Our Old Testament reading for this morning comes from Psalm 66, verses 1 through 9. Shout for joy to God, all the earth. Sing the glory of his name. Give to him glorious praise. Say to God, how awesome are your deeds. So great is your power that your enemies come cringing to you. All the earth worships you and sings praises to you. They sing praises to your name. Come and see what God has done. He is awesome in his deeds towards the children of man. He turned the sea into dry land. They passed through the river on foot. There did we rejoice in him who rules by his might forever, whose eyes keep watch on the nations. Let not the rebellious exalt themselves. Bless our God, O peoples. Let the sound of his praise be heard, who has kept our soul among the living and has not let our feet slip. It's my privilege to invite Phil Holstein to come and preach for us this morning. Phil is ordained in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. His family worships here with us and are members here. Phil has preached for us before. But brother, no need to sit down. Come on. Just come right on up, brother. Thank you for delivering the word to us this morning. Amen. Well, I'd invite you to open with me in your Bibles to the book of Luke. And we're going to be in chapter 10 of the book of Luke, and we'll be looking at starting at verse one and going through actually verse 20. So here now the word of God from Luke chapter 10. After this, the Lord appointed 72 others and sent them on 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 into his harvest. Go your way. Behold, I'm sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. carry no money bag, no knapsack, no sandals, and greet no one on the road. 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. And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages. Do not go from house to house. Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you, heal the sick in it, and say to them, the kingdom of God has come near to you. But whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you, go into its streets and say, even the dust of our town that clings to our feet, we wipe off against you. Nevertheless, know this, that the kingdom of God has come near. I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town. Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. But it will be more bearable in the judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You shall be brought down to Hades. The one who hears you hears me, and the one who rejects you rejects me. And the one who rejects me rejects him who sent me. The 72 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. Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven. Thus ends the reading of God's word. Let's pray for a moment. Lord God, we thank you for your word. We thank you for the gift of it and that you meet with us here in this corporate worship. Just pray that you would open this word to us, give unction to your servant, and just overrule in all the details of this message and this service. I pray in Jesus name. Amen. One of the blessings that we have as Christians is that we can look back in the pages of scripture such as this one and see how the history of redemption unfolded. We can look and see how Christ in the fullness of time came to his people and how he fulfilled the promises that they have been looking for. We can look and see the blessings that we cling to ourselves for our salvation fulfilled in him, not only by his perfect life, but also by his death on the cross and his resurrection. And we see that in him, he had the power and authority of king, king over Israel. And through him, there could truly be a fulfillment of what the prophets had promised throughout the Old Testament scriptures. We also can rejoice even as we meditate upon these things and study them, that the kingdom of God has continued to spread throughout the world since that time. And that there are millions and millions of Christians around the world, even now. Oh, beloved, the people who are going to receive this message that these disciples were bringing would similarly be able to rejoice in all those things, those blessings that are associated with the king and his kingdom. And yet for them, they had also the added blessing that it was brand new. For them, they had only looked forward, ahead to the fulfillments which the prophets had promised. For them, they had long been in bondage, not only to Rome, but also to their own sins. And they had seen in the types and the shadows of the temple sacrificial system what was to be. But they could only look in the future, often to the distance. But now, at the voice of these disciples who are going forth, as Jesus has sent them, they are hearing that the King at last is here. And in their newness, they can have joy, as they revel in the blessings that this king will bring. At this point in Luke's gospel, Jesus has made a turn in his ministry. He spent a lot of time in Galilee. And at this point, starting in chapter nine, it says that he has set his face resolutely to go to Jerusalem. He will continue to teach and to perform miracles as he has done. But he knows that his ministry ultimately is not about his teaching, and it's not merely about the miracles that he's going to perform to validate his teaching. Ultimately, what is necessary for him to do is to die. And that is what he knows awaits him as he makes this journey to Jerusalem, that he is going to be handed over. He is going to be arrested. He's going to be tried in a very quick trial, and then he is going to be crucified. But he also knows that on the third day, he will be raised again. And so Jesus has set his face towards this. He knows what his task is. He does not want to be distracted by anything else or led astray. And so he focuses on this. And with this focus, he calls and appoints these 70 or 72 to go ahead of him to all the towns and the cities where he is going to go on his way to that fulfillment in Jerusalem. Now some manuscripts say 70 that he appointed, some say 72. And honestly, the research on this is pretty evenly divided. There are good reasons in some manuscripts that it says 70, and there are other manuscripts that we also look at as carrying weights and respect as saying 72. And so either way, neither of those differences changes the meaning of this passage. Although it is interesting personally, I prefer 70 because there's more connection with the Old Testament. The number 70 is used in some particular ways in the Old Testament that would make a nice connection here. For example, Moses, when he was calling elders, appointed 70 elders upon whom the Holy Spirit rested. And also in Genesis 10, when you see a genealogy of all the names from which all the families of the earth will descend. There are exactly 70 names there. And from that 70 post-flood, we have all the people who are here on the earth. And so the number 70 is kind of significant, but again, that's not an argument that this is what he's doing here. It could be 72. But either way, these Jesus appoints to send ahead of him to carry the message of the gospel. He had previously sent his 12 apostles to do much the same thing. And now as he sees this harvest that he's going to talk about here, he sees the need for even more. And even that will not exhaust the need, for he will tell, as his first command here in this passage, his disciples to pray earnestly that the Lord of the harvest will send out laborers. So he is sending them out to go, but the first thing he tells them to do is to pray that God would send even more people to go. For Christ is not looking simply at this one mission, but he's looking ahead. as he sees the need which continues even to this day as more and more people are brought to faith and new generations come up who need to hear the gospel. Jesus knows that ultimately his kingdom is not just going to be in the land of Palestine, but that it is going to encompass all nations of the earth. And so the task looms large ahead of him. But here he calls these 70 And he gives them his instructions for the task ahead. These are people who probably have not gone on this kind of a trip before. And so Jesus prepares them for it. He gives them protocols and instructions for what they are to do. And first he tells them using this metaphor of a harvest that it is plentiful, but the laborers are few. And using this metaphor, it might come across as rather peaceful. Normally when we think of farming and we think of what a farmer has to do, they don't do that while the bullets are flying and cannons are booming. It's usually in times of peace that you have the most agricultural activity. And yet Jesus here switches metaphors rather quickly. In verse three, when he says, go your way, behold, I'm sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. Again, Jesus knows exactly what this is about. He knows that his mission will ultimately lead him to the cross. He knows what's in the hearts of men, and he knows that people who today may be hospitable will tomorrow be shouting crucify. And so he gives the disciples this warning so that they are aware of what they're walking into. Now it is true that they will be protected on this mission. He will keep them from, in fact, seeing physical harm. And in fact, as we'll see, it's going to go quite well as a mission. They're going to come back rejoicing. But that doesn't change the fact that what they're doing is entering into hostile territory. This is not simply friendly competition like when one car dealership opens up next to another car dealership. This is war. This is one army encamping next to another army. What Christ is doing is plundering from Satan's kingdom. And that's what these people are being sent out to do with authority and power. They're taking from what Satan had kept for himself and they are liberating people from his bondage and advancing the beachhead of Christ's kingdom even further. And so Jesus tells them this and warns them and then gives them further instructions in verse four. He tells them what to do as they're traveling. He tells them how they are to travel. And this focuses more on what kind of a mission he was actually sending them on. He says, carry no money bag, no knapsack, no sandals, which probably means extra sandals, and greet no one on the road. Now, normally when we travel, I'm sure, Josh, when you were going to GA, there was a lot of packing and planning and a lot of things that go into that. You know, our family just came back from Fort Worth, and there were, you know, weeks before we were going out, I was making reservations with hotels that were thinking about what to pack, what to bring, printing out MapQuest directions, which I don't think I'm ever going to do that again. I'm just going to go ahead and get the garment. I mean, we're just going to go that way, I think. But anyway, there's a lot of planning and some of that can even be fun. We can look forward to the trip ahead and say, well, this is gonna be enjoyable. We can eat at this restaurant. We can stay here. We can get this upgrade. What kind of a hotel is it gonna be? Is it a free breakfast? That's always nice, that kind of a thing. But here, Jesus gives them very different instructions. He