Don’t Overpack for the Journey
[7] And he called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. [8] He charged them to take nothing for their journey except a staff—no bread, no bag, no money in their belts—[9] but to wear sandals and not put on two tunics. [10] And he said to them, “Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you depart from there. [11] And if any place will not receive you and they will not listen to you, when you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.” [12] So they went out and proclaimed that people should repent. [13] And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them. Mark 6:7–13 ESV Read More
These men are sent out by Jesus on a mission of utter dependence on the Lord. Just like when the Hebrews left Egypt, these men aren’t taking extra clothes or weapons to defend themselves. They are depending on the Lord to provide for them every step of the way.
Consider how foreign this is to our lifestyle of “I’ve got my phone and my credit card so I’m ready for anything!” These guys went out with a message that wasn’t carried by super-prepared men. But it did come in a package that showed the message at its finest. Their message was that the Kingdom of God was at hand. They probably taught the parables that Jesus taught them as well as things like the sermon on the mount. As they are telling people to not worry about tomorrow, they are living that out by walking from town to town without any money. As they are telling people not to worry about what they will wear, they don’t even have an extra cloak.
Whenever someone reads this section and says something like “I could never do that” they are probably right. Jesus called 12 men that He knew would have the faith and faithfulness to carry out this task. As they did it, their faith increased. Christ doesn’t make us bold as we imagine doing His work, He makes us bold as we do it. There are still people that go out like this today and God takes good care of them too.
When things hold us back from being bold, it’s good to look at a passage like this. They didn’t need their own money or food because people provided it for them along the way. They didn’t need extra clothing or shelter because as they preached, people would believe their message and care for them. They didn’t even have the promise of success, but they were told what to do when they were rejected.
Jesus still carries and calls us. We can’t make it on the journey if we are overloaded with stuff we don’t need. We can’t make it on the journey if we make the journey our own and not His. He has called us, and though the distances and the people vary, He has sent us. Let’s go out and spread the good news this week, praying and teaching and watching the Lord do His work.
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