Everyone has flaws. It is amazing that God meets those flaws with grace and mercy.

However, Christians are not always so forgiving with each other; we are often the ones to shoot our own wounded. While healthy criticism is absolutely vital to growth, it is easy to let ourselves become antagonistic.

We should speak up against preachers who get rich off their congregations and organizations like the Westboro Baptist Church that preach the lie that “God hates the world, and all its people.”

Instead, churches get caught up condemning each other for minor differences in doctrine.

While reading about the apostles in the Bible and records of their deaths, I discovered a compelling narrative that helped me snap out of a judgmental mindset: the story of Peter and Andrew, the first apostles.

They both had serious and opposite flaws, but God did not allow those flaws to prevent them from glorifying Him. Peter was a natural leader, outspoken and bold. Peter is known for making strong decisions based on his trust in God, but also for counteracting those Godly choices by being rash or offensive.

Peter was the first apostle to identify Jesus as the Messiah (Matthew 16:16), yet turns around soon after to rebuke Jesus, earning a powerful reprimand from the Lord (Matthew 16:22-23). He was the only apostle to make an appearance at Jesus’ trial; but it was there that he denied the Lord three times, even after proudly stating to Christ that he never would (Luke 22:54-62).

Peter’s boldness, the reason Jesus chose him as a leader, caused him to be the most criticized apostle. Despite all this, Peter went on to preach and lead the early church for the rest of his life; he converted thousands until Emperor Nero himself crucified Peter in Rome (Letter from Clement of Rome “To the Corinthians,” 90 A.D.).

Peter was a massively influential person who played a huge part in founding Christianity in the Roman Empire.

Andrew was much more reserved. He is mentioned about a dozen times in the New Testament, usually in passing or in a list.

While sometimes the disciples were scolded as a group, Andrew (unlike Peter) was never personally rebuked. Whenever Andrew spoke, which was infrequent, he was commended.

Andrew seemed to live in the shadow of his brother, but never showed resentment or frustration toward Peter taking charge. It was actually Andrew that brought Peter to Jesus (John 1:41), and it was Andrew that found the boy with the loaves and the fish to feed the five thousand.

This was his way of serving God: bringing people to Jesus one by one. We have no record of Andrew ever preaching a sermon, and he effectively vanishes from history between the Gospels and his execution.

His ministry was extremely personal. He did not preach to enormous crowds like Peter; instead, he built God-honoring relationships with individual people.

He was eventually crucified in Achaia, Greece for converting one woman, a governor’s wife (Hippolytus of Rome, On the Twelve Apostles of Christ, written sometime 200-235).

Peter made a fool of himself many times, being divisive and stirring up trouble unnecessarily. Andrew had an incredible spirit of love and respect for individuals as he consistently leads people to Christ.

In some ways, it seems that Andrew was superior to Peter. However, Peter was a leader who changed the lives of thousands by leading the Christian church throughout the Mediterranean region. Peter was crucified for being a threat to the greatest empire in western history; Andrew was crucified for converting one person.

From this view, Peter may seem superior to Andrew, and Andrew’s meekness becomes almost contemptible. We can pick a favorite between Peter and Andrew, but any feelings of scorn at their flaws melt away upon examination of their executions.

They crucified Peter’s wife first. Nero wanted to see Peter’s reaction; he wanted Peter tortured emotionally before he was tortured physically. Peter was a man of passionate reactions, and he was fiercely loyal to those that he loved. Peter drew his sword to protect Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane when they were outnumbered and surrounded.

Knowing Peter, you would expect him to uselessly struggle when they took his wife to be killed. Instead, God gave Peter the Andrew-style patience and meekness that he had always lacked as he quietly said to his wife, “Remember the Lord.” This was the opposite of what the Romans had expected; they were stunned by Peter’s calm faith.

When Andrew was nailed to his cross on the roadside in Greece, he realized that his opportunity to serve God on Earth was almost over and was suddenly filled with Peter’s boldness. He fought to stay alive for two entire days, preaching to anyone who passed by. His meekness disappeared; he fought desperately through excruciating pain so that he could shout the Gospel for just a little while longer.

At the end of the day, both these men loved and served God. When they needed strength the most, God stripped away their weaknesses and allowed their deaths to bring Him glory.

Reading about the lives of Peter and Andrew reminded me to not judge other Christians for their flaws. Someone else having different strengths and weaknesses than me does not justify judgment. Peter and Andrew were both incredible servants of Jesus Christ. They did not antagonize each other over their differences; they encouraged and loved each other. This is the model that true Christians should follow.