Pastor Scott Andrews | February 9th, 2025
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Luke 9:1-6
If you don’t know, tonight is the Superbowl. How many are pulling for the Chiefs? The Eagles? The commercials? Don’t care? It is the number one sporting event in the US each year – an expected 122 million viewers tonight. It’s so big companies pay big money to advertise their goods or services during the game. This year, a 30-second spot will cost you $7-8 million. Over half a billion dollars were paid for commercials last year. Of course, depending on the time slot, it could cost more. Amazon paid $26 million for their ad three years ago. According to one news outlet, advertisers try “to use humor, emotion or a famous actor to create a cultural moment that a mass audience can engage with collectively.”
Through the years, some of the commercials are quite funny – memorable; others are quite lewd. According to Forbes, these have been some of the most popular through the years:
- Apple: “1984” (1984)
- Coca-Cola: “Hey Kid, Catch” (1980)
- Budweiser: “Whassup?” (1999)
- Budweiser: “Frogs” (1995)
- McDonald’s: “The Showdown” (1993)
- Amazon: “Alexa Loses Her Voice” (2018)
- Pepsi: “New Can (Two Kids)” (1992)
- Volkswagen: “The Force” (2011)
There are even groups that will rate the commercials, telling you which ones were best if you happened to miss the game. Then of course, there’s also the halftime show where the field is turned into a concert – that’s usually when we turn it off.
Well, back to the actual game – there is, after all, a game on tonight. Again, it is the biggest sporting event of the year. They say it starts at 6:30, but after all the smoke and introductions and National Anthem and coin flip, which take forever, plus the screen shots of Taylor Swift, the game won’t actually start till much later.
And of course, the game is the result of a year – well, probably years of practice, working out, sweat, devising plays, running plays over and over till perfection. You see, the coaches play an integral role. But imagine, if you will, after final pep talks, months of watching films and running plays and practice – imagine when it came time for the game, after the ridiculously long introductions, the players sat on the bench and said, we’re not going in, coach, you do it; you play the game. Ridiculous, of course. It is the coaches’ job to prepare them, and the team’s job to get in the game. Further, in all the years I’ve watched games – from the stands, on TV, with all my screaming at the Tar Heels, I’ve never actually been in the game. You see, it is one thing to sit, watch and cheer – it was altogether different to be a participant. They play, I watch. Oh, it’s fun – I feel part – but I’m not really. I’ve never gotten a team jersey, I never ran a suicide, I never participated in a practice, I’ve never been in a team huddle, I never got a rebound, I never took a shot, never threw or caught a pass, never even threw a block. I never took the field, or the floor for that matter.
We’ve been in a study of the Gospel of Luke, and we finally arrive at chapter 9 – another significant chapter. Because, something changes. Jesus’ focus – instead of the ever-present crowds – turns to His disciples, especially the Twelve – dare I say, the team. To this point, they had been following, watching, learning – but now, it was time to get in the game.
The chapter begins by Jesus sending them out – their first mission as they go from being learners, to doers. They then participate in the feeding of the five thousand. Then Jesus asks them the question – the one Luke is seeking to answer, who do the people say that I am? What’s their answer the most important question of all time – who then is this Man? The crowds got it wrong, as do most today, so He asks them, who do you say that I am – what’s your answer?
Understand, they are two or so years into Jesus’ ministry by now. They should know who He is – and they got it right, “You are the Christ, the Son of God.” Then He tells them – not the crowds – them what awaited Him when they get to Jerusalem some months later. Then, three of them witness the Transfiguration. He teaches them about true greatness when they were arguing about which one of them was the greatest. They learn about self-denial to follow Jesus, that is, the cost of discipleship. It’s an incredible chapter – we’ll be here awhile, too. But I don’t want us to remain spectators – we, too, must get in the game.
We’ve been learning about and from Jesus – to be convinced that what we believe about Him is true and therefore trustworthy, and therefore, to be shared. After being baptized by John the Baptist, Jesus began His ministry. He came preaching the kingdom of God – repent and believe the gospel. He started doing all kinds of miracles to prove who He was and to support His teaching. The kingdom was dawning – it was right in their midst. His first miracle, you’ll remember, was driving out a demon. Right at the outset, Luke wanted us to know, Jesus wanted us to know – Satan’s kingdom and his days are numbered. There’s a cosmic battle going on and Satan will ultimately lose. It’s not even really a fair fight. Jesus came to deal with sin and its destruction – demons and disease and even death. We’ve seen that over the past few weeks.
