THE CALLING OF THE TWELVE

Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on February 19, 2020 under AM Bible Study |

AM Bible Study Group: February 19, 2020 from Luke 6:12-16

Theme: Our Lord established a foundational witness for Himself by the calling the twelve.

(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).

Great consequences often hinge on seemingly-small choices.

In the estimation of this fallen world, it may not have seemed very significant that a Jewish teacher in a faraway land, two-thousand years ago, selected twelve specific men to be His apostles. But these twelve men went on to spend three-and-a-half years with the Son of God in human flesh. They heard His teaching first-hand, and were eyewitnesses to His miracles. The testimony that they went on to bear to the world became the foundation that the church—the household of God—was built upon (Ephesians 2:20).

The story of our Lord’s selection of the twelve is very important. The Gospel writer Luke tells us about it in Luke 6:12-16.

Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God. And when it was day, He called His disciples to Himself; and from them He chose twelve whom He also named apostles: Simon, whom He also named Peter, and Andrew his brother; James and John; Philip and Bartholomew; Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called the Zealot; Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot who also became a traitor (Luke 6:12-16).

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It might be easy to pass by this passage. But let’s look at it carefully; and consider …

1. THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THEIR CALLING (v. 12).

Luke tells us in verses 12-13, “Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.”

Note the words “in those days”. Our Lord’s selection of these twelve men occurred at a time when the pressure was growing against Him. When He healed a man in the synagogue on the Sabbath, the religious leaders were—as we’re told in Luke 6:11—“filled with rage, and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus.” It was a tense and challenging time—one in which He faced hostility and mounting threats. But notice that it was at this time—“in those days”—that Jesus went out to the mountain to pray. Our Lord took the time to get away from the pressures, and to be alone with His Father in prayer. The pressures and threats didn’t stop Him from doing so.

The next thing that happens, immediately after this all-night time of prayer, was the selection of the twelve. It’s safe to assume, then, that the selection of the twelve was what Jesus was praying about that night. When it came time to choose His twelve apostles, our Lord first spent time talking to His Father about it. He prayed the whole night long about it—seeking the Father’s will; and perhaps praying at length for each man by name.

Our Lord demonstrated a submission to the Father’s will in doing this. Later on, when Jesus prayed for these men just before going to the cross for them, He told the Father;

I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world. They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word (John 17:6).

Not even our Lord Jesus made an important decision like this without spending a lot of time in prayer, and with submission to the Father’s will. If the Son of God was so dependent upon the guidance of the Father for important matters of life, then we are even more so.

And then, let’s consider …

2. FROM OUT OF WHOM HE CALLED THEM (v. 13).

Verse 13 tells us, “And when it was day, He called His disciples to Himself; and from them, He chose twelve …” There had been many who had gathered around Jesus—many who were following Him, and listening to His teaching, and observing His miracles. There were many who were His ‘disciples’—which was almost like saying that Jesus had a school, and they were His students. But just the fact that someone followed Him, and learned from Him, didn’t alone mean that they were automatically ‘graduated’ into becoming His apostles. It was from out of this large group of His disciples—after prayer to His Father—that He intentionally chose the specific twelve for that unique role.

There’s an interesting story about this in John’s Gospel. There had been many disciples who were following Jesus, but who became disturbed at His ‘hard sayings’. They were wondering if they really wanted to be associated with Him. At a certain point, He said to them,

“Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father.” From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more. Then Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you also want to go away?” But Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Also, we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus answered them, “Did I not choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?” (John 6:65-70).

He had already chosen them. But it’s clear that from out of the many disciples that had been following Him, these twelve were the ones who believed—even though one would later betray Him.

And then, notice …

3. WHAT IT WAS THAT HE CHOSE THEM TO BE (v. 13b).

Luke goes on to tell us that Jesus went on to choose the twelve “whom He also named apostles”. The word ‘apostle’ means ‘sent-one’. In ancient times, this name was used to describe a messenger who was sent by an official with an important message to be delivered—someone who served as the authorized representative of whoever it was that sent him.

What were they chosen to do? In Mark 3:14, we’re told that they were chosen “that they might be with Him”. In Luke 22:28, Jesus told them, “But you are those who have continued with Me in My trials.” Mark 3:14 also says that they were chosen “that He might send them out to preach”. Just before He left them, He told them that the Holy Spirit would soon afterward come and bear witness of Him in the world; and He added, “And you also will bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning” (John 15:27). Mark 3:15 also tells us that Jesus chose them “to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons” (v. 15)—giving their message the stamp of His own authority by the fact that they did the works that He Himself did. These twelve men were the ones that God the Father led Jesus His Son to choose to be His official messengers—sent to proclaim to us of the once-for-all-time gospel. Ours, as Jude 3 tells us, is “the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints”; and it was these twelve men—with the apostle Paul later added to them—that gave us that unchanging apostolic faith.

And finally, notice …

4. WHO IT WAS THAT HE CALLED (vv. 14-16).

First, we’re told of “Simon, whom He also named Peter”. In every list of the twelve apostles, Peter’s name is always first. His was plainly the lead voice of the twelve. He was a fallible man who often misspoke. But one of the most important of all the many things he spoke correctly was when Jesus and the disciples were discussing the various things people were saying about Him. He asked them, “But who do you say that I am?”

Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock, I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:16-18).

Jesus called him “the Rock” because he ended up being a solid, reliable witness for our Lord. But the real “rock” on which Jesus built His church was that testimony that Peter gave of Him. He truly is “the Christ, the Son of the living God”. That’s the authorized message that we declare to the world. How grateful we should be that Jesus called Peter!

