Sent Into the World

Text for the Morning

Mark 6:7-13

Preaching and Teaching

English Standard Version Chapter 10

14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? 15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” 16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” 17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

Introduction

Good morning and happy Mother’s Day. I praise God that you are here with us this morning and I pray that you are specially blessed today.

The text for this morning, as you heard, is about when Jesus sends out his disciples. One of the great and sobering realities of the Scriptures is that God chooses to use people to accomplish what He has designed. Even after the Fall of man, God did not give up His vision of humans having dominion over the earth and imaging Him throughout the earth.

In our text for this morning, what is so fascinating is that Jesus clicks His disciples into service so that they can go and represent Him and the gospel of the coming Kingdom to the people of Israel. Right out of the gate, we are seeing a sort of return emerging in this text.

Practical Center of this Morning: Your life matters to the Kingdom of God. In fact, God will use your life to impact others. Many of you also are disciple-makers and work diligently to train up your children or others in the way that they should go. At some point there is a “sending” that occurs within the life/ministry of a disciple. It is in the process of going that many of us will see and learn and experience parts of who God and our divine intended purpose.

Context 1 (Immediate)

Jesus has just been rejected at Nazareth. Those who should have had the greatest knowledge about Jesus refused to believe and therefore missed a great opportunity to receive Him.

Challenge with the text - 6b “he went round about the villages teaching.” Q. Where does this statement go?

Attached to the previous story (as is normally rendered) and intended to signal that when Jesus was rejected He moved on.

Attached to the “sending” to note that Jesus is around as he has His disciples go in this first sending experience.

Both are possible.

Context 2 (Discipling Across the Book)

Recall that Jesus has been training His disciples for some time now.

Calling

Mark 1:17 - Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.

Mark 2:13 - (Levi) Follow me

Serving

Mark 2:1 - Jesus makes His home in Peter’s house

Mark 3:9 - Get the boat

Appointing

Mark 3:13-19 - Jesus calls them apostles, assigns them authority

Teaching

Mark 4:10-11 - Jesus gives secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven to His disciples

1 Co. 2:6-8 - Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away. But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory. None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of Glory.

1 Co. 2:14 - The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.

Mark 4:40 - Jesus calms a storm and asks: “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?”

Add in all of the miracles, and reversals of expectations and you get what they disciples have experienced up to this point.

[Summary]

The disciples, to the point of 6:7-13 have received:

Called [All are called]

Served [We ought to be a mobile church]

Appointed

Taught

Quick note: Parents, you are in the best position to do these things with your kids. Who is going to discern the giftings and callings of your kids before you?

Jesus discerns here: it is time for you to be sent.

Text Engagement

V.7

Sent out two by two [*kingly connotation of delegates being sent forth]

Could be a legal protection - Deut. 17:6, Num. 35:30

Gave authority over unclean spirits (see Mark 3:14-15)

Deut 3:2 & Josh. 10:8 - Og of Bashan and Canaanites

Note - Who is giving the authority and power?

Q. What do the disciples need to bring to the table in this transaction?

V.8

Don’t take anything for their journey except a staff

Reliance on God

No bread, bag, or money

Things that give people a false sense of security

V.9

Wear sandals and don’t put on two tunics

Footwear, but not loading on extra clothes in anticipation of problems

V.10

Stay at one place until you depart from that region

Jesus models this at Capernaum

V.11

If anyone won’t listen to you, shake the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.

Ideally, feet would be washed by servants — the testimony sign is a visual “seal” of the fact that these people rejected a servant of God

Possible link with ancient Jewish practice of shaking dust off their feet from alien soil. Effectively stating “these people are pagans who are worthy of judgment!”

Sober thought: Jesus is commanding His disciples to discern when an “end” has been reached in a mission. Practically, this would be akin to looking at a person who you’ve spent a bunch of time with, the needle doesn’t move, and you are right where you started months/years later. What should you do? Invest your life elsewhere.

V.12

So they went out and proclaimed that people should repent (See Mark 1:15)

V.13

Cast out many demons

Anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them

Both intended to be visible signs of power of the coming Kingdom.

Luke 10:17-20 (after the 70 returns)

Ongoing Teaching for the Disciples

Mark 6:30-39

Disciples report to Jesus everything that happens and he instructs rest.

When people recognize Jesus and the disciples, Jesus commands the disciples to feed the multitude.

This feeding and teaching about the loaves is just as much about the disciples as it is about the crowd. (See Mark 6:52)

12 Baskets left over (v. 43) - Jesus cares for His disciples

Jesus is calling them to do big things and they are not believing that they can do them.

“I don’t think that you realize just how big my call is upon your life or the power that you possess because I said ‘GO!’”

Conclusion

In our text today, Mark extended our vision of discipleship:

Called [All are called]

Served [We ought to be a mobile church]

Appointed

Taught

Sent

Commanded to Rest

Trained and Refined

Q. Where are you in this journey?

Q. Where are those whom God has entrusted you to disciple?

Exhortations for Mothers

Don’t lose sight of the total greatness of your mission and work in discipling your kids.

This is so easy to do when you’ve responded to the same question 15 times, and the kids are at each other’s throat, and the special time you planned for the morning ended up being a yelling fest, and...

Don’t feel defeated

Just as the disciples weren’t operating in their own authority, neither are you. You are an ambassador to your family, and the authority that you carry into the home for Jesus doesn’t depend on you being awesome all the time. What Jesus is calling you to, just like every other disciple, is faith and obedience.