2 minute read.
Daily Reading: Judges 4:1-5:31 ESV, Luke 22:35-53 ESV, Psalm 94:1-23 ESV, Proverbs 14:3-4 ESV
Daily Verse: “And he said to them, “When I sent you out with no moneybag or knapsack or sandals, did you lack anything?” They said, “Nothing.” (Luke 22:53 ESV)
APOSTELLO (649): “This word means to order (one) to go to a place appointed: Jesus sent by the Father, the apostles sent by Jesus, messengers are sent, servants are sent, angels. To allow one to depart, that he may be in a state of liberty.”[i]
Appointed place.
Jesus sent the disciples on a mission, first with nothing, then with supplies. Spreading the Gospel becomes their lives work. Jesus knows, once He ascends, the job will become more challenging. All but John die terrible deaths as they fulfill Jesus’s order to go to their appointed places.
We have a choice when we follow Jesus; will we go where He sends us?
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20 ESV)
Go
When Jesus commands you to go, go. More than likely, God’s first mission for you entails loving the people He gave you. Start with your family and friends. Love them as Jesus loves you. Watch your relationships blossom as you put their needs before yours, keeping soft hearts to the offenses they cause, loving them unconditionally.
The disciples went all over the world, sharing the Gospel. Some people’s callings take them to remote places, but our calling doesn’t take us as far most of the time. Walking into the next room and loving the person right before us becomes our mission.
Remember, Jesus never leaves you. “I am with you always, to the end of the age” (vs. 20). God never sends you alone; He goes where you go. God guides us to new adventures, He provides all we need for the journey, and He travels with us. When we get our marching orders, follow quickly. Don’t waste a moment; live life to the fullest, going wherever God sends you.
[i] Strong, J., & Strong, J. (2010). The New Strong’s expanded exhaustive concordance of the Bible. Greek Dictionary of the New Testament (p.254) Thomas Nelson
