How Did Jesus Select Disciples?
Jesus did not select someone from the established religious orders: Pharisees, Sadducees, and Herodians. These people, representing laity, priests, and secular religious leaders, were not primary targets of His call. This does not mean He did not desire they be born again and follow Him (John 3, Nicodemus; Matthew 2:34-44, a lawyer). Rather, it meant Jesus knew that people strongly tied to religious traditions would find it more difficult to understand and accept the newness of His message and ministry. • Jesus was not afraid to call someone, like Matthew the tax collector and Simon the Zealot, whose reputation might put a strain on the group. It was a scandal that Jesus spent time with tax collectors and probably caused consternation with the others in His group of twelve. But Jesus saw a person whose presence in the group would cause issues to emerge that needed to be confronted by His grace (Matthew 9:9; Mark 2:13-17; Luke 5:27-32; 6:15). • Jesus was not afraid to call someone He kn
