September 10, 2015
Scripture Reading: Matthew 10:1-8
1Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.
2These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; 3Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; 4Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.
5These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans.6Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel.7As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’8Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy,drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.
Questions for Reflection:
What did Jesus commission his disciples to do? How would they have known how to heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those with leprosy or drive out demons? That wasn’t taught in the Jewish middle schools was it? How could Simon, Andrew, James, John and the others have known what to do?
The answer is pretty simple. They were following the example that Jesus had modeled for them. Thanks to the Bible, we can do that same thing. Why is it that we are more inclined to read about Jesus than we are to follow his example? Francis Chan makes a powerful point in the video below: