work of God. By rejecting his authority they are blaspheming the Spirit of God, who is at work in him. Israel’s “insiders”—the religious elite—have now become outsiders to the true people of God. In an implicit denial of their leadership, Jesus chooses and appoints twelve disciples, modeled after the twelve tribes of Israel and representing the restored people of God. His true family, the household of God in the kingdom age, is made up not of those who share physical descent from Abraham, but of