Luke 10:1-20
10 The Lord now chose seventy-two other disciples and sent them ahead in pairs to all the towns and places he planned to visit. 2 These were his instructions to them: “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.
- Key differences between the instructions given the twelve vs these 72
- Christ trained leaders (12) then gave then ½ of as many to then train 12 x 6 = 72
- One extra P: Prayer
- The worker being sent into the fields are told to ask for more workers to be sent
- Those who God sends on mission are to ask Him for co-workers
- Who is in charge of ‘The Harvest’? If it’s about us, beware pride or self-loathing
- We do not ‘Own’ any ministry, we should not say ‘My Ministry’
- Every mission field is ‘His Field’
3 Now go, and remember that I am sending you out as lambs among wolves. 4 Don’t take any money with you, nor a traveler’s bag, nor an extra pair of sandals. And don’t stop to greet anyone on the road.
- ‘Now Go’… if God gives you a job don’t delay (delayed obedience = disobedience)
- Realize this is not going to be ‘Safe’…God does not offer ‘Safe’ to Christ followers
- Count on God to provide essentials and that what you have now is enough
- Don’t tell God to prepare you more, He knows if you are prepared enough
- Stay focused on what you have been sent to do, keep moving
5 “Whenever you enter someone’s home, first say, ‘May God’s peace be on this house.’ 6 If those who live there are peaceful, the blessing will stand; if they are not, the blessing will return to you. 7 Don’t move around from home to home. Stay in one place, eating and drinking what they provide, because those who work deserve their pay.
- Establish if people are willing to accept God’s offer of peace (Gospel)
- Even if the offer is rejected, you are still blessed for offering it
- Don’t go provision shopping, be content with God’s idea of provision for you
- Let God bless you for doing what He asked you to do.
8 “If you enter a town and it welcomes you, eat whatever is set before you. 9 Heal the sick, and tell them, ‘The Kingdom of God is near you now.’ 10 But if a town refuses to welcome you, go out into its streets and say, 11 ‘We wipe even the dust of your town from our feet to show that we have abandoned you to your fate. And know this—the Kingdom of God is near!’
- Once welcomed, live as those who welcomed you do: ‘Contextual Mission Work’
- Demonstrate God’s power by healing (Physical & Emotional)
- Give people hope that the Kingdom is becoming accessible (Gospel)
- See if God is working there and if not, let them know you have no part in their fate
- When rejected, try to leave them thinking about The Kingdom
12 I assure you, even wicked Sodom will be better off than such a town on judgment day. 13 “What sorrow awaits you, Korazin and Bethsaida! For if the miracles I did in you had been done in wicked Tyre and Sidon, their people would have repented of their sins long ago, clothing themselves in burlap and throwing ashes on their heads to show their remorse.
- How can Sodom be better off?
- They didn’t get a chance to respond to the offer of God’s peace
- Korazin & Bethsaida saw His power 1st hand and didn’t respond (no repentance)
- Jesus says those in ‘wicked’ towns would respond in repentance vs rejecting Him
14 Yes, Tyre and Sidon will be better off on judgment day than you. 15 And you people of Capernaum, will you be honored in heaven? No, you will go down to the place of the dead.” 16 Then he said to the disciples, “Anyone who accepts your message is also accepting me. And anyone who rejects you is rejecting me. And anyone who rejects me is rejecting God, who sent me.”
- Tyre & Sidon neighbors to Israel where God was not fully revealed
- They will be better off because they didn’t get the opportunity Capernaum did
- God has mercy on those who He gives less chances / reveals Himself to less
- The Message = Jesus Christ = God
- How people respond to the Gospel is the same as how they respond to God
- The principal; from those who are given much, much is expected
But someone who does not know, and then does something wrong, will be punished only lightly. When someone has been given much, much will be required in return; and when someone has been entrusted with much, even more will be required. Luke 12:48
17 When the seventy-two disciples returned, they joyfully reported to him, “Lord, even the demons obey us when we use your name!” 18 “Yes,” he told them, “I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightning!
- The joyful report: demonic forces must obey Christ’s followers who ‘use His name’
- ‘In Someone’s Name’ & to ‘Come In Someone’s Name’ are about unity & oneness
- When we act in unity with God’s will, we can trust that demons must obey us
- The most powerful of Angels (now The Enemy) is forced to bend to God’s will
- Only through unity with God’s will & His Spirit can we overcome demonic forces
19 Look, I have given you authority over all the power of the enemy, and you can walk among snakes and scorpions and crush them. Nothing will injure you. 20 But don’t rejoice because evil spirits obey you; rejoice because your names are registered in heaven.”
- He gives them ‘Authority’, but the real gift isn’t the authority
- The real gift is eternal union w/ God, Him forgiving our sin & buying us out of hell
- Because God Himself has ‘registered’ our names in heaven we get that authority
- But the value of that authority is not even close to the value of salvation (eternity)
21 At that same time Jesus was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit, and he said, “O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike. Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way.
- What gave Jesus such Joy?
- The very idea of what He was going to accomplish @ the cross: Our Salvation!
- He was joyful the 72 were learning important theological lessons
- Thanking God for being who He is: opposes the Proud, gives grace to the humble
- If we want to please Him we need to do things His way: humble yourself!
22 “My Father has entrusted everything to me. No one truly knows the Son except the Father, and no one truly knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”
- Trust, unity, complete transparency & total intimacy are perfect in the Trinity
- You cannot know God The Father except thru God The Son
- Christ chooses those He reveals the Father to (we don’t really ‘Choose Jesus’)
23 Then when they were alone, he turned to the disciples and said, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you have seen. 24 I tell you, many prophets and kings longed to see what you see, but they didn’t see it. And they longed to hear what you hear, but they didn’t hear it.”
- Christ shares this last part only with the 12
- You are being given much, so much more than prophets and Kings
- Many with strong desires to know God fully were not given what the 12 got
Summary:
It’s God’s field & harvest; we prayerfully ask God to multiply us & call our partners.
To work with Christ we must go where danger is, but He provides for our eternal safety.
Offering Christ’s Peace is the ultimate blessing, & our calling as Christ’s disciples.
Those given more opportunity will be judged more harshly regarding their response.
Working with Christ by His power is awesome. Christ’s salvation is ‘The Awesomest’!
Thinking we are wise & clever impairs our vision of God; humility opens our eyes.
Realize how fortunate you are if Christ has chosen you, so live thankfully & graciously.
Application Challenges:
Will you live for eternity and not to stay alive, trusting in Christ’s Peace without fear?
Will you live like God Provides everything, so you can follow where He leads?
Will you live trusting Christ’s Power He gives You to do His Kingdom Work?
Will you live from a place of gratitude for the Privilege of living your life for Christ?