[0:00] found in Matthew chapter 10 starting in verse 1, reading down to verse 15. Jesus summoned his 12 disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits to cast them out and to heal every kind of disease and every kind of sickness.
[0:15] Now the names of the 12 apostles are these. The first Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, and James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, and Philip and Bartholomew, and Thomas and Matthew the tax collector, James the son of Alphaeus and Thaddeus, Simon the zealot and Judas Iscariot, the one who betrayed him.
[0:32] These 12 Jesus sent out after instructing them, Do not go in the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter any city of the Samaritans, but rather go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as you go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.
[0:47] Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the leper, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give. Do not acquire gold or silver or copper for your money belts, or a bag for your journey, or even two coats or sandals or a staff, for the worker is worthy of his support.
[1:02] In whatever city or village you enter, inquire who is worthy in it, and stay at his house until you leave that city. As you enter the house, give it your greeting. If the house is worthy, give it your blessing of peace.
[1:14] But if it is not worthy, take back your blessing of peace. Whoever does not receive you or heed your words, as you go out of that house or that city, shake the dust off your feet. Truly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city.
[1:30] Let's pray. Lord, we thank you for the day. We thank you for the ability we have had to stand together and to read the word of God. Lord, we pray now that it would speak to our hearts and minds.
[1:44] Lord, that all hindrances, all obstacles, all distractions would be cast aside. That we would be overwhelmed by the power and presence of your spirit. Lord Jesus, that you would speak to your people.
[1:58] Lord, may your words resonate within us. May it motivate us to live for your glory and yours alone. We ask it in Christ's name. Amen. You may be seated.
[2:10] We are making our way through the gospel of Matthew. And as we make our way through the gospel of Matthew, our focus has been and will continue to be what the focus of all of Scripture is. But really what the focus of Matthew is, the King of kings and Lord of lords.
[2:24] And we have been looking at King Jesus and his calling of his people and his leading of his people. And we've seen a number of things that how his presence impacts not only the world that he came to, but the people around him.
[2:38] We have seen in the Sermon on the Mount how kingdom people behave differently than everyone else. How they look different and they treat others different and they behave differently than those around them. And we have seen how he calls us to a higher plane as we sang about earlier.
[2:52] And we're living above the things of this world. And we've seen how his presence changes sickness and death and all the diseases. And he has the power over everything that causes man fear.
[3:05] He has the power over diseases and demons and death. He has the power to walk on water. He has the power to change situations drastically. One of the great things we saw last week is he has the power to take on every problem that every man brings him.
[3:22] And he's never rushed. He's never behind schedule. He's never off schedule. He's always right on time. And we've seen how the king has such a great impact as he moves around.
[3:34] But for the first time, at least in Matthew, and the first time historically, the reach of the king is going to be magnified through the people of the king or kingdom people.
[3:47] The reach of the king is going to go beyond where he is physically located because he's going to send people from him. Now I'm not reading the entire story because we'd have to read the entirety of the 10th chapter here.
[4:00] And you will see later on as we make our way through the persecutions and tribulations and trials that await them and the promise that he says you're not going to go anywhere that I didn't go before you.
[4:12] And we know that his presence is, he is preeminent. He is everywhere. He's over all things. He's omniscient. He's omnipresent. All these things. He is always there.
[4:22] But he is calling his people and he's sending them out. And as they go out, they're going to be those ambassadors for him. And they're going to manifest his presence where they're at.
[4:33] This is the commissioning of the 12. Later on in the Gospels, you have the commissioning of the 70. And then you have the great commission, the commissioning of the church and all of these things. And there's this great promise that Jesus records for us.
[4:46] And that last speech of Christ, the last conversation he has before his crucifixion, John chapter 13, 14, 15, and 16.
[4:59] Then you get his high priestly prayer, John 17. In the midst of that, there's all these great promises. I call them promises of hope. There are nine promises that resonate in that passage that just give the believer hope, right?
[5:14] We like to focus on the first one. There's a place. I go to prepare a place for you. Some translations say mansion. Some say dwelling place. I've often said I don't care if it's a mansion or a broom closet.
