This morning’s scripture portion occurs after Jesus and the disciples have had a successful ministry around the
The townspeople are astonished. It this our home town boy? Is this the same Jesus who played at the well with our sons? Is this the young man who made the doors and window frames in our homes? Yes, it is, but their reaction is not what we might hope. They are upset. They are angry. Instead of hailing Jesus as a great teacher, they accuse him of putting on airs, of reaching above his station, perhaps even of abandoning his mother whom he should be supporting.
Instead of joy at all the wonderful things Jesus has done, they are jealous of his fame and his favor. Instead of believing that Jesus is the messiah, or even a prophet of God, they see only the small boy who should know his place in the world.
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Scripture tells us that he could do no miracles there. This was not, I believe, because of their unbelief, but because of their unwillingness to accept them. The gospel of Mark tells of many healings that did not require the belief of the one being healed – but then as now, we have the mixed blessing and curse of free will. God through Jesus stands always ready to answer prayer, but then as now God will not force the Holy Presence on anyone who does not want it. Then as now each of us rejects Jesus in some way. Each of us has heard the voice of God calling us to prayer and we have decided we are too busy. Each of us has heard the voice of God calling us to speak a word of comfort to a friend and we have held out tongues. Each of us has heard the voice of God calling us to go and do in God’s name, and we have snuggled up in our comfort zone saying, ‘Not me.’
Jesus knows that even the disciples are not immune to such shirking of God’s voice, so he sends them out into the world on mission journeys of their own. He sends them out two-by-two so that they may help and comfort one another, but he doesn’t send them with much more. No food, no money, no change of clothes – not even a referral or letter of introduction to the next town or a reservation at the local Holiday Inn.
He commands them to go and prevents them from taking all the things they’ll need for the journey.
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Two weeks ago my husband, Paul, and packed and moved a lot of our stuff from one house to another. It always amazes me, the closer you get to moving day, the more the amount of stuff you have seems to expand.
Each of us has been in situations when if we hadn’t brought it, we would have done without and if it hadn’t been there we would have been in trouble. So we have a lot of stuff because we are accustomed to having only ourselves to rely on and we like to always be prepared for whatever might happen.
But the point is, there is almost no end to the amount of ‘stuff’ we think we have to have even on a short trip. The list of things we want to have along ‘just in case’ is a pretty long list – and I am as guilty of this over-packing and over-preparing and over having as much as the next guy.
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I think the reason we do this is that we all tend to be prepared so we can rely on ourselves. We want to leave nothing to chance. We don’t want to risk going without or being ill-equipped. We want to rely on ourselves instead or relying on good luck or providence – or even the love and care of God.
But sometimes – like just last week - carrying around all that ‘stuff’ can become quite a burden. You see, the more stuff you have, the more you have to worry about taking care of it: keeping it safe, keeping it dry, keeping it clean, packing and unpacking – and carrying it all around with you wherever you go.
When Jesus sends the disciples out two-by-two to minister in the world, he understands that they will have plenty to do without carrying around lots of stuff – and what’s more, they will learn a lot about the providence of God and the importance of relying on the people of God.
In first century culture, the principle of hospitality – of offering safety and room and board to every passing traveler – was an important custom. In fact, in an age when traveling to a strange place could be a dangerous activity, the practice of offering hospitality was an important custom of the early church that helped spread the gospel into the farthest corners of the Roman Empire.
It was also an important first century practice to provide room and board to honored teachers. Paul talks about this practice in 1st Corinthians. If the disciples find eager ears and open hearts in their travels, the community will be quick to offer them hospitality and make them welcome.
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Jesus may have sent the disciples out into the world without a lot of stuff to weigh them down and get in the way of their ministry, but he did not send them out empty-handed. Already they had been with Jesus for some time. They had heard his teachings, they had seen his calm demeanor in the midst of danger. They had seen him calm the sea, heal the sick and raise the dead. Some had even been delivered from lives of greed and deceit as they answered the call of Jesus to follow him.
