Sunday May 11th
(Mother’s Day)
Matthew 10:1-15
Mom's Laundry Rules
Do not put your pajamas in with the dirty clothes after only one night. It is a scientific fact that you do not get dirty while you sleep. Pajamas can be worn many times before they smell bad enough to warrant being thrown in with the dirty clothes.
Exception: You may put pajamas in the dirty clothes if you throw up on them
Unroll your socks before putting them in with the dirty clothes. Otherwise, I will start washing and drying them in their original rolled up little balls.
Clean clothes can be easily removed from the closet by gently lifting up on the hanger and pulling it towards you. The clean item can now be removed from the hanger for wearing. The wrong way to remove clean clothes is to YANK on one corner of the garment. This causes the hanger to go flying around the closet, scratching the wall and becoming impossibly entangled with the neighboring hangers.
Special note: This makes Mom want to choke someone. So far, she has been able to refrain from this action.
Once you have made the decision to put something in with the dirty clothes, do not later decide that you, for some reason, now need to retrieve the item by digging through the clothes baskets, leaving behind a mess that looks like a small tornado just whirled through the laundry room.
Check your pockets before you put dirty clothes in the laundry room. Have you ever tried to pick tiny pieces of white paper off an entire load of dark clothes? No? I thought not! But the next time this occurs, you will have the pleasure of this experience.
Special note: In the future, all money found in any pocket becomes the property of the laundry-doer, and that most assuredly will be Mom, who hopes to be able to save up for a Caribbean cruise, which she will go on alone. She has heard that you don't have to do laundry while you are on a cruise!
When clean clothes miraculously appear on your bed or chair, graciously thank the saintly person who lovingly placed them there and PUT THEM AWAY!
When you decide to try something on and decide that it will not make the fashion statement you were looking for that particular day, think twice before you make the decision that it is easier to throw the item in with the dirty clothes rather than hanging it back up. Goodwill would love to have these items. Their fashion standards are not as high as yours.
Starting today, you will be required to do at least one load of your own laundry per week. Instructions will be provided. Mom feels that the joy of this household chore should be shared, and she has been very selfish about this in the past. She also feels that this is a necessary life skill, and without it, you may never want to leave home. This would not be in the best interest of Mom’s sanity.
As we take a look at the opening verses of Matthew chapter 10, we find Jesus giving “Motherly” advice to His “children”, the disciples:
Jesus summoned His twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every kind of disease and every kind of sickness.
We might say that it was finally time for the disciples to “grow up” and learn to do some laundry.
Jesus actually tells them that, as servants of God, they are not only going to do their own laundry - they are called to help clean up the unclean spirits and diseases in others’ lives as well.
2 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; and 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, the one who betrayed Him.
Do you think Jesus ever called one of His apostles by a different apostle’s name? I think any mother with more than two kids has done this at least once, and Jesus had TWELVE guys to keep track of!
Keep in mind that Matthew identifies them as apostles, not just disciples. The word apostle means an authorized representative who is sent out to carry a message. And that is exactly what Jesus is sending them to do.
Let’s take a quick moment to identify each of the twelve men:
1. Matthew says “The first, Simon, who is called Peter”. And Peter was certainly first among them.
Peter is mentioned in the gospels more times than the eleven others combined. He became the undisputed leader despite his shortcomings.
2. Andrew – Peter’s brother and the one who introduced Peter to Jesus
3. John – who wrote a gospel, three New Testament letters, and the book of Revelation. He called himself “the disciple who Jesus loved.”
4. James – John’s brother and the first of the disciples to become a martyr.
5. Phillip – who said things like “how are we going to feed all of these people? It would take more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!”” and “Lord, show us the father and we will be satisfied.”
6. Nathaniel – Jesus called him “an Israelite in whom there is no falsehood” He also said this before he met Jesus, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”
7. Matthew – the former tax collector and writer of the book we are studying. I think he deserves credit for listing himself seventh instead of first!
