As Jesus continues to be
overwhelmed by large crowds in need of his healing and teaching, the twelve
disciples are now ready to be sent out to multiply his effort by healing and
preaching in his name. As they prepare
to go, Jesus instructs them not to pack anything for the journey, but instead
to rely upon the kindness of their fellow Jews when they stop at each
village. This missions strategy on the
part of Jesus is an example of a narrative portion of Scripture that requires
us to decide whether or not it is supposed to be a guide for us to think/do/act
in similar situations or if it simply the basis of a principle that we can draw
out from the text without following the pattern exactly. In other words, when the Church sends out
missionaries, should they be prepared and supported by the sending church, or
should they rely upon God to supply their needs? At first glance, the answer of relying upon
God appears to be a great example of living by faith, why wouldn’t we want
missionaries to live by faith? In
reality, it is a lazy answer that would allow churches to skip their obligation
to support missions, and it would put an extra burden on the missionaries who
instead of focusing on the Gospel must scramble to survive month to month. This same critique would apply to anyone who
works for the Church, from pastors on down to janitors, it doesn’t make any of
them more holy if their church purposefully keeps them in poverty to “increase
their faith”.
Jesus also includes in his instructions a warning for
villages that reject the Gospel message and tells his disciples to “shake the
dust off your feet” when leaving such a town as a symbol of leaving their
unbelief behind and not taking it with you.
The rejection of God, by people who already know who his is, has always
been a very serious thing, a risk never worth taking.
Lastly,
Luke tells us that Herod is even interested in meeting Jesus after hearing all
about him. The Gospels don’t record a
meeting between Herod and Jesus until the day of the crucifixion when Jesus is
brought to Herod. Instead of finding out
who Jesus is, however, Herod at that point insists upon a miracle and mocks
Jesus when he doesn’t oblige. After
living a life a sin against God, Herod spits in the face of his savior when he
meets him; turning your back on God is a dangerous thing, even when he gives
you another undeserved chance, you may not accept it.
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