Anchor My Faith

Ministry Instructions

Scripture: Matthew 10:5-8

In the previous lesson, Jesus called to him his disciple and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction and paired them up into six pairs of two to go out. In this lesson Jesus begins to provide them with necessary details for their assignment. ^{Mt 10:5} “[Jesus] instructing them, “Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans, ⁶ but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. ⁷ And proclaim as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ ⁸ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying; give without pay.”

The first detail related to the area of ministry. They were not to go among the Gentiles or to any town of the Samaritans. In other words, their mission was restricted to Jewish Galilee, which was surrounded by Gentile territory except for Samaria to the south as shown by maps found at this link. Initially, God chose the Jewish people to reveal himself to and instructed them on how to walk in righteousness. As Adam disobeyed God in the garden and ate the forbidden fruit, Jewish leaders continued to disobey him, killing most of the prophets he sent to help restore their relationship with him. God then sent his Son, as the Man Jesus, but in time they killed him also. At this time, Jesus is instructing his disciples to stay focused on Jewish Galilee, though in time the gospel would be taken to the whole world.

The second detail related to the particular people the disciples were to target. They were to focus on the lost sheep of the house of Israel, namely the whole lost nation of Israel rather than just part of it. As pointed out in Acts 1:8 and Romans 1:16, God’s plan was to proclaim the gospel to the Jew first and then to the Gentile.

The third detail related to what was to be said as the disciples went about the target people. They were to proclaim as they went, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.” This is a repetition of the words spoken by John the Baptist. “[He] came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand”’ (Matthew 3:1 – 2 ESV). From the time that John the Baptist was arrested, Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:12, 17). Now the disciples are sent out with the same message. Soon that message would go out to the whole world.

The fourth detail instructed them to demonstrate their authority by meeting the physical needs of the people. They were to heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. Helping a person who is in need and is suffering is a demonstration of love and draws their attention to listen to and hopefully understand a message about their spiritual need. This is what Jesus did and this was his plan for the disciples on their first mission assignment.

The fifth detail related to their wages. Jesus gave the disciples an extension of his authority and expected them to go and use that authority to meet the needs of the people and thus earn an opportunity to share about their spiritual needs. The disciples did not have to pay Jesus for that authority and the disciples are not to receive any pay for what they do for the people.

Conclusion

What instruction has God given us in the Scriptures about going out to the people. Are you glad someone spoke to you about salvation in Jesus Christ. What part are you doing in reaching others with the gospel and in helping them grow in their faith?