Training in Service of the Master

Training in Service of the Master - Luke 9:1-10a

INTRO:

The essence of being trained is to know (up here) what to do and then to be practiced (to have skill) so as to respond rightly (almost instinctively) under pressure.

I don’t know why we should think that we would be successful in serving the Lord if we are slothful in training (practicing what we know is right).

As we do so (train ourselves for godliness, 1 Tim. 4:6-8), we ourselves are being shaped and fitted to be instruments in the hands of the one who is sufficient to accomplish his aims.

Ministry Training - Sending the Twelve on a Short Mission

Even before they comprehend what the full message of Jesus will be, the Master is preparing them for the task he will give them once his mission is completed.

Jesus trains his disciples to… share the message by Christ’s authority (doing good as a means of drawing attention to the message), depend on God in the journey (living differently than others [who might travel with a religious message]), and let the proclamation be testimony against those who reject the message (you were warned of the nearness of the kingdom and your need for repentance).

-Jesus called the Twelve together: Although we might not often picture it this way, they were apparently not always with Jesus, as some of them were family men. He sent them out in pairs, we are told in Mark.

-He gave them power & authority - HIS authority, HIS power - As one who is sent as an ambassador, he/she has no power or authority apart from the one who sent him.

-Including power to heal… to perform the same kinds of activity that he has been doing for people. (This would later be a sign of their apostolic authority as well. Although God at times heals in answer to the prayers of his saints, this unique power in specific individuals seems to have ceased with the apostolic age.)

Are we now powerless? We spread the news by whose authority?

Acts 1:8 ESV

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Matthew 28:18–19a ESV

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

-So Jesus sent them out on this occasion to do two things: proclaim the kingdom and heal - Basically, shortly after this Jesus will set his face toward Jerusalem (9:51), so even though he has become popular in the region, not everyone has heard. He sends out the twelve now to be sure the message goes throughout all of Galilee (that the kingdom is near and therefore people need to repent). And of course it is obvious that he does this as training. These twelve will be more prepared to help the 72 whom Jesus sends out to villages ahead of him as he journeys toward Jerusalem. And as we said earlier, all this is preparing them for their future ministry.

Again, why the healings?

Mercy serves as a means of drawing attention to the message. (We must not neglect mercy. Neither can we allow mercy to be an end in itself. The true mercy is to share the satisfaction of humanity’s greatest need.) - Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes are an example… so is being a kind and hospitable neighbor. **Also, here’s another opportunity for you. With Servant Ninjas (kids ministry) last year, Mitch Vaught put together these bags of goodies to give to those you come across who are in need. As you leave today, take one or two in your vehicle with you to give to someone. (Especially if you have kids, we encourage you to do this!)

Proclaiming the kingdom and the gospel are equated here (see v. 6), thus showing that the good news is that the kingdom of God is near through Jesus the Messiah (There is more to it than they yet know, which begins to be developed shortly hereafter (vv. 20-22), but the essence of it is there.)

(Steve Cole) “The kingdom refers to the fact that God is King or Sovereign and that people must submit to His rule over their lives. The gospel is that if anyone will turn from his sins (see parallel, “repent,” in Mark 6:12) and submit to Jesus as King, God will graciously forgive his sins and welcome him into His kingdom.”

Sharing the gospel of Jesus and how God has changed us through him is so much easier said than done! Why? - There are many reasons, and most of them make us feel guilty (and then we still do nothing about it!). Here’s the most obvious one, and it’s one we can do something about. The #1 reason we don’t share our faith: lack of preparation and practice.

Isn’t this what the local church should be, the family by which the Lord trains and equips us for service?

Let me recommend a resource: Sharing Jesus Without Freaking Out (by Alvin Reid), $10 - New 2nd edition by Hildreth & McKinion, $20 or $8 on kindle. (Idea: work through this with your community group or other study group.) - “The Story” evangelism tract and phone app.

-Ok, Jesus also tells them this time to “Travel light”. - Why? For one thing, this is brief (what we might call a short-term mission trip). But also, and especially, he wants them to trust God for every need. They need to begin to learn to depend on God & not be like other religious peddlers (not going from house to house seeking accommodation and financial support… be content to stay with whoever receives you hospitably) - We should not assume that this was intended to be normative for all future missionary efforts. (See Luke 22:35-36 - When you go out in ministry now, you will need to be more prepared for the long haul.)

