Sent Out

Luke 9:1 – 6

 

There were two common causes to the most heated and horrible conflicts between my dad and I on the farm: laziness, and the fact that I thought I knew better than him how to run a dairy.

 

This became especially true when I went to MJC and was taking all of these dairy management, dairy science, and ag business classes and suddenly EVERYTHING my dad had been doing on the farm for nearly the previous 40 years was wrong.

 

I graduated in 2008 and working full time on our dairy for the next two years taught me more than any classroom ever could. Then, when getting my bachelor’s degree at Cal Poly the dots began to connect. I began to see how things my dad did instinctively from experience actually made sense from an academic standpoint.

 

Now, don’t get me wrong, a good education is invaluable, but it is not the end all be all. It does not make you the resident expert on any given subject. There’s a reason master’s and doctoral degrees require experience in your field of study. Often times, experience, or the school of hard knocks is the best teacher.

 

Jesus isn’t called the Good Teacher for nothing. He is a master educator, a master disciple maker. I’ve said before, everything He has ever done has been with 100% intentionality, and that included what He did in the presence of His disciples.

 

All through chapter 8, we saw how Jesus went through cities and villages, proclaiming, preaching the gospel, bringing the good news of the kingdom of God everywhere He went, and always the 12 were with Him.

 

In everything He did, Jesus was showing and teaching the twelve what they were being called to do.

 

And it all begins and ends with proclaiming the kingdom of God, with preaching the gospel. Let’s see the next step in the training of the Twelve. Let’s read God’s Word together, beginning with Luke 9:1.

Calling the twelve together, Jesus empowers them for the short-term mission He has in store for them. He gives them power and authority over demons and disease. Could you imagine suddenly wielding that sort of power?

 

In the next chapter we’ll eventually see how amazed they were at how demons submitted to their authority, but it was never their authority, it was Christ’s. Without Christ empowering them for the mission, they would’ve been laughed at by the demons, or worse. Acts 19:13 – 16.

 

Without Christ, we can’t accomplish anything for the kingdom of God.

 

Now don’t mistake this, Christ empowered them specifically with that power. While we have the Spirit within us, the apostolic age ended with them. The demonic still exists and God can and still does miraculously heal diseases, but it’s not at our command, but by prayer, and according to His will.

 

Once He’s empowered them, he then sends them out. Making disciples is never about hoarding disciples, it’s about sending them out. The word apostle literally means, sent out one. To apostello someone was to send them out as a representative of an authority, ambassador.

 

Having been taught by Jesus, equipped with their knowledge of the secrets of God’s kingdom, and empowered by Him they are sent out to proclaim the message of the kingdom and its Lord and to heal.

 

This first mission, is essentially an apprenticeship, modeled after Jesus’ own ministry, both His actions and His words. He sends them out to cast out demons and heal the sick, but more importantly to proclaim the kingdom of God, to preach the good news of the gospel.

 

Look at this as a work-study program. (Dalhart). They’re getting the opportunity to put some of what they’ve learned into practice, because like I said in my opening, real world experience is often an excellent teacher, and it reinforces what was taught in the classroom.

 

The apostle’s short-term ministry here is built entirely on the foundation of Christ, it’s His empowerment, His methods of word and deeds, and His message about the kingdom.

Christ is discipling them to be sent ones of the One who was sent by God. Our church, our witness, our whole lives must be built on Christ, otherwise being sent out is useless and powerless.

 

Equipping and training disciples to be sent out was always Christ’s plan for them. This was field training for the twelve to grow as witnesses to Jesus throughout the known world in their day. Acts 1:8.

 

Jesus had been teaching them, both by He preached and taught and what He had done up to this point, and He still has a lot more to teach them after they get back. But before sending them out, He gives them some final practical instructions.

 

Pack light is the first instruction. You know, I’ve done my share of traveling and I hate packing. Thinking about where you’re going, what you’ll be doing, and especially looking at the weather forecast makes packing a challenge.

 

Jesus tells them to take nothing! No walking stick, no duffle, no road trip snacks, no money, and no extra clothes. Just go, with the shirt on your back and the sandals on your feet.

 

Like I said, Jesus is 100% intentional about everything He says and does, so we have to ask ourselves, why did He command this?

 

There’s four main reasons that come to the surface when looking at this and they serve as reflection points for our own lives: 1) To have them imitate His own lifestyle, are your possessions and comforts getting in the way of sharing the gospel? 2) To develop their dependence on Him and His provision, are you depending on your own strength or Christs?

 

3) To stress the urgency of their mission to proclaim the kingdom, since tomorrow isn’t promised to us, do you feel the urgency? 4) To avoid earning a bad reputation as traveling false preachers, are you practicing what you preach?

 

Much later in Luke 22 we’ll see Jesus basically reverse these instructions because the mission will shift after the cross, and so will the instructions. But the dependence and the point behind these instructions never does.

We must imitate Christ and depend wholly on Him to carry out His mission with urgency and integrity.

 

The goal is not to live such bare and minimal lifestyles, the goal is to imitate Christ, the goal is to become more and more like Christ each and every day.

 

The purpose of that is not just personal, but interpersonal. Every Christian, every disciple, is sanctified, made more like Christ in order to love like Christ, to live like Christ and for Christ. And that means every Christian is called to this mission to proclaim the gospel with urgency and integrity.

 

Christ doesn’t just tell them to pack light though. Travelling like that meant they would’ve been at the mercy of whoever they met on the road. With that in mind, Christ gives them instruction on how to deal with both those who welcome and receive them and those who don’t.

 

They were told to accept and be content with the first people who welcome them and give them a place to stay, and to stay with them until they left town. In doing this they would be planting Jesus movement in the first place they were able to, and they avoided the temptation to look around for a more comfortable place to stay.

