Untitled Sermon
Many ministers need to “shake the dust off” of past failures, not in defiance of those who would not listen, but in dependence on the authority of Christ upon whom rests the ultimate matter of acceptance and rejection
There will always be those who will reject the messenger and the message of God. Ministers become so much a part of the ministry that when their message is rejected, they can suffer personal rejection that can put a lid on their effectiveness
However, not everyone would welcome them, and when they met with rejection Jesus told them to “shake the dust off your feet when you leave their town, as a testimony against them” (9:5).
In these verses, the disciples witnessed God’s glory on the mountain peak and their inability to perform miracles in the valley
Jesus and those who followed Him moved rather quickly through the emotions that accompanied acceptance and rejection, praise and ridicule, as well as divine miracles and human inadequacy
Commitment to Christ must transcend the emotional ups and downs of life.
Through these undistinguished and ill-equipped men, Jesus is able to conquer the world with the gospel (CHRYSOSTOM).
As Jesus commissioned them to do, the Twelve go without the trappings of security, “just in case.” Had they gone with money and extra provisions, their witness would have been undercut by such an evident lack of faith in God and trust in the hospitality of the people. (How many of the church’s sermons are contradicted by budgets and programs of self-protection and security!)
For the itinerary they are to be totally dependent on God and, like the Levites, they could anticipate hospitality and support
They will witness to and demonstrate in powerful acts the present and coming kingdom of God
Their assignment is threefold: exorcise demons, heal, and preach the reign of God
to priority over the best, not the worst, of human relationships. Jesus
Jesus never said to choose him over the devil but to choose him over the family. And the remarkable thing is that those who have done so have been freed from possession and worship of family and have found the distance necessary to love them.