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    Luke 9:1–9 ESV
    And he called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal. And he said to them, “Take nothing for your journey, no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money; and do not have two tunics. And whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart. And wherever they do not receive you, when you leave that town shake off the dust from your feet as a testimony against them.” And they departed and went through the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere. Now Herod the tetrarch heard about all that was happening, and he was perplexed, because it was said by some that John had been raised from the dead, by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the prophets of old had risen. Herod said, “John I beheaded, but who is this about whom I hear such things?” And he sought to see him.
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    TITLE: Summoned, Sent, and Supplied
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    Introduction:
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    It's great to be back here in the pulpit and to jump back into our ongoing series through the book of Luke. I want to encourage you to do something this year. I want to encourage you to bring a paper Bible with you on Sundays. Phones and tablets are great and I use mine all the time. I even do some Bible reading on mine. But there's something about having this time be a focused and analog, if you will, time with the Word of God. So, not a requirement but an encouragement from me to you.
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    Let me take a little longer in the introduction today to bring us back up to speed with Luke.
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    Luke 1:1–4 ESV
    Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.
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    Certainty about who this Jesus is...
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    About his life, death, and resurrection...
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    What He taught...
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    Over the previous chapters we have seen glimpses of who Jesus is and what His followers are like. It's been a sort of incomplete picture so far, more of an outline. But as we get into and finish eventually chapter 9, the picture will become much more clear about who this Jesus is and what His followers, the church is supposed to be about.
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    It is a grace that in His sovereign plan, God has us ready for this passage on this day to begin the New Year. This is a perfect passage for us as a church as we move into 2025 and continue to drill down on our mission of making disciples by: Gathering Together, Growing Deep, and Going Wide with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
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    To the point we come to in our passage, Jesus had been on a solitary mission. He was the sole person preaching the Good News of the kingdom and performing miraculous signs. Of course there was some complementary preaching from John the Baptist but Jesus was spreading His message as one person. But in Luke 9, the disciples get their internship. It turns into a group project, if you will. Jesus is preparing them for apostleship. In Uganda we used the acronym MAWL for how we interacted with the nationals.
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    Model
    Assist
    Watch
    Leave
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    First we modeled what they should do. Then we had them assist us with it. Then we watched them do it. Then we left and turned it over completely to them. Jesus wasn't leaving yet. But it was time to send them out to spread the good news.
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    That brings us to when Jesus gives them a mission.
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    I. Jesus provides His followers with a mission. (Purpose)

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    Jesus gives His followers' lives a purpose. They have something to do. They have something they are supposed to be about. It's a two fold mission. They were to proclaim the kingdom of God and heal the sick.
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    First, He summons them.
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    Then, after He has called them and they have followed Him, He sends them out.
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    We come to Jesus first and then He gives us a mission and sends us out.
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    Their mission was to bring good news. During His ministry, evangelism was Jesus' primary task and He sends them out with the same task. It is why He had called them out, to spread the Good News and be a group of people who were dedicated in their whole lives to serving Him. It was a whirlwind of a tour. And yet it wasn't one that ended. They returned from this particular trip but the mission of spreading the Gospel would continue.
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    Their mission was both prophetic as well as priestly. They were to proclaim and help people. I believe this highlights what has fallen out of favor in some circles in our modern day: the importance an primacy of preaching in the life of a church. Why is sermon preparation the first and most important task I do each week? R.C. Sproul addresses this in his commentary on this passage. He writes,
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    "The New Testament tells us that it is through the foolishness of preaching that God has ordained to save the world. It is God, and here God in Christ, ordaining the pre-eminence of preaching in the mission of the church. He didn’t send them to preach the opinions of men, or mere concern for societal reform, but he sent them to preach of a divine and supernatural kingdom, the kingdom of God".
    - R. C. Sproul
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    Jesus sent them to preach and serve. But He didn't just send them out on their own without any help. He provided something very important.
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    II. Jesus provides His followers with authority. (Power)

