The Lutheran Hour
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"Appointed, Anointed and Sent"
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Text: Luke 10:1-20
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Christ is Risen, He is Risen Indeed, and in Him is the power, the purpose, and the privilege of living eternal lives for others as ones sent out in His Name. Amen!
Oh, the times we live in, right? Now, if I were to tell you that people need Jesus Christ as their Savior now more than ever, you’d agree with me on that, right? But what if I were also to tell you that you and I, as Christian people, are literally appointed, anointed, and sent out into this world to tell those very same people about Jesus, what would you say then?
Well, if you’re like most believers, looking at all the forces that seem to be set against the message of Christ, and then, of course, the fact that we’re forgiven sinners ourselves, it seems like this would not only be a difficult task, it would seem to be downright impossible.
Well, in our text for today, Jesus sends out seventy-two witnesses ahead of Him, people who were sent out to testify about Him, about His message to anyone who would listen. And, their work was met with success. But that was then, this is now, right?
It was just a few years ago a missionary was sent into a region of the world that was highly populated but filled with people who were oppressed, fearful, and joyless. A dominating government kept them isolated and frightened. Days filled with high-pressure work drained them of energy and joy. An atheistic culture kept them devoid of hope; and most of the population had never heard the Good News of the peace, hope, and joy of the Savior Jesus. But the missionary was sent to this place to share this Good News. His first reaction was total confusion. He was absolutely perplexed about how he could ever reach such a number of people with the news that would transform their lives. How could he share the amazing message that had changed his own life? How could he pass along the message of the forgiveness of sins, the gift of eternal life, and the blessing of Jesus’ constant presence and power? The successes of Jesus’ day seemed impossible. The present circumstances and odds seemed to be powerfully set against Him.
Right after he moved into the region, he connected with a remote Christian church in an outlying agricultural section of the country. There were only thirty Christians there, but they wanted to see Him. He agreed. The meeting was hours away from civilization; a very rough ride through the country. Shortly after arriving at a broken-down church building, thirty people trickled in and sat down. They were humble farmers, isolated from the city’s population centers. What could God do among them?
It seemed that all they had was Jesus, that’s for sure. But folks, when you know that Jesus really loves you, there’s no telling what can happen. So, this missionary shared a very basic idea. No programs, no high-tech gimmicks, no grandiose visions of what we can do if we put our minds to it. No, simply, what if each person in the room remembered the beauty of the Gospel of Jesus, His loving sacrifice on the cross, His resurrection from the grave, and His blessing of new life for each of us through His Word and the blessing of baptism? What if each believer shared that Gospel story with five people in his or her life that week; and what if each of those farmers sent the new believers who were changed by that powerful message to share the Gospel with five people in their lives? Love others as Christ indeed loved them! Go to others as Jesus had come for them!
Those 30 farmers listened intently. They even took time that evening to practice sharing the Gospel with each other. Then they wrote down names of people in their lives who didn’t know Christ, they prayed about it and promised to meet again in two weeks.
When the missionary returned two weeks later, they worshipped together. They shared a word from the Bible and then the group talked about how their lives in Christ were going. They shared their joys; they shared their hurts. Then the missionary asked if anyone shared the Good News of Jesus as they had spoken about two weeks earlier. At first, the room was silent. But then an old farmer stood up and said, “Before we met two weeks ago, I never understood that I was sent by God to actively share the message of our Savior with others. But over these past two weeks, I spoke to family members and friends about all that Jesus had done for me. I want to report today that over the past two weeks nine of my family and friends have received the gift of salvation in Jesus. They live far from here, but they continued to meet in a home so that they, too, can learn to share this blessing with other people in their lives.”
The missionary was stunned. Now, he shouldn’t have been. He knew that the Word of God is powerful and active, that the Good News of Jesus changes lives. But he learned a simple message from an old farmer; God can reach the lost as His graced people are sent out to share His Good News.