says, carry no money bag, no knapsack, no sandals, and don't even greet anybody on the road. This is not a luxury or a pleasure trip that he is sending them on. They are not going to have time to dilly-dally. They are not going to be able to accumulate things and live off of the strength of those earthly things. But rather, Jesus is having the disciples to live and to minister as he himself has ministered throughout his time. He said, if you look just above in chapter 9, verse 58, Jesus was answering a question to somebody, or a statement of somebody, and Jesus said, You see this, if you look at Jesus' ministry, that it's not about accumulating stuff, and it's not even about relying on earthly stuff. He goes from place to place. He relies on the providence of God. He relies on the hospitality of others. And He calls the disciples in this situation to do that very thing. They are to go with nothing, but rather they are to depend upon other people opening their homes to them, welcoming them in, providing them what they need, and basically ultimately relying on God and His providence to take care of them. And so they are going to act like Jesus here. They're going to go out as they give this message. Now, when Jesus says greet no one on the road, he's not telling them to be rude. From what we know about greetings at this period of time in this region, they could be rather extended. It wasn't just a high-by. It could turn into something that would linger. As acquaintances renewed or things like that, it could be a long, drawn-out thing. And Jesus is telling them not to dilly-dally. Again, this is all business. He wants them to focus on the business that he is sending them on, and also the fact that it's is preceding his own journey to Jerusalem, he is telling them to stay on task, to stay focused, and in fact to hurry as they do this mission. And when they finally get to the towns or the houses that they are going to, Jesus gives them instructions there as well about how they are to treat their hosts, how they are to talk to the people that perhaps for them are strangers. but for whom they are going to be depending for their livelihoods for the next few days. And he says to them, first, when you enter a house, first say peace 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. Now keep in mind, as we have read that the disciples were empowered by God. to perform miracles. They were doing something mighty. They were doing something powerful in the midst of the people. They were empowered by the king of the universe to go out on this mission. And therefore, when they say, peace upon this house, this is not simply a wish for peace. This is not simply a formality, but the peace, the shalom, which the scriptures talk about, particularly the Old Testament idea of that, which is not simply an absence of war, but also involves blessing. That is what they were actually bringing powerfully through the Holy Spirit as they were traveling from house to house. This is the peace that they bestow. And if, he says, there is a son of peace, it will rest upon him. This probably refers to somebody who maybe through the teachings of the Old Testament had come to faith or perhaps they'd heard already what Jesus had been teaching and they were believers in him. This is somebody who is disposed towards the message that these disciples are bringing. This is someone who is a friend and not an enemy. Someone who is on their side. And so this person, necessarily because of that, has a share in the peace that they bring. They are part of the household of God, and they share in the peace that these disciples bring. And further, Jesus gives them instructions after that protocol of what they were to do once they are in the house. He tells them to remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide. Again, this is all business. This is not a pleasure cruise. This is not something where they could go from house to house and have a little progressive dinner and, you know, see if there's maybe better accommodations down the street or something like that. And also, again, because they were in a hurry, they were not gonna have the time to simply go from house to house and do all of the customary social things that went along with hospitality. But rather, Jesus says, when you're in that town, just stay in one house, and whatever they provide, that is what you are to live on. And also, he says that twice, and he also gives his next instruction twice. Stay in one house, he says that again, and he also says to them two times to eat and drink whatever is put before them. Simply because they are on business, they should not feel guilty about being taken care of in terms of being given food and drink. They should not expect to live a spartan existence in this regard because, as Jesus says, the laborer is worthy of his wages. This is based on an Old Testament principle, which they even used in agriculture, where if they had an ox, some beast of burden that was treading out the grain, they were not allowed to muzzle that ox. That ox was doing work to prepare their food, and there was food all around the animal, and a farmer might selfishly think, well, I don't want my animal eating that food. You know, I want that food to myself. But the law of God actually said they are not to muzzle the ox. They were allowed that animal to eat and to get what it needed, even as it was working for their food. And so Jesus as well says, you are the laborers, you are worthy of the wages of this food and drink. And so don't feel guilty about eating whatever they provide and put before you. Well, so far Jesus has