Matthew 10:1-47
(10:1) At the finish of Chapter 9, Jesus made the startling observation that the people of the world crave a teacher. They need teachers to help them survive this often cruel and difficult world, but Jesus observes that there are not enough teachers to teach and spread the word. He's going to fix that immediately. He does not waste time, because reaching YOU is too important to Him.
Jesus through God gives the disciples power over unclean spirits (over evil) and the power to heal. Wow, amazing right? What a powerful gift. Guess what? God gives you the same power in Luke 10:19. When you are WITH God, evil will never triumph over you. Evil might try to make your life a little difficult but if you trust God... evil will never prevail over you.
Jesus gives this gift to the disciples because they deserve it and because they love God and can be trusted with it. Giving 12 more men the ability to heal and teach will help Jesus to save more people, more quickly and efficiently. That is why He also gives you the power! You can be of service to this great mission... you can deserve it too!
(10:2-4) We receive the complete list of the twelve disciples: Peter, Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew, James, Lebbaeus, Simon and Judas. (The first person mentioned, Andrew called Peter, had his named changed by God the upcoming chapter of Matthew 16: He will be crucial in helping God teach an important lesson). Do not worry about Judas just yet, I bet when you hear his story you will find that it's quite different from what you know about him now. We will focus on him (Judas) when the Bible is good and ready to focus on him. For now, we continue with Chapter 10.
(10:5-8) Jesus instructs the disciples on where to begin their ministry. Gentile in the original means "nations" or "people" (I reference a Strong's Concordance Dictionary). God wants the children of Israel to be taught first. Why? Maybe for order or convenience. We already know God is impartial. Remember the children of Israel are the descendants of the original family which brought forth Christ. (This can be a very in-depth study in the Book of Genesis, we will get there but lets remain here and learn from Matthew for now).
Jesus reminds the disciples that their love and trust of God earned them the free power of healing... he asks that they use their new ability in the same way it was given to them - fully, completely and without discrimination or price.
(10:9-10) These verses are instrumental, so very important, to understanding how to naturally find true, honest, compassionate people in the world. Jesus instructs the disciples to travel with almost nothing. Do not bring money, do not bring extra coats, shoes, a walking stick... leave with nothing but your faithful self and God in your heart. This is a lesson in itself: God and a kind soul are all you will ever need to survive and succeed.
But there is another reason Jesus wants the disciples to travel with very little. If a man arrives in a community modestly, without money or extra materials (clothes and bags) only the giving and very compassionate people will approach him. This is how you become a magnet for kindness, enter a place expecting nothing, behaving modestly and trusting God and generous people will find you.
Jesus tells them that a "worker is worthy of his food". This means that the disciples should trust that if they are working honestly and justly, they will earn sustenance (from the people who they meet and also from God). You don't even have to worry about your energy or your next meal when you are serving God.
(10:11-12) Look for worthy people when you arrive... goodhearted people, honest people, compassionate people and remain with them so that you may help them.
(10:13-14) Another great life lesson. God instructs the disciples to find a person and their household who they think it worthy and to stay there, if they are welcome, and to teach them the lovely ways of God... to teach them of Jesus and His message. He tells that that if the people are peaceful with them, they shall also be peaceful. However, if they encounter someone who will not accept the way of God and are against love and kindness, they must leave that place. They must leave that place and not worry about it anymore.
Shake the dust off of them of their feet is a metaphor for not allowing evil to taunt you when you have left it. Do not worry or be anxious over it, God will take care of the situation.
This is a good life lesson because even though we are supposed to be kind and forgiving of people who hurt us, we are not supposed to let them use us or destroy us. If our help and goodwill is not accepting, that person has given us permission to leave them alone to their wicked and hurtful ways. Do not wish bad on any person and do remain your kind self with everyone, but do not waste your time with people who have rejected you - move onto another person or situation that will value your worth.
(10:15) The city or person or establishment that rejects you and hurts you will be dealt with by God. And because the city or person or establishment that treated you poorly was taught of God's way, they will be judged more intensely than a wicked person who did not receive your precious council (like the city of Sodom and Gomorrah which did not have a disciple of Jesus as a teacher).
That is a fair statement. God is always fair.