But, here is the best part of the story. This is not a first-century story. This is not a tale from long ago in a world where it was easy to find new believers. This is a true story that started in the year 2000. This teaching and sending started just thirteen years ago. Over the following eight years–by 2008–more than 1.5 million people in that region were brought to faith in Jesus Christ. In this nation where the Christian Church was outlawed, 150,000 house churches were started.
How did it happen? God’s graced people were sent out with a life-changing message, then as now!
Listen to the Lord’s words in Luke chapter ten:
After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them out ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go. And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers. Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves (Luke 10:1-3).In the United States, we’re just a few days removed from our Independence Day celebration. The celebration is all about freedom. Temporal freedom is a precious thing, but can you imagine the joy of people who hear the Gospel of eternal freedom in Jesus for the first time? Can you fathom the great wonder and delight of the Christians who discovered that they were sent to share this amazing gift?
That’s the joy in our text for today. Jesus sent out seventy-two regular people, His followers, to share His life-changing message with others. He sent them out two by two, because life was dangerous in those days, even more than today. He sent them out two by two to ensure a clear, faithful testimony. Then, like now, it is the living Lord who appointed, anointed, and sends God’s graced people to share His love with sinners in need. If you believe in Jesus, if He is your Savior, then you are one of His sent ones!
That’s the way it has always been. If you know Jesus as your Savior today, someone was sent to share that Good News with you.
It might be as simple as the work of a young lady helping in a literacy program sponsored by her church. She read a Christmas book with a nine-year-old boy during the Christmas season. As they read the book, the boy said to the volunteer, “I’ve never heard this story before.” Believer sent; message received.
But hasn’t everyone heard of Jesus? Wasn’t this little boy an exception? Times have changed, friend. Some of you listening today may be hearing about Jesus for the first time. You’re hearing that you have a Savior. You’re just finding out that the God of the universe knows you, loves you, and has rescued you from hopeless anonymity and aimlessness. Jesus took your pain and confusion; He carried the heavy load to the cross, and has His eternal, abundant life in store for you right now!
Some of you today might be thinking to yourself, “I remember hearing about Jesus a long time ago, but I haven’t thought about Him in years.” Well, today it’s God Himself calling you home to His place of restoration with Him, with forgiveness for your past and a real hope for your future.
Or, maybe you’re listening today and thinking, “I heard about Jesus last Sunday, but the hurt in my life just keeps me from really believing that all this could be for me.” Let today be the day, my friend, when God helps you see through the interference of your pain, your doubt, your guilt, your distraction, and know that the arms of Christ are more than sufficient to enfold you with a comfort and grace that will see you through it all now and forever!
But there’s even more. There’s even more joy in the text. It’s not just that Jesus wants you to know His grace, His mercy, and peace for yourself; He wants you to know the joy of seeing others receive it for themselves!
As believers in Jesus, we are His people now and forever. And with that new identity, the Bible says that you are here: “…that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9).
You are sent, my friend! Whether you are a brand-new believer, whether you’ve known Jesus for decades, whether you are child in school, a young adult, a middle-aged parent, or someone in the twilight years of your life, you are sent! Whether you are a truck driver; whether you work in an office, or live in a nursing home, you are sent! You are sent to share the most important gift–the gift of hope and life in Jesus Christ.
But how? What does it mean to be sent by Jesus? That’s a big question that Christians ask: “What do I do as one sent by Jesus?” Jesus helps us understand as He speaks to us in Luke chapter 10.
Jesus said, “Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves” (Luke 10:3). Go about living your life, but with your eyes wide open to the grace of God in Jesus for you and for others. And Jesus reminds us that this most important truth does have a cost. But real love always does, doesn’t it? While people may welcome you as you share your heart and your hope in Jesus, others might reject you. Your family might turn their back on you, your friend might back away, your coworker might start to avoid you. In some parts of the world you may even lose your life. Being sent involves risk. Your nervousness is normal. You may be scared as you are sent to share the most important gift anyone could receive. But Christ makes promises even in the midst of such realities.Even though it can be scary to be sent, Jesus lets you know that you can trust Him. He will provide for you. That’s why He says: “Carry no moneybag, no knapsack, no sandals” (Luke 10:4). His point is you don’t need to find safety in accumulating wealth. You don’t need to seek comfort in your stuff. You don’t even need to hide in a crowd of friends. You can embrace the fact that you are sent to share the Good News of Jesus Christ because He will take care of you along the way. And He will use you to transform people’s lives.