given them instructions and protocols on the hospitality and the preparations and how they're to get there. But in verse nine, he tells them specifically what they are to do once they're there. This is the bulk of the ministry. This is why they are being sent. This is the message and the activity that is going to proclaim the kingdom of God. And he says to them in verse nine, heal the sick in it and say to them, the kingdom of God has come near you. This summary is very small. You know, he doesn't give a whole list of teachings, but we know from Jesus' own teachings, what he taught, what that bulk of that message was, what it meant for the kingdom of God to draw near. These are people who had been looking forward to the coming kingdom of God. These are people who had been under the thumb of Rome. These are people who had not seen one of their own kings sitting on the throne for centuries. But they had been at the beck and call of other nations. And besides that, the prophets had promised that one day there would be a son of David who would rule them in equity. That there would be peace on earth and goodwill among men. That indeed the knowledge of God would cover the earth as the waters cover the seas. And that people would stream into Jerusalem to hear the word of God. That indeed Israel would be the head and not the tail of the nations. And that this king would be just. and righteous. This is what they were looking forward to, and they also knew in their own past the power of God. They knew what God had done when he liberated them from Egypt. He knew what they had done as he walked with them through the desert, as he brought them into the promised land, and as he dwelt with them there throughout the centuries. Even though they had been disciplined, even though they had not provided a perfect picture of what a righteous kingdom looks like, they knew that God is promising them a righteous kingdom in their future. They knew that that's what God had planned all along. And the prophets had told them that despite the discipline, God was not going back on his promises. His plans were not being derailed, but in the fullness of time, he would send someone to them who would pay for their sins, who would give them atonement, and who would lead them as a perfect king. And here that message is being gloriously brought. Your time of waiting is over. Your king has come. The kingdom is at hand. That is the message that they are bringing. And whatever else they said would have supported this glorious news and fleshed that out among the people, that now they could rejoice with an eternal rejoicing. Moreover, they used these miracles as Christ empowered them to prove to the people that they were not just talkers. These are not just people coming into town for a free meal, but these miracles would prove that these people truly were sent from God. They were doing things that no human could do on their own strength. And these miracles also supported their message in another way, for not only were they powerful to remove all doubt about who these people were sent from, but also these miracles were restorative. The disciples are not simply shooting fireballs across the sky to impress them, but rather these miracles involve healing. They involve liberation, casting out demons, healing the sick and the lame and the blind and whatever other illness there might've been. Just as Jesus himself did these things, these powerful miracles taught what kind of a king Jesus was. In the Old Testament, in Ezekiel, God said to his people, he chastised their own leaders for being wicked leaders, for devouring the flocks to their own gain, and for not carefully watching over the people, for not loving the people who had been entrusted to their care. And God finally said, enough. He said, I am going to be the good shepherd. I am going to bind up the people's wounds. I am going to lift them up and restore them and bring them healing. And I am going to be the righteous king. And that is what this message and what these miracles are communicating here. That this king has finally come and he is in their midst. And these ambassadors who are leading the way are simply saying, he's on his way. He's going to be here soon. Open your hearts to this coming king. Now you would think, as glorious as that message is, that everybody would have accepted it. I mean, here's someone proving through miracles that They're doing something superhuman. They're also proclaiming the king that Israel has in fact been looking for. They're proclaiming that the time of waiting is over. What could be better than that? And yet Jesus gives them a warning in verse 10. He says, whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you, go into its streets and say, even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off against you. Sometimes we're tempted to think that if only we could perform miracles like they did in the early church, then that would win the day. Everybody's hearts would be changed and everybody would just come to Jesus immediately. If only we could show these powerful signs. But what we see is that in the times that Jesus and these disciples ministered, there were many signs. There was no shortage of signs that they did or that Jesus did. And they still crucified him. Just think about that. All that he did, and they still crucified. They didn't even deny that he did signs. They just chalked it up to Satan. They said, well, Jesus is empowered by Satan to do these signs. And Jesus had to reason with them through that. But the fact of the matter is, their hearts were set as stone, or bent on their sins. And