|
|
by Fr Jose Thomas
Text:
St. Luke 10 : 1 - 16
Subject: The Mission of the Seventy
This passage tells us the wonderful mission and planned campaign of
Jesus Christ. Relevance of this text lies in the challenges it offers
to the Church, and especially its ministry in every generation.
St. Luke alone records that in addition to the Twelve sent out a
further group to do mission work. It reminds us of the number of
nations in Genesis 10 ( the 14 nations that came from Japheth plus
the 30 from Ham and the 26 from Shem add up to 70; the multiple of 10
and 7, both numbers signifying completeness) or perhaps in
anticipation of the 70 members of Jacob's family in Egypt or the
number of elders who helped Moses in Exodus 24:1 (Numbers 11:16, 24).
It probably symbolizes the nations to whom the message of Jesus would
later be brought by the disciples. Anyhow, St. Luke highlighted and
anticipated the universal mission of Jesus Christ, the Cosmic Man
(Colossians 1:15-20). Three challenges can be seen in this
assignment, i.e., the duties that are laid upon us: Prayer, Work and
Preaching (pray for the missionaries, healing ministry and preaching
the Gospel).
1. Jesus Christ sent the seventy out in pairs on this dangerous
mission and gave them authority and power to preach and to heal the
sick. The two together would provide support for one another and two
witnesses were needed for the mission described (Numbers 35:30; 2
Corinthians 13:1). Jesus Christ sent them to reach many towns and
villages that he had not yet been able to visit. He compared this
work to a harvest. To have a harvest, however, one must have
labourers in the field. The harvest is plentiful -- many people need
to hear the Good News, but there are so few labourers willing to
gather it in. Even as Jesus had sent the Twelve, and now seventy
more, he told them to "pray the Lord of the harvest to send out
labourers into his harvest" (10:2). These labourers should pray for
more labourers to be willing to work in the harvest. So we must
constantly pray that He will send out labourers into His harvest
field. The need is greater than the supply of labourers. In praying
for labourers, we must be willing to go ourselves, obviously. In
Christian service, there is no unemployment. God has work enough for
everyone. No believer sits back and watch others work because the
harvest is great. Therefore, pray to the Lord, He who calls and sends
out the labourers.
2. Secondly, the ministry of healing, " Heal the sick who are there
……" (10:9a). Healing ministry and the Good News of the Kingdom of God
are closely related. For Jesus Christ, healing ministry was a sign of
the beginning of the Kingdom of God. A good part of His work was the
healing of the sick and suffering (St. Matthew 4:23). When Jesus
Christ sent out the seventy to different parts of the world, He
authorized them to heal the sick. Today we do have t he same mission.
That is, we have to be concerned with men's bodies as well as minds.
Jesus Christ wished to bring health to the body and health to the
soul. Christ's approach was holistic. It is also the responsibility
of the members of the Church. Knowledge about the medicines and its
application, the intelligence and ability of the people who are
working in the field of health are the gift of God.
3. Thirdly, preaching the Good News. Those seventy men were sent out
to represent Jesus Christ. Therefore those men came with one message,
the great message of Jesus Christ: " The kingdom of God has come near
to you" (10:9b). This "nearness" meant both "already here" and "soon
to come." The Kingdom Jesus began would not overthrow physical
oppression and bring universal peace right away. Instead, it was a
Kingdom that began in people's hearts and was near as people's
willingness to make Jesus Christ lord over their lives. One day
Christ will return to set up His eternal Kingdom -- it may still be
many years away, but it is certain to come, and it is as near as
accepting Jesus' sacrifice for salvation. Therefore, we do have the
mission to communicate the Gospel. It is the responsibility and the
duty of every faithful member of the Church, to proclaim the Gospel
to the world. The Christian profession is to be the herald of Jesus
Christ.
We have to face these challenges. Therefore, are we taking our
mission with anything like the seriousness indicated here? We may
have many excuses. But the world, which those seventy were going, was
not a pleasant place. The harvest was going to involve intensive
labour and possibly danger. Jesus Christ commanded them to "go" and
they obeyed. Remember, " the one who calls you is faithful and he
will do it. " (1 Thess 5: 24).
See Also:
Sermons and Bible Commentaries for the 4th Sunday after Pentecost
Sermons Home | General Sermons and Essays | Articles | eBooks | Our Faith | Prayers | Library - Home | Baselios Church Home
-------
Malankara World
A service of St. Basil's Syriac Orthodox
Church, Ohio
Copyright © 2009-2020 - ICBS Group. All Rights Reserved.
Disclaimer
Website designed, built, and hosted by
International Cyber Business Services, Inc., Hudson, Ohio