[5:25] If he's prepared it, it's going to be sufficient. It's going to be great. I'm not planning on spending a lot of time inside anyway because it's supposed to be perfect temperature and it's supposed to be never dark and I'm not supposed to need sleep. And I don't really like being indoors if I don't have to.
[5:37] And my perfect temperature may not be your perfect temperature, but the way I understand heaven, it's going to be perfect to you. So some of you will be walking around in 98 degrees. Lord bless you. Some of us will be walking around in 70 degrees with a nice breeze, right?
[5:49] And some of you say, I'm going to hang out with Billy Joe. He's got that. But we understand it's going to be perfect. But the place that he's prepared, that's a great promise. But there's one of these promises that has to do with the here and now in that section.
[6:01] And it is Jesus says, you will do greater works than I do. The promise of greater works. That if I go to the Father, you will go and you will do greater works.
[6:11] And I remember just the first time I came across that, I think, I'm going to do greater works than Jesus. And not greater in scope, but greater in breadth, really, if you look at it.
[6:25] Because Jesus came, took on the flesh of humanity, and confined himself to a very, very small geographical region. Very small.
[6:36] About the size of New Jersey. And he stayed there for the entirety of his 33 years. And his work was limited there. But when he left, he sent his people beyond there.
[6:50] And it now encompasses all of the earth. In greater in breadth. Because it's the repetition of his work. And it's this promise, really, that we begin to see come to fruition here in Matthew 10, verses 1 through 15.
[7:05] Here's the title, if you want to see. I want you to see the inaugurated mission of kingdom people. The inaugurated mission of kingdom people. Where it began.
[7:16] Now, many Bible scholars will tell you that what we have here is the mission of the apostles. And then we have the commission of the 70, which is the apostles and some other disciples that went along with them.
[7:29] So that was another mission that was kind of mission specific. And then we get to the great commission, which is the great commission of all believers. By the way, just in case you have to ask this question or in case you're asking this question.
[7:42] And in case you want to check out of this. You don't have to ask the question whether or not God's called you to live missionally. You don't have to ask the question, I wonder if God is calling me to missions.
[7:53] Because God commanded us to do missions. Go, therefore, to all the earth. Right? That's a command. We call it the great commission, but it's really a great commandment. Right? To go and to proclaim.
[8:05] Jesus didn't say, I'm going to call some of you. He says, I'm telling all of you. Right? So we don't ask ourselves, is God calling me to mission? That's a false question. That's a false approach to scripture.
[8:16] What we have to ask ourselves is, since God is calling me to mission, then what does that look like in my life? Right? Maybe not every one of us are called to the mission field, but maybe some of us are. Maybe not all of us are called to pastoral ministries, but maybe some of us are.
[8:29] Maybe not all of us are called to domestic missions, but then again, maybe some of us are. But the reality is, every single one of us is called to missions.
[8:40] And if we want to see what the church looks like in its infancy, when it began, we go to the book of Acts. And we see the church in the beginning.
[8:51] And what we see in the book of Acts is really the model. That's what we should see. If we want to see what the church should be through its first mentioning, the law of first mention, we go to the book of Matthew.
[9:02] And we look at Matthew 16. And we see that the gates of hell will not prevail. He will build his church upon this testimonial foundation of who he is. And the church is to be pushing back darkness.
[9:14] But if we want to see what kingdom missions look like, we go here. Matthew 10. The first mentioning of it. Here is the inaugurated mission of kingdom people.
[9:30] This is what it looks like in scope when Christ begins it. Now, is it going to look exactly like this? All these truths that we see here are going to be displayed in our life? Or are this name and claimant?
[9:40] No. But the application pertains to us. So I want you to see four truths that we see in missions from the very beginning of their inauguration.
[9:57] Number one, it is rooted in relationship with the king. Now, that should go without saying, but it needs to be said. No mission is a true mission unless it is rooted in a relationship with King Jesus.
