The Mission Of The Twelve
THE MISSION OF THE TWELVE
MARK 6:7-13
The good news was sent out by those who were committed to a simple life and whose only resource was faith in God.
Despite the lack of response at Nazareth, the work of Jesus had now reached such proportions that the Twelve could be sent out on their own to do the same work as their Master, preaching, exorcizing and healing. The use of oil to anoint the sick was not simply because of its curative properties (Luke 10:34) but was meant also as a sign, possibly to demonstrate that the disciples were not acting by their own strength.
The Twelve were sent out in pairs. This was common practice both in Judaism and in the early church. In addition to the vital function of providing for companionship and mutual help in dangerous country, it enabled the missionaries to proclaim a message which was confirmed by two witnesses and did not depend on a single testimony (John 8:17f.; cf. Deuteronomy 17:6; 19:15).
The instructions for the journey sound strange to us. The disciples were to travel as lightly as possible. They were permitted to wear sandals and use a staff; but even these two concessions are forbidden in the account in Matthew 10:10; Jesus was giving principles, not invariable rules. We are probably to think of a brief tour within a limited area, so that it was possible to live without any elaborate equipment. The disciples were to avoid anything that might smack of luxury and ease, and perhaps they were to take care not to look like other wandering preachers who made a good thing out of a gullible public.
In their evangelism the disciples were to make one home their base rather than make a series of social calls. The acted parable of shaking the dust off their feet as they departed was an action which pious Jews performed on leaving Gentile territory; here it was meant to warn the Jews that they were behaving like Gentiles in rejecting the message of God (Acts 13:51). Here also the principles involved must be distinguished from the Jewish customs in which they found expression.