THE MESSIAH’S MESSENGERS

Matthew 10:5-15
5 These twelve Jesus sent out and commanded them, saying: “Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans.
6 But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
7 And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’
8 Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.
9 Provide neither gold nor silver nor copper in your money belts,
10 Nor bag for your journey, nor two tunics, nor sandals, nor staffs; for a worker is worthy of his food.
11 “Now whatever city or town you enter, inquire who in it is worthy, and stay there till you go out.
12 And when you go into a household, greet it.
13 If the household is worthy, let your peace come upon it. But if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you.
14 And whoever will not receive you nor hear your words, when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet.
15 Assuredly, 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!

This is the message of our Lord to His apostles.

The Call: Jesus sent out His disciples, instructing them. Note that Jesus did not send forth every disciple who was following Him. Only a few were chosen to serve as special messengers who were to devote all their time to preaching and ministering .A person is sent forth by Jesus; he does not choose to go forth. If he does, he goes forth in his own strength and power. He cannot expect the power of Christ.
The ministry is not a profession; it is a commission. The man who chooses to be a minister without a true call and commissioning of the Lord experiences four things.
1. He finds himself ministering primarily in his own strength.
2. He often finds his heart void and feels the constant pressure of having to come up with human ideas and human programs. He has difficulty maintaining a sense of meaning and purpose for both himself and his people
3. He senses a real void and shortcoming in proclaiming the gospel and in doing the work of the ministry
4. He often wonders what good is really being done. He just lacks the sense of a real call within; therefore, there is no outside godly connection to comfort and assure him that he is in God’s will. He is left to seek comfort and assurance only from himself or from some other human source. There is no supernatural spirit or power to encourage him.
Commission: first, go to Israel; that is, do not go to the lost of the world, but to the lost of one’s own house. The offer of salvation was to go to Israel first; now it is to be offered to the whole world (Ro 9:30, Ro 10:13)
A man is to go to his own house first.
1. He is to demonstrate love for his own family and friends first. If he does not love those of his own household, how can he love those whom he does not know?
2. He is to learn how to bear witness with those who are more likely to respond instead of react. Such knowledge better prepares him to face the world and its negatives responses.

Preaching – Kingdom of Heaven: second, preach – preach that the kingdom of heaven is near. Note the message is a given message, given by the Lord Himself. The disciples were not to proclaim their own ideas nor the ideas of others. They were to preach the message given by the Lord. No matter the generation, the message needs to be repeated and repeated.
• It is the same yesterday, today and forever (He 13:8)
• It was the message of Christ (Mt 4:17, 23)
• It was the message of John ( Mt 3:2)
• It was the message of the apostles and ministers of Christ
The Ministers – Ministry: the major areas of service for the apostles were twofold – the area of preaching the gospel and the area of ministering. The apostles were to minister and to share freely. Christ gave them His authority and power freely; therefore, they were to minister freely, not charging special fees for special ministries. Their ministry and sharing were in four primary areas.
Minister – sharing freely, two things always need to be remembered about the apostle’s unusual power.
1. Their power was a given power. It came from the Lord Himself. God gives His servant the gifts and power to preach and minister as He called him (1 Co.12:28; Ep 4:11-13). The gifts and power of a man come freely from God; therefore, he is freely to give all he has.
2. Their power was to confirm that God does love and care for the world and that the message being preached was actually from God. (Mt 10:1).
Ministering to the needs of people shows two things.
1. God loves and cares for people.
2. The minister is a minister of love and care.
Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” (Mat 20:28)
How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. (Acts 10:38)

The Ministers: In financial matters, Christ expected two things from His apostles and His people. First, His apostles and servants were not to spend their own money on the ministry: and second, His people were to adequately support His apostles and servants.
Even so the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should live from the gospel. (1Cor 9:14)
Let him who is taught the word share in all good things with him who teaches. (Gal 6:6)
The apostles, God’s servants, were forbidden to accumulate estates through the ministry. But they were not to spend their own money on the ministry. There were several reasons for this.
1. Their minds and hearts were to be centered on preaching the gospel and ministering to people, not on buying and selling and accumulating
2. They were to trust God for their needs and by such example to teach dependence upon God. (Mt 6:24-34)
3. They were to teach and depend upon God’s people to provide for them. (1 Cor 9:13-14)
4. They were to allow God’s people the privilege of sharing in the ministry through their giving. God’s people were to learn more and more trust by depending upon God to help them raise whatever funds they needed to support the ministers.
God’s servant or laborers is worthy of being financially supported. In fact, Paul taught that God’s servant is worthy of double honor (salary, compensation, financial support).(1 Ti 5:17-18; pt 2, 1 Co 16:5-9; Lu 10:7; Ph 4:11-14).
God’s people were to support the Lord’s apostles. The people were to allow the apostles to give their full time to the ministry and not be forced to labor in a secular job.
Christ Instructed the disciples to seek a worthy host. In every city and place, there are some who have good reputations and some have bad reputations. Several factors determine a worthy host.
1. A worthy host was a person with a good reputation concerning morals. Living with a person of evil and unjust morals would cause the apostles’ own morals to be questioned. They were to reach out to the immoral, even as Christ did, but not to live with them. They were to be careful in choosing their close friends.
2. A worthy host was a person with a good reputation concerning God. Some would have a spiritual interest and some would not.
3. A worthy host was a person with a good reputation concerning hospitality. Some would willingly care for strangers; others would not.

Note several lessons.
1. The apostles were to seek out the worthy host. They were not to seek out the wealthy and leading citizens of a community, nor were they to seek out the best accommodations
2. Paul sought out God’s people when he went into a new and strange place (Ac 28:14).
3. The good people of a place are usually known. All the factors that make up the quality of a person are usually known: honesty, decency, kindness.
4. Note the lesson about the believer’s close friends. His close friends are to be God’s people – people counted worthy by God.
God’s messenger was to stay with same host throughout his stay in a place. He was not to seek more comfort and luxury as he came to know a place. There are several reasons for this.
1. Such action might indicate favoritism and cause jealousy.
2. Such action might indicate a materialistic and selfish and soft mind, leading to the questioning of a person’s commitment.
3. Such action distracts from a person’s purpose and ministry.
4. Such action hurts and often alienates the first host.
The apostles were to approach a house cordially saluting, that is approaching cordially does several things
• Communicates a friendliness and kindness which encourages an open reception.
• It opens the door to more conversation which the messenger can turn into presentation of the gospel
• It tells immediately whether a person is receptive or not.

Conclusion
Our Lord Jesus Christ has already set the standard for modern day ministers to follow.
“teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. (Matt 28:20).
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. (Heb 13:8).