8. Thomas – who unfortunately earned the nickname “doubting Thomas” when he didn’t believe that Jesus had been raised from the dead.
9. James number two – also known as “the son of Alphaeus or “James the Less” (Little Jimmy!)
10. Thaddaeus (who was also referred to as Judas, but not Judas Iscariot) – who said exactly one thing that’s recorded in the gospels – “Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?”
11. Simon the Zealot – the Zealots were Jews who wanted to fight back with force to drive the Romans out of Israel. It must’ve been confusing for him when Jesus kept saying things like “Love your enemies”!
12. Judas Iscariot – Matthew calls him “the one who betrayed Jesus” which he was. He also stole money from the purse that was used to give to the poor. Other than that he was probably a really nice guy!
So Jesus has hand-picked this interesting group, and now He gives them specific instructions about how to get all this dirty laundry cleaned up:
5 These twelve Jesus sent out after instructing them: “Do not go in the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter any city of the Samaritans; 6 but rather go 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, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons.
So the first instruction is about WHERE to go, and where NOT to go. Jesus has already healed the servant of a Gentile Centurion in chapter 8, but the focus of this mission for the disciples was to go to their fellow Israelites, because the message they were sent with was ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand’ and the Jews were the chosen heirs of the kingdom. Paul later says that this was in accordance with God’s plan “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.” (Romans 1:16)
The second part of their instructions is to “Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons.” Why does that sound so familiar? Oh yeah, THAT’S what Jesus just did in chapters 8 & 9! He’s saying, “You watched me do it, now YOU go do it!” And just in case you think these instructions were just for THEM, keep in mind that in Mark 16, verses 17 and 18 Jesus says that “these signs will accompany those who believe…In my name they will drive out demons” and “they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.”
Now Jesus adds a few practical details about preparing for the journey:
Freely you received, freely give. 9 Do not acquire gold, or silver, or copper for your money belts, 10 or a bag for your journey, or even two coats, or sandals, or a staff; for the worker is worthy of his support.
Jesus reminds the apostles, “You freely received the good news of the kingdom, now freely give the good news to others.” The message of God’s forgiveness, which allows us to enter His kingdom, was given to us freely; so to either try to sell the message, or to HIDE the message and keep it to ourselves, misses the whole point. Jesus also reminds us that if we are simply obedient to follow His instructions, God will provide for our needs along the way.
God’s provision will most likely come through the generosity of those that we are ministering to, but we also need to recognize that not everyone is going to be receptive to the message, so Jesus tells the apostles this:
11 And whatever city or village you enter, inquire who is worthy in it, and stay at his house until you leave that city. 12 As you enter the house, give it your greeting.
I think we should stop for a moment and look at those words, “whatever city or village you enter, inquire who is worthy in it.”
When I think about that, I can’t help but ask myself this simple question: “If some stranger came to my neighborhood and asked ‘who is WORTHY in this area” would my neighbors point to my house?
And I’m not saying it would be because of any great worthiness of my own, but am I shining the light of Jesus in such a way that HIS worthiness is seen in my life and my home?
Then Jesus says:
13 If the house is worthy, give it your blessing of peace. But if it is not worthy, take back your blessing of peace. 14 Whoever does not receive you, nor heed your words, as you go out of that house or that city, shake the dust off your feet. 15 Truly 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.
Shaking off the dust from your feet was something that the Jewish people did after they traveled through Gentile areas. Now these were all Jewish towns that the disciples were being sent to, BUT…
If they rejected the gospel, that would make them spiritually no different from the Gentiles. And as spiritual Gentiles they would be no different when it comes to God’s judgment than pagan cities like Sodom and Gomorrah!
Because most of Israel did harden their hearts against the Gospel, the message of the kingdom would then be opened up the Gentiles, which resulted in this very ironic episode in Acts 13:44-51
“The next Sabbath nearly the whole city assembled to hear the word of the Lord. 45 But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began contradicting the things spoken by Paul, and were blaspheming. 46 Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken to you first; since you repudiate it and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles. 47 For so the Lord has commanded us,
‘I have placed You as a light for the Gentiles,
That You may bring salvation to the end of the earth.’”
