Glynlea Grace United Methodist Chruch

Scripture

Luke 10:1-20

After this the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to come. ² And he said to them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. ³ Go your way; behold, I send you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. ⁴ Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; and salute no one on the road. ⁵ Whatever house you enter, first say, `Peace be to this house!' <sup>6</sup> And if a son of peace is there, your peace shall rest upon him; but if not, it shall return to you. <sup>7</sup> And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages; do not go from house to house. <sup>8</sup> Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you; <sup>9</sup> heal the sick in it and say to them, `The kingdom of God has come near to you.' ¹⁰ But whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you, go into its streets and say, ¹¹ `Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off against you; nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near.' ¹² I tell you, it shall be more tolerable on that day for Sodom than for that town. ¹³ "Woe to you, Chorazin! woe to you, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. ¹⁴ But it shall be more tolerable in the judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. ¹⁵ And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You shall be brought down to Hades. ¹⁶ "He who hears you hears me, and he who rejects you rejects me, and he who rejects me rejects him who sent me." ¹⁷ The seventy returned with joy, saying, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!" ¹⁸ And he said to them, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. ¹⁹ Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing shall hurt you. ²⁰ Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you; but rejoice that your names are written in heaven."

Summary and Function

Summary: Jesus sent out ‘seventy-two’ people to proclaim the good news of God’s love. These seventy-two people were not highly skilled religious leaders with theological graduate degrees. Many of them probably couldn’t even read. They were ordinary people who simply followed Jesus. When they went out in obedience, God used them to cast out demons and perform miracles. People came to know Christ through them!!

This is an example for us to follow today. When we step out in obedience, the Holy Spirit will empower us to proclaim Jesus. Miracles will happen! People will be healed, demons will be cast out and many will come to know Jesus as Savior, Lord and friend. This happens when the average person in the pew steps out in faith to obey the great command (love God and neighbor, Matthew 22:37-40) and great commission (make disciples of Jesus, Matthew 28:18-20). We should not rely only on the clergy to make a concerted effort to obey the great commandment and commission. The clergy should be training, equipping and encouraging all the followers of Christ to obey the great commandment and commission. When this happens, the power of the Holy Spirit erupts on the earth and establishes God’s kingdom throughout the land.

Function: To encourage the congregation to go forth in the power of the Holy Spirit to make disciples of Jesus Christ.

The Sermon

I. Introduction:

A. Most occupations require certain level of training, experience and education

· Medical doctors require several years of school and a residency

· Dentistry also requires several years of school

· Teachers: 4 years of school and an internship

· Construction: I’m not going to have someone build my house without the proper license

· In our search for an administrative assistant, we look for a certain level of education, skills and experience

· Even the military requires some minimum pre-requisites. Although the military will train you, you must meet certain requirements such as a GED/High School diploma, a certain level of health and no serious criminal record

B. There is, however, one endeavor that doesn’t require a certain level of education or experience….It is being on mission for God

· To serve God, no prior experience is necessary. There are no pre-requisites

· With God, the only requirement is a willing heart

- It doesn’t matter what you have done in the past – nothing will disqualify you

- You only need to be willing to follow Jesus as Lord, Savior and friend. God will take over from there to qualify you for his work.

II. We see this in today’s passage (Luke 10:1-20)

A. Jesus and his followers were on their way to Jerusalem. Instead of going around Samaria, they were going through it. Evidently, Jesus wanted to preach to the Samaritans as well as the Jews. The Kingdom of God is open to all people.

B. Jesus sent out 70 or 72 (some of the ancient manuscripts have 70 while some have 72. Henceforth, we will go with 70) disciples to go ahead of him into the towns. They were to prepare the way for people to meet Jesus.

C. Some details about this mission

· They were going into hostile territory: “I send you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; and salute no one on the road.” (Luke 10:3-4) The Samaritans and Jewish people didn’t get along. Many of the Samaritans were bound to reject them and possibly react in a hostile manner.