Then, after Peter, we’re told that Jesus called “Andrew his brother”. He was the one who first introduced Peter to the Lord (John 1:41). He was also the one who went and brought the little boy to Jesus who had the five loaves and the two small fish (John 6:8-9). There were some Greeks who wanted to speak to Jesus, and it was Andrew who first sought to tell Jesus about their request (John 12:20-22). Andrew is the ‘go-get-em’ apostle. He’s the one we often find bringing people to Jesus

Then we’re told that Jesus called Peter’s fishing partners “James and John”. They were the sons of Zebedee that Jesus gave the nickname “Boanerges, that is, ‘Sons of Thunder’ (Mark 3:17). They were—at times—very passionate and thunderous in their manner. Jesus and the disciples once tried to pass through Samaria, and the Samaritans wouldn’t let them. And so, James and John said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?” (Luke 9:54). They once even tried to beat the other apostles out by asking the Lord if they may sit at His right hand and at His left hand when He took up the throne in His kingdom (Mark 10:35-40). They had great zeal; and it was in this zeal that they later testified of the Lord. Read John’s Gospel and his three New Testament letters. What a powerful testimony they give of the Lord Jesus! Read the Book of Revelation that John wrote; and you can almost hear the thunder! Think of James—one of the earliest martyrs of the faith. Acts 12 tells us that King Herod Agrippa killed him with a sword; and his thunderous witness for the Lord may have had much to do with it.

These four men—Peter, Andrew, James, and John—constituted Jesus’ ‘inner circle’; the closest of His disciples to Him. Each time in the New Testament that the list of the apostle’s names is given, it’s these four that are mentioned first; with Peter always at the lead.

Then Jesus called Philip. He was the one who—when Nathanael said, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”—wisely answered, “Come and see” (John 1:46). He’s the one who once told Jesus, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us”; and who, as a result, gave us that wonderful answer from the Lord, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father …” (John 14:8-9). Philip was the “come and see” apostle

Jesus also called Bartholomew. Some believe that he is the same man as Nathanael, whom Philip introduced to the Lord. If so, then he’s the one who, when he first met Jesus, declared, “You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” (John 1:48-49). That was Nathanael’s (or Bartholomew’s) testimony for the rest of his life.

Jesus also called “Matthew”; who is known to us earlier in Luke’s Gospel as Levi the tax collector (Luke 5:27-32). He had been a notorious traitor to his people who become wealthy by his sin. But he left all that wealth behind to follow Jesus. He gave us the Gospel that bears his name—the Gospel of Matthew. This formerly unfaithful Jewish man wrote the Gospel that presents Jesus to us as the long-expected King of the Jews!

Then, we’re told that Jesus called Thomas. He is referred to elsewhere in the Bible as“the twin” or “Didymus”. In John 11, when Jesus set Himself to go to Jerusalem, Thomas said to the others, “Let us go, that we may die with Him” (v. 11). And yet, Thomas was the disciple who later saw the resurrected Lord Jesus and said, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28). He has often been characterized as ‘doubting Thomas’, but he’s been a help to sincere doubters ever since!

These four—Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, and Thomas—constituted the second circle of our Lord’s disciples. In every list in the New Testament, Philip is always mentioned first in this group.

And then, we’re told that Jesus called “James the son of Alphaeus”—probably so named in order to distinguish him from James the brother of John. He was also sometimes called “James the Less” (which may mean he was younger, or may mean that he was smaller in stature than the others, or may mean that he held a minor role in comparison to the other James). He may have been ‘less’ in some way; but he was still one of the greatest ‘dozen’ in history—chosen by Jesus. This James’ mother Mary was one of the women who watched from a distance as our Lord was crucified (Mark 15:40).

Then there was “Simon called the Zealot”; also called “the Canaanite” in Matthew 10:4 and Mark 3:19. He was a former member of a strongly anti-Roman political movement that sometimes even crossed the line over into terrorism. His political commitments would have been the exact opposite of Matthew’s. But even he—along with Matthew—was called by Jesus to serve as one of His twelve.

Then we are told of “Judas the son of James”; who is sometimes called “Thaddaeus” (Mark 3:18). He has the surname Lebbaeus (Matthew 10:3). He was the one who once asked the Lord Jesus a very good question: “Lord, how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?” (John 14:22). As it turns out, he himself proved to be the answer to his own question—and was one of those who manifested to the world what he came to know about Jesus.

Finally, we’re told that Jesus called “Judas Iscariot who also became a traitor ”. It was no accident that Jesus chose him. Our Lord knew what Judas would do. But because of Judas’ notorious act of betrayal, our Lord was handed over by the authorities to the death of the cross; where He died for our sins and became our Savior. Judas himself bore witness of the Lord when he later told the officials, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood” (Matthew 27:4). We can confidently say that even Judas—the betrayer—served the sovereign purpose of our Lord in being called as one of the twelve.

These last four—James, Simon, Judas and Judas Iscariot—constituted the third circle. In every list of this third circle that we find in the New Testament, James the Less is always mentioned first.

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This is no mere list of names. This is nothing less than a description of the gracious provision that the Lord Jesus has made to this world of a solid, unshakable eye-witness account of His own saving life and teaching and ministry. These twelve were used by Jesus to give us a solid testimony of who He is and what He has done.

As John the apostle put it at the beginning of his first letter;

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life—the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us—that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. And these things we write to you that your joy may be full (1 John 1:1-4).

It would be hard to find a more clear description of the Lord’s purpose for calling the twelve—and of the content of their message to us.

Let’s take their testimony up with confidence, and declare it to the world in our time!

EA