48 When the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord; and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed. 49 And the word of the Lord was being spread through the whole region.
50 But the Jews incited the devout women of prominence and the leading men of the city, and instigated a persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them out of their district. 51 But they shook off the dust of their feet in protest against them and went to Iconium.”
What did Paul and Barnabas do? “They shook off the dust from their feet”! That’s exactly what Jesus said to do when people reject the truth.
It was always God’s plan to bring the Gospel to the Gentiles, but the good news had to be offered to the Jewish people first. That’s why this encounter between Jesus and a Gentile mother in Mark chapter 7 seems so shocking to us at first:
25 But after hearing of Him, a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately came and fell at His feet. 26 Now the woman was a Gentile, of the Syrophoenician race. And she kept asking Him to cast the demon out of her daughter. 27 And He was saying to her, “Let the children be satisfied first, for it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” 28 But she answered and said to Him,
“Yes, Lord, but even the dogs under the table feed on the children’s crumbs.” 29 And He said to her, “Because of this answer go; the demon has gone out of your daughter.” 30 And going back to her home, she found the child lying on the bed, the demon having left.
The shocking language that Jesus uses is that the people of Israel are God’s “children” who need to be fed with the Gospel first, and this Gentile woman and her daughter are essentially “dogs” who would have to wait their turn until the children had eaten. But the amazing thing is that this mother ACCEPTS that role, and simply asks for a few of the “crumbs” of God’s mercy that would fall from the table of Israel’s children.
Let me tell you something; one CRUMB from God’s table will satisfy you more than a whole plate full of what the world wants to feed you!
But there’s even better news:
Now that the fullness of the Gospel has come, we are no longer shut out from the table. This is what the Song of Solomon chapter 2, verse 4 says “He brings me to the banquet hall, and everyone can see how much he loves me.”
(Mother’s Day)
Matthew 10:1-15
Mom's Laundry Rules
Do not put your pajamas in with the dirty clothes after only one night. It is a scientific fact that you do not get dirty while you sleep. Pajamas can be worn many times before they smell bad enough to warrant being thrown in with the dirty clothes.
Exception: You may put pajamas in the dirty clothes if you throw up on them
Unroll your socks before putting them in with the dirty clothes. Otherwise, I will start washing and drying them in their original rolled up little balls.
Clean clothes can be easily removed from the closet by gently lifting up on the hanger and pulling it towards you. The clean item can now be removed from the hanger for wearing. The wrong way to remove clean clothes is to YANK on one corner of the garment. This causes the hanger to go flying around the closet, scratching the wall and becoming impossibly entangled with the neighboring hangers.
Special note: This makes Mom want to choke someone. So far, she has been able to refrain from this action.
Once you have made the decision to put something in with the dirty clothes, do not later decide that you, for some reason, now need to retrieve the item by digging through the clothes baskets, leaving behind a mess that looks like a small tornado just whirled through the laundry room.
Check your pockets before you put dirty clothes in the laundry room. Have you ever tried to pick tiny pieces of white paper off an entire load of dark clothes? No? I thought not! But the next time this occurs, you will have the pleasure of this experience.
Special note: In the future, all money found in any pocket becomes the property of the laundry-doer, and that most assuredly will be Mom, who hopes to be able to save up for a Caribbean cruise, which she will go on alone. She has heard that you don't have to do laundry while you are on a cruise!
When clean clothes miraculously appear on your bed or chair, graciously thank the saintly person who lovingly placed them there and PUT THEM AWAY!
When you decide to try something on and decide that it will not make the fashion statement you were looking for that particular day, think twice before you make the decision that it is easier to throw the item in with the dirty clothes rather than hanging it back up. Goodwill would love to have these items. Their fashion standards are not as high as yours.