Jesus emphasized that in Luke 10:5-6. He said, “Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house!’ And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him. But if not, it will return to you.” You see, you bring the peace of Jesus to people’s lives. So many of our modern problems exist today because people don’t know of any place to go for real peace. With families blown apart by divorce, with relationships built only on selfish love and need, with job and career security more a myth today than ever before, there’s a real scarcity of places and people that you can truly count on. As Christians, then, our homes can be those places of peace, not because we are so special, but because Jesus Himself is the Center of who we are and who we can be for others!
With Christ and His church there is no hidden agenda, no political policy that we’re trying to sell for our own gain or influence. Being sent means you show love to people with the true compassion of Christ who came to seek and to save the lost. In verse nine Jesus said, “Heal the sick and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.'” When Jesus is with you, when His Word is on your lips, in your hearts, you bring Him and His compassion to the very people around you. You are sent!
Yes, it’s a challenge. Yes, it can be difficult. Even Jesus recognized the difficulty as He recounted the rejection He experienced and the rejection the seventy-two might experience (Luke 10:10-16).
But you are sent! It’s a challenge, but Jesus is up to the challenge! And He can get the job done with people just like you and me! Being sent will test you, but the Savior who conquered death is with you always. When Jesus is the One who appoints, anoints, and sends His people, then His Word will accomplish its task. The seventy-two experienced a glimpse of that reality. Luke tells us that: “The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, ‘Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!’ And he said to them, ‘I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you'” (Luke 10:17-19). You can count on Jesus as you are sent. You can count on Him because He gave His life for you. You can count on Him because He conquered death, fear, and pain. You can count on Him because He conquered the Evil One. You can count on Him because He gave you life that lasts forever through His resurrection from the grave. Jesus even said, “Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven” (Luke 10:17-20).
Keep your eyes on His prize for you and others. The focus, Jesus said, then, was not on the message of temporary blessings here on earth, but the news of eternal victory in heaven. That’s the message that you are sent to proclaim.
Have you ever heard of the name Pheidippides? He was a Greek soldier, who, after the ancient Greeks battled the Persians and won, was sent to Athens by his commander to share the important news of victory. Legend has it that Pheidippides ran the whole distance from the battlefield to the city of Athens without stopping. Once he arrived, he burst into the gathering of the Greek leaders and shouted, “We won!” Then the faithful messenger collapsed and died. The battle he just helped to fight was at a place called Marathon. The distance he ran was about twenty-six miles. That’s the legend of where our modern-day marathon race came from. It is rooted in the story of someone who was sent and ultimately gave his life in order to bring hope and joy.
Jesus Himself has a victory for you to proclaim, and it’s a marathon race you and I get to run so that others might know that victory for themselves, too. He sends us into the most important race of our lives with a victory at the tape that isn’t merely about our own salvation, but that someone else knows that victory of Jesus because we ran our race for them! That was Jesus’ own personal joy. He was sent to us, sent for us, even giving His life that we might rejoice in the victory of His well run race, a run that overcame our sin, death, and despair. That’s our message, we’re graced ones in Him, now appointed, anointed, and sent, ready to exert whatever energy is necessary to share His wonderful, life-changing news with others! To that end, may God grant us all joy-filled success. Amen!
LUTHERAN HOUR MAILBOX (Questions & Answers) for July 7, 2013
Topic: How Can I Make Sure Sports Doesn’t Become My Religion?ANNOUNCER: What to do when sports becomes a religion. Pastor Gregory Seltz responds to questions. I’m Mark Eischer. A listener says he enjoys sports. He likes watching it, going to games, participating in his kid’s sporting events. But he wonders if these sports activities might not be taking over his life to a certain extent. How do you make sure sports doesn’t become your religion?