Of course, few of them would have said that they were prepared to minister. Their understanding was still imperfect, their faith was still weak, their commitment would later falter - but already they carried with them all they needed to do the work of God:
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(1) They were chosen: We may wonder about Jesus’ choice of disciples: fishermen, tax collectors, a set of twins known for their volatile tempers. But make no mistake: There were still chosen. Perhaps Jesus saw them not as they were but as they could be. Jesus chose them just as they chose Jesus. Their presence in the inner circle was no mistake. There was a call, there was a calling. There was a minister and there was a ministry.
(2) They were empowered: The disciples had no power of their own. As we read through the gospel accounts, we understand that there was nothing particularly noteworthy about them or their abilities. Yet as Jesus began to send them out two by two, he gave them authority over the unclean spirits and the ability to heal. As we read through this morning’s text, we see that indeed the disciples were able to do mighty deed in the name of Christ.
(3) They were sent: Make no mistake about it: the disciples were not chomping on the bit to go out into the world on their own. They were looking for a different kind of kingdom with riches honor and power and fine living. They didn’t really understand who Jesus was. They expected a different kind of Messiah. They still relied on him for everything. Yet this journey, this journey where they took almost nothing with them, this journey of faith, was God’s will for them, was God’s way of teaching them to rely on the One who went them, was God’s way of showing them that when they realized they had no power of their own, they could fully rely on the power of God.
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The good news for us this day is that the apostles and early disciples of the church were not the only ones chosen by God to do the work of God in the world. The good news for us this day is that miracles still happen in the world, God is still in charge and we are the new disciples.
Like the disciples of old, we may not have a perfect understanding or a vast knowledge of theology.. Like the disciples of old, our faith may seem weak, we might question our commitment. We may believe that we are not worthy to carry the Good News to neighbor or friend, that we are too young or too old, too weak, too unlearned or that we have made too many mistakes in our lives to be useable in work of God’s kingdom.
But like the disciples, we too carry with us all we need to do the work of God:
(1) Each of us is chosen: God in sovereignty and love called out to each of us and we are each precious in the sight of God. The One who called us will never leave us or forsake us. The one who called us will always guard us and keep us.
(2) We are all empowered: No one who answers the call of God is left alone in the world. Although this world and all the evil in it sometimes seem to be getting the upper hand, even though when we look around at the world, it seems to be breaking apart before our very eyes, God is at work, good will prevail, nothing that God has created and called Holy will be lost.
After the resurrection came Pentecost and with Pentecost came the Holy Spirit of God who descended upon every one of the believers. God’s Holy Spirit still descends and has descended on each of us.
In this, we carry about with us a greater power than the disciples in this morning’s gospel text. The Holy Spirit leads us into all truth. When our own strength fails, the Holy Spirit gives us strength. When our own wisdom and knowledge fail, the Holy Spirit gives these as well.
(3) We are all sent: God did not enliven our spirits so that we could sit quietly at home watching religious broadcasting. We did not receive the gift of the Holy Spirit so that we could simply feel good about ourselves. We did not receive the gift of the Holy presence in our lives so that we could fail to share the Good News. Like the disciples, we too are sent out into the world to do the work of God.
If scripture told us about one or two disciples who came running back to Jesus saying they couldn’t do it, we would all be shocked. Yet every day, many of us back away from opportunities to minister because we think that ministry is for someone else. It’s not. Each of us has a gift and a ministry from God. Maybe it’s the gift of prayer. Maybe it’s the ministry of a phone call to someone going through tough times. Maybe it’s the ministry of inviting others to church. But each of us has a call and a job and a command from Jesus to go and share the Good News with a dying world.
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We may not always be welcome. The good news we have to share may not be received by all who hear. Certainly Jesus was not welcome in his home town. We read here that Jesus even gave the disciples specific instructions on how to handle rejection.
The Good News for us this day is that some will hear, some will respond, some will find the healing touch of Jesus, if only we will follow the commands of God.
Amen.
