_The first, is the condition and character of the men whom Jesus
chose as his apostles.

The second, is the work these men were called to do.

The third, is the help that was given them in doing this work; and

The fourth, is the lesson taught us by this subject._ Or, to make the
points of the subject as short as possible, we may state them thus:

_The men. The work. The help. The lesson.

We begin then with speaking of_--THE MEN--_or the condition and
character of those whom Jesus chose to be his apostles or helpers_.

Now we might have thought that Jesus would have chosen his apostles,
or helpers, from among the angels of heaven. They are so wise, and
good, and strong, that we wonder why he did not choose them. But he
did not. He chose _men_ to be his apostles. And what kind of men did
he choose? If we had been asked this question beforehand, we should
have supposed that he would certainly have chosen the wisest and the
most learned men, the richest and greatest men that could be found in
the world. But it was not so. Instead of this he chose poor men,
unlearned men, men that were not famous at all; and who had not been
heard of before. Fishermen, and tax-gatherers, and men occupying very
humble positions in life, were those whom Jesus chose to be his
apostles.

And one reason, no doubt, why Jesus made choice of men of this