Along the way, Jesus is forgiving sinners and calling them to be followers – to be with Him. Don’t miss that – to be with Him. That’s the best part of the Gospel – in fact, that is the Gospel. We are reconciled to God and get to be with Him. John Piper wrote a book titled God is the Gospel. Yes, we receive the forgiveness of sins; yes, we receive a new spiritual family; yes, we get heaven as our home – but best of all, we get God. We get to be with Him. Now, Luke has already highlighted the calling of the Twelve – Peter, Andrew, James and John and the rest. In fact, we read these words in Luke 6:12-13:
12 It was at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God.
13 And when day came, He called His disciples to Him and chose twelve of them, whom He also named as apostles….
He called them to Himself, Mark says so they could be with Him – enjoy a relationship, watch Him, be trained by Him – so that He could then send them out – in short, to do what He was doing. You see, to be a follower of Christ is first to be with Him and then be sent by Him. To get in the game, and not just watch the commercials.
One of my commentaries says it this way: everyone likes that Jesus said, “Come to Me, all you who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.” But many forget that same Jesus also said, having come to be with Me, and by the way, I’ll be with you to the end of the age – having come, now go. Go and make disciples of all nations. There’s work to do. By the way, this same commentator suggested there is a difference between being a disciple – a follower – a learner – and being an apostle, in the general sense of the word. An apostle is one sent with a message. In that general sense, we are all to be those sent with the message of our King, His ambassadors, if you prefer. The message? The message of the kingdom. It’s here, and available. So here are my questions, are you a disciple of Jesus? And most of us would respond, yes. Cheer from the stands – we are rabid fans. But, are you doing what you’re supposed to be doing? Have you joined Him in the work? Or do you stop by once a week on Sundays at game time to spectate?
Which brings us to our text today – Luke 9:1-6 – let’s read that.
It was time for the apostles to get in the game, to become sent ones. Followers to doers, learners to participants. Let’s make our way through the text, and we’ll make some appropriate applications along the way. We’ll follow this outline:
I. The Call to the Work (1-2)
II. Instructions for the Work (3-5)
III. Obedience in the Work (6)
Again, the Twelve had been with Jesus for a while now – maybe up to two years. They had seen Him work and heard Him teach. So, He called them together, to Himself and began to send them out – the other gospels tell us, two by two. This became the practice in the early church – Saul and Barnabas, Barnabas and John Mark, Paul and Silas. You see, sending them two by two would provide mutual encouragement, companionship, a sharing of the work, accountability. It likely had to do with the OT law in Deuteronomy that a testimony is confirmed in the presence of two or three witnesses. I suppose a relevant application for us is to do the work together. Find someone with whom you can partner – who can go with you, pray with you, encourage you, hold you accountable – and do the work of the kingdom together.
Now notice in calling them to work – to get in the game – that Jesus gave them power and authority over all the demons and to heal diseases. Authority speaks of the right to do something; power speaks of the ability to do something. Namely to do what Jesus has been doing – to command demons and heal diseases. Power and authority over demons and disease.
That’s interesting for a couple of reasons. First, it was His authority to give. He didn’t have to get the authority from God – He was God and give His own authority. And second, this authority and power is first over demons. In Luke, this has been an important display of the coming of the kingdom of God – power over the forces of evil. Again, there is a comic battle going on and followers of Jesus have authority and power over demons and demonic activity. That’s why Paul tells us in Ephesians 6 our struggle is not against flesh and blood – that is, other people – but against the rulers, powers, world forces of darkness, spiritual forces of wickedness in heavenly places. In other words, our battle is against the forces of evil – Satan and his demons. Therefore, we are to put on the full armor of God.
We are told by Peter that our enemy, like a roaring lion, prowls around looking for someone to devour. But, we have the armor of God – the shield of faith by which we can extinguish his attacks – and the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God by which we do battle. So, we resist the devil, Peter says, standing firm in the faith.
James tells us to resist the devil and he will flee from you – but he doesn’t leave us with hand-to-hand combat. No – he says in the next verse, draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. The best way to defeat the devil is to focus, not on him, but on Christ, who has already defeated him (I John 3). We draw near to God – He draws near to us, and the devil flees. We’ve seen that, haven’t we? Jesus shows up, demons bow, proclaiming His Lordship as the Son of God – and they flee, into pigs. The devil and his mission stand defeated. I don’t believe they have any power over believers – rather, greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world.
So, the Twelve are given authority – the right to do something – and power – the ability to do something – over demons, and second, over disease. Namely, to heal diseases. Now this is challenging – let’s talk about this. Many want to suggest this was only given to the apostolic band and not to believers at large. But when the 70 are sent out in chapter 10, they are given the same power to heal diseases. And you find healing continuing through the book of Acts.