[10:12] Now, that has to be said because today there is a lot of opportunity to do a lot of good. And you don't have to do it in the name of Christ. Anybody that wants to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, reach out to the poor, or minister to those in prison, or to build hospitals, or to do any kind of good works, you can do it now.
[10:31] As a matter of fact, you can buy high-end luxury items. And through your purchasing of these high-end luxury items, such as a $2,000 watch, you can be confident that because you purchased that $2,000 watch, the city of Detroit is being rebuilt.
[10:47] And people who were laid off when the factory shut down now are being rehired to build watches. And I'm not going to tell you the brand because I don't want to be disgraceful.
[10:59] And you can buy high-end upholstery and all that. Through your purchasing of this, you're helping matters out. And someone said that today's generation really believes they can change the world.
[11:13] And I think that's true. But unfortunately, they think they can change the world through their own efforts. And they can do it without a relationship with Christ.
[11:24] But any real mission, any real calling, must be rooted in a relationship with the king. Because look at what it says. Jesus summoned his 12 disciples.
[11:40] Now, a disciple is someone who sits under another and learns from them and grows to be like them and hopes to attain the status that they have. And Jesus said, it is that you would be like me, not that you would be above me, but that you would be like me.
[11:56] But Jesus summoned his 12 disciples and called them to himself. This is a very clear thing. Before he ever sent them out, he called them in. Before they ever went away, they came near.
[12:09] And that is instrumental. And it is one of those things which cannot be neglected. Because to try to change the world or to try to live missionally apart from drawing near to Christ is to go out on a wrong foundation.
[12:29] And it is to go out in a wrong manner. And it is to go out with a false sense of hope. And it is to go out with a false sense of security. But what we see is that true missions of kingdom people begin with drawing near Christ, which means this.
[12:44] You will never be out there which you cannot be in his presence. Going to the mission field doesn't radically change you. It more than not magnifies what you are.
[12:57] It is a revealer, not a mature. Now, will you grow in a mission field? Sure. Will you grow as you serve him?
[13:07] Absolutely. When going with the right roots. And we see that we must first be in the presence of the king before we can leave the presence of the king.
[13:20] Because no representative of another person can ever stand up and say, Well, I am here for them unless they have been sent from them. We see an account of this in the book of Acts where those who went, and you remember the seven sons of one Sceva who came casting out demons in the name of Jesus, and Paul.
[13:39] And the demons spoke back and said, Yes, we know Jesus and we've heard of Paul, but we do not know you. And they overwhelmed them and stripped them of their clothing, and they fled from their naked because they thought that they could go in the name without first being in his presence.
[13:52] But yet, you have those who had stood in his presence, and all people had to do was walk in their shadow or touch the hem of their garments. True missions is rooted in a relationship with the king.
[14:04] And I love this. Now, these are the name of the 12 apostles. I'm not going to read the names yet, but look at this. Jesus summoned them and called them to himself, and he knew them by name.
[14:21] They were his. He knew who they were. He knew what it is they were to do. And then he sent them out after instructing them or teaching them.
[14:34] Friend, if we ever attempt to do anything without first being in his presence, then it is almost assured that it will fail. True missions, individually and corporately, as an individual believer and as a church, must be rooted in relationship with the king, which means as he calls us to himself, and we gather in his presence around him, and he calls us by name, and he instructs us, what he is telling us to do will flow from the instruction he's given us, as he's speaking to us, as he's ministering to us.
[15:12] It is rooted in a relationship with the king. Number two, it is united in fellowship with others. This is one of those that if we had to choose, we would probably skip over it, especially if you were one of the 12.
[15:25] Some of you are like me. Maybe you're not. Maybe you're others, but sometimes. I remember I worked in warehousing for a while, and I was lead man over a warehousing account.
[15:38] We did store fixtures is what we did. So, like, if you opened up a shell of a store, we shipped you all the fixtures, and we would send you those things. And then I ended up working for a telephone company, and I was a relieving supervisor there and interviewed for a lot of supervisors.
[15:53] I always had the same critique, right? Billy Joe, you have a hard time delegating. You have a hard time delegating. And, you know, well, I'm a workaholic. No, the reality is I always have this tendency to think I can do it better myself.