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    To this point, from what we have seen from these guys, there is nothing about them that would make us think that they were up to this task. Nothing special in them would make us think they could get the job done. But thankfully the power for accomplishing the mission doesn't come from within them but from the One who was sending on their mission. They didn't have power for doing miracles. Even though they followed Jesus, they couldn't heal people themselves and they did not have authority over the spiritual realm. But NOW, Jesus was delegating authority to them. He was transferring His authority to the twelve so they could be equipped for the task He was calling them to. You could say He provided the power for them to accomplish His purpose for them.
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    So Jesus sends them out in His name and gives them power to perform miracles. But He also gives them authority. This authority is why we differentiate between the apostolic and authority of other human leaders. Sproul was once again helpful in understanding this differentiation. "The apostles were established in one generation." However, their authority has lasted right up to and including today. WE find it in their commission being fulfilled and put forth in the writing of the apostolic authority of the New Testament. Why bring this up? Because many misunderstood this even as early as the second century and misunderstanding it can lead many to fall into a ditch. If someone claims to believe Christ and not Paul's writings, be very cautious of them. In the second century a cult arose known as the Gnostics or Gnosticism. They claimed private, special revelations that exceeded even those of the apostles. They claimed to believe in God and in Jesus Christ but not the teaching of the apostles. The church leader Iraneus had a great answer for them. He said,
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    "If you reject the authority of the apostles, you reject the authority of the One who sent them, namely Jesus, and if you reject Jesus, you reject the authority of the One who sent Him, namely God." - Iraneus
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    Rejecting the authority of the apostles as we find written in the New Testament has dire consequences. Even still, today we have a stream of people who claim special, private revelations from God or secret knowledge that others don't have and they claim it as authoritative, thereby putting it, at least in practice, on the same level as scripture. Avoid these people.
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    As He sends them out, Jesus gives them some really strange instructions. They aren't supposed to load up as you would going on a journey. They weren't supposed to take any extra provisions. On this mission, they would continually be aware of their need for and reliance upon God for everything they need. The task to be completed would require that they live out their faith in Jesus. They had to act on that faith. This was putting your money where your mouth is. They were to travel light and it carries a sense of urgency with it. Go and do this now.
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    They were not to move around from house to house. This sounds odd. They were to be gracious guests and not keep looking for better and better accommodations. They should be content and thankful for the welcome they receive and serve where they land and find welcome.
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    There is one other strange part of these instructions but before we get there, I want to move us along to our third main point because it is within these instructions we see that people will respond to the mission they are being sent on.
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    Jesus would work through His followers.
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    III. Jesus works through His followers. (Productive)

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    The work of God through His followers produces results. People react and respond in some way to the Word of God. Some accept it and some reject it. Look at Jesus' instructions to the twelve when they find unwelcoming places.
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    They are to shake the dust off of their feet.
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    Shake it off, lest that follow them to the next place and pollute it. This act was a sign of coming judgement. Failure to respond to the good news of the kingdom of God has dire consequences.
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    When we share the gospel --> People will respond. One of the hard truths of scripture is that not everyone will be saved. Not everyone will believe the gospel message. But we have it guaranteed that there is a group of people who will. There are people who will be saved. We don't know who those people are and the mission of the invisible, universal church, those who follow Jesus is to proclaim the good news of the kingdom.
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    Some will believe. Some will reject. Some may be like Herod in our text, and be perplexed by Jesus. Let's take a look at his response to hearing about Jesus.
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    Luke 9:7–9 ESV
    Now Herod the tetrarch heard about all that was happening, and he was perplexed, because it was said by some that John had been raised from the dead, by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the prophets of old had risen. Herod said, “John I beheaded, but who is this about whom I hear such things?” And he sought to see him.
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    Jesus was gaining fame and there was great excitement about His ministry, but we read about Herod here and you can start to see the movement toward the cross. One writer said it was like when storm clouds begin to gather and in the not too distant future would lead to grim consequences for Jesus and the disciples.
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    Herod is perplexed by Jesus. He’s a little confused and wonders who this guy is. The three ideas he ponders about who Jesus really is are mirrored in Peter’s response to Jesus asking who people say He is later in this chapter. Herod’s wondering about who this might be connects with Luke’s main thrust in his gospel, wanting to show us certainty about who Jesus is. Herod wondered if he might even be the guy (JTB) who had called out his sin and he had beheaded. You can see why that might have bothered him a bit. Herod tried to see Jesus and eventually would get to toward the end of Jesus’ life. Herod’s interest in wanting to see Jesus basically boiled down to just wanting to see him do a sign. It wasn’t because he wanted to follow Jesus. He wanted to see a show. When Jesus eventually appeared before Him in chapter 28, He refuses to do a sign for Herod and it causes Herod to treat him with contempt.
    Luke is getting us ready as readers for Peter’s confession of who Jesus is.
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    Conclusion:
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    Following Jesus will give your life purpose and power. Lack of meaning and purpose in life is like a fog around you, choking you, making it hard to see. But Christ gives us a clear purpose.
    Purpose - tell as many people as you can about Jesus
    We’re just blind beggars telling other blind beggars where the bread is at.
    Power - We are equipped for our purpose by the power and indwelling of the Holy Spirit. God has provided for us also. Are you relying on Him in your personal ministry?
    The Lord works through us changing the world and impacting eternity when we believe and follow Him.
    Living out the purpose of God impacts eternity.
    So the question that each of us has to answer in our heart and with our lives is this: Are we going to live for His purposes or our own in 2025?
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    Pray.

      • Luke 9:1–9ESV

      • John 1ESV

      • Luke 1:1–4ESV

      • Luke 9:7–9ESV

      • John 1ESV

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