Matthew 10:5-10 5Jesus sent out these twelve , commanding them saying, “Do not go into the way of the Gentiles and do not enter into a city of the Samaritans, 6but instead go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 7And as you go, preach saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ 8Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received a gift; give a gift. 9Do not acquire gold or silver or copper for your belts, 10or bag for your journey nor two tunics nor sandals nor a staff, for the worker is worthy of his food.
After choosing his inner circle of twelve disciples, Jesus sends them out on a mission. He gave them authority to do as he was doing, and now he wanted to see them put their faith in him into action. One of the key actions in Matthew’s Gospel is repeated in three different verbs: do not go, enter, go. Jesus’ action is to send and the disciples’ action is to respond by going in obedience and faith.
At first, it seems odd that Jesus would tell his disciples to go only to Israel. There are a couple of ways to look at this situation. One is simply that he wanted them to focus on a clear objective. Another is that God’s plan for Israel was for them to be the missionaries to the world (Exodus 19:5-6). Train the special people first and then send them out. Jesus’ directions should not be interpreted to mean that he was unconcerned about the Gentiles (literally “nations” ethnōn) or Samaritans, because he would later send these same disciples out to all “nations” (28:19). The big problem was the the people of Israel were lost without recognizing their Shepherd (9:36).
The disciples had the same message and mission as Jesus. The message was simply stated in a short sentence, but there is a lot assumed behind this message. The verb has come near (ēngiken) is a perfect tense, which implies that Jesus brought the kingdom and that it was now available to the people. Everything Jesus has taught thus far recorded by Matthew focuses upon the kingdom: how to enter it and what the expectations are for its citizens. The disciples were to share what they had learned from Jesus. Were they listening? Had they understood? The best way to know that a person has learned something is to ask that person to repeat what you have taught–show me! They had received the gift of becoming part of the kingdom and needed to pass this gift on to others. What a privilege to be a child of the King!
Jesus then challenges the disciples to grow in faith in him and trust in his words. They are to go on this mission of preaching and healing with nothing but the clothes on their back and faith. Watch and see how God will be with you if you follow his directions in total faith. The disciples could not take a wallet or purse, no savings, checking account, or credit card. They could not pack a suitcase or take a walking stick. The command is simply to go and preach; go and make more disciples.
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