Jesus sent out His disciples to preach the gospel of the kingdom. In this episode, J. Mark explores Mark 6:7-13, examining how Jesus commissioned the disciples to carry out His work. In this first part of “A Disciple’s Commission,” we see Jesus give specific instructions to the disciples, which highlight the core principles that still apply to our lives today.
Transcript
Thanks for joining us for this look into God’s Word. The incredible book that never changes and is relevant generation after generation. It was suitable for your grandparents, and it will be just what your grandchildren need.
Today, we look at the first part of a two-part teaching. It is in Mark 6, where Jesus sends out the 12, two by two. Imagine how this must have felt for them; they were expected to go out without Jesus and do the things He did. I am sure this was an essential stage in their discipleship training. Let’s go now with J Mark and learn together about the disciples’ commission.
One of my earlier life experiences was working with custom cabinetry. At the shop where I worked, an older, experienced cabinetmaker taught me most of what I know about the trade. It wasn’t a formal apprenticeship, but I enjoyed it, and we got along very well.
Something that always amazed me about him was his ability to fix other people’s mistakes. Our shop had about a dozen employees, and inevitably, somewhere in the process, mistakes were made, or the product was damaged. When that happened, they brought the damaged product to the older man I worked with. He could repair almost anything! I am grateful for the opportunity I had to work with and learn from him.
Today, we often discuss mentoring as though it were a relatively new concept. It’s not; it’s just another word for ‘ apprentice’. Or there’s an older term – a disciple. Whenever I hear that word, I think of the twelve – the disciples of Jesus.
Working through Mark’s gospel, we see how the twelve accompanied Jesus. They listened to His teaching. They saw Him cleanse the lepers, restore sight to the blind, heal the lame, and even raise the dead to life. They heard His teaching, and they saw Him live out what He taught.
In all of this, they were learning what it meant to be His followers. But in every relationship like theirs, there comes a time when the disciple needs hands-on experience. Here in Mark chapter six, Jesus commissions His disciples and sends them out to preach the gospel of the kingdom and to put into practice what they had learned.
Today, every person who repents of their sin and accepts by faith the sacrifice of Christ becomes a disciple of His. As disciples, we are called to proclaim the Gospel. All disciples need to be part of a local church fellowship. It is in that context that newly converted persons can be discipled. Paul’s epistles provide clear guidance on how this process should function.
Much of what is recorded in the gospels is the historical narrative that shows how Jesus began to establish the kingdom of God on earth. Not everything that Jesus and the twelve did is commanded for today. However, we can learn many valuable lessons by observing the underlying principles of historical narratives.
Our text for today illustrates this fact. In Mark 6:7-13, Jesus provides specific instructions on how the disciples are to carry out the assignment He has given them. Jesus probably would provide us with different specifics today than He did back then, but there are still important principles we can learn as we study this text.
To begin, let me read Mark 6:7-13. I’ve titled our study “A Disciple’s Commission.”
7 And He called the twelve to Himself, and began to send them out two by two, and gave them power over unclean spirits.
8 He commanded them to take nothing for the journey except a staff—no bag, no bread, no copper in their money belts—
9 but to wear sandals, and not to put on two tunics.
10 Also, He said to them, “In whatever place you enter a house, stay there till you depart from that place.
11 And whoever will not receive you nor hear you, when you depart from there, shake off the dust under your feet as a testimony against them. Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!”
12 So they went out and preached that people should repent.
13 And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.
This text notes several important PRINCIPLES that should be understood by all who receive “A Disciple’s Commission.”
The First PRINCIPLE is,
Delegated Authority
At the beginning of our text, Jesus called the Twelve together for a meeting. He is sending them out, in groups of two, as His ambassadors, His apostles, to preach the kingdom of God, cast out demons, and heal the sick. These six pairs would be able to cover more places in Galilee than if they were all together. But they weren’t going to do ministry on their own strength! Jesus equips them with what they need.
Verse 7 says that He gave them power over unclean spirits. Here, power means authority. Jesus gave the disciples the right to act in His name. Incidentally, the original word is in the imperfect tense, indicating that Jesus continued to provide them with power throughout their ministry. His presence and power accompanied them the whole time!
This is the principle of delegated authority. Jesus gave the Twelve the “might and the right” to carry out their commission. This principle still applies today. We have been delegated authority by virtue of our relationship with Christ.
As Jesus’ disciples, you and I are called to proclaim the kingdom of God. Don’t let the word preach (verse 12) scare you off. It means to herald, proclaim, or publish. We can all do that in one way or another. But we work together toward the same goal – making Christ known!
This authority over demons – is it for us today, or is it an era past? I believe we have that authority today. The Scripture tells us that Satan is the “…prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now works in the sons of disobedience.” He actively opposes God’s plan and accuses us before the Father. But you and I, through the power of the name of Jesus and the power of His blood, have access to a power that is greater than any demonic force.
Numerous times in my work at Heralds of Hope, I have felt opposition from demonic forces. Calling on the name of Jesus and the power of His blood and asking Him to rebuke those spirits led to visible results and increased faith. I encourage you to use the delegated authority God has given you in Jesus!
Today, demonic activity is out in the open! The preoccupation in our world with immorality and violence proves that Satan is having his way in the lives of many people. Unfortunately, many who profess to follow Jesus are opening themselves to the power of demonic spirits. We must understand our authority in Christ and learn how to address these challenges effectively.
“What about the healing of the sick?” Is the gift of healing obsolete or nonexistent? By no means! You probably know people who were miraculously and instantly healed. To say that any of the gifts of the Holy Spirit are nonexistent today is putting a limit on God and His purposes. However, we do not see this gift of healing exercised nearly as much today.
But there is another point I’d like to make. Look at verse 13. It says that the disciples healed many who were sick. The word healed is therapeu’o. In addition to the idea of curing disease, it also means caring for, attending to, and alleviating.
It expresses compassion for the suffering and a willingness to serve them. That compassion is essential to proclaiming the kingdom of God. While we may not be able to heal in the same way the disciples did, we can show compassion to those in need. Jesus taught us that the alleviation of human suffering accompanied by the proclamation of the Gospel is a powerful force in advancing His kingdom. Historically, Christians, motivated by the love of Christ, have built more schools, hospitals, and other humanitarian facilities than any other religious group.
In all of this, we need to remember Jesus’ words in John 15:5: “…without me, you can do nothing.” The first principle of a disciple’s commission is the realization that we serve with delegated authority.
The Second PRINCIPLE is,
Delineated Simplicity
To delineate means to describe something in detail. That is just what Jesus did! In verses 8 and 9, He gave the Twelve specific instructions for carrying out their mission. Those commands present a delineated simplicity.
First, take nothing for your journey except a staff. Wow! Don’t take a bag to carry food. Don’t take bread. That makes sense since they weren’t supposed to carry a bag. Don’t carry coins in your money belt. And finally, do not take two coats. The word refers to a close-fitting inner garment. That is the equivalent of leaving your clean underwear at home on a trip!
What is the point of these specific instructions? I believe Jesus wanted them to rely on Him and Him only. They were being sent out with His authority. He wanted them to see that He could protect and provide for their every need. Having no resources to fall back on, they would fully put their faith and trust in Him. We humans often want a fallback position, in case things don’t go as we expect. Jesus gave the disciples no fallback position except for their lodging.
These restrictions, along with the unfolding context of Mark chapter 6, suggest that they had a reasonably short time to carry out their mission.
Are Jesus’s commands to the Twelve still the model for missions? I have only met one or two persons in my lifetime who came anywhere close to following these specific commands, and they seemed to me to be somewhat mentally and spiritually unstable. I’m not saying that someone who does this is crazy; I’m just relating my own experience.
One significant difference between the setting in Luke 9 and today is the level of hospitality. In biblical culture, hospitality was a requirement! The widow in Zarephath took her last food and gave it to the prophet Elijah. She had no idea God would use her obedience to sustain her and her son, yet she showed hospitality. If you read the Scriptures carefully, you’ll repeatedly see this display of costly, self-sacrificing hospitality. It was this kind of hospitality that the disciples were to rely on.
And that’s where we’ll need to end our teaching for this time.
Thanks, J Mark, this is a good topic to think about. I had to wonder whether we are apprenticing with Jesus? Are you being mentored by Him? As His disciples, He doesn’t use the same training program for all of us. However, there will be themes and commonalities that each disciple must learn. Jesus may not ask you to do precisely what the 12 did from today’s lesson, but there will be other opportunities for us to understand the same principles.
If you have any questions about today’s lesson or if you would like to contact us, please let us know. You can reach us by email or the internet. Our email address is hope@heraldsofhope.org, and our website is heraldsofhope.org. There, go to the “partner” tab at the top. Under this tab, you will see “contact us”; from there, you can message us directly. Please get in touch with us using the method that is easiest for you. We look forward to hearing from you soon.
Thanks for joining us today. If you can, join us next time for the rest of this lesson on discipleship. Discipleship is learning from Jesus and becoming more like Him. This is not something we do for 3 months or 3 years, and then we are done. This is a lifelong process of modeling our lives after His. Luke 6:40 says it best, “A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher.” And this is our goal, to be like Jesus.
