Called to Be Disciples
Following Jesus comes with some clear instructions we are supposed to follow IF we take following Him seriously!
“Gotta Serve Somebody” was the title of one of the hit songs off of Bob Dylan’s 1979 hit album (yes, “album”) Slow Train Coming. I loved it! Dylan was singing about the power of following a “master,” and he was suggesting that it wasn’t a matter of IF you will follow Someone, but WHO you will follow.
We all “worship” something, even if it is our own ego.
Something is going to shape how you live and how you make choices. It’s true of every one of us. The challenge is whether we will be wise enough to choose WHO we will follow well.
One of the main purposes of the work I try to do with these daily devotionals is to help me (and, hopefully, you, too) discern the wise path of being a serious follower of Jesus Christ. And being a serious follower (disciple) of Jesus Christ comes with very clear instructions on how to do that well.
Interested?
Look at our lesson today in Matthew 10:1, 5-8:
At that time, Jesus called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every infirmity. These twelve Jesus sent out, charging them, "Go nowhere among the Gentiles, and enter no town of the Samaritans, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And preach as you go, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying, give without pay."
OK, let me set the scene for you. Jesus' public ministry has just begun. He's been baptized by St. John the Forerunner, and He has gathered His disciples, which include both the 12 Apostles and the 70 disciples that surrounded them. The Lord is sending these out two by two to spread the word of the coming Kingdom of God. They are to preach, heal, and cast out demons. In other words, they are to be the first wave of attack against the kingdom of darkness and the reign of the fear of death.
And Jesus gives them specific instructions. He tells them to go "nowhere among the Gentiles, and enter no town of the Samaritans, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." Really? The Lord will use Samaritans and Gentiles as His ministry grows as examples of great faith and extraordinary belief. But He tells His disciples to avoid these groups. The Gentiles were anyone not born in the lineage of St. Abraham and under the covenant that God made with Abraham and his descendants. The Samaritans were "half-breeds." They represent the people in history who were at one time part of the lineage of Abraham but had intermarried with pagans and had become influenced by these foreign religions and mixed the Faith with paganism. But why avoid them?
Because the first group that needed tending to was the "lost sheep of the house of Israel!" They were the ones who had been formed by 6000 years of Temple worship, stories, wisdom, scripture, preaching, prayers, prophets, and even times of exile for breaking the covenant with God. They should have known better. They had all the advantages of wisdom, scripture, and prayer, and they still wandered away from the Lord. They get to hear the Good News first because they had been prepared and they should have been ready.
And many did believe! What was 120 followers of the Lord in the Upper Room on the Feast of Pentecost in Acts 1 grew to over 3000 believers by Acts 2! And the vast number of converts to the Faith of Christ in the first few years of the Church were Jewish believers! In fact, Rome considered the nascent Christian Church as a sect of Judaism until the events after 70 AD and the destruction of the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem. The Children of Abraham should have been ready. Sadly, too many were not, and they missed the fulfillment of all they had in the Faith of Abraham.
But that's such a familiar story. All the benefits, all the advantages. And still we humans squander opportunities. It happens in all our lives. What's the missing piece that makes us so susceptible to "not being ready?" The answer isn't mysterious or even complicated. But it isn't easy. What you and I have to embrace is ATTENTIVENESS! We have to stay focused on the right goal. And that goal is to understand you were made in God's image to become LIKE Him SO THAT you will ultimately become who you really ARE! Stay Attentive and being attentive means always making sure your faith takes top priority in your life!
Perfect examples of this attentive way of living are the lives of Sts. Cosmas and Damianos and their mother, Theodota. The two boys were raised as Christians by their mother who had been widowed when the boys were very young. This faithful mother insisted her boys be educated. And so, being trained in the sciences of the day, these men became gifted physicians who won the name "Unmercinaries" because they refused pay for their ministry. God provided for them, and they served Christ as model ministers of the Good News. They lived their lives ready to serve and to stand before the Awesome Judgment seat of Christ. The Faith so disrupted the power of fear in their lives that their priorities based on eternal truths were more powerful than their temporary “needs” in this life! Their rest idea of “normal” is the reason we remember these heroes to this day!
Today, are you ready? You've had all the treasures of the Faith for generations. You have the Holy Scriptures, and you have the liturgical life of the Church to form you and keep you focused in the right direction! So, what are you waiting for before you actually live a Normal Orthodox Life?
P.S. O glorious, wonderworking physicians, having received the grace of healing, you reach out and restore health to those in need. But also, by your visitation you cast down the arrogance of the enemy, healing the world through miracles.
