Many people think that the twelve disciples were chosen by Jesus
4. HOW WERE THE DISCIPLES CHOSEN? Many people think that the twelve disciples were chosen by Jesus without any previous interaction – as when Jesus was walking by the sea and called Peter and other fishermen from their boats (Matthew 4:18–22; Mark 1:16–20). But these verses probably show the disciples' initial calling as part of a larger group. The New Testament is clear that Christ already knew the twelve men he then selected from among his disciples – that these were individuals who had traits Jesus already knew he could work with. The Gospel of Luke tells us:
Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God. When morning came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them, whom he also designated apostles. (Luke 6:12–13, emphasis added) Most biblical scholars actually place this event around the middle of Jesus' ministry. We see in the account that the twelve followers Jesus called to train as his special assistants are called both disciples and apostles. While the word "disciple" refers to a learner or follower, the word "apostle" means "one who is sent out." During Jesus' ministry the twelve key followers were usually called disciples, though after his resurrection they were mainly referred to as apostles. However, the terms are used somewhat interchangeably in the New Testament.
Matthew continues to use the term "disciples" of the Twelve even after the resurrection of Jesus (Matthew 28), and there were also other apostles in a generic sense. For example, Barnabas is referred to as an apostle (Acts 13:2; 14:14) and the same word is used to refer to Titus (2 Corinthians 8:23) and Epaphroditus (Philippians 2:25). So, in the broader sense, anyone who was "sent" could be called an apostle, and even Christ himself is called an apostle in his role as a messenger of God (Hebrews 3:1).
But although Jesus had many disciples, and there were many who acted as apostles in the general sense, the twelve individuals Jesus selected stand as a unique group that formed the foundation of the New Testament church after Jesus himself (Ephesians 2:20). In fact, the vast majority of occurrences of the words disciple and apostle in the New Testament refer to these twelve individuals.
The qualifications of this type of apostle were: (1) To have been personally selected by Jesus (Luke 6:12–13; etc.); (2) To have seen the resurrected Christ (1 Corinthians 9:1; etc.); (3) To have been directly commissioned by him (Acts 1:8; 9:6; etc.); (4) To have been given the ability to perform miracles (Acts 2:43; 2 Corinthians 12:12). Matthias, who replaced Judas, was an exception in not fulfilling some of these requirements, but he was clearly made an apostle in unique circumstances to fill a specific gap.
Why were there twelve disciples or apostles in the original group? In the Bible, the number is frequently associated with wholeness or completeness (Revelation 7:4–8; etc.), but the more specific reason is that Jesus told the Twelve:
I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me, so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. (Luke 22:29–30) The twelve are all named in four places in the New Testament: in three of the gospels (Matthew 10:2–4; Mark 3:16–19; and Luke 6:13–16 – John's Gospel does not provide a list) and in the book of Acts which gives a list of all but Judas (Acts 1:13), though it mentions him elsewhere. These lists are given not simply as historical records, but also to exclude false apostles who might
claim to have been chosen in the same way. The lists themselves have small differences, but usually pair the various individuals. Three pairs were brothers: Peter and Andrew, James and John, the other James and Lebbeus (surnamed Thaddaeus). But the other disciples are also often mentioned in pairs, and they were all sent out two by two in order to help each other during Jesus' ministry (Matthew 10:1–4).
It is less often realized that the New Testament lists of the disciples also group them into three groups of four, although the names may appear in different orders within the groups. For instance, Mark 3:18 and Luke 6:15 both name Matthew before Thomas, but in Matthew's Gospel Thomas is placed before Matthew (one of many indications the Gospel of Matthew was written by Matthew and not by someone else). But the three groups of four remain consistent, and a name found in any of the three groups is never exchanged for a name in another group.
The ordering of these groups seems to show their relative importance or responsibilities. For example, the first group of four – Peter, Andrew, James and John – were allowed to be with Jesus when he performed an early, private, miracle (Mark 1:29–31). The same four were also among the few allowed to be present at the raising of Jairus's daughter (Luke 8:49–55), and it was this group of four who came to Jesus privately and asked him about the signs of the end of the age (Mark 13:3–4).
For some reason, as time went by, Andrew is mentioned fewer times than the other members of this group, so we tend to think of Peter, James, and John as a select group of three – as when they were the only ones allowed to witness the transfiguration of Jesus (Matthew 17:1–13). But it is helpful to see the larger pattern the gospel writers give of three groups of four disciples who are apparently not listed by their order of calling, but rather for their level of relationship with Jesus, or some other reason. However, all of these men (with the exception of Judas Iscariot) were carefully chosen as having qualities that could be used – with God's help – in conveying the gospel of the kingdom of God to the whole world.
The Called and the Qualified On the other hand, a common misconception about the disciples Jesus chose is that they were somehow "spiritual" individuals who were chosen for their "good hearts" or righteousness. This idea is evident in images of the disciples with halos around their heads in paintings showing their calling. The New Testament indicates the reality was very different. Jesus certainly prayed intensely before he chose his twelve key disciples, but it was evidently not that he might choose the most righteous among his followers. Peter, we must remember, openly admitted his apparent unsuitability for a religious calling by telling Jesus "Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man" (Luke 5:8). Perhaps the same could have been said by a number of the twelve Jesus enlisted, but in any event the gospel narratives often show the failings of all of the Twelve.
This is why it is often said that when choosing his disciples Jesus did not call the qualified, he qualified the called. Jesus did not select religiously trained individuals who knew the scriptures by heart and could expound them in technical detail. Instead, as we will see, he selected individuals whose formal religious knowledge was probably quite limited, but whose hearts and attitudes meant that they would be open and receptive to what he wanted to teach them.
PART TWO:
MISTAKES MADE