As we look at Mark chapter six, verses seven through 13, working our way through the gospel of Mark, these Lord’s Day mornings, we see at verse seven, and he called the 12 and began to send them out two by two and gave them authority over the unclean spirits.

He charged them to take nothing for their journey except a staff, no bread, no bag, no money in their belts. but to wear sandals and not put on two tunics. And he said to them, whenever you enter a house, stay there until you depart from there. And if any place will not receive you and they will not listen to you, when you leave, shake the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.

So they went out and proclaimed that people should repent. And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them. Thus far, God’s gracious word. Please be seated. Now, when we have seen the verses proceeding as we did a couple of weeks ago, Jesus was rejected in his hometown of Nazareth. The people had known him from childhood up, were astonished at his teaching, but they would not believe in him. They asked, is this not the carpenter? And they took offense at him.

And yet their unbelief didn’t stop the kingdom of God. Mark tells us that he went about among the villages teaching. And then immediately after this in the passage before us this morning, he sends out the And that’s an important truth for us to remember. The rejection of Christ does not defeat the purposes of Christ. The unbelief of man cannot bring the kingdom of God to a standstill. Nazareth rejected him, but Jesus continued teaching.

In fact, it’s amplified even more through the 12 as he sends them out. Some refuse to hear him, but he sent others to proclaim His word, and so the kingdom advances because it belongs to Christ. And so in this passage before us, we see Jesus sending the 12 on a particular mission to the villages of Israel.

It’s not yet the worldwide Great Commission, that follows after his resurrection. But what we see here is a temporary and preparatory mission. It took place before Christ’s death and resurrection and ascension. It included an extraordinary apostolic authority that doesn’t belong to ordinary ministers today.

And yet, this mission reveals some enduring truths along the way, how Christ carries out his work. Jesus calls his servants, he sends them, he gives them a message, he teaches them to depend upon God, he warns them some are going to reject the truth, and he commands them proclaim repentance. And he demonstrates his power over Satan and sickness and suffering. So the central truth of the passage this morning is that Jesus Christ sovereignly sends his servants to proclaim his word, to depend upon his provision and to call sinners to repentance. So notice in the first place, Christ sends his servants under his authority.

Look at verse seven with me. And he called the 12 and began to send them out two by two and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. Now notice where this mission begins. It begins with Jesus. Jesus called the 12. Jesus called the 12. He sent the 12. He gave authority to the 12.

The apostles didn’t volunteer themselves for this office. They didn’t create their own mission. They didn’t invent their own message. They were called and commissioned by Christ. Now, the word translated sinned here is related to the word apostle. An apostle is one who is sent with the authority and the message of another. Nothing is to originate with the apostle.

It’s all handed to him to carry out that particular mission. Kings would send someone as an ambassador to another kingdom. And they were only to proclaim what they had been given by their own king, the message and so forth. And they have the authority of that king in the conduct of that particular mission. But understand, it doesn’t originate with the one who is sent, it originates with the one who sends. And that here is our Lord Jesus Christ.

They went as authorized representatives of Jesus Christ. means their authority was real, but it was not independent. They didn’t possess any authority apart from Christ. They couldn’t alter his message. They were not to expand their commission or to use their position for their own purposes. They were servants of the king. And that is true of all lawful ministry in the church. Ministers, elders, teachers, missionaries, evangelists possess no authority in themselves, of their own. Whatever authority that we have is ministerial and subordinate.

Christ alone is king and head of the church. So a minister may not preach his own opinions as though they were divine revelation. An elder may not bind the conscience where Christ has left it free. A church may not invent new doctrines or new sacraments or new terms of salvation. The church does not create truth.

The church receives the truth and proclaims it. That’s why the authority of preaching doesn’t rest upon the personality or the education or age or eloquence or charisma of the preacher. The authority rests in the word of God being faithfully proclaimed. So when the minister opens up the scriptures and faithfully declares what God has said, the congregation is not merely listening to the reflections of a man. You’re hearing the word of Christ.