Just a small example: You would not reprimand a child for stepping into snow barefoot if they did not know better. But if you spent time lovingly teaching the child not to step in the snow and explained the consequences to him, yet he still ignored you and stepped in the snow, you could then justly reprimand them for not listening.
(10:16) Jesus gives amazing advice here: He is trying to raise kind and innocent people (symbol: sheep) but He understands that His people will be victims of the unjust and evil (symbol: wolves) Therefore Jesus instructs them and us on how to combat this, on how not to become a victim: You must be smarter, more intelligent, and quicker than the evil people are therefore they can never trick you. If you value knowledge and continue to learn throughout life, your kind and harmless spirit (symbol: doves) can never be deceived or hurt by evil. You soar above their evil ways because you always use your wisdom to foresee their trickery and overcome it with honesty and kindness.
(10:17-18) If you believe and trust in God you must be strong and courageous. Evil exists and will come after you... your work is to battle against them. Jesus Himself encountered evil on the very night he was born until the very last minute before He died. You have work to do just as He did. Your kindness is needed to extinguish evil and therefore you must also encounter it. If you fear evil and you run away from it, it will get stronger and stronger without an opponent. You are an instrument of God's... let Him use you in His good work. Be brave.
God's children have many tasks to tackle: the everyday man and woman need your living-example on how to live a fair and kind life. Your neighborhoods need it, your community, your region, state, nation, country... your voice and actions can reach the world stage. Men and woman in history and some living today have proven that a single person can make a major difference across the global stage (good OR bad!).
Always remember an important truth: God wins ultimately. There's no doubt or question. (2 Corinthians 2:14 - and all throughout the Bible is proof!) Your heart will know it to be true also if you accept His ways.
But evil wants to win and even though it knows it will not win, it and the people who work in evil ways want to destroy what they can while they can. Satan, though not a monster with horns and fire, will come to Earth pretending to be God. He will reign as the anti-christ and confuse and trick many people into believing he is God. Remember Matthew 10:16-17. Be wiser than to fall for that trick. Remember also God gives you power over evil so it cannot destroy you or hurt you. Be brave. We will revisit this very important and relevant discussion at another time or upon special inquiry - let us return to Matthew).
(10:19-20) You do not have to worry about how you will defend against evil. You are an important vessel and God will protect you and help you with the courage to speak the words He knows will be effective. God knows the plan and finishes the plan without error. He will give you the words to speak. You do not have to be anxious or nervous about encountering evil, in those moments with your trust in God and your courage, He will give you the words to say.
(10:21) The interpretation of this verse is that people will fall for the anti-christ and will wonder why others do not bow to him. If you are alert and observant you will identify the false god and you would never bow to him SO, your family will be concerned for you because they do not know better. They will try to get you to believe in him... they will deliver you to up to him, the false god, who represents death out of love for you. They will not actually want to kill you. It is a metaphor.
(10:22) Just like Jesus. Being kind and fair is not always popular. Often the quiet and meek are the nice people and they get walked on by hatred, used by people with wicked agendas. People are confused and cannot find the happy, just path of God's and they cause a lot of problems. You have work to do and you have to be brave because it will require you to sit with sinners. In the end of this world age, you win and are saved so you do not have to worry about yourself.
(10:23) Jesus instructs them to keep teaching, keep moving throughout the world because there is so much work to be done it is not possible for them to finish before God returns. There will always be work for us to do on Earth.
(10:24-25) This verse is a metaphor: Jesus tells them that they do not need to fear their journey ahead even if it seems like a daunting task that only Jesus or God is capable of undertaking. Even though we are not Jesus, even though we are not God, we follow in their footsteps and we learn from them and therefore we are capable of doing great things with their help.
(10:26) God is open about everything. He trusts you with the whole story, the entire plan. He lets you know what has happened and what will happen so that you are prepared. Do your work and you will be fine! Nothing is hidden from you, God is not a deceiver like Satan is.
(10:27) Jesus says, whatever I teach to you while we are here together during the nights, wake up and preach to others in the day.
(10:28) Jesus tells us not to fear people who can harm our bodies because our soul is eternal. Our body is only a vessel carrying our souls and they cannot harm our souls. God says to fear His judgement if you are a bad person because he can put your soul to sleep and there is no chance after that.
(10:29) Jesus says that even sparrows are loved and seen by God. He knows each and everyone of them so of course he knows each and every one of His children too.