SELTZ: Wow, what a great question, Mark. We do live in a sports culture.
ANNOUNCER: You’re an athlete yourself. You’re involved in this. How does this question hit you?
SELTZ: I do enjoy sports, Mark, though they’re a bit more painful today than they used to be. Athletic activities are fun and entertaining. We need physical exercise and it’s good to once in a while get those competitive juices flowing. Going to games or watching them, seeing the skill, the strategy, it is a lot of fun. But they are games. People play sports. I admit that our culture has become a little too serious about such things, devoting a bit too much attention to people who are playing games.
ANNOUNCER: What words of caution might you have?
SELTZ: First, I would say, that while there are some great role models in sports, we can’t let the sporting world be where we look for our real heroes. A person who hits home runs or can slam-dunk a basketball has great physical skills, but real heroes are people who sacrifice themselves for others. And there are plenty of real heroes at home. Moms and dads, grandparents, teachers, police officers, firefighters, our military, first responders–that list can go on and on. We need to be careful about who we’re defining as heroes, who we celebrate and lift up as role models.
ANNOUNCER: Good point. Now, what other cautions might you offer?
SELTZ: I also have to add that, at times, people might misplace their hopes and dreams by investing too much in sports. Parents may believe that they have to pressure their kids into sports in order to get a great scholarship or to achieve a sense of real significance. Kids may feel like the only pathway to real achievement is by succeeding on the court or the playing field.
ANNOUNCER: So, even though you’re a big fan, you recommend moderation, setting healthy boundaries. Doesn’t that put an end to the fun?
SELTZ: I’m not trying to be a killjoy. And I don’t think the Lord is either. In fact, even playing games to give Him glory, to serve others, that can bring real purpose. As I mentioned, I love to watch games. I really enjoy participating in the competition, but don’t let such participation cause you to avoid the important, deeper issues in one’s life. One trend I notice is this tendency for people to make sports their primary battlefield in life–especially men. It’s the focus of their masculine energy and achievement. It’s where they give their all.
ANNOUNCER: And when I see the way people get fired up to root for their favorite team; painting their faces in the team colors, it looks like a lot of fun.
SELTZ: Again, I want to emphasize that it’s okay to have that kind of fun–although, I probably won’t be painting my face with team colors any time soon! But if that’s your only battle, if that’s the only place you get up the courage to take a stand, you’re falling into one of Satan’s traps. The Bible says in Ephesians 6, “Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, the authorities, against the powers of this dark world, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to take your stand” (Ephesians 6:12-13 NIV). Christians, know that we’re not here merely to play games. There are bigger, more important spiritual battles. We need men and woman to step up to those battles, who remember to use the weapons of prayer and the Word of God in their lives and for the lives of others. We can’t be distracted from what really matters.
ANNOUNCER: It strikes me that while sports can be fun, an imbalanced life is a one-dimensional life and we might miss out on discovering who we are and what God’s mission and calling for our lives might be.
SELTZ: That’s right, and that’s why I like Psalm 20 where it says: “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God” (Psalms 20:7 ESV). Horses and chariots are good for engaging in war. Sporting event participation and viewing are fun and entertaining. But, in both instances, we’ve been given a greater purpose for our devotion and trust. We’ve been given a Savior who allows us to be about a mission better than any game and any goal that doesn’t expire when the clock runs out.
ANNOUNCER: Very good. Thank you, Pastor Seltz. This has been a presentation of Lutheran Hour Ministries.
Music Selections for this program:
“A Mighty Fortress” arranged by Chris Bergmann. Used by permission.
“Spread the Reign of God the Lord” arr. Henry Gerike. Used by permission.
“Let Us Ever Walk with Jesus” From The Concordia Organist (© 2009 Concordia Publishing House)
“Lord, Keep Us Steadfast in Your Word” From The Concordia Organist (© 2009 Concordia Publishing House)