Well, that places pretty heavy responsibility upon the preacher, doesn’t it? He must not entertain where he should proclaim. He must not speculate where he should explain it. He must not soften what Christ has made clear. But it also places a responsibility on the hearers. You must not dismiss the word because you dislike the messenger or dislike the manner or dislike the truth being preached.

So the question here is not merely, do I like this sermon? The question is, has Christ spoken in his word? One of the things I pray before getting in the pulpit is that I might fade away and that the Lord Jesus would be seen here declaring his perfect will for our salvation from the word, that you would not see me, but you would hear Christ in it all.

Now, the people in Nazareth had rejected Jesus because he was familiar to them. They thought they knew him. They allow that familiarity to breed contempt. And we must be careful that we don’t fall into a similar danger. We may hear the scriptures week after week until the word seems ordinary to us. We may become skilled at evaluating sermons while remaining slow to obey them. But Christ is Lord. When his word is faithfully preached, we are called to hear, to believe, to repent, and to obey.

Now notice something here. Jesus sends the apostles out two by two. There’s some wisdom in this arrangement. They could encourage one another and protect one another, to counsel one another and correct one another. Their testimony also reflects the Old Testament principle that a matter was established by two or three witnesses. So Christ didn’t send them out as isolated religious personalities. He sent them together. And there’s a lesson here. for the church. Christian ministry is not meant to be carried out in proud isolation. Ministers need their fellow elders. Missionaries need teammates. Christians need the fellowship, correction, encouragement, and prayers of the church.

And there’s a temptation to imagine that spiritual maturity means you really don’t need anyone else. But the word teaches us something exactly opposite. The more clearly we understand our weaknesses, the more gratefully we receive the help of Christ’s body. Faith Presbyterian Church is not a collection of unrelated individuals who happen to worship in the same building. We’re a body. We’re members of one another. We bear one another’s burdens. We encourage the discouraged. We correct. the wandering, we pray for the weak, we serve together.

Notice also Jesus gave them authority over the unclean spirits. This authority demonstrated the kingdom of Christ was advancing against the kingdom of darkness. We’ve seen Jesus casting out demons and that’s part of the proclamation of the kingdom of God is now among you.

And in the same way, sending out the 12 amplifies that even more. We saw earlier in this gospel, Jesus described Satan as a strong man whose house must be entered and whose goods must be plundered. And he declared no one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods unless he first binds the strong man. And who is the stronger man here? Jesus. The authority given to the apostles was not independent power, it was the authority of Christ’s exercise through them.

And so when the demons are cast out, it demonstrates Satan’s kingdom is being invaded by the king. Some might object here, look, if the apostles cast out demons and healed the sick, shouldn’t every faithful minister be able to do the same? Well, the answer is that the apostles held a unique and foundational office. Paul says that the church is built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone. A foundation is laid once. The signs and wonders performed through the apostles authenticated them as authorized witnesses of Christ.

Now, ordinary ministers today don’t possess apostolic authority in that way. We don’t receive new revelation. We don’t claim the ability to command demons or heal disease at will. And yet the kingdom of darkness is still confronted through the gospel.

And whenever the gospel is faithfully preached, sinners are called out of darkness into light. Whenever a man or woman or boy or girl are united to Christ by faith, that person is delivered from the domain of darkness and transferred to the kingdom of his beloved son. So the church advances not through spectacle or manipulation or human force, but through the preaching of Christ crucified and risen.

So don’t despise the ordinary means of grace, the reading and preaching of scripture, of prayer, of the sacraments, of baptism in the Lord’s supper and Christian fellowship. They may appear unimpressive to the world. In fact, Paul talks about the foolishness of preaching, foolishness to the world, but of the wisdom of God.

He has ordained this particular means. Christ uses these means to overthrow strongholds, to convert sinners, to strengthen saints, and to build his church. Because the power belongs to Christ. And second place notice here, Christ teaches his servants to depend upon God. Look at verses eight and nine with me.

He charged them to take nothing for their journey except a staff, no bread, no bag, no money in their belts, but to wear sandals and not put on two tunics. From a logistical standpoint, they’re sent out with very little. They were not permitted to take bread or travel bag or money or a second tunic. They were to take a staff and sandals.

