Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Prayer Meeting Lesson Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/pm/pm20130227.htm

THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION
Matthew: Jesus As Israel's Messiah And His Kingdom
Part XIV: Christ As Israel's Messiah By His Authority, Matthew 8:1-11:1
L. Christ As Israel's Messiah By His Ministry Unto God's Afflicted Flock, Matthew 10:1-11:1
2. Christ As Israel's Messiah By His Ministry Assignment For His Laborers
(Matthew 10:5b-15)
  1. Introduction
    1. Among many of the evidences that Jesus is the Messiah is the Matthew 10:5b-15 record of Christ's assigning His disciples the task of proclaiming the Messianic Kingdom to Israel as His representatives, for that presentation was uniquely righteous in contrast to the ministry of false prophets and false messiahs.
    2. We view this passage for insightful application on righteously representing Christ before the world today:
  2. Christ As Israel's Messiah By His Ministry Assignment For His Laborers, Matthew 10:5b-15.
    1. Jesus sent His disciples as His representatives to announce the nearness of His Kingdom, Matt. 10:5b-8a:
      1. Like Jesus the Messiah Himself, His disciples were not to go to the Gentiles nor to the part-Gentile Samartans (cf. 2 Kings 17:24; Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978, ftn. to Luke 10:33), but only to the "lost sheep of the house of Israel," Matthew 10:5b-6. This was not the dispensation of the Church when Jesus sent His disciples into all the world to call out a people in forming the Church (cf. Matthew 28:19-20 with Ephesians 2:11-22), but a ministry to prepare Israel for her Messianic Kingdom!
      2. The message they were to preach was not the Gospel of Christ's death, burial and resurrection as in the Church era (1 Corinthians 15:1-11), but "The kingdom of heaven is at hand," Matthew 10:7, the same message the Messiah Jesus Himself and Messiah's forerunner John had preached, Matt. 4:17 with 3:2.
      3. The accompanying deeds the disciples were to perform were the authenticating miracles of healing the sick, cleansing the lepers, raising the dead and casting out demons (Matthew 10:8), deeds the Messiah Jesus Himself had performed, cf. Matthew 8:14-15 (re: the sick); 8:1-4 (re: lepers); 9:18-19, 25-26 (re: raising the dead) and 8:16 (re: casting out demons). Note how these deeds fulfill the Isaiah 35:4-6 predictions of the miracles to be performed when God's Messiah and His Kingdom appeared.
    2. As they went, the disciples were to avoid behavior that could cause others to think they were on a business venture as would false prophets and false messiahs function (cf. Philippians 3:17-19) lest their ministry from God be diluted or discredited as unrighteous, Matthew 10:8b-15:
      1. The accompanying deeds the disciples were to perform in ministering were deeds showing they were not on a business venture to fill their lusts for money as false teachers (Bib. Know. Com., O. T. , p. 42).
      2. Thus, the disciples were allowed to take a staff for walking (Mark 6:8) but not "procure" (ktesesthe) extra gold, silver, brass, money bag, extra tunics, sandals and staffs, Matthew 10:9a, 10a.
      3. They were recipients of God's blessing without having to pay for it, so they were not to charge anything for what they ministered, and the Lord would meet their livelihood needs through godly donors because the laborer was worthy of his hire, Matthew 10:8b, 10b with 1 Corinthians 9:9, 14.
      4. The disciples were also to discern who was spiritually worthy to house them, and to stay in one home in the town until they left the city so as not to appear to be greedy as if heaping up provisions unto themselves in hoarding goods as they moved from house to house, Matthew 10:11.
    3. Thus, the disciples as Messiah's righteous envoys were to signal God's reaction to their hearers' response:
      1. As Messiah's righteous representatives, The disciples were to greet the home they entered, and, if its inhabitants accepted their ministry, their peace from God would rest on it, Matthew 10:12-13a. If the house rejected them, their peace would return to the disciples, Matthew 10:13b.
      2. If any town did not receive their words, the disciples were to shake the dust off of their feet when they left the town, a sign of God's coming severe judgment on that town as there would be more tolerance for the people of wicked Sodom and Gomorrah than for that town, Matthew 10:14-15.
Lesson: Jesus sent out His disciples to give HIS message and to perform HIS works, NOT for personal interests or agendas, so that GOD would hold their hearers accountable to heed them as HIS servants.

Application: As we minister, may we give GOD'S assigned message, performing HIS assigned works HIS way that GOD might hold our hearers accountable to heed HIS ministry to them THROUGH us.