened To The Apostles?)
Fact Finder: Did Jesus Christ tell Andrew and the others that His return would be preceded by "great signs in the heavens"?
Mark 13:24-27
See also Signs In The Heavens
