Nevertheless the Kingdom of God Has Come Near
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Intro: This morning we saw where Jesus had called Peter and others to follow Him and He would make them “Fishers of Men.” Tonight we are going to look at where Jesus sent some disciples out fishing.
Text; Luke 10:1-12
1 After these things the Lord appointed seventy others also, and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself was about to go.
2 Then He said to them, “The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.
3 Go your way; behold, I send you out as lambs among wolves.
4 Carry neither money bag, knapsack, nor sandals; and greet no one along the road.
5 But whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’
6 And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest on it; if not, it will return to you.
7 And remain in the same house, eating and drinking such things as they give, for the laborer is worthy of his wages. Do not go from house to house.
8 Whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you.
9 And heal the sick there, and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’
10 But whatever city you enter, and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say,
11 ‘The very dust of your city which clings to us we wipe off against you. Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near you.’
12 But I say to you that it will be more tolerable in that Day for Sodom than for that city.
Each new day we are given the opportunity to serve Christ in various ways. In that service we are also confronted with the choice of trusting Him and see fruit from our labors or we trust ourselves and reap a spiritual famine. Regardless, we will give an account for the opportunities given us and how we handle them.
Jesus instructs these disciples of harvest opportunities and what must be done when they enter that field.
1. Pray for the Harvest; 1-2
1. Pray for the Harvest; 1-2
The harvest is a reference to the souls of men. The opportunity to reap is now, but the obstacle is there are few laborers to reap the harvest of men’s souls. A crop that is ripe will rot if it is not harvested.
J. Vernon McGee makes a valuable statement concerning our text; We must remember where Jesus was when He made that statement. He was on the other side of the cross at the time, and an age was coming to an end. At the end of every age is judgment. The judgment that ends an age is a harvest, and the age itself is for the sowing of seed.
Israel had been waiting for their Messiah for centuries. People like Simeon and Anna were in the temple looking for the Consolation of Israel, and God answered their prayers. Yet most of Israel was looking for an earthly ruler instead of a spiritual ruler. Jesus is giving Israel one last time to trust Him before the age of the Law comes to an end at Calvary.
35 Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest!
11 He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.
The first great work of Christian evangelism is done on our knees in prayer. We must earnestly seek the Lord to supply laborers, including ourselves. The problem is not that there is no harvest. The problem is that there are too few laborers, too few Christians doing the work of telling people about Jesus.
3 meanwhile praying also for us, that God would open to us a door for the word, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in chains,
1 Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may run swiftly and be glorified, just as it is with you,
I believe that we are to sow seed today, and water that seed with compassion in Christ and at the end of this age there will be a harvest.
30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’ ”
Are you praying, planting and watering for the Harvest to come?
2. Message of Peace; 3-9
2. Message of Peace; 3-9
The message of the Gospel is a message of peace. That is “peace with God” and the “peace of God.”
For the message about Jesus to be good news, we must understand the bad news. The bad news is, God is a God of condemnation. The good news is, we can escape his condemnation through faith in his Son.
16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
18 “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
11 Finally, brethren, farewell. Become complete. Be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you.
15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.
To share the message of peace we have to carry it in total trust of God, an urgency of the times and with an attitude of compassion.
[3] Lambs among wolves refers to their vulnerability. The world is not a pleasant place. The harvest was going to involve intensive labor and possibly danger.
Serving God today requires courage under fire and discernment among counterfeits. Pray and find a way to become better educated about the opposition you face.
[4] Jesus wanted these men to stay focused on their task at hand, the harvest! They must trust Him for provision and protection and they were not to spend to much time on Oriental greetings, but to be polite and be on their way.
[5-6] They were to seek out a house or family that was accepting of the message of Jesus to stay. If one was not accepting then they were to look elsewhere.
As we share the gospel message today, it will divide people based on one of two responses: acceptance bringing peace, or rejection bringing punishment.
[7-8] This verse is more-so fixed in this context of time. The Jews were hospitable people and would open their homes to other Jews. These men were to stay at one house and not seek around for better provisions. Today this may refer to a traveling evangelist or missionary.
[9] One of the ways to bless that family was to heal the sick in their homes for their hospitality to the Lord’s servants.
These men were preaching a message of faith and trust in God. They needed to live what they were preaching and become an example of dependency on God . It’s a lot easier to plant seeds for the harvest when we walk by faith and not by sight!
3. Nevertheless; 10-12
3. Nevertheless; 10-12
Jesus reminds these 70 of their purpose. Harvesting the house of Israel before the end of the age of the Law.
Israel had been the chosen of God to receive His Law and be a light for the nations of the earth. They had been given the promises and covenant of God through Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and it was being fulfilled right before their eyes in the Person of Jesus Christ. The rejection of greater light brings greater judgment.
[11] Wiping off the dust from one’s feet was an expression of “being unworthy” in Jewish culture. This was a final call to those who had rejected the King, warning them that they were being rejected by Him. Despite their rejection, they could be sure of this, that “the kingdom of God had come near.” [Jesus had given them opportunity]
Opportunity speaks of urgency. The opportunity to reach people for Christ today may be lost tomorrow. People need to know that the Kingdom of God is Near!
1 I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom:
2 Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.
3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers;
4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.
5 But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.
Sodom was a place of utter wickedness that God destroyed with fire and brimstone. Sodom will face God’s wrath in the judgment but those who have had the opportunity to see their Messiah and then reject Him will face an even greater wrath from God in the judgment.
Accountability comes with opportunity. The greater the opportunity, the greater is the accountability.
Close;
[H. A. Ironside]; Our scripture deals with a very important time in Israel’s history. It was a time of crisis. Everything depended on the attitude of the people toward our Lord Jesus. Would they receive Him? If not, they must remain in their sins, and they would never enter the kingdom for which they had been waiting. There were comparatively few who opened their hearts and homes to the messengers and their message, but to them came blessing. As for the rest, they were left in their sins. The very dust of their cities was a witness against them. Nevertheless the fact remained that the kingdom of God had come nigh unto them.
The Gospel deals with a very important time in the history of the world today. We are in a time of crisis and everything depends upon the attitude of people towards the Lord Jesus Christ. Will people receive Him as Savior?
If they do, they will receive a blessing of abundant life today and eternal life to come. If they do not, people will remain in their sin and perish under the wrath of Almighty God.
Nevertheless, the question that must be answered tonight is this;
Are you carrying the Gospel Net into the world, fishing for the souls of men?