Go 2x2 | Luke 10:1-12
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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.
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After these things
After these things
At the beginning of Luke 10:1 when the passage says, “After these things...” Luke was referring to the teaching that Jesus had already completed and the journey that He had been on. In particular, Jesus had just finished discussing the cost of being His disciple (Luke 9:57-62). That touches a little bit on the message from last week, when we learned that whilst our own human nature may lean towards an attitude of selfish giving, Jesus’ spiritual nature taps into the very resources of heaven and we can now give generously without having to count the cost. In these previous verses, Jesus had just taught that whilst the cost of following Him according to the flesh were very high, our reward is in fact in heaven and of a spiritual nature, after all these are the things that last.
Now it seems like a fairly counter-intuitive thing to do when recruiting disciples to tell them of how hard the work is going to be and how they will need to make some very difficult choices. Jesus is never concerned about convincing us into His Kingdom. In fact, He is very open and honest about the challenges that lie ahead.
So it’s in the light of this context that we now look at how Jesus sent out His disciples and the expectations that He had for them. It’s important for us to remember that whilst some of the language He used was specific to the time He was living in, the principles we’re about to learn are in fact timeless.
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Jesus gave very specific instructions
Jesus gave very specific instructions
Jesus was very specific about how He wanted His disciples to go out. These principles still stand today. If we’re going to go out in obedience to God’s call then we have to do it His way otherwise we’ll get mauled by the wolves. It is only the power of God that sustains us in our ministry.
Pray (Luke 10:2)
Know that you will be persecuted (Luke 10:3)
Don’t take stuff and don’t garner supporters (Luke 10:4)
Take peace and give it freely (Luke 10:5-6)
Stay with those who receive you and let them look after you (Luke 10:7-8)
Preach the Gospel where you are welcomed (Luke 10:9)
Leave those who reject you (Luke 10:10-11)
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Jesus has sent us all
Jesus has sent us all
18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
There is no question that we have all been sent by Jesus into the world to make disciples. Luke 10:1-12 teaches us how to actually do that. This is a commandment and a call to obedience. So what then are we going to do about it?
So the call for our obedience this morning is single-minded; will you go 2x2? I find it very interesting that Jesus didn’t send the disciples out individually. He told them to go with one other person. The 70 that He sent out needed to go in pairs. If you’re wondering who might go with you and who that other person might be for you, Jesus has provided that for us as well. In Matt 28:20 He reminded us all that He has gifted us with the helper, the Holy Spirit of God. He will be with us till the end of the age. You can’t ask for a better partner than that!
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It’s only in our going that life can happen
It’s only in our going that life can happen
It’s only in our obedient going that the redeemed life of Jesus in you can take root. It is essential for a born again believer to obey the Word of God. This will not rest heavily on you, nor will it make you feel guilty, but He will convict you. The Spirit of God whom you have received stirs within us all as our partner in ministry and the Christian life. Is there a holy discontent in you? Do you feel there’s more to life than this? Is the Spirit stirring within you but you just can’t seem to figure out where to go or what to do? Jesus has given us His Holy Spirit to stir us up into good works, and to wake us up from our lethargy.
That takes away all of our excuses. We can’t complain about the person beside us not pulling their weight. We can’t worry about not having enough resources or knowledge or time, because Jesus told us not to take anything. We can’t worry about what we’re going to do when we get there because He told us to take the peace of the Gospel with us. The Jews call that ‘Shalom’. We don’t have to worry about how much to give or what to give, because He told us that it is the abundance of Heaven that we get to pour out and not anything from ourselves. You don’t need to worry about where you’re going to go or who you’ve been sent to, because Jesus has given us clear guidelines for how we will know who they are. He told us He would provide for us and more importantly, He told us how to identify the ones He has prepared for us to minister to. He also told us who to walk away from. There are no excuses!
So here are the steps to a fulfilled life with an absolutely clear conscience:
Pray everyday for more disciples
Live and breathe the Word of God
Go and do life with the people who receive Him
Walk away from those who don’t
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Will you go 2x2?
Will you go 2x2?
1 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.
There is no fear or worry or stress. There is just obedience to the Word of God through the power of His Holy Spirit. Will you go 2x2?