Starting today, you will be required to do at least one load of your own laundry per week. Instructions will be provided. Mom feels that the joy of this household chore should be shared, and she has been very selfish about this in the past. She also feels that this is a necessary life skill, and without it, you may never want to leave home. This would not be in the best interest of Mom’s sanity.
As we take a look at the opening verses of Matthew chapter 10, we find Jesus giving “Motherly” advice to His “children”, the disciples:
Jesus summoned His twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every kind of disease and every kind of sickness.
We might say that it was finally time for the disciples to “grow up” and learn to do some laundry.
Jesus actually tells them that, as servants of God, they are not only going to do their own laundry - they are called to help clean up the unclean spirits and diseases in others’ lives as well.
2 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; and 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, the one who betrayed Him.
Do you think Jesus ever called one of His apostles by a different apostle’s name? I think any mother with more than two kids has done this at least once, and Jesus had TWELVE guys to keep track of!
Keep in mind that Matthew identifies them as apostles, not just disciples. The word apostle means an authorized representative who is sent out to carry a message. And that is exactly what Jesus is sending them to do.
Let’s take a quick moment to identify each of the twelve men:
1. Matthew says “The first, Simon, who is called Peter”. And Peter was certainly first among them.
Peter is mentioned in the gospels more times than the eleven others combined. He became the undisputed leader despite his shortcomings.
2. Andrew – Peter’s brother and the one who introduced Peter to Jesus
3. John – who wrote a gospel, three New Testament letters, and the book of Revelation. He called himself “the disciple who Jesus loved.”
4. James – John’s brother and the first of the disciples to become a martyr.
5. Phillip – who said things like “how are we going to feed all of these people? It would take more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!”” and “Lord, show us the father and we will be satisfied.”
6. Nathaniel – Jesus called him “an Israelite in whom there is no falsehood” He also said this before he met Jesus, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”
7. Matthew – the former tax collector and writer of the book we are studying. I think he deserves credit for listing himself seventh instead of first!
8. Thomas – who unfortunately earned the nickname “doubting Thomas” when he didn’t believe that Jesus had been raised from the dead.
9. James number two – also known as “the son of Alphaeus or “James the Less” (Little Jimmy!)
10. Thaddaeus (who was also referred to as Judas, but not Judas Iscariot) – who said exactly one thing that’s recorded in the gospels – “Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?”
11. Simon the Zealot – the Zealots were Jews who wanted to fight back with force to drive the Romans out of Israel. It must’ve been confusing for him when Jesus kept saying things like “Love your enemies”!
12. Judas Iscariot – Matthew calls him “the one who betrayed Jesus” which he was. He also stole money from the purse that was used to give to the poor. Other than that he was probably a really nice guy!
So Jesus has hand-picked this interesting group, and now He gives them specific instructions about how to get all this dirty laundry cleaned up:
5 These twelve Jesus sent out after instructing them: “Do not go in the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter any city of the Samaritans; 6 but rather go 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, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons.
So the first instruction is about WHERE to go, and where NOT to go. Jesus has already healed the servant of a Gentile Centurion in chapter 8, but the focus of this mission for the disciples was to go to their fellow Israelites, because the message they were sent with was ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand’ and the Jews were the chosen heirs of the kingdom. Paul later says that this was in accordance with God’s plan “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.” (Romans 1:16)
The second part of their instructions is to “Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons.” Why does that sound so familiar? Oh yeah, THAT’S what Jesus just did in chapters 8 & 9! He’s saying, “You watched me do it, now YOU go do it!” And just in case you think these instructions were just for THEM, keep in mind that in Mark 16, verses 17 and 18 Jesus says that “these signs will accompany those who believe…In my name they will drive out demons” and “they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.”
Now Jesus adds a few practical details about preparing for the journey:
Freely you received, freely give. 9 Do not acquire gold, or silver, or copper for your money belts, 10 or a bag for your journey, or even two coats, or sandals, or a staff; for the worker is worthy of his support.
