In Luke 9 and Luke 10 Jesus sent two different groups on
very similar missions. In Luke 9:1-2 He sent the twelve: “Then He called His
twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons,
and to cure diseases. He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the
sick.” In Luke 10:1-9, He sent the seventy: “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.” “…. And heal the sick
there, and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you” (v. 9).
We need to note that the special power that Jesus gave to
His Apostles (Luke 9:1) and to the Seventy (Luke 10:9), is not ours to claim
today. They were sent to proclaim that the King was there because Jesus was
there, and also they were given the power to heal. These two preaching missions
were very special ministries, and God did not promise to duplicate them in our
age. Our Lord's commission to us emphasizes the proclamation of the message,
not the performing of miracles (Matthew 28:19-20; Luke 24:46-49).
This does not mean that we can’t pray for people to be
healed, as we are encouraged to do in James 5. We can pray for miracles, but I’m
convinced that the “sign” gifts were only for the early church and not for
today as we have the complete Word of God, the Bible to preach and proclaim.
God can definitely do miracles and heal people today, but I have yet to meet or
know of anyone with the special gift to heal. If I did, I would encourage them
to go to the nearest hospital and clear it out.
In Luke 10, when Jesus sent the seventy on their special
mission, He first reminded them that their calling was a difficult one. They
were like laborers in the harvest fields and their task was more than they
could handle by themselves, and an important aspect of their work would be to
pray for more laborers. Next the Lord warned them that their ministry would be
dangerous. They would be like lambs among wolves. They would be hated and
persecuted by the world that loves the pleasures of their sins more than they
desire to be delivered from them.
Now in Luke 10:4-11, Jesus is probably detailing the greatest
problem and difficulty in fulfilling their calling and task. Especially if you
read these verses carefully, Jesus is reminding them that their work would require
discipline and faith and they would face the “Weapons of Mass Distractions”.
The first distractions Jesus mentioned was worrying about money, food, and clothing:
“Carry neither money bag, knapsack, nor sandals”. They might be distracted
with people wanting to waste their time talking about temporal things: “and
greet no one along the road”.
They could be distracted by who receives them or rejects
them. Or maybe by a better house to stay in. Jesus seems to be pretty specific
about the danger of all these distractions. When people have asked me over the
years how they could pray for me, I would most often reply: “Pray that I don’t keep
getting distracted”! I have found that I’m not easily discouraged, but I most
definitely get easily distracted. Especially with the technology of media and
cell phones today! If today’s chat is not for anyone else, it is for me!
We used to say that the devil’s best tool to keep believers
from serving was “discouragement”. But today, I think it might be “distractions”,
like Jesus points out in this passage!
May the Lord help us today to keep focused on our main
responsibility and calling, which is to share Jesus with the world around us!
God bless!