 

Lastly, regarding those who reject the apostles and their message, they are to shake the dust off their feet and leave town. Now, this sounds weird to us, but to them this made sense. It wasn’t a sign of anger or spite.

 

Rather, it was a visible testimony that the gospel was brought to that town, that the town rejected the messengers by showing them no hospitality, and that the town rejected Christ and the kingdom of God.

 

While we don’t shake the dust off of our feet today, what Jesus was preparing the apostles for was what they should expect on the road. Just as their ministry is modeled after His, in the same way they’re going to receive the same responses of acceptance and rejection that Jesus does.

 

The same holds true today, some folks will receive the gospel by faith and others will reject it.

But when you’re tempted to feel like you’re not doing it right, remember it’s not you they’re rejecting, it’s Jesus.

 

It’ll hurt. It’ll break your heart to stand by and watch someone you know and love reject the good news you’re bringing to them, to reject Jesus. And it is rightfully sad. But understand that you’re not responsible for the outcome, God is.

 

The mission doesn’t change because of the outcome, the purpose in raising up disciples and sending them out doesn’t change. Regardless of the outcome, regardless of not having basic travelling provisions, regardless of the unknown challenges facing the apostles, they obeyed and they set out, and you must too.

 

It may seem like this world is entirely lost and that there is no hope. Sharing the gospel with a fallen world may seem like a waste of time. I promise you, nothing will stop the advancement of God’s kingdom. Nothing will stop the spread of the Gospel.

 

The truly scary part for most of us, is that we are called participate in advancing the kingdom, in spreading the gospel. To some extent, if you’re a believer in Christ, you have a part to play in carrying out Christ’s commission.

 

But here’s the reassuring part, the part that our passage speaks directly to, you’re not expected nor meant to do it alone. Christ doesn’t save you from sin and then says, now go. He disciples you. He places other more mature disciples in your life to disciple you.

 

He places you in a genuine, Bible believing church to help you in your walk with Him and to equip you to carry His gospel message with you wherever you go.

 

And He empowers you with the Holy Spirit to do it, and He gives you opportunities to practice and train and grow. And if you fail, that’s ok there’ll be another test. That’s the truth of our passage today. God empowers and equips His people for kingdom work and He gives them opportunities to grow in doing so.

 

God alone does the empowering, and while God does equip people for kingdom work through individual gifting and ability.

But God also uses other disciples and His church to equip and prepare people to share the gospel, to do the work of the ministry.

 

Today, I want to encourage you with my TP to put in the hard work, it’s worth it I promise. Commit to a life of discipleship and then live your life daily as a disciple of Jesus Christ on mission.

 

Look at how Jesus prepared His apostles and disciples for the mission. He modeled it for them. He taught them through preaching and teaching the Word, and He taught them by showing them how to love others, how to care for the least of them, and how to call people to repentance.

 

That’s my job, that’s my calling. That’s the job of the church. Ephesians 4:11 – 13. That’s the core of discipleship, to equip the saints for kingdom service, to build up the body of Christ, His church, with the goal of unity and maturity in the faith.

 

All with the purpose of being sent out to make more disciples, to proclaim the kingdom of God, to spread the gospel, the good news, of Jesus Christ in our communities, and in our world. To make more disciples, who make disciples, who make disciples.

 

It is because of Christ’s finished work on the cross, His death and resurrection, that you are able to do this. Before, you were powerless to save yourself, let alone point others to salvation in Jesus.

 

But because of Christ, when you place your faith in Him and surrender your life to Jesus, you have both the freedom from sin and the capacity to live as sent ones.

 

So live your life as a sent one and be a disciple in your home. And men, my first application is especially pointed at you, though it applies to both men and women, single or married, kids or no kids.

 

Discipleship doesn’t begin here in the worship service. It doesn’t even begin in Bible study. Discipleship begins at home, no matter what Home looks like.

 

So set aside time to study your Bible, and if you have a spouse and kids, read and study God’s Word together.

Serve one another well. And if you don’t know where to start, I can point you toward several resources that can help guide you. There is no reason you cannot worship God at home.

 

Live your life as a sent one and be a disciple in your church. Discipleship may not begin here, but discipleship is an integral part of what we do here. Come to worship regularly, stay for Bible study regularly, and serve regularly.

 

Talk to me or Pastor Rodney about Bible studies, ask Marissa about the coffee bar calendar. Take every opportunity that you can to grow in your walk with Christ that we offer you, and take every opportunity to serve that you see. You grow by studying and by doing.

 

Lastly, live out your life as a sent one and be a disciple on mission in the world. We talk about reaching our community, but here’s the reality: This church may be planted here in Delhi, but our community, while it does include it, extends well beyond it.

 

Our community, is your community. Whether you live here in Delhi or in Modesto, Gustine, Hilmar, Turlock, or wherever you live. Whether you work at the school, from home, in health care, drive a truck, work for an ag company, you’re self-employed, or retired.

 

Whether you’re in grade school, high school, or college. Whether you shop at Safeway, Rancho San Miguel, Walmart, or Liberty Market. Whether you play cornhole, rodeo, bowl or go fishing, your community is our community because you’re a part of this church.

 

Understand that many of you will reach people through your circles that some of us may never meet, and that’s ok, that’s how God designed it. Disciple them. Tell them about Jesus. Bring them to church.

 

You don’t need a prewritten speech to tell someone about Jesus. You can even blame me, you can tell them, “Hey, my pastor said something on Sunday that stuck with me, I’d like to share it with you…” and tell them about Jesus.

 

The life of a disciple is a life of living sent out, even right where you are.