so, merely the performing of miracles and the proclamation, Jesus warns them, is not necessarily going to convince everybody. But he says, after they wipe the dust from their feet, that they are to proclaim, nevertheless, know this, that the kingdom of God has come near. This is something that Jews would sometimes do when they would come back from a Gentile nation, which they considered unclean. They would wipe the dust off of their shoes as they entered again the promised land. And they made a firm distinction between what is clean and what is unclean. And Jesus is saying here spiritually, it's the very same thing. These people may look at themselves as faithful and true to the covenant, but by rejecting the king of kings, even when ample evidence is provided, They are showing how unclean they really are in their heart of hearts. And you are perfectly justified to wipe off the dust from your sandals towards them and say that it would be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town. I mean, imagine if you're prideful in the Jewish religion and you've got your works, you've got your ceremonial law all laid out, and somebody tells you that Sodom is going to fare better than you. These people surely would have been offended, but truthfully so. Nevertheless, he says there to say that the kingdom of God has come near. The opportunity and the blessings that come with it had drawn near. God had not been unfaithful, but these people had shut their hearts toward God. And so Jesus continues in the next few verses to deliver woes against these cities, In which he had performed miracles in which had been a witness to this like Chorazin or Bethsaida or Capernaum And he says that they are to be brought low that they are not to be honored by God, but God in fact will bring them down to Hades For Jesus says in verse 16 the one who hears you hears me and The one who rejects you rejects me and the one who rejects me rejects him who sent me What these disciples are doing is nothing short of a heavenly mission. These are not people going on a mission that they dreamed up that they can put in their scrapbook, but rather this is something that originates from the very throne room of heaven. God himself is sending them as ambassadors, not simply ambassadors of the son, but ambassadors of the father as well. This is a massive undertaking spiritually considered. such that even if they reject these ambassadors, they are rejecting not only the son, but the father himself. This is amazing. We can think about how, you know, the relationship of the members of the Trinity that if you, you know, they're all on the same page. And so if you reject the son, you're rejecting the father because of their unity. But here he's going even further than that. These ambassadors who've never been to heaven are nevertheless representing heavenly authority and heavenly rule. And if somebody rejects their message, they're rejecting God himself. Jesus is telling these disciples it's not personal. It's not about you. It's about them at war with God. And so don't take it personally. Administer the judgments as I have commanded you, but also realize that this is a bigger picture. One other word on this that they, when God, when Jesus instructs them to pronounce judgment on them, that's probably a good idea in terms of restraining them. For in the previous chapter, when Jesus had tried to go to the Samaritans, he had sent his disciples ahead of him. And because Jesus had set his face to Jerusalem, the Samaritans had not received him. And the disciples, James and John, say, hey, Jesus, do you want me to call down fire from heaven? They wanted to wipe out these villages, and Jesus rebuked them and said no. And so here, Jesus gives them protocols so that they will not think, because they have all this power, that they should use it to call down fire from heaven for everyone that rejects them. But rather, there's a set protocol for how they are to respond when people reject the teaching of the word. Well, for all the detail that Luke gives us of Jesus's preparations and what they were to say as these disciples were going forth, he doesn't give us any information in real time of what they were seeing and doing while they were engaged in this missionary endeavor. But in verse 17, he jumps ahead to the return of the 70. and what happens afterwards and what they say to Jesus. And it says in verse 17 that the 72 returned with joy, saying, Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name. Whatever rejections they may have faced, overall, their response is one of joy. And they realize how powerful the power is that Christ had given them. Luke doesn't record that Jesus specifically told them that they would be casting out demons. But even if he did, what they see far outmatches their expectations. And they are amazed and rejoicing at how much power in Christ's name was able to be levied against the demons. And Jesus himself affirms that. He affirms the power with which he has given them. And he says, 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. Now, there's a question here of when exactly Jesus saw Satan fall. Is he looking ahead to the future, to his second coming, when Satan will finally be cast into hell and we will no longer experience him on earth? Or is he talking about something that was happening while the disciples were going out? And I think the best way to interpret this is both and. Yes, there is a time when Satan will be cast into the abyss, into hell, and we will see him no more, or his minions. But already, by virtue of the fact that these disciples are going out casting out demons