(10:30) God loves you so much and knows you so well that He knows everything about you. Every hair on your head is important to Him. He knows you better than you know yourself, better than anybody knows you. His love is incomparable, unchanging... it is forever.
(10:31) God says, if I'm including the sparrows in the details of my plan, of course I am also including you.
(10:32) If you love and trust Jesus enough to proudly and confidently tell and show others your love for Him, He also will proudly and confidently tell and show God how much he loves and trusts you. Good word to God from Jesus... there is no higher recommendation!
(10:33) Likewise, if you are evil and reject God... God will allow you to leave Him and you will be all alone and gone forever.
(10:34-36) Do not misinterpret this verse. Jesus reminds us that He came for a purpose. He came to get work done. He represents love and peace but he came to battle against evil. He understands that His message will not be well-received by many. It will cause disagreements and arguments on the household and national levels. It is a war worth fighting and a war well won. Peace battles evil and wins.
(10:37) Do not misinterpret this verse, either. What Jesus means is that if your mother or child (any family member or loved one) rejects God and wants you to follow them and their evil ways you are supposed to choose God. You are always supposed to choose God's way and nobody else's no matter who they are.
(10:38) This means that if you are unwilling to live a just life, to work in the service of bringing kindness and peace then you do not deserve the gifts that God gives. Your work earns your place in Heaven.
(10:39) Do not be a coward to evil and to fear. Your earthly body is not what you need to worry about. You have an eternal soul protected by God. Trust that He will always protect your soul and forget about saving your earthly-body (it is weak and perishable) your soul is what is important. Trust that. Trust that you only need your soul! If you become a coward and start behaving wickedly because you fear your death on Earth... you will cause your soul to die and you will be gone forever. If you care about your spirit and allow your earthly body to do its job (even if it means trouble) your soul will live forever.
(10:40-41) If you love God, whoever loves you and shows compassion for you will be shown compassion from God. If you help Jesus' accomplish His work, you will be rewarded as Jesus' is rewarded.
(10:42) Even if the best you can do for someone is something small (maybe you do not have a lot or maybe you have a disability) if you do that small thing in the name of God, in the service of God, He sees it as a grand and awesome gesture and you will be rewarded by God for your righteous work.
If you have very little but give everything you have to someone in need, your work is much more precious than a rich person who gives a large gift but remains rich.
Jesus through God gives the disciples power over unclean spirits (over evil) and the power to heal. Wow, amazing right? What a powerful gift. Guess what? God gives you the same power in Luke 10:19. When you are WITH God, evil will never triumph over you. Evil might try to make your life a little difficult but if you trust God... evil will never prevail over you.
Jesus gives this gift to the disciples because they deserve it and because they love God and can be trusted with it. Giving 12 more men the ability to heal and teach will help Jesus to save more people, more quickly and efficiently. That is why He also gives you the power! You can be of service to this great mission... you can deserve it too!
(10:2-4) We receive the complete list of the twelve disciples: Peter, Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew, James, Lebbaeus, Simon and Judas. (The first person mentioned, Andrew called Peter, had his named changed by God the upcoming chapter of Matthew 16: He will be crucial in helping God teach an important lesson). Do not worry about Judas just yet, I bet when you hear his story you will find that it's quite different from what you know about him now. We will focus on him (Judas) when the Bible is good and ready to focus on him. For now, we continue with Chapter 10.
(10:5-8) Jesus instructs the disciples on where to begin their ministry. Gentile in the original means "nations" or "people" (I reference a Strong's Concordance Dictionary). God wants the children of Israel to be taught first. Why? Maybe for order or convenience. We already know God is impartial. Remember the children of Israel are the descendants of the original family which brought forth Christ. (This can be a very in-depth study in the Book of Genesis, we will get there but lets remain here and learn from Matthew for now).
Jesus reminds the disciples that their love and trust of God earned them the free power of healing... he asks that they use their new ability in the same way it was given to them - fully, completely and without discrimination or price.
(10:9-10) These verses are instrumental, so very important, to understanding how to naturally find true, honest, compassionate people in the world. Jesus instructs the disciples to travel with almost nothing. Do not bring money, do not bring extra coats, shoes, a walking stick... leave with nothing but your faithful self and God in your heart. This is a lesson in itself: God and a kind soul are all you will ever need to survive and succeed.
