Thursday, July 16, 2020

The writings of Luke the physician starting with his version of the gospel - Luke 10:1-16 comments: sent them two and two




Luke 10:1 ¶  After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come. 2  Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest. 3  Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves. 4  Carry neither purse, nor scrip, nor shoes: and salute no man by the way. 5  And into whatsoever house ye enter, first say, Peace be to this house. 6  And if the son of peace be there, your peace shall rest upon it: if not, it shall turn to you again. 7  And in the same house remain, eating and drinking such things as they give: for the labourer is worthy of his hire. Go not from house to house. 8  And into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you: 9  And heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you. 10  But into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you not, go your ways out into the streets of the same, and say, 11  Even the very dust of your city, which cleaveth on us, we do wipe off against you: notwithstanding be ye sure of this, that the kingdom of God is come nigh unto you. 12  But I say unto you, that it shall be more tolerable in that day for Sodom, than for that city. 13  Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon, which have been done in you, they had a great while ago repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. 14  But it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment, than for you. 15  And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted to heaven, shalt be thrust down to hell. 16  He that heareth you heareth me; and he that despiseth you despiseth me; and he that despiseth me despiseth him that sent me.

Underscoring what I said in my previous comments on the ending of chapter 9 that these verses are physically applicable to the Jews that Jesus was trying to turn to Him we see Him send out seventy people in twos to the towns. They are now teaching what they have been taught, the way the Medieval Waldensians of the Alps would work to evangelize Europe, two by two, although Jesus ordered these Jews not to go from house to house. He told them to carry nothing for themselves, that the generosity of people willing to hear would provide. A house in each town would be enough to sustain them as they were not to be knocking on doors. If the town rejected them they were to shake the dust off of their feet. He notes that for those towns it would be better in the judgment for the pagan cities of Tyre and Sidon than for these Jewish towns. The final things is that those who hold His messengers in contempt hold Him in contempt.

Certainly, parallels and good preaching can be made out of going out to witness for Christ and your reception and the consequences of rejecting Him. You can even bring up the suggestion that there are different degrees of suffering in Hell. But, for understanding of the text let’s stick with the text.

The Jews require a sign and came into being as a people with signs and wonders.

1Corinthians 1:22a  For the Jews require a sign

Deuteronomy 4:34  Or hath God assayed to go and take him a nation from the midst of another nation, by temptations, by signs, and by wonders, and by war, and by a mighty hand, and by a stretched out arm, and by great terrors, according to all that the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes?

The kingdom of God is being presented to these Jews in miraculous healings and preaching. These preachers have nothing with which to commend themselves in dress, appearance, or provision but only in their acting as a conduit for Christ’s announcement that the Messiah has arrived. He has come to save His people from their sins and God’s wrath.

No comments: