In today's passage from the Letter to the Ephesians, Paul dwells on the practical aspect of his view of the Christian vocation, the essence of which is unity: unity among men, founded by union with the Father, through Christ, in the Spirit. Christians are exhorted to practise this unity in their own community. They are expected to be models of humility, patience, tolerance, and charity. He emphasises the social aspect of Christian behaviour.

However, this unity is not uniformity. Rather, diversity exists because Christ has given each a special gift, a charism, to be used to enrich the life of the Church.

The call of Matthew and his unhesitating acceptance is an example of someone being chosen to receive a special charism. The choice of Matthew was a surprising reversal of what one would expect. Matthew was a social and religious outcast and a collaborator with the occupying power, the Romans - not at all a suitable candidate to be an apostle, so one would think. Neither was Jesus' choice of companions at His table: the self-righteous Pharisees considered the sinners and tax-collectors unworthy company. These unexpected choices were not surprising, when one is reminded by Jesus that He came not to call the virtuous but sinners.

The most significant aspect of this incident is that Matthew, when called, simply and immediately "got up and followed him."