Explore the Possibilities (Matthew 9:35-10:8 [9-23])
Listen.June 15th, 2008
Rev. Dr. Craig A. Wagner
Introduction
Choosing the right team is very important for the success of the operation. I think about having the right team in place whenever I watch professional bicycle races. The teams that win are those that have the right person in the right place. There are some riders who are strong in the mountain climbs. There are others who are strong in the sprints and time trials. Still others are better at long distance riding and can keep a fast steady pace for over a hundred miles. A good team will need all different riders with different skills and riding abilities. The winning teams will know their riders and adjust the strategy of the ride so that their team can win. They know when to allow their leader to draft so as not to wear him or her out. They will work together to keep other teams from assuming the lead. They will bring water to the leader and communicate via earpieces to the entire team. They will do whatever it takes to push their leader forward at the right time so that he will cross the finish line ahead of the others. It takes unselfish team work to get the job done. The persons standing on the wining platform is there only because of a great team effort!
This is true in business, too. A project manager needs to bring around her the right team for the project. Perhaps she will need a good tech person, a finance manager, a quality control person, a marketing manager and so on. Together they can do what one person alone can not. Working together they move toward the success of the project.
The truth of this philosophy is very important to the mission of the church. With the right team in place the opportunities and possibilities for expanding the reach of the gospel of Jesus Christ are mind boggling. Today we read in our gospel text about Jesus sending out that team of twelve into the surrounding area to proclaim good news to the people. The gospel of Jesus Christ would be touching the lives of people in wonderful and exciting ways.
Challenges and possibilities
Remember playing pin ball machines? One thing I remember was that when the little steel ball was launched into the game, it would often hit one bumper after another after another spinning wildly very much at the mercy of the bumpers and other items that would bounce the ball this way and that. This is the picture that came to mind when I read about those folks who were harassed and helpless in our gospel reading.
It was as if they were spinning out of control. If there would be a problem in their life they would be shuffled from one place to another. They were not in control of their life; they had no one to lead them or to help them or to guide them. These were people caught between competing forces and their lives were difficult and often out of control. In the ancient world disease was rampant due to poor sanitation and limited access to clean water.
Jesus calls together the twelve inner circle disciples; Matthew names them in this passage, and then sends them out to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. They were not to go to the gentiles, but only to Israelites. At this point the mission was focused on Israel, only later, when Jesus gives us the great commission to go to all nations, would the mission be expanded.
Jesus sends this team out to proclaim the gospel, not to teach, but to proclaim the gospel in word, in sign and in deed. They would cure diseases, raise people from the dead, cleanse lepers and cast out demons. They, in essence, would continue and expand the work of Jesus. The team is to travel lightly. They would leave their possessions at home. This was an itinerant and radical team that would change the world with the good news of Jesus. They went healing people, caring for those who were harassed and helpless and generally proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God.
As they went into town and villages they would begin their stay by ascertaining which house might be amenable to having them stay. They didn’t simply pick the first house to which they came. If the household was agreeable they would let their peace come upon it. Now this type of peace was more than the greeting of shalom. This was a type of blessing that also took into account their material items. However, if the residents were not amenable to this team, they would shake the dust off their shoes and move on – rescinding the blessing! Off they would go to another place.
Jesus reminds them that even if the going gets rough, and it will, they should remember that the spirit will give them the words needed in their defense. This team of twelve was ready to go out and proclaim the good news regardless of consequences. They knew that the message and the mission they had were important, exciting, and needed. The reality was that not everyone would welcome them with open arms and that their message would cause division as some would embrace their message and others would not. Yet they went.
This text is a commissioning text. The right team was called together, even if there would some doubts and in spite of the fact that one eventually would betray Jesus. They went and through works, signs and words proclaimed the good news.
A challenge for us
This is a difficult text for us to apply to ourselves. For one thing, we are not part of the twelve disciples around Jesus. We are not itinerant young people wandering around the countryside and living in homes that invite us in. We are people who have more than two coats. We wouldn’t want to go barefoot or even on foot when we’re traveling. We enjoy being protected and feeling safe and secure and isolated. We roll up the windows on our cars, put on the A.C. and travel in style. By the way, a staff in those days not only helped a person walk but also was used as protection against animals, or even bandits. Not only would we have difficulty in being sent out into the world as were the disciples, we would have trouble shaking the dust off of our church and moving it if we disagreed with our neighbors! Yet Jesus still calls us to go and proclaim good news and bring hope and joy into the hearts and lives of those who are harassed and helpless by our society.
Jesus also calls us to be a part of a team! When Jesus sent the twelve out into Israel, we discover that they had a different personalities, different temperaments and different gifts, but together they changed the world. Jesus has placed us on a team. We have a team composed of many more than 12. Yet each of us is on the team for a purpose. Often it’s difficult to realize what part we’re playing, yet as we train for the mission, we can discover and use our personalities, temperaments and gifts to make a difference for Christ and to change our part of the world.
As a mission community we have the same responsibilities that the team of disciples had: to do the works of him who sent us into the world, of sharing the word with others so that they might know the one true Savior. To direct others to the signs that point to Jesus and to the kingdom.
What is our faith all about, if not to share it with others? Just think of the importance of our mission. If God has called us to be a part of his team dare we take it for granted? Dare we ignore what he wants us to do? Dare we miss practice or not want to be in the game? Yet we worry, we feel afraid, we need a safety net and we are hesitant to move out in mission and speak words that can bring good news and new life into the lives of those who are harassed and helpless in our family, neighborhood and community.
May we be open to the Lord’s direction and guidance….May he push us into great adventures and move us to seize the possibilities.
Good news for all people
As people on the team we realize that there are all sorts of opportunities and possibilities around us to share the good news. I think in terms of new residents to our area who are in need of a community of faith. I think about those who have been alienated from church and who need to hear a word of love and forgiveness and acceptance in their lives. I think of those who are alone and lonely and who need to feel the warmth of friendship through God’s people.
I think of those who are harassed and helpless because of their situation in life. And I think and believe that we have the good news of Christ our Lord and the abundant and new life that he can bring to people as we share his word with others.
Perhaps this text also applies to us when we feel harassed and helpless in the midst of our daily life. Just because we are on the team doesn’t mean that everything is automatically fine and wonderful. The disciples had their moments of doubt, their fears and frustrations, their anxieties, their feeling of helplessness, but they also knew their leader, their shepherd and as they turned to him and through the ministry of their fellow team members, they would receive love and new life. Is there someone you know, perhaps next to you this morning that needs a kind word, a word of support and encouragement? That would be a part of teamwork.
In his book, Loving Jesus, Mark Allan Powell says, “Don’t wait for the kingdom – experience it.” Too many are waiting for the kingdom to come at the end, when we live in the kingdom right now. We need to experience it and share it with others. We are a team – seize the opportunity.
Conclusion
A group of parents waited to claim their children from nursery school one December. It was the last session before Christmas and the children had made presents. They were all wrapped in colorful wrapping. One little boy came running out of class, tripped and fell, smashing the present in the process. The room fell silent and the little boy started crying loudly. The father went up to him and said, “There, there, it really doesn’t matter.” The mother, who was wiser, said as she put her arms around him, “Oh but it does matter. It matters a great deal.” And tears filled her eyes. People are hurting and helpless all around us; it does matter. Share the life enhancing news of Jesus with them. There is much to do and so many possibilities. Amen.