-And one last thing, before the summary of their obedience to his commissioning them, he tells them how to handle rejection some villages: Where people do not receive you well (as you proclaim the message), knock the dust off your feet as testimony against them. - “When Jews returned home from a Gentile country, they would shake the dust off their feet to signify their breaking ties with the Gentiles. In this way the Twelve signified that certain Jewish townspeople were like Gentiles who would not listen or believe.” -John A. Martin, “Luke,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 228.

They obeyed (v. 6), and later returned (v. 10a) to debrief with Jesus. This, no doubt, should cause us to picture the apprenticeship model where Jesus uses what they’re telling him as a teaching opportunity to reinforce and sharpen, even correct them in their training process.

In the meantime, Luke inserts here this information:

Ministry Impact - Rousing Herod’s Interest

Herod is perplexed, not sure what to make of what he is hearing about Jesus. As whole, “The passage reveals the widening effect of Jesus’ ministry.” (Bock, 821)

-Herod Antipas is the son of Herod the Great (who had been king at Jesus’ birth) and, as Luke uses the technical term instead of generic “king” for ruler, the tetrarch over Galilee and Perea.

The activity of Jesus in Herod’s region catches his attention, and he wants to see him. (and eventually he will - 23:6-12) Luke may mention this here because the activity of sending out the twelve in pairs likely stirred even further commotion in Galilee.

Speculation is going around about who Jesus is, and some seem to think he’s Elijah coming back… as promised from the O.T., but Jesus explains that John was in fact that one (Mt. 11:13-14), who came in the spirit and power of Elijah (Lk 1:17). - Others were speculating another great prophet arisen (maybe such as Moses or Jeremiah).

Herod fixates on the idea of John, even though now Luke indicates his doubt. (and rightly so, for he personally had John beheaded) - Matt. and Mark and this point tell us of what Herod seems to resolve later in his mind, that Jesus must be this same John come back to life.

As we have previously seen, an important emphasis in Luke is now brought out through the eyes of the ruler of this region: “Both Jesus’ message and miracles raise the question of who he is.” (Bock, 820) - We want the unique message we share and the dramatic difference in our lives to be evidence that begs a response: Who is this Jesus?

Finally, Luke tells us that Herod wants to see Jesus. (Bob Deffinbaugh) gives some reasons Herod would take interest in Jesus:

(1) Herod was a Jew, at least in religion [his father was Idumean by Jewish by religion], and may have had some religious interest in Messiah.

(2) Herod was a king, and Jesus and His disciples were going about his territory, preaching about THE KINGDOM OF GOD. Herod the Great [the father of this Herod] was so fearful of losing his territory that he was threatened by the birth of a baby, and that he would kill innocent children to rid himself of a potential rival. No doubt Herod Antipas was apprehensive about this Jesus and His teaching.

(3) Herod was guilty of the murder of John the Baptist, and thus he was haunted by guilt and by a fear that he may have been raised from the dead. John may well have spoken of resurrection from the dead in connection with his preaching on the kingdom of God. Since the message of Jesus (and now His disciples) was the same as that of John, Herod feared that the person was the same, too.

(4) Herod wanted to see Jesus to see a miracle. - When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see him. From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him perform a miracle. (Lk 23:8)

Again, the message we share and the lives of distinction we live may very well not draw the kind of attention we would normally think we want. It may rouse curiosity; it may very well rouse opposition.

[Here’s one last thing for us to consider as we conclude...]

From Luke’s presentation we see that everyone must decide where Jesus fits, what to do with Jesus.

Everyone Must Decide What to Do With Jesus.

In deciding what to do with Jesus, you then either become his opponent, or his servant. He is either our Master (Lord), or we must strike him down and erase him. - This explains the heart response of vehement opposition. They believe this heinous lie is some dastardly evil being perpetrated against mankind, and they see themselves as the bearers of that news.

Once we know him as Lord, our life objective becomes to serve him, and we continually aim to be trained in his service.

And we must remember that there are many who remain undecided about Jesus because they are absorbed in the things of this world and don’t give God and Jesus much thought. The task of the church is to spread the news so that everyone on the planet is confronted with the need to answer this question: Who is this Jesus they proclaim and serve?