Now, these are very specific instructions for a specific mission. particular mission. They’re not a universal command that ministers must never save money or to carry luggage or to prepare food or possess more than one set of clothing. And they all have to have walking staffs and sandals.

Later on in Luke 22, Jesus gave the disciples different instructions because circumstances have changed. Scripture also teaches that churches should support those who labor in preaching and teaching. So the point It’s not that planning is somehow simple. The point is that the apostles were to learn visible, practical dependence upon God.

They were going out with Christ’s message, Christ’s authority, Christ’s promise of provision. They were not to create a sense of security by accumulating extra supplies here on this mission. But this lack of provision also demonstrated the urgency of the mission. They were not tourists. They were not merchants. They were heralds of the kingdom. And so they were not to be going from place to place seeking profit. Their simplicity here shows they were not preaching for money.

Faithful ministry must always be guarded against greed. The gospel must never become merchandise. Spiritual authority must never be used to manipulate the vulnerable. Ministers must not flatter the wealthy or neglect the poor or measure success by financial gain. The Apostle Paul said, we are not like so many peddlers of God’s Word.

Another thing this passage teaches us is that God frequently trains his servants through limitation. We often Imagine, look, I could serve Christ faithfully if only we had more money, if only we had more people, if only we had more time, if only we had more energy or more influence or better facilities or greater opportunities. But Christ often calls his people to serve him precisely where their weakness is visible.

That doesn’t mean we should be careless. Churches should plan responsibility. Our session and deacons, we’re going through the budgeting process for next year, part of that planning out and prayerfully considering what ministry the Lord would have us to participate in and to do in our responsibilities. Christians, we should prepare wisely. Missionaries should be properly supported. Ministers should receive adequate provision.

And yet there is a difference between using resources and trusting resources. A church may have a large budget, an impressive building, a gifted staff, many programs, and still be spiritually barren. Another congregation may have few people and limited resources, yet remain faithful in prayer and sound in doctrine, rich in love and fruitful in witness.

So the decisive answer is not, how much do we possess? The decisive question is, is Christ with us? And are we faithful to this word? A Presbyterian church may appear small by the standards of the world. We sometimes may look at our limitations and become discouraged. We may think about our age, our numbers, our resources, or the challenges before us. But the Lord is not limited by our limitations. He fed Israel in the wilderness. He sustained Elijah through ravens. He fed 5,000 with five loaves and two fishes. He built his church through fishermen and tax collectors and ordinary men whom the world regarded as insignificant.

So we must therefore use what God has given us, but we must not place our confidence in what God has given us. Our confidence must be in God himself. Christ’s command also placed the apostles in a position where they would receive hospitality from others.

Look at verse 10. Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you depart from there. So when a household welcomed the apostles, they were to remain there until they left that village. They were not to move from house to house looking for better food or more comfortable accommodations or wealthier hosts. They were to be content with the provision God gave them. and that guarded them against greed and favoritism and social ambition.

A servant of Christ must not evaluate people according to wealth or usefulness or status. James warns against giving the rich man the best seat while telling the poor man to stand at a distance. The gospel humbles the rich and exalts the lowly. At the foot of the cross, there’s no distinction between the wealthy and the poor, the influential and the unknown. All are sinners. All must be saved by grace. All who believe are one in Christ.

The command to remain in one house also teaches us the importance of hospitality in the mission of the church. The households that welcomed the apostles became partners in their ministry. They may not have preached publicly or cast out demons or traveled from village to village, but they supported those who did.

Now, Christian hospitality may seem ordinary, but it often serves extraordinary purposes. And Christian hospitality doesn’t have to be complicated. You think, oh, I got to have this and the doilies out and I’ve got to have this and make this. And so no peanut butter and jelly sandwich and canned soup is mighty fine. It’s the fellowship that goes on and the joy and the centeredness on Christ.

It may seem ordinary, but it often serves extraordinary purposes. A meal provided to a missionary, a room given to a visiting preacher, transportation offered to someone in need, financial support sent to a gospel worker, or encouragement given to a weary minister can all become part of Christ’s work. So the mission of the church, we need to remember, is not carried on by preachers alone. Some are called to preach. Others give. Others pray. Others welcome. Others encourage. Others serve quietly and faithfully in ways that may never be publicly recognized.