But there is another reason Jesus wants the disciples to travel with very little. If a man arrives in a community modestly, without money or extra materials (clothes and bags) only the giving and very compassionate people will approach him. This is how you become a magnet for kindness, enter a place expecting nothing, behaving modestly and trusting God and generous people will find you.
Jesus tells them that a "worker is worthy of his food". This means that the disciples should trust that if they are working honestly and justly, they will earn sustenance (from the people who they meet and also from God). You don't even have to worry about your energy or your next meal when you are serving God.
(10:11-12) Look for worthy people when you arrive... goodhearted people, honest people, compassionate people and remain with them so that you may help them.
(10:13-14) Another great life lesson. God instructs the disciples to find a person and their household who they think it worthy and to stay there, if they are welcome, and to teach them the lovely ways of God... to teach them of Jesus and His message. He tells that that if the people are peaceful with them, they shall also be peaceful. However, if they encounter someone who will not accept the way of God and are against love and kindness, they must leave that place. They must leave that place and not worry about it anymore.
Shake the dust off of them of their feet is a metaphor for not allowing evil to taunt you when you have left it. Do not worry or be anxious over it, God will take care of the situation.
This is a good life lesson because even though we are supposed to be kind and forgiving of people who hurt us, we are not supposed to let them use us or destroy us. If our help and goodwill is not accepting, that person has given us permission to leave them alone to their wicked and hurtful ways. Do not wish bad on any person and do remain your kind self with everyone, but do not waste your time with people who have rejected you - move onto another person or situation that will value your worth.
(10:15) The city or person or establishment that rejects you and hurts you will be dealt with by God. And because the city or person or establishment that treated you poorly was taught of God's way, they will be judged more intensely than a wicked person who did not receive your precious council (like the city of Sodom and Gomorrah which did not have a disciple of Jesus as a teacher).
That is a fair statement. God is always fair.
Just a small example: You would not reprimand a child for stepping into snow barefoot if they did not know better. But if you spent time lovingly teaching the child not to step in the snow and explained the consequences to him, yet he still ignored you and stepped in the snow, you could then justly reprimand them for not listening.
(10:16) Jesus gives amazing advice here: He is trying to raise kind and innocent people (symbol: sheep) but He understands that His people will be victims of the unjust and evil (symbol: wolves) Therefore Jesus instructs them and us on how to combat this, on how not to become a victim: You must be smarter, more intelligent, and quicker than the evil people are therefore they can never trick you. If you value knowledge and continue to learn throughout life, your kind and harmless spirit (symbol: doves) can never be deceived or hurt by evil. You soar above their evil ways because you always use your wisdom to foresee their trickery and overcome it with honesty and kindness.
(10:17-18) If you believe and trust in God you must be strong and courageous. Evil exists and will come after you... your work is to battle against them. Jesus Himself encountered evil on the very night he was born until the very last minute before He died. You have work to do just as He did. Your kindness is needed to extinguish evil and therefore you must also encounter it. If you fear evil and you run away from it, it will get stronger and stronger without an opponent. You are an instrument of God's... let Him use you in His good work. Be brave.
God's children have many tasks to tackle: the everyday man and woman need your living-example on how to live a fair and kind life. Your neighborhoods need it, your community, your region, state, nation, country... your voice and actions can reach the world stage. Men and woman in history and some living today have proven that a single person can make a major difference across the global stage (good OR bad!).
Always remember an important truth: God wins ultimately. There's no doubt or question. (2 Corinthians 2:14 - and all throughout the Bible is proof!) Your heart will know it to be true also if you accept His ways.
But evil wants to win and even though it knows it will not win, it and the people who work in evil ways want to destroy what they can while they can. Satan, though not a monster with horns and fire, will come to Earth pretending to be God. He will reign as the anti-christ and confuse and trick many people into believing he is God. Remember Matthew 10:16-17. Be wiser than to fall for that trick. Remember also God gives you power over evil so it cannot destroy you or hurt you. Be brave. We will revisit this very important and relevant discussion at another time or upon special inquiry - let us return to Matthew).
(10:19-20) You do not have to worry about how you will defend against evil. You are an important vessel and God will protect you and help you with the courage to speak the words He knows will be effective. God knows the plan and finishes the plan without error. He will give you the words to speak. You do not have to be anxious or nervous about encountering evil, in those moments with your trust in God and your courage, He will give you the words to say.
