Sheldonville Baptist Church
November 16, 2025
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      • Hebrews 10:19–25NKJV

  • Standing On The Promises
  • Nothing But The Blood (Plainfield)
  • I Saw The Light
  • This Little Light Of Mine
  • What a Day That Will Be
  • What does it mean to be Jesus’ followers? What does it mean to be “on mission” as we sometimes hear it? Jesus did not want want His followers to be ignorant of what these things really meant, so He spent a good deal of time clarifying that for them in Matthew chapter 10. But we begin with the end of chapter 9 where the need for such clarity is introduced.

    Jesus Went, 9:35-38

    Matthew 9:35–38 NKJV
    35 Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. 36 But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. 37 Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. 38 Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.”
    He preached, 35a
    to teach is to instruct
    to preach is to announce or proclaim
    both are part of what we think of as preaching in a contemporary sense
    He healed, 35b
    sickness is short term sicknesses and injuries
    disease is longer term conditions
    He was deeply moved by their need, 36
    He saw them in their need
    He didn’t feel their need with them (this is a different word than sympothy)
    He felt His own pain at seeing their needs
    His pain compelled Him to ease theirs
    He was only one person (and they were scattered)
    He said to pray, 37-38
    The harvest is plentiful (He sees differntly—and better—than we do
    The laborers are few (He was working alone, and needed help)
    The Lord of the Harvest, could be added to our list of names for God (we’re primarily looking at His Hebrew names during Sunday School)
    The prayer: send out laborers
    The subtext of the prayer: send us out as laborers
    Having highlighted the need (the disciples went with Jesus to the places He went and saw the same needs He saw), and effectively volun-told them, He prepares them to go.

    Jesus Sent, 10:1-42

    The People for the Mission, 1-4

    Matthew 10:1–4 NKJV
    1 And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease. 2 Now 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 Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; 4 Simon the Cananite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him.

    The Students of verse 1 became the sent ones of verse 2

    Jesus would later send all of His followers, not just the 12

    The Parameters of the Mission, 5-15

    Matthew 10:5–15 NKJV
    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 mission’s parameters

    Go only to Israel, 5-6
    not to the Gentiles
    not to the Samaritans
    Even though Jesus Himself went to both
    This mission’s parameters were specific to this mission
    Preach/proclaim that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand, 7-8
    this was Jesus’ message
    this was accompanied by signs to validate their claim
    heal the sick
    cleanse the lepers
    raise the dead
    cast out demons
    give what you have been given: wholeness
    don’t take provisions, 9-12
    no money
    no luggage
    no food
    no arrangements for shelter
    yes hospitality (Jewish hospitality was the practice of housing, feeding, and providing for strangers who traveled through your area)
    provisions equal complication, this mission was to be brief and focused
    don’t waste any time, 13-15
    stay with the willing
    minister to the receptive
    testify against the obstinate
    Nehemiah 5:13 NKJV
    13 Then I shook out the fold of my garment and said, “So may God shake out each man from his house, and from his property, who does not perform this promise. Even thus may he be shaken out and emptied.” And all the assembly said, “Amen!” and praised the Lord. Then the people did according to this promise.

    Were not every mission’s parameters

    Jesus sent His disciples on multiple missions and the parameters were different for each mission.

    Are not our mission’s parameters

    This particular mission was brief and focused. Our mission is neither. So our parameters are different than theirs were here. That said, there is still some similarities, especially in what comes next.