But Christ sees every act of service done in his name. Ask yourself, how may my home, my time, my income, my experience, and my abilities serve the gospel of Christ? Don’t say, I cannot preach, therefore I have no part in the mission. The whole church participates in the work of Christ. It’s an all hands on deck situation.

Notice in the third place, Christ warns that his word will sometimes be rejected. Verse 11, and if any place will not receive you and they will not listen to you, when you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them. Jesus did not promise the apostles universal acceptance.

Some villages would welcome them. Others would refuse them. Some would listen. Others would harden their hearts. So the rejection of the apostles is not merely the rejection of 12 ordinary men. They were authorized representatives of Christ. So to reject their message was to reject the one who sent them. Jesus said elsewhere, the one who hears you, hears me. And the one who rejects you, rejects me. And so this teaches that visible success is not always the measure of faithfulness. These apostles possessed Christ’s authority. They preached Christ’s message. They performed Christ’s signs of the kingdom. And yet some still rejected them. And if the people rejected the apostles, we shouldn’t be surprised when people reject faithful preaching today.

Christians may sometimes think, look, if I explain the gospel clearly enough, gently enough, persuasively enough, the other person must believe. We should certainly speak clearly and be gentle and answer questions. We should remove unnecessary events. We should adorn the doctrine of God our Savior by lives of humility and love.

But the human heart is not converted by argument alone. Only the Holy Spirit can open a blind heart, a dead heart. Indeed, they’re dead in their sins and trespasses. And we pray that God would make them alive in Christ. So this truth should keep us from despair, but it also should keep us from pride. When someone believes, there’s no way that we can boast as through our skill we produce the conversion. When someone refuses to believe, we should not immediately assume also that faithfulness has failed. Our duty is to speak the truth in love and to entrust the results to God.

Jesus told the apostles that when a village refused to receive them or to listen to them, they were to shake the dust from their feet as a testimony against it. The Jews sometimes would shake the dust from their feet after leaving Gentile territory. And so this gesture symbolized separation from ceremonial uncleanness. So Jesus is applying that gesture to the Jewish villages that rejected the gospel.

These are severe warnings. Covenant privilege didn’t excuse unbelief. Being descended from Abraham didn’t save those who rejected Abraham’s promised son. And the same principle applies to us. See, growing up in the church doesn’t save you. Knowing the catechism doesn’t save you. Being baptized doesn’t save you. Attending worship doesn’t save you. Having Christian parents doesn’t save you.

Not all these are great privileges, but privilege rejected increases responsibility. So the question is whether you have received Christ by faith. Have you heard his word with a humble heart? Have you repented of your sins? Are you resting upon Christ alone as he’s offered to us here in the gospels for salvation? Don’t allow familiarity with Christianity to deceive you. The people of Nazareth, they were familiar with Jesus, but they did not believe in him.

This shaking of the dust was a testimony against them. This is not a personal revenge. This is not they’re being ticked off because their feelings have been hurt. They were not to curse those who insulted them or retaliate against those who refused hospitality. It was a solemn sign that the message had been heard and rejected.

There comes a time when the servant of Christ must cease arguing with those who persistently harden themselves. Now someone may object, should Christians not continue speaking until the unbeliever finally changes his mind? Yes, we should be patient and pray and we should answer sincere questions. We should bear with weakness and confusion. We should never give up on a person merely because conversion doesn’t happen quickly. But scripture also warns against fruitless quarrels and endless disputes. Jesus didn’t command the apostles to remain indefinitely. in a place that stubbornly rejected the truth. There’s a difference between patient evangelism and unending argument. We can’t force anyone into the kingdom. We cannot quarrel anyone into repentance. We cannot manipulate anyone into faith. We speak, we pray, we appeal, we love, and then we entrust the person to God.

