Bible In A Year | Read: Matthew 10
1 Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. 2 These 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; 3 Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; 4 Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. 5 These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. 6 Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. 7 As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ 8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give Matthew 10:1-8
Jesus sent his followers out several times – this time it was only to people in Jewish villages. Jesus sent them to people just like them; this is the easiest group of people to share with.
They show us how to reach out to our own people. Here it is:
— release the truths of God’s kingdom to everyone
— pray for everyone with needs – big needs or small needs
— do it free of charge
— they will help you and provide for your needs along the way (note: – the Jewish people knew that this was expected of them)
This requires that we know God’s kingdom truths, that we have God’s power available to us and we have the boldness to share both with others. Knowing God’s kingdom truth takes work – I have been sharing them with you, but you need to know them well. God’s power is available to all His children, but it requires an obedient heart before God entrusts it to us. So be diligent to know Kingdom truth, be obedient to this truth, expect God to release His power to bless others – and then use them boldly.
Jesus sends out his disciples with the authority to heal and cast out demons. His instructions required complete reliance on God, not on themselves. We prefer relying on ourselves. Relying on anyone else, including God, somehow seems weak. But when compared to God, we are weak. There is nothing better for us to rely on than God. This is how to reach out to your world.
Time to Pray
Father, I know now why it is so hard to reach out boldly. I need to learn Your truths and walk in obedience. That takes so much diligent work. However, it is such a challenge for many of us because we are careless at studying and careless at obedience. Forgive us. Give us a heart that seeks simple obedience to truth that You reveal to us. Your truths are not complicated, but they do take diligence. Your truths are not a long list of things to learn, but they do take effort. So strengthen us today to walk in them – so we can release blessing on our world. In Jesus’ name I pray Amen.
Action Step
What is God showing me? What am I going to do about it?
Have you ever thought it would be cool to hear some C3 leaders discuss the daily verses, share about their lives and mostly just talk about nonsense? Of course not!…even though nobody has ever thought that we are still doing it. You can follow along with us each morning in a brand new podcast – Friday’s Special Guest & Aaron AKA Frankie Two-Thumbs.
Recent Comments