May 10, 2007

• The Kingdom of Heaven-The Kingdom of God     Luke 10:9 / Luke 10:11
  “The Seventy-Two (or seventy) Sent Out”
  
  (Part 1) (Part 2) (Part 3) (Part 4) (Part 5) (Part 6) (Part 7) (Part 8) (Part 9) (Part 10) (Part 11) (Part 12) (Part 13) (Part 14) (Part 15) (Part 16) (Part 17) (Part 18) (Part 19) (Part 20) (Part 21) (Part 22) (Part 23) (PART 24) (Part 25) (Part 26) (Part 27)(Part 28) (Part 29) (Part 30) (Part 31) (Part 32) (Part 33)(Part 34) (Part 35) (Part 36) (Part 37) (Part 38) (Part 39) (Part 40) (Part 41) (Part 42) (Part 43) (This is Part 44)

  Jesus had quite a large following as evidenced by him sending out 70-72 disciples (some newer manuscripts number only seventy sent out). In verse one, Luke tells us that Jesus “appointed” these disciples and sent them out. The Greek verb “anadeiknumi” is used here (the only place it is found in the New Testament is here and Acts 1:24, where it is translated as “show”) and refers to the action of “choosing” or “appointing” these disciples. It is important to note here that unlike the twelve, whom Jesus taught closely and chose to be constantly with Him, to see, learn and experience God in the flesh, these seventy-two were sent out to prepare His arrival throughout the area. They were His “point-men”. Let’s look closer at these Scriptures:

  Luke 10:1-12
  1 After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. 2 He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. 3 Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. 4 Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road.

  5 “When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ 6 If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; if not, it will return to you. 7 Stay in that house, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house.

  8 “When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is set before you. 9 Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God is near you.’ 10 But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, 11 ‘Even the dust of your town that sticks to our feet we wipe off against you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God is near.’ 12 I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town.

  Let’s look first at the seventy-two (seventy): If you were a Jew in that day, when Jesus appointed seventy-two (seventy) disciples to go out and lay a foundation of truth before His arrival, you would have understood the significance. In the book of Genesis, the 10th chapter, we see a table of nations, the descendants of Noah after the flood, the traditional number of nations in the world. We find 70 names in the Hebrew Old Testament and seventy-two in the Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament, the Septuagint (or LXX). It is important to know that the Greek Septuagint was the Scriptures read and most often quoted by Jesus and the apostles. The LXX was translated in the first to third century BC and was the “Bible” of Greek-speaking Jews and then later of Christians.  I find it interesting also that LXX is “70″, derived from the tradition that it was translated by seventy (or seventy-two) Jewish scholars in Alexandria, Egypt. I found it also surprising to note that there is a difference between the order of the books in the Septuagint and the Hebrew Scriptures………and the order of the Hebrew books in the Septuigant became the accepted order we now see in our Christian Bibles…….not the original order in the Jewish Scriptures.

  I would also note, and find it interesting, that while these “seventy” or “seventy-two” were not named in the Scriptures, tradition (dating back to the 3rd century AD) names them and many of the names are recognizable, such as Mathias (the disciple that was chosen to replace Judas as one of the Apostles), James (the brother of Christ and author of the book of James), Mark, Luke, Ananias, Timothy, Stephen (the first Christian martyr), Barnabas (one of the possible authors of the book of Hebrews), Titus, Philemon, Apollos, Aquila and many more.

  The key to understanding here is that by choosing seventy-two (seventy) disciples to go out and lay the groundwork, to be point-men for His arrival in those towns, Jesus was symbolically showing that all the nations in the world would one day here His message. Luke places great emphasis on the message of Jesus being taken to the Gentiles.

  Jesus sent the disciples out “two by two”…..there is so much wisdom here….every Christian needs such a friend, and should seek someone who they can share their thoughts, trials, and life with…..someone who they can share their feelings and prayers. This was common not only among first century Christians, but also among the Jews. It provided companionship and protection…as well as the “double witness” required in Deuteronomy 17:6 and 19:15.

  Secondly, let’s look at Jesus’ instructions to these seventy-two (seventy):
       “I am sending you out like lambs among wolves.” This image of lambs among wolves was how Jews (Israel) often saw themselves in a pagan world. The thought here is that the disciples are like lambs……defenseless and the totally dependent on God.
       “Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; ” The instruction here is to travel light….not be cluttered and burdened with material things.
       “do not greet anyone on the road.“ I believe that Jesus was saying this to place emphasis on the importance and urgency of their mission. In that ancient day, greetings were long and involved, almost ceremonial. They often involved kneeling, laying prostrate on the ground, kissing of the hand, embracing, as well as rather formal greetings…….and then there was the parting…….these were time consuming. This is similar to the instruction found in 2 Kings 4:29. Additionally, according to Jewish teaching, a man who was on sacred work or business (a sacred journey, in prayer, etc.) should not interrupt his duty in order to great someone.
       “When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; if not, it will return to you.”  “Peace” refers to God’s blessing upon the house. If the owner of the house had a proper attitude towards God, he would be open to the kingdom message. If he didn’t share in that peace, the greeting would return to the one who had given it so that he could share it with someone who would appreciate it.
       “Stay in that house, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house. When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is set before you.“  We must not be about God’s work for what we can get out of it, moving from place to place simply to find a more comfortable place to stay. I would note here that Jesus may have anticipated that some of these disciple teams might be welcomed in non-Jewish homes where the food might not meet Jewish strict dietary and ceremonial laws……I believe that He did not want them to be sidetracked from their mission to take the Gospel to all people.
       “Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God is near you.‘” This, of course, is the key directive. Healing and proclaiming the kingdom of God are linked together. Look at Luke 9:1-2 (where Jesus calls the twelve disciples together) and Luke 9:11. This is the heart of Jesus’ message. Can we heal the sick? We can…we can be instruments of God to heal not only the physically ill, but the spiritually ill as well. We can offer aid, we can share God’s hope and message of grace and forgiveness, we can listen to broken hearts and tell them about the great healer. 
       “But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, ’Even the dust of your town that sticks to our feet we wipe off against you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God is near.’ I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town.“  Jesus was clear that not all would receive the Gospel message. However, just because some don’t believe….this doesn’t change the message. Even if they don’t believe…..the kingdom of God is still near. I would note that in that time, pious Jews would not want the dust of pagan towns to cling to their sandals. Shaking the dust of the city off their feet was a testimony against them. Most know of the story of Sodom and Gamorrah, for those who might not, Sodom was a wicked city that was destroyed by God because of it’s great sinfulness (see Genesis 19:24-28).

  Today’s CLUE: Jesus was clear that not all would receive the Gospel message. However, just because some don’t believe….this doesn’t change the message. Even if they don’t believe…..the kingdom of God is still near. Healing and proclaiming the kingdom of God are linked together. Look at Luke 9:1-2 (where Jesus calls the twelve disciples together) and Luke 9:11. This is the heart of Jesus’ message. Can we heal the sick? We can…we can be instruments of God to heal not only the physically ill, but the spiritually ill as well. We can offer aid, we can share God’s hope and message of grace and forgiveness, we can listen to broken hearts and tell them about the great healer.
  
  WHAT DO YOU THINK?
  

  • 11:35 pm
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