(10:21) The interpretation of this verse is that people will fall for the anti-christ and will wonder why others do not bow to him. If you are alert and observant you will identify the false god and you would never bow to him SO, your family will be concerned for you because they do not know better. They will try to get you to believe in him... they will deliver you to up to him, the false god, who represents death out of love for you. They will not actually want to kill you. It is a metaphor.
(10:22) Just like Jesus. Being kind and fair is not always popular. Often the quiet and meek are the nice people and they get walked on by hatred, used by people with wicked agendas. People are confused and cannot find the happy, just path of God's and they cause a lot of problems. You have work to do and you have to be brave because it will require you to sit with sinners. In the end of this world age, you win and are saved so you do not have to worry about yourself.
(10:23) Jesus instructs them to keep teaching, keep moving throughout the world because there is so much work to be done it is not possible for them to finish before God returns. There will always be work for us to do on Earth.
(10:24-25) This verse is a metaphor: Jesus tells them that they do not need to fear their journey ahead even if it seems like a daunting task that only Jesus or God is capable of undertaking. Even though we are not Jesus, even though we are not God, we follow in their footsteps and we learn from them and therefore we are capable of doing great things with their help.
(10:26) God is open about everything. He trusts you with the whole story, the entire plan. He lets you know what has happened and what will happen so that you are prepared. Do your work and you will be fine! Nothing is hidden from you, God is not a deceiver like Satan is.
(10:27) Jesus says, whatever I teach to you while we are here together during the nights, wake up and preach to others in the day.
(10:28) Jesus tells us not to fear people who can harm our bodies because our soul is eternal. Our body is only a vessel carrying our souls and they cannot harm our souls. God says to fear His judgement if you are a bad person because he can put your soul to sleep and there is no chance after that.
(10:29) Jesus says that even sparrows are loved and seen by God. He knows each and everyone of them so of course he knows each and every one of His children too.
(10:30) God loves you so much and knows you so well that He knows everything about you. Every hair on your head is important to Him. He knows you better than you know yourself, better than anybody knows you. His love is incomparable, unchanging... it is forever.
(10:31) God says, if I'm including the sparrows in the details of my plan, of course I am also including you.
(10:32) If you love and trust Jesus enough to proudly and confidently tell and show others your love for Him, He also will proudly and confidently tell and show God how much he loves and trusts you. Good word to God from Jesus... there is no higher recommendation!
(10:33) Likewise, if you are evil and reject God... God will allow you to leave Him and you will be all alone and gone forever.
(10:34-36) Do not misinterpret this verse. Jesus reminds us that He came for a purpose. He came to get work done. He represents love and peace but he came to battle against evil. He understands that His message will not be well-received by many. It will cause disagreements and arguments on the household and national levels. It is a war worth fighting and a war well won. Peace battles evil and wins.
(10:37) Do not misinterpret this verse, either. What Jesus means is that if your mother or child (any family member or loved one) rejects God and wants you to follow them and their evil ways you are supposed to choose God. You are always supposed to choose God's way and nobody else's no matter who they are.
(10:38) This means that if you are unwilling to live a just life, to work in the service of bringing kindness and peace then you do not deserve the gifts that God gives. Your work earns your place in Heaven.
(10:39) Do not be a coward to evil and to fear. Your earthly body is not what you need to worry about. You have an eternal soul protected by God. Trust that He will always protect your soul and forget about saving your earthly-body (it is weak and perishable) your soul is what is important. Trust that. Trust that you only need your soul! If you become a coward and start behaving wickedly because you fear your death on Earth... you will cause your soul to die and you will be gone forever. If you care about your spirit and allow your earthly body to do its job (even if it means trouble) your soul will live forever.
(10:40-41) If you love God, whoever loves you and shows compassion for you will be shown compassion from God. If you help Jesus' accomplish His work, you will be rewarded as Jesus' is rewarded.
(10:42) Even if the best you can do for someone is something small (maybe you do not have a lot or maybe you have a disability) if you do that small thing in the name of God, in the service of God, He sees it as a grand and awesome gesture and you will be rewarded by God for your righteous work.
If you have very little but give everything you have to someone in need, your work is much more precious than a rich person who gives a large gift but remains rich.
