For a chapter that I know I have read many times in the past, this chapter slapped me up side my head. The second half of the chapter was more difficult for me but I will start and work my way down the chapter by verses.
Jesus sends out his disciples after giving them authority to heal every kind of disease and cast out evil spirits. They had a specific mission to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Jesus then says in verse 8 that they are also to raise the dead while they are out spreading the news that "The kingdom of heaven is at hand." I have read that the 12 disciples is significant for the 12 tribes of Judah and that the good news had to be preached first to the Jew and then when rejected then to the gentile. A few questions that jump into my mind are how long has this core group of disciples been with Jesus prior to being sent out? How long were they out seeking the lost sheep? and What did Jesus do while they were gone. I think some of these questions will be answered in scripture but want to track my journey and thought processes. A statement in a commentary I read states the following:
Both Jesus' proclamation and practical acts of compassion go beyond what many Christians call ministry today. Our communities are ravaged by demonic forces, violence, injustice and all kinds of human pain, while the church often remains irrelevant except to the few who venture through our doors. To follow Jesus' model of ministry, more Christians must stop simply going to church and learn rather to become the church among our communities in evangelism and ministry to social needs.
After reading this, I wondered if this was referring to the 1st century church or today. I think both and am further shocked that Jesus warns the disciples of what to expect while going out in His name. Sheep among wolves and scourged are two things mentioned that denote pain or at least the possibility of great pain. Verse 21 starts me wondering. Fathers will betray their children and children will rise against parents and cause them to be put to death. Verse 22 says "You will be hated by all because of my name..." Are the fathers and children that are fighting Christians or non-Christians??? This is further complicated by verse 34-39
34 “(AZ)Do not think that I came to [ac]bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I came to (BA)SET A MAN AGAINST HIS FATHER, AND A DAUGHTER AGAINST HER MOTHER, AND A DAUGHTER-IN-LAW AGAINST HER MOTHER-IN-LAW; 36 and (BB)A MAN’S ENEMIES WILL BE THE MEMBERS OF HIS HOUSEHOLD. 37 “(BC)He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. 38 And (BD)he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. 39 (BE)He who has found his [ad]life will lose it, and he who has lost his [ae]life for My sake will find it.
still trying to stay focused on what sort of a man was jesus.
ReplyDeletemy first thought from today's reading was: "not this sort"
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_jPsUHRPlxFw/TUIeoaZ3E6I/AAAAAAAACOQ/ECgOKQCFPsk/s1600/Jesus-Christ-Superstar_l.jpg
sometimes i do think of jesus as a free-spirited hippie. i kinda like peace and love and braids and tie-dye and joe cocker.
10:34 “Do not think that I came to [ac]bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword."
sometimes i use the fact that i've been described as a "free-spirit" as an excuse to be late, unorganized, unfocused and frankly lazy. jesus was NOT a peace-loving, pot-smoking phlegmatic. he was a man of conviction and a man of action. here's my list of what i saw in him in matthew chapter 10:
a man with:
1. authority and confidence
2. a plan and strategy (to rescue the lost sheep of israel)
3. leadership skills who could delegate, instruct and inspire
4. respect. he expected it. v. 24
5. realistic expectations instead of purely foolish optimism/faith in the wrong things
6. no fear
7. enemies and deeply loyal friends
8. compassion and urgency
he also gave some specific instructions to his disciples i found interesting:
1. when you are rejected > shake the dust off your boots and let your peace return to you (let go)
2. when you are arrested > relax and let the spirit speak through you
3. when you are persecuted > flee that place/people and keep moving on (don't change your message)
one last thing. v.28 "Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell."
this reminded me of a quote a friend sent me recently from francis chan "Our greatest fear should not be of failure but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter."
we need to look closely at how we are motivated and what we fear and make sure that we aren't wasting our time on misdirected energies. faith that God has us sealed in by His love is not foolish.
psalm 27:1 "The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear?"
and just for fun, because i love irony and a bit of fun...
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0eFQYwqO-4g