Jesus Gives Us the Best Reason to Rejoice based on Luke 10:1-20

Let us pray: Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. Amen.

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Finding reasons to complain seems to be easier than finding reasons to rejoice for some people. If your health is bad, then complaining about things is usually easier than rejoicing about life. If you have money problems, then thinking the worst about things is common and thinking the best about things is harder. If your favorite sports team loses, then some people want to fire the manager and fans are not happy. If you have family troubles, then blaming others is easier than looking at the bright side of things. Sometimes rejoicing about things in life is difficult for a lot of people.

Jesus picked seventy-two men to go ahead of him to the towns and villages that He was going to visit. According to Luke 10:2–6, “(Jesus) said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. Carry no moneybag, no knapsack, no sandals, and greet no one on the road. Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house!’ And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him. But if not, it will return to you.”

Today Jesus might say something a little different to people like us. He might say go and carry no credit card, no money, no extra clothes, no smartphone, and do not wave to anyone on the road. That would be difficult for most of us today in our travels. Most of us do not like to depend on others. We do not like to have to ask others to help us. We want to be in control. Most of us do not want to have to look to God for help on a daily basis. If we have a difficult challenge, then we might pray to God for help. Most of the time we would rather depend on ourselves and our abilities.

Jesus also told the seventy-two men in Luke 10:7–8 , “And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages. Do not go from house to house. Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you.”

Most of us, when we travel, would rather eat at a restaurant and order what we want to eat. We would rather not have to depend on the goodness of others to prepare meals for us. Maybe we might not like what someone else cooks for us. Maybe we would even refuse to eat some food set before us, because we are not sure if we would like that food that we have never tried eating before.

In Luke 10:9 Jesus told the seventy-two men what their purpose was: “Heal the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’”

They were not going ahead of Jesus for themselves only. They were to heal sick people in the name of Jesus. They were to tell people in the towns and villages the good news that the kingdom of God has come near to the people they visited.

Jesus also had words of judgment for certain people in Luke 10:10–16 “But whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you, go into its streets and say, ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet we wipe off against you. Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near.’ I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town. Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. But it will be more bearable in the judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You shall be brought down to Hades. The one who hears you hears me, and the one who rejects you rejects me, and the one who rejects me rejects him who sent me.”

People in the towns and villages who rejected the seventy-two men Jesus sent would hear harsh words. Rejecting the seventy-two meant rejecting Jesus. Rejecting Jesus meant rejecting the Heavenly Father who sent Jesus.

We are not told how many people were kind to the seventy-two men or how many rejected them. If any people did reject them, they soon forgot about that.

Luke 10:17–20 tells us, “The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, 'Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!' And he said to them, 'I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.'”

The men returned to Jesus rejoicing over all the things they had seen in the towns and villages they visited. Even demons could not stand against them, because the name of Jesus was too powerful.

If we would have been in their place, then we would have rejoiced also. What an amazing time that must have been for the seventy-two men. They saw the power of God in action.

When things go well for us, then we like to rejoice in life. When our health is restored, then we are happy. When our money problems are over, then we are glad. When our favorite sports team wins, then we praise the manager. When we get through our family troubles, then we rejoice.

Jesus gave the seventy-two and each one of us the best reason to rejoice. The best reason to rejoice is that your names are written in heaven. That is not because of how good we try to be. That is not because of how well we obey the Ten Commandments. The reason our names are written in heaven is because of Jesus and His saving mission. Jesus came to go through the struggles and difficulties we go through, but He never did anything wrong. Jesus came to take our sins and wrongs with Him to the cross. Jesus came to die in our place. Jesus came to offer Himself as a once-for-all sacrifice. Jesus came to set us free from sin, death, and the devil. Jesus came to suffer, die, rise, and ascend to heaven to prepare a place for us in heaven. The troubles of life make rejoicing hard to do sometimes. No matter what comes our way in life though we can trust the words of Jesus. The gift of faith in Jesus helps us rejoice in our struggles, because we believe that the best reason to rejoice is that our names our written in heaven. Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.