Sent

The first two verses of Luke 9 have everything to do with the last 34 verses of Luke 8.  Jesus took the disciples on a whirlwind tour of trouble...

1. Into a boat and encounter and storm.
2. To the other side of the lake where a demoniac waits and a town rejects them.
3. Back to the other side for a dying 12 year old girl.
4. Stopping the crowd to note the healing of a woman bleeding for 12 years.
5. Right into the very room where the little girl lay dead.

At the end of this tour... Luke 9 opens up with this passage:
Luke 9:1–2 (ESV) And he called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, 2 and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal.

Do we understand what it means to be sent by Jesus?  

It means we are going to need authority!  We are going to need His Power! 

We are going to face storms... some of which may last longer than a night.

We are going to face demons... 

We are going to face people facing losing a loved one.

We are going to face the hopelessness of our worldly cures.

We are going to face caskets holding people far too young.

We are going to face the tragedy of this fallen world head on and in many cases our desire for instant relief will not be there.  But ultimately, we can trust that with Jesus the final result will be good from every evil. 

This is what it means to be sent by Jesus.
It is not a vacation.

It is not a relaxing waiting room for heaven.

It is not just moral improvement.

It is not character development only...

It is taking on the worst the devil can do to people and in the authority and power of Jesus believing and trusting for a mighty turn around!  But you cannot run from it.  You have to face it.  You have to know who you believe in and do what He did for other people. 

This is what it means to be sent by Jesus.

To let God lead you INTO a storm and OUT OF it as well.

To let others interrupt your time. 

To face despair in people's faces.

To ignore the praising crowd for the one in need.

To be present at life's worst moments...

...for other people.

Because that is what Jesus is all about.  And that is Who we follow.

PRAYER:

Father, I'm far too self-absorbed.  This was for me.  I saw being called into the ministry as a position that would fulfill me.  Forgive me for that.  It's not about fulfilling me.  It's about helping others.  May your authority and power come to me so that others may benefit from the authority and power of Jesus.