Luke 10 - Travel Lightly [Session 2]

Luke 10 - Travel Lightly [Session 2]

7/04/2016 10:35:10 AM |

Jesus didn’t just say go. He also gave His disciples instructions for their mission trip to the people of Israel. Jesus’ time was limited and the purposes of God were culminating in His suffering, crucifixion and resurrection. The people of Israel needed to hear Jesus’ message of peace and stop trying to build God’s kingdom in their own way through violence and revolution. These instructions give us valuable insight for the way we can do mission today.

Read Luke 10:1-7

"After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road. “When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ If someone who promotes peace is there, your peace will rest on them; if not, it will return to you. Stay there, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house."

At first glance, this doesn’t quite sound like a very sensible or effective mission strategy (greet no one? Really?), but if we look a little closer we see that:

1. When Jesus sends workers out into the harvest field He gives them all that they require.
2. Being a harvester requires us to carry little and not hold onto our ‘things’ too tightly.
3. There is much to distract the disciples and us from the mission that God has given.
4. There is an urgency to this mission, and we need to keep our eye on the main game.

Discuss and Reflect

1. How are you trusting that Jesus has equipped you in this mission right now?
2. What might you be holding onto too tightly? What do you need to let go of in order to walk more lightly as a pilgrim of Jesus?
3. Is there anything distracting you from being in the harvest field right now?
4. What can you do to change that? When did you have to complete something urgently, what did you have to do? How would your sharing of the message of Jesus through your words and actions change if you see it as urgent?