1And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease. 2Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; 3Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; 4Simon the Cananite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him.
Here again is an interesting choice of words. Here Jesus called his twelve disciples to Him. At the end of the last verse and many places throughout the book of Matthew, when Jesus talked to His disciples it is stated simply as "He said" to His disciples. But only two places does it say "He called" someone to Him: when He first called James and John who were out mending nets in their boat, and now when He called His twelve disciples to Him. I don't think the emphasis here is that he simply gathered up His twelve favorites, but that He extended a call. He called, they came.
It makes me wonder about times that He extends a call. First of all, I think there are certain kinds of God's work that you need to be specifically called to do. Not everyone is called to do certain jobs. Here Jesus called those He wanted for this work. The trick is trying to hear your calling. What are you called to do?
Plus, when Jesus calls, through our unfortunate freedom of choice, we can still decide whether or not to respond to the call. When I read this same story in the book of Mark, Mark 3:13-19, I had wondered if the call was extended to many and these are the only twelve who responded to that call. Hopefully we all answer Jesus' call when He calls us.
And finally, how does Jesus make that call? He didn't just sit down and talk to these guys to call them. Otherwise I would have expected the wording to be the same as other times He talked to them, using the words of "He said" rather than "He called". It doesn't say how He called them, just that He called and they came. It makes me wonder if I would recognize Jesus' call if He called me.
And what will Jesus do with those He calls? With these twelve, He gave the incredulous power to cast out unclean spirits, and to heal all kinds of sickness and disease. What may He call me to do? I have no idea, but if He calls, I should come. He will take care of the rest. Wouldn't you love to see your name among those whom He called and did His bidding?