It also means we must not alter the gospel to make it more acceptable, more palatable to the unbeliever. You see, the temptation of the church is to soft pedal the message, to soften it whenever people reject it. Perhaps we should speak less about sin. Perhaps we should avoid the holiness of God. Maybe we should remove the command to repent. Perhaps we should assure people that they may have Jesus without surrendering their rebellion. But a message stripped of repentance is not the gospel Christ gave to the apostles. Faithfulness may bring rejection. We must not become bitter when it does. We must not retaliate. We must not grow proud or harsh, but neither may we change the message.

And notice in the fourth place, Christ sends his servants to proclaim repentance and display his kingdom. Verse 12, so they went out and proclaimed that people should repent and the apostles obeyed. And Jesus called them and they came, Jesus sent them and they went. Jesus gave them a message and they proclaimed it. And their obedience stands in sharp contrast to the unbelief in Nazareth. You see the people of Nazareth heard Christ, they rejected him. The apostles heard Christ and obeyed him. And the message they proclaimed was repentance.

That was the message of John the Baptist. Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. It was a message of Jesus. The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the gospel. And now it becomes a message of the apostles.

See, repentance is not merely feeling sorry. embarrassment over being caught. It’s not regret because sin brought painful consequences. Repentance is a gracious turning of the whole person from sin to God. It includes the acknowledgement of sin, sorrow for sin, confession of sin, hatred of sin, and a sincere purpose to walk in new obedience.

Now, repentance does not earn forgiveness. We’re not saved because we repent well enough. We’re saved by grace alone, through faith alone in Christ alone. And yet the faith that receives Christ is never separated from repentance. We cannot cling to Christ while making peace with the sin from which he came to save us.

Now some object that preaching repentance is harsh, it’s negative, it’s judgmental. But stop and consider who it is who commands repentance. It’s Christ. The call to repentance is not an expression of cruelty. It’s an invitation to leave the road of destruction and come to the way of life. If a man’s walking toward a cliff, it is not loving to tell him that every path is equally safe. If a patient has a deadly disease, it’s not compassionate for the physician to hide the diagnosis.

Sin destroys. Sin blinds. Sin enslaves. Sin separates the sinner from God. Sin brings death and judgment. So the call to repent is then an expression of mercy. God commands sinners to turn from the idols that cannot save them and to come to Christ who receives all who call upon him. You see, we must never be, as a church, ashamed of repentance. Ministers must call sinners to repent. Parents must teach their children to repent. Christians must lovingly warn one another when we wander into sin. And repentance must be specific. It’s easy to confess, yeah, we’re all sinners, in a general sense. But it’s much harder to name the particular sin we have cherished and protected.

Which sin have you excused? What resentment have you preserved? Whom have you refused to forgive? What duty have you neglected? What habit have you defended? What idol have you loved more than Christ? What truth have you resisted because obedience would be costly?

Don’t merely say, I’m imperfect. confess your sin, turn from it, seek forgiveness in Christ, and take practical steps toward obedience. You see, repentance is not only the beginning of the Christian life, it is a daily pattern of the Christian life. Later on this month, it will be the anniversary of when Martin Luther nailed the 95 theses to the door of the Wittenberg Church, Castle Church, The first of those 95 theses declared when our Lord and master Jesus Christ said, repent, he intended the entire life of believers to be repentance.

See, we don’t outgrow it. The more clearly we see the holiness of God and the grace of God in Christ, more readily we confess our sin and seek to repent. And then notice here in verse 13, And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them. You see, the apostles’ work confirms their message. The casting out of the demons demonstrates Christ’s victory over the kingdom of darkness. The healing of the sick displayed the mercy and power of the coming kingdom.

The oil in itself didn’t possess any magical power. It was a visible sign associated with care and healing. It was a symbol of the Holy Spirit being poured out and the blessing that that gives. The power, though, was not in the oil. It was in Christ.

See, these miracles pointed beyond themselves. Those who were healed eventually grew sick again. Those delivered from suffering eventually died. The miracles were signs of a greater restoration still to come. And they pointed to the day when Christ will raise the dead, remove every disease, wipe away every tear, and make all things new.

They also display the compassionate character of Christ. He’s not indifferent to human suffering. He cares for the whole person. touch with our infirmities. Yeah, compassion upon the sick, the weak, the grieving, the lonely, and the oppressed. The church doesn’t possess the apostles foundational gift of healing. We can’t promise miraculous cures. Yes, he can and will heal when and where and how he pleases, but we must not tell suffering people that they remain ill because they lack faith. But the church must care for the suffering.