and advancing the kingdom of God, Satan's kingdom is already crumbling. And as dramatically as it would be for them to cast out demons, just as dramatically, Jesus is seeing the beginning of what is the end for Satan. That his kingdom is indeed falling like lightning. As one theologian puts it, paraphrasing what Jesus is saying here, he's saying, as you were casting out the subjects of the prince, I saw the prince himself fall. In other words, their activity is in fact the beginning of what will culminate at Jesus' second coming. And he tells them, Befold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you. Question again on this is how do we interpret things like serpents and scorpions? Is this talking about televangelists who handle snakes and things like that? And I think the answer here is no. Jesus is metaphorically using these animals to describe the power of the enemy, as he says. He's just talked about Satan, he's talked about the demons, and he's telling them that they have authority over all the power of the enemy. That's what he means. The enemy described as a serpent and a scorpion. Whatever other metaphor you want to use or picture to describe Satan. Paul himself uses this in Romans chapter 16, when he promises us In Romans 16 verse 20, he says, the God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. So he's picturing Satan here as a serpent. But the Lord has given them power over all of these things. And he says, in fact, nothing shall hurt you. Now, here again, another question, what does he mean by that? Luke surely knew, as the author of the book of Acts, and even at the time of his writing this, he surely knew of the persecutions that the church would face. In fact, even at the end of his gospel, he quotes Jesus in chapter 21, saying that not a hair would fall from their head, and yet some of them would be handed over to death. This is in chapter 21 verses 10 through 19. Jesus is telling them there about how they're going to be persecuted and dragged before the synagogues and how even family members would betray other family members. And Jesus says to them in verse 16, you'll be delivered up even by parents and brothers and relatives and some of you they will put to death. That's verse 16. Then he says, you'll be hated by all for my name's sake, but not a hair of your head will perish. Now, why would he tell them, right after telling them that some of them would be put to death and not a hair of their head would perish? Well, think about it. This is Jesus who knows that he is about to be crucified. This is one who knows what death is, and who's not afraid to stare it in the face, but who also knows what comes at the other side of death, which is his own resurrection. And through his resurrection, our resurrection. and through his life, our life. That is what he's talking about. Here he's saying that Satan is never going to be able to separate us from the love of God. No power of the enemy is going to be able to destroy the eternal life that Christ has prepared for us. And that, in fact, is what we should rejoice in. And this leads into what he says in verse 20. Do not rejoice that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven. One commentator pointed out that we have every reason to believe that all of the apostles, including Judas himself, performed miracles. He himself traveled with them. He himself went on the same mission trips that they did. There's no reason to doubt that he was empowered to perform miracles, and yet we know what the end of Judas was, that he denied the faith and that he did not have salvation. And so clearly that's an illustration of what Jesus is saying here. That even better than the power to cast out demons, which we're not even going to be able to do for eternity because we're not going to be doing that in heaven. What is even better than that and what should truly cause us to rejoice is the fact that our names are written in heaven. And beloved, this is what the mission was all about. This is why he was sending them to deliver this good news, not merely about casting out demons, You know, that was the sign of the good news. That was the thing that verified it. But the good news itself was the full redemptive benefit of the King of Kings, who has finally arrived. This is what they are preaching to a lost world that needed it. And therefore, this is what they themselves should be most excited about. It is the same message that they would preach later to the Gentiles as the church spread after Pentecost. And it is the same message the church has brought throughout the ages, even up to our own time. In fact, it is the same message that will continue until Christ returns, that he has come. And in him, the kingdom of God has drawn near. He died and rose again. And if anyone Jew or Gentile believes in him, you will be saved. And indeed, you also will have the joy of knowing that your name is written in the heavens and that you are on the side of history that triumphs. Even today, we see Christ continuing to plunder from Satan's kingdom as people are liberated from sin and darkness. We see that all over the world and how even in persecutions, the church is not extinguished, but even spreads. Ironically, the more that Satan attacks, the more that he loses. And it is Christ who is the victor. whose power is from heaven itself. And we have the privilege of being part of his household and part of that coming kingdom. So that message and that overall mission goes on even today. And yet we do recognize that there are differences between how we do ministry today and how they did it then. As I've already mentioned