(!) No Bread for the Journey


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Topic: Religions > Bible
User: "• Ninure Saunders"
Date: 20 May 2005 08:34:10 AM
Object: (!) No Bread for the Journey
(!) No Bread for the Journey
Johann Christoph Arnold
Be doers of the Word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. James 1:23
In todays Christian world churches are thriving like the best stocks on
Wall Street, and the faithful not only fill the pews every Sunday, but
gather for weekend conferences, evening bible studies, prayer breakfasts,
and other regularly scheduled events. But how many are ready to take Jesus
words to his disciples literally?
Last week, at Pentecost (or Whitsun, as it is known in Europe) the young
people in my church concerned themselves with several verses from the
Gospel of Luke:
Jesus said to them, "Take nothing for your journey, no staff, nor bag, nor
bread, nor money--not even an extra tunic. Whatever house you enter, stay
there, and leave from there. Wherever they do not welcome you, as you are
leaving that town shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against
them. (Lk. 9:3-5)
After this the Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him
in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go. He said
to them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore
ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. Go on
your way. See, I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves.
Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; and greet no one on the road. Whatever
house you enter, first say, 'Peace to this house!' And if anyone is there
who shares in peace, your peace will rest on that person; but if not, it
will return to you. Remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever
they provide, for the laborer deserves to be paid. Do not move about from
house to house. Whenever you enter a town and its people welcome you, eat
what is set before you; cure the sick who are there, and say to them, 'The
kingdom of God has come near to you.' But whenever you enter a town and
they do not welcome you, go out into its streets and say, 'Even the dust
of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off in protest against you.
Yet know this: the kingdom of God has come near.' I tell you, on that day
it will be more tolerable for Sodom than for that town. (Lk. 10:1-12)
After reading these texts, the first question that came up was whether
Jesus words are still relevant today. It is a vital question, because both
passages clearly belong to the hard sayings of Jesus. How many
missionaries these days head out for undetermined destinations without
money and clothing, putting their complete trust in God? And yet Jesus
says we must go out just like that, as defenseless and vulnerable as lambs
into the midst of wolves.
We also saw the wisdom of Jesus advice to go out two by two: it makes it
much easier for people to give hospitality. Three or four at once is a
crowd and not too many have room for such numbers.
Then there is Jesus' statement that the laborer deserves to be paid and
his promise, The Kingdom of God has come near to you. If that can be said
to everyone who welcomes Christs followers, then the field that God wants
to harvest must be very greatespecially if one considers the worlds
population of over 6 billion. He must long to gather every single person.
Through sharing about these passages, we felt led to take them at face
value, and in the end, 26 young men and women (about two from each of our
communities in the United States England, Germany, and Australia) felt the
call to put their complete trust in Jesus and go out in the manner
described by Luke.
A visitor who happened to be at one of our English communities when this
took place wrote to me today:
I arrived in time for supper, and afterwards we had a meeting. Everything
seemed normal until the end, when several young people were called up, and
four were chosen to leave the next day on mission, taking with them (as
Christ instructed) nothing, or at least no food or money or extra
clothing. The next morning we all gathered to say good-bye. It was so
moving to watch them, full of hope and faith in God, as they walked down
the path and away. I felt so privileged to be there for this moment They
may not succeed, but they / you areat least are trying to live as the
early Christians.
None of our young men and women went out to proselytize or convert people.
They went simply out of an urge to take Jesus at his word and obey him.
Their sole task is to gather the harvest in the sense of meeting people in
whom there is longing for Gods kingdom, and to connect with these people,
wherever they are.
Our missionaries have now been on the road for over a week, and their
first reports are trickling in. Of course, their experiences had varied
from the start. Thankfully, every one found a place to eat and sleep the
first night for some, it was a homeless shelter; for others, a parking
garage.
Some have been received with generosity and kindness; others have been met
with just the oppositeeven from fellow Christians, who ought to be the
first to welcome strangers. At one Christian community, our youth were
regarded with suspicion and asked whether there was a crisis at home.
At another, they were told, We have no time or room. Write or e-mail us
first; give us advance notice. In another place, two of our young women
were turned away by a churchgoer who admitted that he had no understanding
for this kind of mission. As he explained it, We are not living in the
time of Jesus This sort of activity is not right.
To be rejected by fellow believers is very hard and calls to mind the
words, Whenever you enter a town and they do not welcome you, go out and
say, even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off in
protest against you.
And yet many others have taken our young people in and welcomed them
warmly, perhaps remembering the wonderful words of Hebrews 13:12, Do not
neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing some have
entertained angels without knowing it. Of course, there is also Jesus
promise that if we give a stranger so much as a cup of water, this act of
kindness will be rewarded in heaven.
Jesus commandments, and his promises to those who fulfill them, are clear.
All that is needed now is faith and action.
Peace,
• Ninure Saunders aka Rainbow Christian
The Lord is my Shepherd and He knows I'm Gay
http://Ninure-Saunders.tk
My Yahoo Group
http://Ninure.tk
Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches
http://www.MCCchurch.org
The Bible Site - help provide free scripture
http://www.thebiblesite.org
To send e-mail, remove nohate from address
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