“5 These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. 6 Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. 7 As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ 8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy,[a] drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.” Matthew 10: 5-8
The version of the Bible I had while growing up says “now freely give.” It adds that oomph that Jesus is commanding. Don’t freely give at some point in time; do it now. It’s also awesome what the disciples are tasked with here. Proclaim the kingdom’s arrival, heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, and drive out demons.
Can we not say we are asked to do the same today? Now, do we act that way? I don’t. I get grumpy after a few red lights in a row or some faceless person in the back office messes up something that impacts my work. (Rarely, is it my fault, and, I would suggest that none of your irritants are a result of your actions either, dear reader. Wink.)
So to read these words, to sense the excitement the disciples must have had, the nervous energy they would have had, expecting and being a part of divine interactions, is hard to imagine. Most of the time, I’m scared. I lack boldness. I forget to ask God to be a part of each moment.
These words, the reminders, the understanding of the disciples’ humanity, give me hope. If Jesus commanded these men to be cup bearers of God’s love and power, He means it for us as well.
Tonight, I lift up you, my neighbor, that we may be encouraged by the gifts and strength we have been given by God, the Father, and the knowledge that we, too, have the Holy Spirit dwelling in us. Lord, open our eyes to the many ways your disciples of today are carrying out the same work as the twelve did centuries ago. Lord, speak into our lives, that we may live with nervous expectation of God’s good works. We pray that we may bring those good works to our neighbors, to our brothers and sisters who don’t know Your love for them yet, and to those who do but whose spirits are burdened.
Lord, we pray for that spirit and boldness for Your children in Memphis and beyond. We pray that prayer groups, formal ones organized by churches, and informal ones, run by Your children, witness the power of Christ today and again tomorrow. God, we have received freely, and are thankful for it. Now lead us in giving freely. Amen.