Worthy Recipients

5 These twelve Jesus sent out, 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.9 Acquire no gold or silver or copper for your belts, 10 no bag for your journey, or two tunics or sandals or a staff, for the laborer deserves his food. 11 And whatever town or village you enter, find out who is worthy in it and stay there until you depart. 12 As you enter the house, greet it.13 And if the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it, but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. 14 And if anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town. 15 Truly, I say to you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah than for that town." (Matthew 10)
God's Blessing. Who deserves it?  In a very real sense - none of us.  We cannot and do not do what "earns" God's blessing, salvation. forgiveness, or position as His children, let alone additional "perks".  He offers them freely to those who will receive them, trust Him, and identify with Him.  For many, pride keeps us from accepting anything free. It also tends to make us decide who is and who is not worthy of the same.  Christ is straightforward: let Him decide.  As we have freely received what God offers, may we freely share with others, hoping, asking, trusting that they will receive as well.  As for judgment on those who will not?  That's His place, not ours.  We are but His unworthy servants, recipients of His loving grace. 

Pick me! Pick me!

And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction. 2 The names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; 3 Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus;4 Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. (Matthew 10)
Do they still pick teams on the playground for kickball?   I can remember those intense moments, wondering if I would be last. But then I stop to think: at least I was chosen!  What would it be like to not even be chosen at all?   Of course, Jesus' calling of the twelve was different, but it poses the question: Who did He choose not to call?  Why did He choose whom He chose?  Ability, intelligence, and being able to learn quickly do not seem to have been qualifications - not even faithfulness (Judas Iscariot!) Yet Jesus had his reasons and purposes. The important thing is that He called them, empowered them, and send them. He still does the same with us as His followers today. All who beleive into Him and follow Him receive the power and fruit of His Spirit, and are entrusted to carry out His plans.  Will we be willing learners, followers, and servants? Will we live life every day as if to say: "Pick me!"

The Unstated Question

35 And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; 38 therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” (Matthew 9)
Jesus ministered constantly. He was driven by His heart for people, lost and hurting. Everywhere He went, everywhere He looked, He saw an ocean of those with physical, but even more so - spiritual needs.  When He instructed the disciples to pray for laborers, He was was asking them a question: "Do you see people the way I do? Do you have compassion like I do? Are you willing to get out, get your hands dirty, and do some harvesting yourself?" One who really has His heart, and His eyes, looks, is moved with compassion, and joins in the labor.  May we do more than look, and even pray; may we respond and go. 

Irrational Logic

32 As they were going away, behold, a demon-oppressed man who was mute was brought to him. 33 And when the demon had been cast out, the mute man spoke. And the crowds marveled, saying, “Never was anything like this seen in Israel.” 34 But the Pharisees said, “He casts out demons by the prince of demons.” (Matthew 9)
Let's give the Pharisees credit.  They at least understood the core issue of Jesus' presence: Authority.  Wherever He was, He threatened their authority, so they were always questioning His.  Their line of thinking was this: "the demons have been bossing everyone around; the only one who could tell them what to do is their leader their prince." There is a sense of true logic to that.  What one of the other gospel writers shares with us that Matthew does not is that Jesus called them on the rationality of such logic. "Why would the Devil, the prince of demons do that? He was people to be demon influenced."  Their line of reason made no sense.  What they were totally avoiding was this thought: that Jesus had greater authority than the prince of demons; He has the authority of God.  Once we admit that, then everything changes. Everything Jesus says and calls on us to do becomes a must; if we really see Him as our ultimate authority, we ahve no excuse to say "no" to His call on our lives.  The alternative is to stay under the authority of self-firghteous men, or worse yet, the prince of demons.

As Quiet as Possible?

27 And as Jesus passed on from there, two blind men followed him, crying aloud, “Have mercy on us, Son of David.” 28 When he entered the house, the blind men came to him, and Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They said to him, “Yes, Lord.” 29 Then he touched their eyes, saying, “According to your faith be it done to you.” 30 And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly warned them, “See that no one knows about it.” 31 But they went away and spread his fame through all that district. (Matthew 9)
How baffling it must have been for Matthew and the rest of the twelve: they saw and heard Jesus preach and heal - somtimes telling the recipients to "go and tell", while on other occasions, like here, He told them to tell no one.  Sometimes He said "come, follow me," while other times he told them to stay and be a witness there.  Here He says: "See that no one knows about it." In ther words "Keep Quiet." They were as quiet as they could be.  Possibly they did not have to even say a word - people could see the difference - the blind could now see.  Then, if they asked questions, they would not want to lie - they would be forced to answer in honesty: "Jesus of Nazareth did this." This is pure, positive publicity - no Sabbath breaking, no confrontation about authority. It is simply pure truth: Jesus answered their request and healed them, and it was a life-changing event they could not help but share.  May we see our changing by Christ as just as worthy of testimony as they did, and let His fame spread.:

As Good as Not Dead

18 While he was saying these things to them, behold, a ruler came in and knelt before him, saying, “My daughter has just died, but come and lay your hand on her, and she will live.” 19 And Jesus rose and followed him, with his disciples. 20 And behold, a woman who had suffered from a discharge of blood for twelve years came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment, 21 for she said to herself, “If I only touch his garment, I will be made well.” 22 Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, “Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.” And instantly the woman was made well. 23 And when Jesus came to the ruler's house and saw the flute players and the crowd making a commotion, 24 he said, “Go away, for the girl is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him.25 But when the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl arose. 26 And the report of this went through all that district. (Matthew 9)
Jesus would not be distracted. He was on His way to raise the ruler's daughter, and He carried through on His intention.  But He was not so driven that nothing nor no one could receive His attention. He was able to multi-task, continuing to show compassion to all who came His way.  In a sense, both of these people were as good as dead.  The daughter was proclaimed dead by physicians, and the woman had pursued every option for healing, with no hope in sight. Until she met Jesus.  In both cases, His reputation had preceeded Him, and in neither one did He indicate any doubt of His ability, desire, and purpose in healing them.  In His eyes, they were as good as not dead, becoming instruments of praise and thanksgiving to God the Son Who came to make a difference.  Who or what in your life seems, beyond hope, as good as dead? Not with Jesus. 

A DIfferent Kind of Autobiography...

9 As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him. 10 And as Jesus reclined at table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were reclining with Jesus and his disciples. 11 And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 12 But when he heard it, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 13 Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Matthew 8)

Matthew was impressed - not with himself, but with Christ. He saw in Him the sincerity and truth he saw in no other. He saw His mercy toward him. In context and in essence, the way Matthew records his own calling says this: "I am a sinner upon whom Christ has shown mercy, and whom He has been willing to call as His follower.  I am overwhelmed by this mercy and privilege." Matthew wrote with this sense of awe toward the King of Kings, and invited his friends (fellow taxcollectors and sinners) and fellow citizens to come trust and follow Jesus as well.  May we have his same perspective.