David Bahn – Reflections

Matthew 10:1-14

And [Jesus] called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction. ² The names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; ³Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; ⁴Simon the Cananaean, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

⁵ These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them, “Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans, ⁶ but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. ⁷And proclaim as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ ⁸ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying; give without pay. ⁹ Acquire no gold nor silver nor copper for your belts, ¹⁰no bag for your journey, nor two tunics nor sandals nor a staff, for the laborer deserves his food. ¹¹And whatever town or village you enter, find out who is worthy in it and stay there until you depart. ¹²As you enter the house, greet it. ¹³And if the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it, but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. ¹⁴And if anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town. ¹⁵Truly, I say to you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah than for that town.

Their authority is established: Given by Jesus to a group of twelve, named – and even ranked. Simon who is called Peter is first; Judas, listed last, is fingered as the one who betrayed Jesus.

Their mission is clear: Proclaim the nearness of God’s kingdom, heal the sick, cleans lepers, cast out demons – freely and as God provides.

Their challenge is great: Go. Take no personal provision – not even a change of clothes, don’t waste any time at all.

The stakes are high: Judgment more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah than for those who reject the message and ministry of the twelve.

It’s easy to dismiss these verses: We’re not one of the twelve – a truly unique group of disciples to be sure. We have gone far beyond traveling with no change of clothes or copper coins. When it comes to casting out demons or cleansing lepers we have precious little experience. Let’s not even mention raising the dead!

Perhaps, however, we are right in the middle of these verses: Is our house worthy, do we receive the messengers of God’s Kingdom and the peace that they bring? Do we welcome into our house those who bring grace and truth? Does the peace of God rest on us? Thanks be to God that he has a message of peace for us through Jesus’ death and resurrection; may God’s peace rest on our houses!