· Throughout the mission, their needs will be met but they would not be living in luxury. They would have to be happy with whatever they get: “Whatever house you enter, first say, `Peace be to this house!' And if a son of peace is there, your peace shall rest upon him; but if not, it shall return to you. And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages; do not go from house to house.” (Luke 10:5-7)

· Not everyone was going to welcome them. Some will accept the good news while others reject it: “Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you; heal the sick in it and say to them, `The kingdom of God has come near to you.' But whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you, go into its streets and say, `Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off against you; nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near.' I tell you, it shall be more tolerable on that day for Sodom than for that town.” (Luke 10:8-12)

· Bottom line: This would prove to be a hard and dangerous mission filled with triumphs and disappointments. The 70 disciples still went. Who were these people?

D. The 70 disciples

· They were not theologians with degrees from seminaries. Some may not have been able to read

· They did not complete any special class to be a missionary

· They were most likely farmers or shepherds while others may have been tradesmen.

· By today’s standards, they were not qualified to go on this mission.

· They were average people who simply decided to follow Jesus on faith.

E. The results of this mission

· The 70 disciples were extremely successful: The seventy returned with joy, saying, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!" (Luke 10:17)

· We can discern that many people were receptive to Jesus’ message. Many people started to see Jesus as the Son of God.

F. Why were they so successful?

· They were not successful due to their own abilities.

· They were successful because Jesus empowered them to succeed: “Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing shall hurt you. Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you; but rejoice that your names are written in heaven."

II. This story applies to us today

A. Jesus gives us the same commandments today. The following passages illustrate that we are to introduce people to Jesus through proclamation and loving service.

· Matthew 28:19-20: “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…”

· Matthew 22:37-40: And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets."

· Matthew 25:37-40: “Then the righteous will answer him, `Lord, when did we see thee hungry and feed thee, or thirsty and give thee drink? And when did we see thee a stranger and welcome thee, or naked and clothe thee? And when did we see thee sick or in prison and visit thee?' And the King will answer them, `Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.'”

B. Jesus also empowers us

· Matthew 28:20: “and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age."

· Jesus is with us and empowers us through the Holy Spirit: “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth." (Acts 1:8)

C. Real life example: KAIROS weekend

· From 23 April to 26 April, I had the honor of participating in a KAIROS weekend.

· It’s a prison ministry: The purpose is to bring the love of Christ to the prisoners. To let the inmates know that God loves them.

· Lay led event. It was a lay-leader in charge and all decisions were made by lay leaders. Most of the talks & testimonies were given by lay people. Clergy were there as support. They provided counseling and gave some of the talks but were not in charge.

· The KAIROS weekend occurs in the prison. In the middle of the Lion’s den. Once the inmates accept Jesus as Savior and Lord, they must attempt to live the Christian faith in a prison setting. Needless to say, that’s not an easy thing to do.

· The results of the weekend

- 16 people accepted Christ as Savior and Lord. 4 re-committed their lives to Christ

- I saw grown men, hardened criminals, openly crying and hugging each other. They were actively seeking and receiving love.

- There’s a moment where the men write the names of people they need to forgive on a piece of paper. Then they put the paper in a special solution that dissolves it. Many of these men disposed of their paper with tears in their eyes.

- The men would often talk about an impenetrable wall that they put up to keep people out of their lives. It’s a defense mechanism that was started in their youths due to abuse. On Saturday the walls came tumbling down and people accepted Christ. On Sunday I heard testimonies about how the Holy Spirit started to reveal things to them.

D. Opportunities for Glynlea Grace UMC to go forth with power

- Door to door event scheduled for this Saturday. We go door to door in the surrounding neighborhood inviting people to church so they can hear the good news. If you’re not comfortable going door to door, then come to pray during the event. Prayer is crucial.

- Family Promise: Our next opportunity is June 14-20. Help a homeless family get back on their feet.

- “Venture in Discipleship”: During this weekend, we’ll seek power from the Holy Spirit so we can successfully go forth in Jesus’ name. Be sure to take part in the preparation of this weekend.

III. Conclusion

A. In order to go forth and spread the good news of God’s love, we must be empowered by the Holy Spirit.

B. One way we receive this power is through Holy Communion. As we partake of the bread and juice and remember the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, the Holy Spirit touches our hearts and empowers us to do God’s work.

C. Come, join us in the Lord’s supper. All are invited.