Calling of the Apostles – 1481 – Domenico Ghirlandaio (1449–1494)
In Matthew 10, Christ gives a complete set of instructions to the newly empowered apostles to carry out their first and limited commission. They were to only go to the Jews (Matthew 10:5-6) and were sent despite the personal danger that they were about to walk into.
I believe they concentrated on the Israelites as a way to counter the influence of the Sadducees and Pharisees, who were doing their best to discredit Jesus and lead the Jews away from notion that this was the Messiah. They could no longer remain silent against them.
Even though this was a special instruction meant only for the twelve, there is still a lot of application for us. The world is certainly doing its part to discredit Jesus these days, and this is something we have been given to work against.
In just a few verses, we can see what we should be doing:
- Matthew 28:18-20 – The full commission to go into all the world, teaching and baptizing is given
- 2 Timothy 2:2 – Follow the apostles example and teach others
- Philippians 4:9 – Follow the example of Paul
- Hebrews 2:1 – Don’t be neglectful of the word
- 1 Peter 1:6-7 – Keep going even when it is challenging
If we remain silent, the noise of the world obscures Christ from honest seekers. This sample of instructions gives us the same responsibility against the world as the twelve had against the Jews.
I’m sure we all know someone that is receptive to the idea of Christ. What can we do to light their way to him?
January 14, 2014
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