So, what does that mean for the church today? Lots of discussion, lots of disagreement about that. And it certainly depends on your position about spiritual gifts – are they for today, are they not for today, are some for today and some not for today. Lots of discussion and disagreement, and I won’t try to solve the issue today. I’ll simply say this – these Twelve, and later the Seventy, are sent out with the authority and power Jesus had in the fullness of the Spirit when the Spirit descended on Him at His baptism. Yes, Jesus was fully God, but He laid aside the voluntary use of His divine attributes, and yet did use them at times. He healed people, He read their thoughts, He raised people from the dead, He drove out demons, He turned water into wine, He calmed storms. He was in the flesh and empowered by the Spirit. And He gave that authority and power to at least the Twelve and the Seventy. And we see it continue into the early days of the church.
Further, when the epistles, the letters, were written to the churches, they wrote about spiritual gifts. Yes, some suggest they have gone off the scene since the completion of the Bible, but there’s no clear evidence of that. Yes, we see them waning in importance as the church is established. I agree with Philip Ryken who suggests where there is a fresh inbreaking of the gospel, sometimes the Spirit uses more of the spectacular spiritual gifts for the purpose of authenticating the messenger and his message. And so, while we deny faith healers who clearly violate this text as we’ll see in a moment, there is such a gift as healing. And as we practice around here James 5, the Elders often pray for people and their healing. Sometimes God heals, and sometimes He doesn’t – He is sovereign in His purposes. All that to say, God may use healing today in His love and compassion for people – and He may use it to give authority to the message of the kingdom. Are you with me? I’m not suggesting we go to an unbiblical Charismatic fringe – I am suggesting we let God be God, and do what He will do.
But now, there is the other thing, the more important thing Jesus sent them and us out to do. Yes, to drive out demons, yes to heal, but to proclaim the same message Jesus preached – the message of the kingdom of God. That it is here and available by grace through faith for those who repent and believe the Gospel – which we have in its fullness – the good news of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. That’s the message of the kingdom of God we preach.
Which brings us to our second point – the instructions. In Matthew and Mark, it’s a little stronger – they say Jesus gave them instructions or orders. But Luke simply says, Jesus said to them – and He uses a bunch of imperatives or commands. This is how I want you to do it.
First, He tells them what to take and what not to take in verse 3. At first glance, it seems a little over the top, like micro-management. You’re going to tell them what to pack, and what not to pack? Yes, look at it. Basically, He tells them to travel light. He tells them to take nothing for the journey, not a staff – Mark says to take a staff – the implication seems to be don’t take an extra one. Don’t plan as if you’ll have some unforeseen needs in the future. You see, He also tells them not to even take an extra shirt. So here He probably means, don’t take an extra staff. Some suggest Jesus is saying, you can take a walking stick, but not a rod for self-defense. Whichever.
So, don’t take an extra staff, no bag – no backpack, since there won’t be anything in it anyway. The word for bag here is used of moneybags that traveling teachers and philosophers and beggars used to enrich themselves – a place to put the money they collect. Nope, Jesus says, you won’t need that. Don’t take bread or money. The other accounts say don’t take an extra pair of sandals – you only need one pair. Again, all the accounts say, don’t take two tunics. One is enough. What is this about? Why these detailed orders? It’s about dependence. It’s about trust. Jesus is teaching them to fully rely on Him for all their needs.
Take a walking stick – but don’t take a rod for self-defense – I’ll take care of you. Don’t take provisions – I’ll provide. Don’t take money – you won’t need it. Don’t take extra sandals or clothes – I’ll take care of you, I’ll provide. The point is, I’m calling you to the work, and I’ll give you everything you need for the work. Just like I take care of the birds of the air and the lilies of the field – I’ll take care of you. No need to worry. I will take what little you have and use it for My kingdom. Don’t rely on yourself, rely on Me. That’s the point.
I have to tell you how personally convicting this is. If Jesus said this to these then, I wonder what He would say the western church today. I wonder how much our stuff has distracted from the mission (Acts 3, Thomas Aquinas, Pope). Don’t be self-reliant, be Christ-reliant. Further, don’t we normally make sure we have all the resources we need before we start doing something God calls us to do? God says, go – do this ministry, that ministry, and we begin counting the cost. Can I afford it? Do I have the resources? Do have the time? Do have the skills and gifts? What does it mean to be a fully-devoted follower of Jesus? Here, Jesus is saying trust. What I call you to do, I will enable you to do – with all the resources, spiritual gifts – all that you need. It was Hudson Taylor, the great missionary to China who said, God’s work, done God’s way, will not lack God’s supply. Is He calling you to serve in some way? You’ve come to Him, now He wants you to go to serve. Will you trust Him, and serve?
