Sermon: Jesus Sends Out the Seventy-Two

After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road.

“When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ If someone who promotes peace is there, your peace will rest on them; if not, it will return to you. Stay there, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house. “When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is offered to you. Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, ‘Even the dust of your town we wipe from our feet as a warning to you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God has come near.’ I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town.

For the past week now since the semi lock down and the restrictions imposed by the government to keep us and our NHS safe during this Covid-19 pandemic this reading from Luke’s gospel has been on my mind. I wasn’t sure why God was giving me these thoughts until the news started to filter through of people in communities helping those less fortunate. People you would least expect going the extra mile to help the vulnerable, isolated and elderly. Teenagers in Sheffield delivering essentials to elderly neighbours, supermarket staff applauding NHS workers as they call in to do their shopping in the allotted time, to avoid panic buyers. Small shops in Scotland clubbing together to provide the community with cleaning and anti-bacterial products free of charge. The list is endless. Good people everywhere helping, caring, loving. And so Jesus charges his disciples.

It’s heart warming to know that when Jesus charges his disciples to go out and preach, heal and live his gospel in the wider community of Israel, he is aware that the message they will proclaim, and ultimately Jesus himself, will not be accepted by all people. And the message of hope that is in the stories relating to the pandemic is not accepted by all people either. There are always those who know better, or say ‘it doesn’t apply to me’. But it does, it applies to all of us if we are to say we are disciples of Jesus Christ, if we are to proclaim him as our Saviour.

We know very little about what happened when the disciples went out with the instructions to cure the sick and raise the dead as these miracles were not recorded by the disciples themselves, until after Jesus’ death when the miracles continued.

Jesus gives his disciples no illusions, they are prepared from the onset that not everyone will want to hear the message Jesus proclaims. Doors will be slammed in their faces, fists will be shook at them and they will be run out of town. Jesus’ message isn’t always what people want to hear. We do know however that many of these disciples were faithful to Jesus to the end of his earthly life and that Jesus’ closest friends even went on to proclaim His life, death and resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit to the ends of the known earth.

It must have been difficult for these ordinary men and women to travel through the land of Israel preaching what would have seemed like a new religion to most people. We only have to think how we would react if someone appeared on social media and proclaimed the words of a new prophet and began to perform miracles? I’m sure, as human nature dictates, that most of us would be very sceptical. Although if we truly believe in the message of Jesus Christ our saviour we should accept that everything is possible with God.

As we look at the examples of disciples we must ask ourselves what are the qualities of a disciple, is it their nationality, their shape, their appearance and way of dressing? Would they have good health, confidence, truthfulness, popularity or leadership skills? Possibly none or all of these. However scholars of holy text have found that many writings state that there are only two qualities that a Christian disciple should strive to have and they are compassion and mercy and during the Crusades a Knight would win his spurs by showing these two qualities alone.

We all know what these words mean, but do we attribute them in our perceptions of a Christian disciple? We can list Paul as one of the greatest and most influential Christian disciples of all time. If we had a top of the pops for each century from Christ’s resurrection to now I am sure he would be number one, purely for his encouragement and devotion to the early church and the spreading of the gospels to all nations. The twentieth century threw up such amazing disciples as Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King. Who will step into the shoes of these faithful disciples in this century? Will it be the two teenagers in Sheffield or will it be you and I?

This vision of a true disciple of Christ is emphasised by St Paul in Romans chapter 12 when he writes…“Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honour one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervour, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, and faithful in prayer. Share with God’s people who are in need. Practise hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited”.

So do we, ordinary believers, see ourselves as modern day disciples of Christ?

As we know our world is very different to that of Jesus’ time, it is changing by the second not by the seasons. The challenges we face would be beyond the comprehension of Peter, James, John and Matthew. They were up against the Roman Empire and hierarchal Jewish faith and laws, not to mention the rest of the world whom they effortlessly called ‘gentiles’. We are up against at the moment, a pandemic of proportions not seen in generations, climate change and the decimation of hundreds of species, we are up against ourselves, arrogance, ignorance and greed. But these barriers should never stop us from thinking that we are not capable of being a disciple today.

Jesus knows our limitations that we cannot physically go out healing the sick or raising the dead, but we have the capacity within us to perform many miracles, no matter how small or insignificant they may seem. Sometimes a word spoken can repair a broken life, a hand held can reassure a shattered heart, a listening ear can share a weighty burden, and a prayer can heal a wounded soul, just like an unexpected friendly telephone call can shine sunlight in the darkest day. We all have the ability to do these things, so ultimately we all have the qualities to be a disciple; the qualities of compassion and mercy.

So as we continue to celebrate Jesus Christ daily amid adversity and find new ways of being Church let us pray that God will energise us into being his disciples. That we may extend his love from wherever we are at this moment with compassion and mercy in our hearts.

In the 1920’s the American poet Max Ehrmann wrote Desiderata, which some of you may know as it was popularised and recorded in the 1970’s during the troubles in South East Asia. Earlier it was given to wounded American soldiers during World War II, to aid their physical and mental recovery as the words are inspiring. They echo the language St Paul uses and it’s wonderful to know that they were used in situations where the human spirit is most wounded and God healing power is essential.

Ehrmann may not have realised that he had become a disciple of Christ, but I am sure has his words travelled to the south Pacific that many young men during the horrific struggles of the second world war and again in the Vietnam war were brought closer to the compassion and mercy of Christ through this poem than through the gospels. I feel it has a great relevance to us today and may speak to people who do not believe in Jesus Christ, but who need to realise that compassion and mercy transcends all boundaries.

I would like to end by sharing some of the poem with you.

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexatious to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love, for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment, it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here.
Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labours and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul.

Ann Hilton BA (Hons)
Reader at St Thomas’ and St Wilfrid’s Kirkby in Ashfield