[16:06] The better way of saying it is, well, I just like to work hard. No, the honest answer is I'm one who thinks I can do it better myself than asking someone else to do it.
[16:18] I'd rather just do it myself. I would rather do it myself. A lot of things around the house. My kids tell me, Dad, you're the hardest person in the world to work with. So why? Because if I don't know what you're thinking about thinking, and I'm not joining you, then I get in trouble, because I have no idea what you're about to do.
[16:35] Not too long ago, my wife was helping me on a project, and I was going full go, and she stopped. She said, stop. Tell me what you're thinking before you start and get somebody heard.
[16:46] I said, I don't know what I'm thinking. I'm just doing it, and I would rather just do it. And some of us are that way. But the reality is that all kingdom missions are united with other people, because here's the name of the 12.
[17:05] Peter is always first. Always first. I resonate more with Peter than I do any of them, right? I can walk on water for a moment. I can pull my sword out and cut somebody's ear off in a haste, and I can also deny him when I shouldn't.
[17:18] I am a little bit more outspoken than others. Oh, not ever me, not ever me. I'm a little bit more self-confident than I should be. But we see this. Peter is always first, and he begins to name them.
[17:28] There are Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew, his brother. You know all we know about Andrew? Andrew was always bringing somebody to Jesus. Andrew, we never have a message that he preached. All we know is every time we see Andrew, he's bringing somebody back.
[17:39] Here, go ask Jesus, or here, go ask this. All Andrew ever did was bring somebody to Jesus through his actions, right? Who brought the boy with the fish and the bread? Andrew, right?
[17:50] Andrew said, I found this boy. I don't know what we can do, but I found this boy, right? Who brought the men who had the questions and that passion? It was Andrew. They asked Andrew questions. He didn't know. He goes, I don't know, but I can take you to the one who does know. This is why Billy Graham started what he called the Andrew ministry.
[18:04] Every time he went to a crusade, he asked people to be Andrews. Be somebody who brings somebody else to hear about Jesus. That's all he asked. You didn't have to preach the message. You had to proclaim the message. Just be an Andrew, right? Just bring somebody.
[18:14] So you have Peter and Andrew. They're brothers, but they're not a lot alike. Peter, he'd rather cut your ear off than bring you to him. He's going to take care of Jesus. Andrew's going to bring you to Jesus. Peter said, we can't feed them with this.
[18:25] Andrew said, I found a sack lunch. Right? They're a little bit different. And then there's James, the son of Zebedee, and John, his brother. James dies very quick.
[18:36] John lives out his life. Before you get too convinced that John is just a soft little, I mean, kind of a frivolous little fellow, as he's often portrayed in pictures, leaning upon the chest of Christ at that last supper.
[18:52] Remember, James and John are called the sons of thunder by Jesus. This is James and John. Should we call fire down and burn them up? Right? Sons of thunder.
[19:02] Not soft, but sons of thunder. And then there's Philip and Bartholomew, Thomas, and Matthew, the tax collector. And I love how the fact that Matthew records these things for us, because we need to know this. Matthew, the tax collector.
[19:13] And James, the son of Alphaeus and Thaddeus. And then Simon, the zealots. And Judas Iscariot, always listed last, who betrayed him. Now, in this grouping, this montage of people, you have people that would never get along anywhere else.
[19:28] Namely, Matthew, the tax collector, and Simon, the zealots. I told you that before, but they would never, ever. They wouldn't hang out together. They wouldn't spend time together. Matthew worked with the Roman Empire and gained wealth by it.
[19:41] Zealots, Simon, were trying to get rid of the Roman Empire by secretly killing the members of its Roman party. Matthew would have been a guy Simon was trying to kill. Hey, they would walk around with these short daggers underneath their cloaks.
[19:57] And when there was festivals and parties, they would get rid of them. They were kind of like mercenaries. And yet, Jesus sends them out together. Because, see, kingdom missions always unites us with other people.
[20:10] But here's the kicker. We don't get to choose the people. Right? The reality is this. In this room, in this small gathering.
