The First Missionaries

Luke 9:1-6 

          “Theodore Roosevelt never spoke truer words than those in which he paid tribute to the heroism of the missionaries of the cross. He said once to a friend: “As high an estimate as I have of the ministry, I consider that the climax of that calling is to go out in missionary service, as your son is doing. It takes mighty good stuff to be a missionary of the right type, the best stuff there is in the world. It takes a good deal of courage to break the shell and go 12,000 miles away to risk an unfriendly climate, to master a foreign language, to adopt strange customs, to turn aside from earthly fame and [wealth], and, most of all, to say good-bye to home and the faces of loved ones, virtually forever.’” (Watchman-Examiner, Sited in Knight’s Master Book of New Illustrations)

                As we continue our study in St. Luke’s gospel today, we find that it is time for the apostles to be sent out on their first missionary journey. We will pick things up in the first verse of the ninth chapter:

          And he called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal. And he said to them, "Take nothing for your journey, no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money; and do not have two tunics. And whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart. And wherever they do not receive you, when you leave that town shake off the dust from your feet as a testimony against them." And they departed and went through the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere. 

            Up to this point the apostles had spent their time watching and learning as Jesus taught the people about the coming kingdom and healed them to confirm who He really was. The scriptures do not say that the apostles were with Him 24/7 and because the twelve had families of their own, one can assume that they did spend some time at home.

          But now it was time to go to work and Jesus called the twelve together, from wherever they were, and gave them their assignment, along with the authority and power to carry it out. When someone is given the authority to do something, it means that they have the right to do it in the name of someone else. Jesus gave the apostles the right to carry out their mission, with authority, in His name. They were His representatives in the field and carried His banner.

          Power on the other hand is the ability to carry out the assignment. Jesus was asking these men to do what He had been doing. He had given them power over demonic forces and power to reverse disease. This power could have only one source, and that was God himself.

          Bp. Ryle wrote, “No doubt the miraculous powers which the apostles possessed, made their position very unlike that of any other body of men in the church. No doubt, in many respects, they stood alone, and had no successors.” 

           “…and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal.” 

          I wonder if Jesus had a smile on His face when he sent the twelve on their way that day, looking ahead two thousand years to how information would one day be spread. There were no newspapers or magazines. No radio or television. Al Gore hadn’t invented the internet yet.

          Things may be a lot different now but there is one thing that hasn’t changed in two thousand years, the best way to tell someone about Jesus Christ is still one on one. Nothing will ever replace personal contact as Christians reach out to meet the spiritual and physical needs of those who are lost.

          We all understand the importance of having a saving understanding of Jesus Christ, but let’s look at the physical aspect of this mission trip for a moment. Why was it so important to meet the physical needs of these people? Because what happens on this earth does matter! Tell someone who is hungry, cold, lonely or homeless that material things don’t matter. They will have a different opinion.

          “General William Booth of the Salvation Army was once blamed for offering food and meals to poor people instead of the simple gospel. The old warrior flashed back, ‘It is impossible to comfort men’s hearts with the love of God when their feet are perishing with cold.’” (Sited in Barclay) 

          William Barclay wrote, “Of course, it is possible to overstress material things, but it is equally possible to neglect them. The church will forget only at her peril that Jesus first sent out his followers to preach the kingdom and to heal, to save men and women in body and soul.”

           “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and filled," without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.”   James 2:14-17  

            Not everyone has the ability to be a missionary. It takes a very special person, as President Roosevelt said, “to say good-bye to home and the faces of loved ones”, but there is a very special couple who are dear to us that have heeded God’s call as missionaries.

          I want to share a letter with you that Leslie sent this week. Jim and Leslie know what Jesus meant when he sent his followers out into the world and told them to heal those in need. “Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” 

Dear Kathy and Marvin,

Sorry I missed church, was rather exhausted. Do appreciate your prayers as I leave very early Thursday Oct 11^th morning (4am) to start travels that will take about 25 hours to get to South Africa, spend the night and arrive the next day in Malawi. Malawi is a small landlocked country of about 10 million in southern Africa. Malawi has suffered for the last 5 years combination of drought and flooding that has made people who are already very poor on the verge of starvation. I went there five years ago to do video work to alert the church of the crisis. 

          Thanks be to God, five years later there is hope of the people becoming self sustaining as they have learned to plant diverse crops, farmers have been trained to irrigate (using the rivers), adults have become literate, women have been taught, and children are in school. So I along with Bobbi (she is a wonderful believer I have worked with before in El Salvador) are going to do follow up video documentaries and print articles.

So here are some prayer requests:

. I have five different flights, that my checked luggage with some of my equipment gets there and I make all my flights

. In spite of 25 hours of travel (would love to get some sleep on plane), Bobbi and I will have the energy to do our work

. We want God glorified in our work and believe there are stories waiting to be told, may the Holy Spirit lead us to the people who can tell the stories we need

. The Lord would sustain our health (this is malaria country) so we can do our work

. What ever else the Lord lays on your heart. 

We are grateful and will report when I return around Oct 22. 

                                                                                                Love, Leslie 

          How important do you think the physical needs of those people in Malawi are to them? How important do you think the physical needs of Leslie are to her so that she can carry out her mission? Both Jim and Leslie, and the Malawi’s have come to rely on God for there physical needs, just like Jesus asked His apostles to do.

          And he said to them, "Take nothing for your journey, no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money; and do not have two tunics.” 

          Can you imagine going on a road trip without as much as a change of clothes? No money, no food and no means of getting any? That is what Jesus asked these men to do. He wanted them to rely totally on Him.

          He also told them that when they entered a village to stay only with one family. This may seem odd but in light of the culture at that time, it made perfect sense.  The Didache, which was written in the first century, talks about those who travel in the name of the Lord. “And concerning the apostles and prophets, according to the decree of the gospel, so do. But let every apostle that cometh unto you be received as the Lord. And he shall stay one day, and if need be, the next also, but, if he stay three, he is a false prophet.”

          Why did the first century Christians think like this? because there were many false prophets roaming around taking advantage of innocent people. They would live with one family until they overstayed their welcome and then they would move down the street to the next, and the next, until they were finally run out of town on a rail.

            Jesus knew that these guys had a long way to go and a short time to get there. He didn’t want them hanging around any longer than they had to. They were to go into a village. Accept the hospitality provided. Share the good news, heal the sick and get on down the road.

          The third thing Jesus told the apostles was that if they were not received in a town, to get out and good riddance to it and anyone in it. This was done by kicking the dust of the town off their sandals. What is ironic about this is that the Jews did the same thing whenever they entered the country after being abroad. When they returned to Palestine they would remove the unclean dust of the Gentiles from their shoes at the border. By having this done to them, they were being warned that they were now separated from God and that impending judgment would be brought on them, not the Gentiles.

          In the end, it was mission accomplished.  And they departed and went through the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.  Jesus had given the apostles the power and authority to carry out the assignment He had given them. Today He has given us a similar assignment, And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." Matt. 28:18-20 

          Jim and Leslie have been called to evangelize all over the world. We have all been called to evangelize in our own little worlds. We have been given the power and authority to do it. Every Christian is a missionary to those whom God has placed in their path. How do you do that? By living a life that glorifies our Creator. By being a light in a world that seems so dark that it will never change. By using the gifts that God has given you. And by helping people that need you.

          Considering whose name you are going in, and the source from which you get your strength, that’s not asking too much, is it?