    The Precariousness of the Mission, 16-26

    Matthew 10:16–26 NKJV
    16 “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. 17 But beware of men, for they will deliver you up to councils and scourge you in their synagogues. 18 You will be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles. 19 But when they deliver you up, do not worry about how or what you should speak. For it will be given to you in that hour what you should speak; 20 for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you. 21 “Now brother will deliver up brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death. 22 And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved. 23 When they persecute you in this city, flee to another. For assuredly, I say to you, you will not have gone through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes. 24 “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25 It is enough for a disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more will they call those of his household! 26 Therefore do not fear them. For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known.
    We are all sent as sheep among the wolves (ie, the prey being sent to preach to the predators), 16a
    We are all told to be wise as serpents, but harmless as doves, 16b
    It is an odd juxtaposition, but telling
    wisdom, prudence, and strategy are encouraged
    harm, abuse, misuse, and manipulation are prohibited
    We are all going to face resistance, 17-18
    We will all be given the words to say in the time we need them, 19-20
    We will all be outsiders (even in our own families), who will be hated and even hunted, 21-23
    We are all following Jesus, 24-26
    They mocked Him
    They hated Him
    They killed Him
    We are all told to not fear them (verse 26), which seems unrealistic until we consider what our mission may produce.

    The Product of the Mission , 27-33

    Matthew 10:27–33 NKJV
    27 “Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on the housetops. 28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. 30 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. 32 “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. 33 But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.
    Opportunity with the message, 27
    Favor with the Father, 28-31
    He is more significant than those who oppose
    He watches over us, allowing (and thus disallowing at His discretion) us to fall
    He knows us intimately and thoroughly (He is not indifferent)
    He values us
    Recognition from the Son, 32-33
    He recognizes as His own those who recognize Him as their own, this includes those who hear and receive our message
    He denies those who deny Him, this includes those who hear and reject our message

    The Purpose of the Mission, 34-39

    Matthew 10:34–39 NKJV
    34 “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. 35 For I have come to ‘set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’; 36 and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.’ 37 He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. 38 And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. 39 He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.

    The peace of victory

    Christmas is right around the corner. We will be regaled with strains of the peace on earth and goodwill to men because Jesus has come. But we need to remember the peace Jesus came to bring is the peace of victory after war, not the peace of concession and tolerance of enemies. Jesus makes this abundantly clear, we just skip over the parts we don’t like.

    The division of kingdoms

    The purpose of Jesus’ mission, and thus ours, is to identify those who will recognize Jesus as theirs; those who are part of His kingdom. This will naturally create division between people and hostility toward those who belong to Jesus. We must bear it, recognizing that life with Christ ending in death is better than death with the world ending in the second death.

    The Prize for the Mission, 40-42

    Matthew 10:40–42 NKJV
    40 “He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me. 41 He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward. And he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward. 42 And whoever gives one of these little ones only a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple, assuredly, I say to you, he shall by no means lose his reward.”
    We will be received and rewarded
    Those who join us in following Jesus will be received and rewarded
    Every Effort, big or small, will be rewarded
    Conclusion
    The mission that Jesus sent His disciples on has similarities and differences to the mission He has sent us on. The differences are primarily in the parameters. The similarities are definitely in the threats we face and the rewards we receive. This can be a lot to take in. If we can remember that this world is not our home, we’re just passing through and that our treasures really are laid up somewhere beyond the blue, we will better prepare ourselves for the challenges we have been called to face.
    The purpose of this extended instruction was for Jesus followers—both then and now—to be clear on the nature of the mission:
    We need to be clear that Jesus did send us
    We need to be clear that we will face resistance
    We need to be clear that we will have limited success
    We need to be clear that we will be rewarded
    Clarity is an essential ingredient, because in our own day, we are the sent ones.

      • Matthew 9:35–38NKJV

      • Matthew 9:35–38NKJV

      • Matthew 10:1–42NKJV

      • Matthew 10:1–4NKJV

      • Matthew 10:1–4NKJV

      • Matthew 10:5–15NKJV

      • Matthew 10:5–15NKJV

      • Nehemiah 5:13NKJV

      • Matthew 10:16–26NKJV

      • Matthew 10:16–26NKJV

      • Matthew 10:27–33NKJV

      • Matthew 10:27–33NKJV

      • Matthew 10:34–39NKJV

      • Matthew 10:34–39NKJV

      • Matthew 10:40–42NKJV

      • Matthew 10:40–42NKJV

Sheldonville Baptist Church
information@sheldonvillebaptist.org
(508) 384-2397
http://sheldonvillebaptist.org
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