And He summoned
the twelve and began to send them out in pairs, and gave them authority over
the unclean spirits; and He instructed them that they should take nothing for
their journey, except a mere staff— no bread, no bag, no money in their belt--
but to wear sandals; and He added, "Do not put on two tunics." And He
said to them, "Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave
town. Any place that does not receive you or listen to you, as you go out from
there, shake the dust off the soles of your feet for a testimony against
them." They went out and preached that men should repent. And they were
casting out many demons and were anointing with oil many sick people and
healing them.
Jesus’ disciples were not just people who wanted to hear
what Jesus had to say, they were people that recognized that Jesus had an
appointment by God to do something. Most
of them probably understood his appointment to be that of a prophet or an
authoritative teacher or having ability to command some of the spirit
world. Because it was recognized that
Jesus had authority, he could also grant that authority to others who were
under him. It is like the secretary of
the boss telling someone they are fired with the boss’ authority. The secretary could only do that if the boss
had given authority. Even so, Jesus here
appoints the twelve to do work in Jesus’ name—meaning, with his
authorization. Specifically, he gave
them authority to teach and to exile evil spirits that were judging
people.
In doing this work, he gives
them specific instructions. They are to
take nothing extra, just the basic things they need to travel a short ways—a
staff, a single tunic and sandals. But
they are not to take anything that would provide them with sustenance on their
journey, such as food or money or a bag to carry provisions in. Rather, they are to depend on particular
people who accept them when they speak their message. Those who accept them will welcome them in their
home and provide for them. But if no one
does this, or if they ignore what was said, then that town as a group was
rejecting not just the disciple, but the message of the kingdom. If that was the case, then the disciples
would shake the dust off of their feet to show that they had no connection with
the town. This would be a “testimony” or
a court eyewitness against them before God.
So the disciples replicated the ministry of Jesus in
this way—they taught the same message he did, and exiled demons and healed
people just as Jesus did. One thing they
did differently than Jesus was anointing with oil. To put oil on something in a religious sense
was to consecrate it, or to cleanse it from impurities. But it also could be used to show that one
was living a normal life again—as people in Jesus’ day used oil like we would
use makeup or deodorant, it was put on to make them a part of everyday life
again, and not in perpetual sorrow.
The disciples understood that Jesus wasn't just someone to believe in, or to be listened to. Jesus was someone to copy, to imitate. So many of us today are so stuck on having the freedom to do as we please, to fit into society, to make ends meet, to raise our family properly in our own culture that we fail to realize that the first and only call of the Christian is to be Christ-like.
It is not enough for us to believe, we must live.
It is not enough for us to speak Christian, we must be Jesus.
It is not enough for us to listen to the Bible, we must breath God's spirit.
It is not enough for us to pray, we must be the answers to our prayers.
It is not enough for us to receive love, we must give love.
We can say that we are unable to do this. That it is too difficult a task, too much for any human. And it is true. Even Jesus found that being Jesus was too arduous a task. But Jesus didn't do it himself. He depended on the power of God, and did only what God had given him the power to do. Jesus is not asking any more from us.
Yes, Jesus commands us to lay hands on people and heal them. But it is not our power, but God's that heal.
Jesus commands us to preach the kingdom of God. But it is not our words, but his we use.
Yes, Jesus commands us to travel with nothing but clothes. But we are dependent not on our provision, but God's.
This is why the life of Jesus requires faith. Because we cannot see what we rely on.
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