Jesus reminds the apostles, “You freely received the good news of the kingdom, now freely give the good news to others.” The message of God’s forgiveness, which allows us to enter His kingdom, was given to us freely; so to either try to sell the message, or to HIDE the message and keep it to ourselves, misses the whole point. Jesus also reminds us that if we are simply obedient to follow His instructions, God will provide for our needs along the way.
God’s provision will most likely come through the generosity of those that we are ministering to, but we also need to recognize that not everyone is going to be receptive to the message, so Jesus tells the apostles this:
11 And whatever city or village you enter, inquire who is worthy in it, and stay at his house until you leave that city. 12 As you enter the house, give it your greeting.
I think we should stop for a moment and look at those words, “whatever city or village you enter, inquire who is worthy in it.”
When I think about that, I can’t help but ask myself this simple question: “If some stranger came to my neighborhood and asked ‘who is WORTHY in this area” would my neighbors point to my house?
And I’m not saying it would be because of any great worthiness of my own, but am I shining the light of Jesus in such a way that HIS worthiness is seen in my life and my home?
Then Jesus says:
13 If the house is worthy, give it your blessing of peace. But if it is not worthy, take back your blessing of peace. 14 Whoever does not receive you, nor heed your words, as you go out of that house or that city, shake the dust off your feet. 15 Truly 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.
Shaking off the dust from your feet was something that the Jewish people did after they traveled through Gentile areas. Now these were all Jewish towns that the disciples were being sent to, BUT…
If they rejected the gospel, that would make them spiritually no different from the Gentiles. And as spiritual Gentiles they would be no different when it comes to God’s judgment than pagan cities like Sodom and Gomorrah!
Because most of Israel did harden their hearts against the Gospel, the message of the kingdom would then be opened up the Gentiles, which resulted in this very ironic episode in Acts 13:44-51
“The next Sabbath nearly the whole city assembled to hear the word of the Lord. 45 But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began contradicting the things spoken by Paul, and were blaspheming. 46 Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken to you first; since you repudiate it and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles. 47 For so the Lord has commanded us,
‘I have placed You as a light for the Gentiles,
That You may bring salvation to the end of the earth.’”
48 When the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord; and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed. 49 And the word of the Lord was being spread through the whole region.
50 But the Jews incited the devout women of prominence and the leading men of the city, and instigated a persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them out of their district. 51 But they shook off the dust of their feet in protest against them and went to Iconium.”
What did Paul and Barnabas do? “They shook off the dust from their feet”! That’s exactly what Jesus said to do when people reject the truth.
It was always God’s plan to bring the Gospel to the Gentiles, but the good news had to be offered to the Jewish people first. That’s why this encounter between Jesus and a Gentile mother in Mark chapter 7 seems so shocking to us at first:
25 But after hearing of Him, a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately came and fell at His feet. 26 Now the woman was a Gentile, of the Syrophoenician race. And she kept asking Him to cast the demon out of her daughter. 27 And He was saying to her, “Let the children be satisfied first, for it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” 28 But she answered and said to Him,
“Yes, Lord, but even the dogs under the table feed on the children’s crumbs.” 29 And He said to her, “Because of this answer go; the demon has gone out of your daughter.” 30 And going back to her home, she found the child lying on the bed, the demon having left.
The shocking language that Jesus uses is that the people of Israel are God’s “children” who need to be fed with the Gospel first, and this Gentile woman and her daughter are essentially “dogs” who would have to wait their turn until the children had eaten. But the amazing thing is that this mother ACCEPTS that role, and simply asks for a few of the “crumbs” of God’s mercy that would fall from the table of Israel’s children.
Let me tell you something; one CRUMB from God’s table will satisfy you more than a whole plate full of what the world wants to feed you!
But there’s even better news:
Now that the fullness of the Gospel has come, we are no longer shut out from the table. This is what the Song of Solomon chapter 2, verse 4 says “He brings me to the banquet hall, and everyone can see how much he loves me.”