before, we don't see and don't perform the same charismatic signs that were performed in the early church. And that's okay. The Old Testament saints could have said the same thing. God at different times during church history performed miracles, and then he would stop doing miracles for a time. When Moses went to the elders, he threw down his staff and it turned into a serpent. And then when he picked it up, it turned back into a staff. And when God gave his law, it was on a mountain that had thunder and lightning and smoke. It was a terrifying experience. But there are times that Israel was not by the mountain. There were times where Moses put his staff down and it did not turn into a snake. And as I've mentioned before with the number 70, the 70 elders, when the Holy Spirit came upon them, initially prophesied, but the text says they did not continue doing so. The charismatic gifts, even in the Old Testament, came and went, but yet the word remained the same. It would not have been right for people in the Old Testament to say, well, I don't see miracles today, so Moses must not be the law that I need to follow. I can just break the covenant because I'm not seeing miracles like when I throw my staff down. No, that's not the correct conclusion. God himself has chosen for his own reasons to amplify his message with signs at different times throughout church history. But whether we see those signs or not, the message is still the same. And that authority continues. But make no mistake, beloved, though we don't see the charismatic gifts that they saw in the early church, the Holy Spirit is still working today. This is still a spiritual church. It is the Holy Spirit who binds us together. The fact that a person's hard heart can be changed, that somebody who is spiritually dead can be born again and given new life in Christ is nothing short of miraculous. When people turn from rebellion unto God, that is only because the work of the Spirit continues today. And indeed it does continue, beloved. So we can rejoice in that, but we also ask another question. This text is full of questions, isn't it? When we ask about all the details of Jesus' instructions and how they might apply today to missionary journeys, we also see differences between how things were done then and how they ought to be done today. In fact, even in the book of Luke, even before Jesus' ascension and even before his crucifixion, he changed the protocol for his disciples. When he was with them before he was betrayed, In verses 35 of chapter 22, he asked them, he says, when I sent you out with no money bag or knapsack or sandals, did you lack anything? And they said nothing. And he said to them, but now let the one who has a money bag, take it. And likewise a knapsack and let the one who has no sword, sell his cloak and buy one. For I tell you that the scripture must be fulfilled in me. He was numbered with the transgressors. Jesus was telling them that that protective bubble that they had had while he was with them on the earth was being taken away. He was about to be crucified. He was being numbered with the transgressors. The hospitality that they had enjoyed would not be something that they could bank on in the future. And so Jesus warns them of that. And so for that reason, we today as well don't have to necessarily rush from town to town or refuse to pack or take our credit cards when we travel. The message isn't the same, but we're in a different period of redemptive history. But even though we don't see a physical urgency that they did, even though we're not preceding a Christ who is going to an earthly temple or an earthly Jerusalem, scripture still calls us spiritually to have a sense of urgency. In the book of Hebrews, chapter 12, Verse one, it says, therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. Looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. We see that our home ultimately is in heaven. This new earth will be renewed as well, and we will live here, but it will be a heavenly glory that we are experiencing here. Our goal in life should not be, therefore, the stockpiling of earthly stuff, or just involving ourselves in the pleasures of this life. But rather, we should be focused, resolutely focused, on a heavenly inheritance that will last forever. That heavenly Jerusalem, that new Jerusalem, is what will last into eternity. And because Jesus set his face to the earthly Jerusalem and fulfilled his work, we have the privilege of being able to fix our eyes upon a heavenly Jerusalem, which Christ has purchased for us. And as we do this in the joy for which Christ has set us free, we too can also pray for others, that they like us would be brought in. And we can also pray as these early disciples did, that God would send even more people into the harvest. For as new people are born and new generations come about, they too need to hear the word of the gospel. And then they too will experience this joy with us. For we ourselves are here, beloved, because the prayers of those earlier disciples were answered. Do you think about that? Jesus told them to pray, and we are part of the answer to that prayer. Because there were more people sent out worldwide, we have come to faith. Because someone came to us with a message of hope, we have believed. And so we also have the privilege of praying that God would send yet others, so that future generations can also be brought in. Let us, beloved, with all urgency and haste, keep our eyes fixed on that. And with love and truth in our hearts, await the day when Christ will again return, and when all things will be set right. Let us pray.