[20:22] We're not a mega church. We're not a large gathering. But in this room, if we were to be completely honest. Many of us, not some of us, would not want to hang out with each other apart from Christ.
[20:39] Right? There's just so many differences. Our personalities are different. Our types are different. Our likes and dislikes are different. And, you know, we make it work when we come together.
[20:52] But the one unifying factor is the king. And he unites us. Now, I've often said, and I will always say it, I don't ever want to be a part of a body that looks just like me.
[21:09] Because the diversity in the body of Christ is the greatest attraction for the world that needs to know. The diversity, the fact that these people should not be together, is the greatest attraction and greatest tool that kingdom people have for telling other people about Christ.
[21:33] And we see this. He unites us in fellowship with other people to go live a life of intentional mission. Number three.
[21:46] And this is one that is kind of really particular to this passage. And we want to stay true to this passage. But we want to see the application to us. Number three, it is rooted in relationship with the king. I mean, number one, rooted in relationship with the king.
[21:58] Uniting in fellowship with others. Number three, it is confined to a centralized location. Now, Jesus instructs them and he empowers them by the way he gives them his authority.
[22:09] Some believe these are apostolic gifts alone, right? He gives them the authority to cast out demons, to heal sickness, to perform all these miraculous events. I believe that these are testimonial signs, right?
[22:20] Because they're taking a new message into a new region. And it would have to be validated through signs and wonders. We see that consistently throughout the book of Acts. Every time the book of Acts goes into a new location, right?
[22:31] Remember, it's in Jerusalem. And they have the speaking of tongues. Acts chapter 2 and following. There's a speaking of tongues. The tongues of fire fall upon them. And then when it goes into Samaria, which is like half Jews, they speak in tongues.
[22:45] And then when it goes to the Gentiles, right? These are non-Jews. All of a sudden, wherever it goes, they speak in tongues. Every time the message expands in the book of Acts, every time it goes into a new geographic region, there's the same testimonial sign of the Holy Spirit falling upon them and they speak in tongues.
[23:04] And why is this? To show and to demonstrate that what happened to God in Jerusalem is a God in the world as well, right? The Savior of the Jews is the Savior of the Gentiles as well. So it's this validation, right?
[23:15] Same God, same movement, same message, same welcoming attitude. And we see this, that when Christ proclaimed the kingdom, he validated that proclamation through his actions, right?
[23:26] So now he sends his people to proclaim the kingdom of heaven is at hand. And he empowers them with the authority to validate that message. Because to come and say something is one thing, but to be able to say it and then show it, remember what we find in the book of Acts, from what they saw and heard, right?
[23:43] So it's validated through their actions and it really gives proof through their words and they see that. So why do we not see so many miraculous signs and wonders now? Well, America is way beyond the validation period, okay?
[23:57] America has seen it validated and now rejects it, right? In other parts of the world, the message is moving into new territory, closed territory, and is moving into regions that maybe have heard it for the first time or maybe they're hearing it.
[24:09] Hey, there's this validation that you see over and over and over again. Does that mean let me slap you on the forehead and we're going to cast out things? No. I mean, I can slap you on the forehead if you want me to. But, you know, until God tells me to lay hands on you and pray over you, then we're not.
[24:25] I've seen those things happen, right? Not to slap you on the forehead. I've seen, you know, the healings through God calling people to pray over people. I had a pastor share that with me this past week as well.
[24:36] I myself have been a part of that. But that's not a testimonial sign. It is a God validating to that individual, not even to that pastor. Because as a pastor, you're just like, I can't do this, right?
[24:46] This is not me. I'm just the conduit. But it's a validation of what's going on in that individual's life. So Christ empowered them and called them and gave them the ability to validate the message they were to proclaim.
[24:57] But look at what he said. Do not go in any other way of the Gentiles. If you read it literally, it means don't get off the road and go anywhere else. Right? Don't even go to Samaria, the regions of Samaria.
[25:11] Go to the lost sheep of Israel only. Now, that was to fulfill all righteousness because the gospel had to be proclaimed to Israel first. Even Paul models this for us.
