Calvary Episcopal Church
Memphis, Tennessee
THE CHRONICLE
The Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost
September 17, 2000
Volume 45, No.32

Servant Ministry Revisited
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. "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore, ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest." ~Luke 10:1,2

This Gospel passage in Luke is self-explanatory. Since Jesus is one person and cannot be at all places at all times, he sends a core of disciples to visit those towns and cities he himself planned to visit. Those seventy disciples sent out in pairs become extensions of Jesus' ministry – they become his arms, hands, feet and voice. The spiritual presence of Jesus is made manifest in each of those seventy disciples, and so they are given authority to teach and proclaim God's message.

The Seventy are on a mission, one that cannot be interrupted. Jesus instructs his disciples not to take those things that are of little or no significance – purses, bags and sandals. Then Jesus tells the disciples something that most would find puzzling (including myself) – however, for reasons known only to Jesus and perhaps to Seventy, he tells them, "and greet no one on the road." Logic dictates that perhaps such a command was given because the disciples truly needed to remain focused on the task at hand, bringing the Gospel to a select group of people in chosen cities and towns, and that any other interaction may become intrusive to the ministry.

Later, in Luke 10:17, we are told that the Seventy return from their mission with joy. Seemingly, the Seventy underestimated the power granted them in the name of Jesus Christ. They are stunned and amazed at their own success in those towns. The Seventy were received with open arms, and so they continuously gave thanks to God for such an encounter.

~ Peace,
Allen F. Robinson+