Thursday, January 10, 2013

The Grace to be Grace


These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: "Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. As you go, proclaim this message: "The kingdom of heaven has come near. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give." -Matthew 10:5-7 (NIV)

This is one of those times when I like the way that Eugene Peterson's The Message presents this scripture: "Jesus sent his twelve harvest hands out with this charge: 'Don't begin by traveling to some far-off place to convert unbelievers. And don't try to be dramatic by tackling some public enemy. Go to the lost, confused people right here in the neighborhood. Tell them that the kingdom is here. Bring health to the sick. Raise the dead. Touch the untouchables. Kick out the demons. You have been treated generously, so live generously.'"

Peterson's words personalize the language. I like that he eliminates terms like Gentiles and Samaritans. Gentiles and Samaritans represent non-Jews, groups that the disciples would have considered outsiders from other communities. We have different terms to describe such people today. Jesus does not say to avoid these groups because he doesn't love them or because they're not important. Instead, many believe that he says these things because he understands that he comes first to the Jews and then to others. You have to start somewhere, right?These disciples start with the people and the geography with which they're familiar. In time, the territory that they cover will increase...and so should ours.

One of the things that excites me most about the church I have the privilege of serving is our church's commitment to share the good news of Jesus Christ with the people right here in our community. Yes, we do mission trips to faraway places but those mission trips do not come at the expense of local mission work. We're not opposed to going off to other places and we are most certainly blessed by going, but we also realize that we don't have to travel  to some far-away place to share our faith: we can do that right here where we live.

May God grant you the grace to see the needs not only a world away but right where you are. And may God grant you the grace to be grace to the lost and confused: healing the sick, raising the dead, touching the untouchable. You have been treated generously, so live generously.




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Tomorrow's suggested readings: Matthew 11


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