June 16, 2002

Matthew 9:35-10:23

Then Jesus made a circuit of all the towns and villages. He taught in their meeting places, reported kingdom news, and healed their diseased bodies, healed their bruised and hurt lives. When he looked out over the crowds, his heart broke. So confused and aimless they were, like sheep with no shepherd. "What a huge harvest!" he said to his disciples. "How few workers! On your knees and pray for harvest hands!"

The prayer was no sooner prayed than it was answered. Jesus called twelve of his followers and sent them into the ripe fields. He gave them power to kick out the evil spirits, and to tenderly care for the bruised and hurt lives. This is the list of the twelve he sent:

Simon (they called him Peter, or "Rock"),
Andrew, his brother,
James, Zebedee's son,
John, his brother,
Philip,
Bartholomew,
Thomas,
Matthew, the tax man,
James, son of Alphaeus,
Thaddaeus,
Simon, the Canaanite,
Judas Iscariot (who later turned on him).

Jesus sent his twelve harvest hands out with this charge:

"Don't begin by traveling to some faroff place to convert unbelievers. And don't try to be dramatic by tackling some public enemy. Go to the lost, confused people right here in the neighborhood. Tell them that the kingdom is here. Bring health to the sick. Raise the dead. Touch the untouchables. Kick out the demons. You have been treated generously, so live generously.

"Don't think you have to put on a fund-raising campaign before you start. You don't need a lot of equipment. You are the equipment, and all you need to keep that going is three meals a day. Travel light.

"When you enter a town or village, don't insist on staying in a luxury inn. Get a modest place with some modest people, and be content there until you leave.

"When you knock on a door, be courteous in your greeting. If they welcome you, be gentle in your conversation. If they don't welcome you, quietly withdraw. Don't make a scene. Shrug your shoulders and be on your way You can be sure that on judgment Day they'll be mighty sorry - but it's no concern of yours now.

"Stay alert. This is hazardous work I'm assigning you. You're going to be like sheep running through a wolf pack, so don't call attention to yourselves. Be as cunning as a snake, inoffensive as a dove.

"Don't be naive. Some people will impugn your motives, others will smear your reputation - just because you believe in me. Don't be upset when they haul you before the civil authorities. Without knowing it, they've done you - and me - a favor, given you a platform for preaching the kingdom news! And don't worry about what you'll say or how you'll say it. The right words will be there; the Spirit of your Father will supply the words.

"When people realize it is the living God you are presenting and not some idol that makes them feel good, they are going to turn on you, even people in your own family. There is a great irony here: proclaiming so much love, experiencing so much hate! But don't quit. Don't cave in. It is all well worth it in the end. It is not success you are after in such times but survival. Be survivors! Before you've run out of options, the Son of Man will have arrived.

<The Message >

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1. "When people realize it is the living God you are presenting and not some idol that makes them feel good, they are going to turn on you, even people in your own family."

How do you see your life in relation to GOD? Are you "presenting" GOD or "representing" GOD? This is worth your meditation/contemplation for a whole week.

2. "There is a great irony here: proclaiming so much love, experiencing so much hate!"

This may even go beyond irony to reality. What did you expect when you first connected with a living GOD? (Was there not fear within yourself so you too needed to hear, "Peace, be not afraid.") Why would that same response not be present in others? Now that you've considered it and tried to live with a living GOD, can you imagine anything other than this irony/reality?

3. "But don't quit. Don't cave in. It is all well worth it in the end. It is not success you are after in such times but survival. Be survivors! Before you've run out of options, the Son of Man will have arrived."

The word "survival" means "to really live". In common American English these have different feeling levels. To survive is to squeak by, to just barely make it - whew, I survived. To really live is filled with a voluptuous joy.

The sense here is more of survival in the midst of fleeing from persecution, but remember that there is something very important about really living even while fleeing. Without some sense of present as well as future fullness of life, ultimately mere survival is no survival at all. Where is your search for meaning taking you?

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