We must pray for the sick. We must visit the lonely. We must encourage the discouraged. We must support the weak. We must provide practical help where we’re able. We must bear one another’s burdens. So sound doctrine and Christian compassion must never be separated.

A church that speaks truth without love distorts the character of Christ. A church that attempts love without truth offers temporary comfort. but no saving hope. So the apostles proclaim repentance and minister to suffering, so must we. Now, this passage is ultimately not about the faithfulness of the apostles. It’s about the authority and power and mission of Jesus Christ. Jesus sent out the 12, but Jesus himself is the great sent one.

The father sent the Son into the world. Jesus came in perfect obedience. He spoke only what the Father gave him to speak. He accomplished every work the Father gave him to do. Where Israel had failed as God’s servant, Christ succeeded. He proclaimed the kingdom. He confronted Satan. He healed the sick. He cleansed lepers. I gave sight to the blind. He raised the dead. And yet Jesus did more than announce deliverance. He accomplished it at the cross. He entered the deepest darkness.

He bore the judgment that our sins deserve. He was rejected so that all who believe in him might be received. He was stripped so that we might be clothed in his righteousness. He became poor so that through his poverty we might become rich. He was treated as unclean so that we might be cleansed. He died under the curse so that we might receive the blessing of God.

And then on the third day, he rose from the grave. And by his death and resurrection, Christ defeated sin and saved him in death. The stronger man bound the strong man. The true king triumphed over the enemy. And now the risen Christ sends his church into the world.

We don’t continue his atoning work. That work is finished. We don’t add anything to the cross. We bear witness to what Christ has accomplished. And we proclaim that forgiveness is found in his blood, righteousness is found in his obedience, life is found in his resurrection, and salvation is found in his name. That’s what we testify to when we come to the table in a few moments. Life is in Christ. Our joy is in Him. Our salvation is of the Lord. But also, too, we have great encouragement.

You see, because Christ is sending out those who proclaim His gospel, we are recipients of it. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. reflect on your hearing of the gospel. It has a direct line back to Jesus sending forth those who proclaim his gospel and his work in your heart and in your life to draw you savingly to himself and to give you life in him. Let us pray for that work of the gospel that when the gospel’s rejected, that God would continue his work, and indeed, that they too might be awakened, because not everyone who rejected at that time, that’s it, that’s done, because God in his grace and mercy often will circle back, and that word will come true.

Just as a seed is sown, it doesn’t immediately spring up. We are to be faithful to be sowing that word and entrust that Christ will bring that bumper crop when and where and how he pleases, but he will do it. So we must have every expectation and every hope that the work of Christ will be accomplished, that he is able to do exceeding abundantly more than we could hope or even ask. Let’s pray.

O Lord Jesus, our sovereign King and gracious Savior, we praise you that you were sent by the Father to seek and to save the lost, that you came in perfect obedience and proclaim the kingdom. You defeated the powers of darkness and bore our sins upon the cross and rose victorious from the grave.

Forgive us for our self-reliance, for our fear of man, for our reluctance to speak your truth. Forgive us when we trust in numbers or resources or plans or human strength rather than in your power and promise. Forgive us also for hearing your word without humbly receiving it and for confessing sin in general while refusing to forsake particular sins. Grant us true repentance. Show us the sins we’ve excused, the duties we’ve neglected, the idols we’ve protected. Turn our hearts again to you. and assure us that all who come to you in faith are freely forgiven and clothed in your righteousness.

Help us as a congregation to be a faithful witness in this community, to teach us to labor together, to support the work of the gospel, to welcome others with Christian hospitality, to care for the sick, the lonely, the discouraged, and the weak. Give us courage to speak the truth in love and patience when the message is rejected and humility to relieve to leave the results in your hands. Send us into this week under your authority, trusting your provision and bearing witness to your grace. Keep us faithful until that day when every enemy is finally defeated and your kingdom is revealed in all its glory. And we ask these things in your holy and victorious name. And God’s people say, amen.