Well, next Jesus gives them commands regarding their visits to various towns. First, He says, wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave town. What, first you’re telling me what to pack, now you’re telling me where to stay? Yes. There was a Middle Eastern hospitality that actually exists to this day which would take in travelers. You show hospitality to those traveling through your town. In fact, early on, this is how traveling gospel preachers were cared for. They’d show up and could count on someone taking them in. So again, here we see the issue of trust. You don’t need a rod, someone will take you in. You don’t need bread, someone will feed you. You don’t need an extra tunic for cold nights, someone will provide shelter. Trust Me, Jesus says.
But, if someone takes you in, stay there until you leave. What does that mean? A couple of things. First, you might be tempted to work your way up the social ladder if someone gives you a better offer. Someone offers you their meager accommodations and food, and someone wealthier comes along and says stay with me – you’re tempted. Who wouldn’t want a feather bed instead of a straw mat? Who wouldn’t want a steak instead of bread and water. Jesus says, don’t do that. There are likely two ideas here – don’t be thinking of yourself and how you can work a system to gain more. And second, don’t overstay your welcome. You see, there were customs as to how long you stayed – three or four days is long enough. Don’t get comfortable – there’s work to do. Move on. Jesus is stressing an urgency here.
So, stay with those who accept you. But, verse 5, just as I was rejected in Nazareth, so also you will visit some places who will not receive you. They won’t accept you, they won’t listen to your message. When that happens, when you leave, shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them. This is shocking. It was a practice familiar to the Jews. When returning to the holy land from a Gentile area, they were to shake the dust off their feet lest they contaminate the holy land. It was a sign of their being irreligious and under God’s judgment.
Can you imagine doing that to fellow Jews? You’re irreligious because you reject God’s Son, and you are under His judgment. Jesus said, shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them. It’s a testimony of their coming judgment. They have heard, they have seen, they have rejected. Shake the dust off. These are hard words. In fact, in the parallel passage in Matthew, Jesus says it will be more tolerable in the judgment for the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah than for that town.
That’s significant. When we think of Sodom and Gomorrah, we think of the most reprehensible of sinners – those who did not show hospitality, in fact they were sexual deviants. But Jesus says, there’s something worse – hearing and seeing the gospel, and rejecting it. It will be more tolerable for Sodom than for you. I find it interesting that today we certainly don’t want to offend anyone, so we seldom talk of sin and the judgment to come. Here, they give a clear statement that would have shocked, offended, and perhaps brought some to repentance.
Which brings us quickly to our last point – obedience in the work. In verse 6, we see they began going throughout the villages, preaching the gospel. Wait, they were supposed to go preach the kingdom of God, and they went and preached the gospel. Yes, that was Jesus’ message. They preached that people should repent and believe the gospel – in its fullness today.
Now notice, they began preaching the gospel and healing everywhere. First, they came with the message of the King, and healing affirmed the message. But don’t miss, they were to care for their souls and their bodies. That’s what the church has always done. But, think of it this way – if you heal someone, but they don’t repent and believe the gospel, all you have is a healthy pagan. If you drive out a demon, but they don’t repent and believe, all you have is a delivered unbeliever. They still need Jesus. The message of the gospel is paramount. And the healing they did authenticated the message. Sure, it mercifully made sick people healthy and possessed people free. But healthy and free to repent and believe.
Which brings us to our conclusion. Let me review some principles we learn from this text:
- Jesus Himself identified others in whom He could invest, disciple, train, and send out. We, too, should identify people in whom we invest, to see workers multiplied.
- Second, we should seek to cultivate a simple lifestyle and avoid becoming enamored by the fleeting things of this world. The Scripture is full of warnings about the dangers of wealth and accumulating stuff. You see, they become distractions to what really matters.
- And third, we should depend on God rather than our own resources. We remember Paul wrote in Philippians that he’d learned to be content in all circumstances – because God would provide according to His riches in glory. Whether we have much, or little, we can be content, doing all things through Christ who strengthens us.
So, I want to encourage you as we close, to get to work. Christianity has enough spectators who enjoy the benefits of belief, but never seem to fulfill the duties of belief. Jesus calls us to Himself so that He can send us out in His name.
I know what some of you may be thinking. I don’t think I’m ready. I haven’t had enough training. I’m not prepared. I don’t have what it takes. Let me remind you who Jesus sent in Luke 9. To this point, and through much of the rest of Luke, these guys are not the sharpest knives in the drawer. They’re often asking the most inane questions. Even though it was granted to them to know the mysteries of the kingdom, after Jesus explained His teaching, they often stood there with the lights on, nobody’s home look. Over and over, Jesus says to them, are you so dull? Don’t you get it? Is your faith so small? My point is, you don’t have to have all together. You don’t have to have it all figured out. All you have to know is He called you to Himself, you’ve spent time with Him, so now go tell others what Jesus has done for you. In His name, in His power and authority. Some won’t believe, but some will.