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The Seventh Sunday after Pentecost, 07/03/2016
Sermon on Luke 10:1-11, 16-20, by Beth A. Schlegel
1After this the Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go. 2He said to them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.3Go on your way. See, I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves. 4Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; and greet no one on the road. 5Whatever house you enter, first say, 'Peace to this house!' 6And if anyone is there who shares in peace, your peace will rest on that person; but if not, it will return to you. 7Remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide, for the laborer deserves to be paid. Do not move about from house to house.8Whenever you enter a town and its people welcome you, eat what is set before you; 9cure the sick who are there, and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you.' 10But whenever you enter a town and they do not welcome you, go out into its streets and say, 11'Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off in protest against you. Yet know this: the kingdom of God has come near.' 16Whoever listens to you listens to me, and whoever rejects you rejects me, and whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.
17The seventy returned with joy, saying, "Lord, in your name even the demons submit to us!"18He said to them, "I watched Satan fall from heaven like a flash of lightning. 19See, I have given you authority to tread on snakes and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing will hurt you. 20Nevertheless, do not rejoice at this, that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven."
Over the past few weeks, God’s Word has led us into the question of purpose.
What is Jesus’ purpose?
What is our reason for being?
What is the aim and goal of our life?
How do we know we are fulfilling our true purpose?
While many try to set the agenda for our lives – parents, schools, workplace, society -- our true purpose is given by God our Creator.
We are truly happy when we are fulfilling God’s purpose for us.
We come to know our purpose through Jesus, who reveals God to us.
Jesus’ purpose is to undo the sin of Adam and Eve,
destroy death,
break down the barriers to Life,
and restore humanity to God’s abundant life for which we were created.
Everything Jesus is and does fulfills his purpose and shows us ours.
First, we saw Jesus break down the barriers to God’s life for a man who was on the fringes of society – teaching us also to break down barriers to God for others.
Last week, we saw Jesus traveling to Jerusalem for the fulfillment of his purpose – his own death and resurrection to break the bonds of the evil one, and to crush hell underfoot; and we heard his call to follow him in fulfilling his purpose.
Today, we learn more about our purpose as disciples of Jesus and how our Lord equips us to put it into action.
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Let’s be clear about one thing from the start – discipleship is not a volunteer position.
What I mean by that is that we do not presume to undertake discipleship on our own terms.
We don’t wake up some morning and say – boy that preaching stuff is a good racket – I’m gonna declare myself a pastor and talk religious and set up a church and ask for money and get rich for God.
Just as Jesus was called and sent by the Father to do the Father’s will here on earth,
So Jesus calls, appoints, send, and commissions those who serve him.
And there is a public dimension to how Jesus does this – none of the twelve were called privately – the first were a pair of brothers, and they were with Jesus when the next few were called.
As it was with Jesus – whose birth was witnessed by the shepherds, whose baptism was witnessed by John and all those coming to the Jordan, and whose preaching was public in the synagogues and with groups of people in homes and on the hillsides,
So it is with those who follow him and serve the kingdom of God.
We are called in Holy Baptism within and into the community of the faithful.
We are given the gifts of the Holy Spirit and with all the baptized are commissioned by Jesus to make disciples, to proclaim repentance and forgiveness of sins by Jesus’ authority, and to go into the world with the good news of Jesus.
That is our purpose as the church and as members of the Body of Christ.
Our Gospel reading today is proof that I am not making this up.
Jesus appointed and commissioned 72 disciples to do what John the Baptist had done – prepare his way by letting towns and villages know he was coming.
We might reasonably imagine that this involved not only the announcement of who Jesus is that’s coming, but also arranging housing and food, places where Jesus could talk with people, where healing could take place.
But unlike John, who did not have the power of Jesus, the 72 were equipped with Jesus’ own power and authority.
They could demonstrate something of what Jesus came to do – heal the sick – and in so doing, whet the people’s appetite for Jesus.
They acted not on their own authority, but as those publicly appointed and commissioned by Jesus.
So, let’s look at the best practices that Jesus established for this commission.
1. He sent them out 2 by 2 – no one was alone; no one could do whatever they pleased. There was accountability built in and at the same time, encouragement. It’s easier to give up when you’re on your own and not as easy when you have someone working with you.
a. It was also protection – the buddy system is good for traveling in unfamiliar areas.
b. Most importantly, it provided a common witness to Jesus – not just the opinion of 1, but the witness of 2.
2. They were to trust God to provide for them along the way and not presume to provide for themselves.
a. Now this was not some wishful thinking – they were living in a culture of hospitality
b. It could reasonably be expected that wherever they went, someone would provide food and shelter for them as servants of the Master.
c. And if there was no hospitality provided, they were to move on, letting that town know they had rejected the kingdom of God.
3. They were to initiate contact with the peace of the Lord.
a. Shalom – or as is often heard in the Middle East as a greeting today – salaam Aleichem
b. Means peace, harmony, wholeness, completeness,
c. prosperity, welfare and tranquility
d. As such, shalom or peace is a gift only God gives and establishes the relationship on the basis of the greater foundation of God’s kingdom.
If the person shares in God’s peace, then there will a warm acceptance – an opening of the door and joyous “come in” welcome’,
A sharing of food and shelter and an eagerness to hear what the messenger has to say.
This is what it means for peace to rest upon someone.
If, however, the door is never opened, the person does not invite you in or in some other way indicates hostility or lack of welcome, then there shall no peace rest there.
Jesus does not insist his disciples go where they are not wanted – but they will know what they have rejected.
So let’s recap – as disciples of Jesus, we are sent – we are under authority – Jesus’ authority – to act in his name.
We are sent in teams – not alone – so that our witness is strong.
We are sent with God’s peace – and a way of dealing with hostility.
We are sent with the expectation that God will provide for us.
We are sent to serve Jesus by preparing people to meet him –showing them how Jesus loves, his forgiveness and healing.
Can we accept a commission like that?
Can we do it together as a congregation?
The 72 experienced the power of Jesus at work in their actions –
but Jesus cautioned them so that they would not trust in their own accomplishments, but in the grace of God that had claimed them for the kingdom in the first place.
They stuck to their purpose and were overjoyed at the power of the Lord.
Jesus will always fulfil his purpose for us.
In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen