Do not take along any gold or silver or copper in your belts; take no bag for the journey, or extra tunic, or sandals or a staff; for the worker is worth his keep. "Whatever town or village you enter, search for some worthy person there and stay at his house until you leave. As you enter the home, give it your greeting. If the home is deserving, let your peace rest on it; if it is not, let your peace return to you. If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that home or town. I tell you the truth, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.
These are Jesus' instructions to His disciples for their first missionary journey around the nation of Israel. I understand that these are specific instructions for a specific group of men on a specific journey at a specific time in history -these instructions are not necessarily for all ministries and all people at all times. Yet, there are principles here that clearly reflect the heart of God that we would do well to take note of.
First is the attitude of those being sent. The idea of taking no money or extra clothing gives us a clue that at the heart of authentic ministry is a willingness to trust God absolutely. I had a friend once who had a very good paying job. He felt called to be a preacher and he planted a little church. His thought was that he would continue working while the church was small and phase out of secular work as the church could afford to pay him. About six months into it, though, his job started producing income hand over fist, and instead of phasing out, he ramped up. His new plan was that if he worked an additional two years or so and saved his money, he could quit his job and continue the same lifestyle for at least another five years without worrying about how much the church could pay. The end result was that his church closed down and then his income dried up as well. Our plans to take care of ourselves, I think, often stand in direct conflict with God's desire that we simply trust and obey.
The second part of this is the attitude of those receiving ministry. Those who in obedience to God's prompting support and encourage and enable ministers and missionaries to do God's work effectively, receive God's blessing. In fact, there is a verse in the Old Testament that says that those who honor a prophet share in the prophet's reward. The principle is this: when we pray for and give financially and encourage and befriend those who are doing God's work, we have a very real stake in their ministry and share spiritually any Kingdom fruit that is produced.
On both sides of this equation is the idea of trusting and obeying in order to see God's Kingdom growing.
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