[25:21] It's to the Jew first and then to the Gentiles, right? This is what God does. And when the Jew rejected it, like God knew they would, and then all of a sudden it begins to expand. So their rejection leads to our acceptance, right?
[25:34] Or our ability. Romans chapter 9, 10, and 11. And we see this, right? They rejected it so that we now have the ability to respond to it. I know I'm throwing a lot of information at you, but just stay with me here.
[25:47] They weren't free to go wherever they wanted to go. They could only go where the king told them to go. And to them, it was for the lost sheep of Israel.
[26:00] They had a gift and an empowerment that would be beneficial to anybody. But they were not free to take it to everybody. Only one place.
[26:15] Now, in the Great Commission, Matthew 28, we are told to go into all the worlds. Starting in Jerusalem, Samaria, and Judea. Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the earth, right? So we're supposed to go.
[26:26] It's supposed to expand. It's supposed to expand. And go, go, go, go, go. But let's just go ahead and say this right here, okay? As a church and as individuals, we have been empowered with the knowledge.
[26:40] And we have been empowered with the relationship that is beneficial to all people. What you know in Jesus Christ is good for everybody.
[26:52] Everybody needs to know that. You don't have the ability to go to everybody. Everybody. But God has put you around somebody.
[27:08] I think what overwhelms churches and believers too often is we can't live up to the magnitude of the task. But I think at times we've made the task too big.
[27:21] Because Matthew 28, as you are going in your daily operations, in your daily life, it is true that you cannot go to everybody.
[27:33] And it is true that this church cannot do everything. And it is true that this church cannot go everywhere. But we can do some things. And we can go somewhere.
[27:46] God has called every believer and every church to focus its missional efforts in the places that God has put upon their heart. Now those may expand and change over time.
[27:58] But he has not called every believer to do everything. But he has called every believer to do something. He has not called me to do a number of things.
[28:14] But he has called me to do one thing. There's a lot of things he has not called you to do. There are a lot of places where he would say, don't get off the road.
[28:24] Don't go here. It may look good. It may be appealing. Listen, singing looks good to me, but you don't want me to sing, right? The piano looks great to me, but you don't want me to play the piano.
[28:35] Brother Billy C. asked me when I first came here because he noticed that I move around a lot when I sing. And some of you probably noticed that. And I don't know. You can classify me however you want to. I classify it like this. I have back issues.
[28:46] You know, I had back surgery not too long ago. The more I move, the better I feel. And maybe it's just my soul wanting to dance. I don't know. So he said, I notice you're always moving. He said, do you play drums? I said, brother, I wish I played the drums, but you don't want me playing drums.
[28:58] I don't have any rhythm. I think I do, but I don't. I've sat down at them when none of y'all are here. I don't. I checked just the other day to make sure. Still ain't got it. I would like to have it, but God says don't get off the road there, right?
[29:10] That's not your calling. I know of a lady that the church needed a piano player. So they had no musicians in the church. And this wasn't a Southern Baptist church.
[29:21] It was a non-denominational church. I had the ability to preach there one time. And she went and locked herself in the door and said, Lord, you're calling us to worship you. So she said, I'm not leaving this room until you gift me with the ability to play this keyboard.
[29:35] They had a keyboard. Until you gift me with the ability. And she came out several hours later. And I heard her play, actually. They sounded great. And she played it. I could do that all day long. God said, you're just going to sit in the room.
[29:48] Because that's not what he's called me to do. Don't get off the road. No matter how good it may look. No matter how appealing it may be.
[29:59] God has not called you to do everything, but he has called you to do something. And he may centralize your location. And he may hone you into focus.
[30:10] Paul said it like this. I am intent on one purpose. I am intent on one purpose. A broad beam of light casts light.
[30:24] But a focused beam of light will cut still. Too often we try to just shed light on the situation when we ought to be cutting through the darkness.
[30:34] We ought to be intent on one purpose. What is that purpose God has given you? Let us as a church utilize that and equip that and move that for his glory.
[30:47] It is confined to a centralized location. Fourth and finally, it is surrendered to the mission.
[30:58] Kingdom people are absolutely surrendered to the mission. Now later on, Jesus is going to tell them to take bags and clothing with them.
[31:11] But here at the very beginning, he says it like this. As you go preach, so proclaim the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons.
[31:22] Freely you receive, freely give. And look at what he says. Do not acquire gold or silver or copper for your money belts or a bag for your journey or even two coats or sandals or a staff. For the worker is worthy of his support.
[31:33] He says it like this. Make no personal preparations for what you're going about to do. Don't store up money. Don't pack extra clothing. Don't do any of those things. And he says, for the worker is worthy of his wages.
[31:45] What is he saying? You're going to surrender yourselves and cast yourselves upon not the people to support you. Because later Jesus said, I will go before you.
[31:56] I will Christ to move the hearts of the people to support you. Now, I know we are to be wise and gentle and shrewd.
[32:08] We are to be good stewards. I understand that. But I wonder how much missions have been denied in the name of stewardship. I wonder how many efforts have been hindered in the name of, well, when we get ready or when we have enough.
[32:26] And when we're to this place or to that place. And when I've got all these accounts settled. See, kingdom people are surrendered to the mission.
[32:40] When the king says go, they go. And they go where he tells them to go. Now, they might not have a bag or two tunics or an extra staff or sandals. They have no money.
[32:51] They have no silver, gold, copper. They have none of that in their money bag. But they do know that wherever they go, God's going to provide for them. And they're trusting enough in that. And they're going to walk into the house of someone that is worthy.
[33:03] And they're going to give it their greeting. And if the house is worthy, they'll give it its blessing. And if not, they'll stay with them the whole time they're there. They won't change houses. They won't go from place to place to place. They'll stay there.
[33:15] If it wasn't worthy, they'll shake the dust off their feet. It was just a sign of denial in Jewish time. This place is so unclean. I can't even carry it away with me.
[33:27] I'm going to shake its dust off my feet. But Jesus makes this declaration. He says, you'll be well taken care of here, right? You don't need these things. Surrender yourself to the mission.
[33:43] Whatever it is that God lays on our heart, that kingdom mission, it looks different. For some of us, it's as easy as extending an invitation to a neighbor or talking to a friend.
[33:56] For some of us, it's a little bit more complicated. Some of us, we have it all figured out. Some of us, we have no idea. But whatever that kingdom mission that is rooted in his presence.
[34:07] See, I can't tell you what it is. It's one of the most discouraging things. I used to get so upset at my pastor before I became a pastor. I always wanted him to tell me what I should do. I always wanted him to tell me, just tell me what I should do.
[34:18] And he always told me the same thing. Just go to Christ. It's like, well, what is he going to do? I mean, I would love to go to Jesus and let him tell me. And he said, just spend time with Christ. And I get wisdom now.
[34:29] I understand it. I can't tell you what to do. Nobody can tell you what to do. But the king of kings and lord of lords can tell you what to do. Rooted in his presence. And whatever that kingdom mission he's calling you to do, using what you have in your alabaster box, using that giftedness you have.
[34:49] Friend, listen to me. Surrender yourself to that. Now, you may still have to work and behave and live in this world. You do those things.
[35:01] But you surrender yourself to the mission. You give yourself to the mission. You pour yourself into that. Because those are the only things that last.
[35:14] Let's pray. Lord, thank you for this day. God, thank you for this opportunity. Thank you for the blessing of being in your word. Lord, I thank you for how you've spoken to me.
[35:27] Lord, the truth that you've spoken into my heart. Lord, I pray now that those truths would find application in my daily life. Lord, I pray that we would draw closer to you through this time.
[35:41] And that you would be magnified and glorified in it. And it's in Jesus' sweet and holy name we pray. Amen.
[36:02] Thank you.
[37:01] Thank you.
[37:31] Thank you.
[38:01] Thank you.
[38:31] Thank you.
[39:01] Thank you.
[39:31] Thank you.
[40:01] Thank you.