The kingdom of God has come near to you

 

 After these things the Lord appointed seventy others also, and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself was about to go.  Then He said to them, "The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.  Go your way; behold, I send you out as lambs among wolves.  Carry neither money bag, knapsack, nor sandals; and greet no one along the road.  But whatever house you enter, first say, 'Peace to this house.'  And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest on it; if not, it will return to you.  And remain in the same house, eating and drinking such things as they give, for the laborer is worthy of his wages.  Do not go from house to house.  Whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you.  And heal the sick there, and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you.'  But whatever city you enter, and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say, 'The very dust of your city which clings to us we wipe off against you.  Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near you.'  But I say to you that it will be more tolerable in that Day for Sodom than for that city.  

"Woe to you, Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.  But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to haven, will be brought down to Hades.  He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me."

 

- Luke 10:1-16 

 

Yesterday we read that, when the time had come for Christ to be received up, He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem, and sent messengers before His face.  And as they went, they entered a village of the Samaritans, to prepare for Him.  But they did not receive Him, because His face was set for the journey to Jerusalem.  And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, "Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?"  But He turned and rebuked them, and said, "You do not know what manner of spirit you are of.  For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them."  And they went to another village.  Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, "Lord, I will follow You wherever You go."  And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head."  Then He said to another, "Follow Me."  But he said, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."  Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God."  And another said, "Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house."  But Jesus said to him, "No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."   

 After these things the Lord appointed seventy others also, and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself was about to go.  Records of these seventy disciples exist through Church tradition, and the stories of these disciples are known to us from among the places where they would evangelize and do their missionary work.  Among the distinguished names are many who would become bishops of the Church, having served this mission as apostles throughout the Roman Empire and beyond.  Notable among them are Barnabas (Acts 4:36), who was the first to seek out St. Paul when all else were afraid of him, bringing him to the apostles.  Also among them was Titus, whom Paul called his brother (2 Corinthians 12:18) and his son (Titus 1:4).  Let us note that these seventy were appointed to go two by two to every city and place where Christ was about to go; they are heralds who will announce the kingdom of God, in the same way that messengers would be sent to announce a monarch or noble, proclaiming the doctrine or message of the king.  This is the very origin of our understanding of  "gospel" -- from the Greek εὐαγγέλιον/evangelion, to "evangelize" is to tell of the good message of the kingdom.  The same word was used for announcements of Caesar; so it became our word for the message of Christ's Kingdom.

 

Then He said to them, "The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest."  My study Bible points out that here in Christ's instructions we are to pray not only for the harvest of converts to Christ, but also for the laborers who will reach them.  

"Go your way; behold, I send you out as lambs among wolves."   According to my study Bible, lambs suggest the sacrificial life of the apostles and of all followers of Christ.  The wolves are those who seek to frighten and devour those who follow the Lord (John 15:18).  

"Carry neither money bag, knapsack, nor sandals; and greet no one along the road.  But whatever house you enter, first say, 'Peace to this house.'  And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest on it; if not, it will return to you.  And remain in the same house, eating and drinking such things as they give, for the laborer is worthy of his wages.  Do not go from house to house.  Whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you."  We observe the "lamb-like" behavior with which they are to carry themselves on their apostolic mission.  They are not to carry great amounts of supplies, money, or clothing with them; neither are they to make ostentatious greetings such as a party of those of high rank would do.  Their conduct is to be humble and representative of God's peace.  Note that wherever they are received, they are to offer a blessing of peace -- but this blessing will not remain unless a son of peace is there.  They are not to trade up lodgings for better accommodations, and remain as humble as the household and what is offered to them.  My study Bible points out that twice here Christ commands them to eat whatever is offered to them ("eating and drinking such things as they give," "eat such things as are set before you").  It says that this has a twofold significance.  First, the apostles must be content with whatever is offered, even if the food is little and simple.  Second, the gracious reception of others' hospitality takes precedence over personal fasting or dietary disciplines.  These are important teachings about hospitality and charity.  My study Bible adds a note about St. Cassian the Desert Father, who said that when he visited a monastery, the fast was always relaxed to honor him as a guest.  When he asked why, he responded, "Fasting is always with me, but you I cannot always have with me.  Fasting is useful and necessary, but it depends on our choice, while the law of God demands charity.  Thus receiving Christ in you, I serve you with all diligence, and when I have taken leave of you, I resume the rule of fasting again."  In this way, ascetics would obey Christ's command here and also His command that we not "appear to men to be fasting" (Matthew 6:18; see also Romans 14:2-6; 1 Corinthians 10:27; Hebrews 13:2.

"And heal the sick there, and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you.' "  My study Bible clarifies that the gospel message is not simply that there is a Kingdom in the future, but that this kingdom of God has come near.

"But whatever city you enter, and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say, 'The very dust of your city which clings to us we wipe off against you.  Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near you.'  But I say to you that it will be more tolerable in that Day for Sodom than for that city."  If the kingdom of God has indeed come near, the effects of its presence are clear -- the rebuke of wiping off the "dust of your city" will have its effect in the Day of Judgment.  

"Woe to you, Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.  But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to haven, will be brought down to Hades.  He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me."  Jesus compares the places where He has made manifest the power of His ministry among cities in Galilee near His "headquarters" of Capernaum, and the Gentile region of Tyre and Sidon.  My study Bible comments that judgment is severe for those who reject Christ after experiencing His grace.  In contrast, it says, those who have never known Christ due to genuine ignorance are without sin in this regard (John 15:22-24), and they are instead judged by their God-given conscience (Romans 2:12-16).  

One thing we can note from today's passage is the power of the kingdom of God "come near."  What does this mean?  Has the fullness of the kingdom of God manifested to these people?  We know that the world remains the world, and we expect a fullness of the Kingdom at the end of the age, when there will also be a judgment by Christ.  But what does this mean that the kingdom of God has come near to the people to whom this announcement is made?  Somehow it is clear that the kingdom of God is present with those who are sent out on this mission of Christ.  The kingdom of God is at work in their ministry, and we can read in Christ's words its effect as well.  The blessing of peace that goes upon any house which the disciples enter remains with those "sons of peace" who may reside within.  But if such a one is not a member of the household, the blessing does not remain upon the house.  This is but one aspect that gives us a hint about this kingdom of God.  There is a judgment that comes with it, that asks of us a type of response -- and its rejection also has an effect due to its power.  Somehow the energy or power of this Kingdom interacts with something within us; it responds to faith or the rejection of its message, what we might say is a lack of faith.  Ultimately Christ's message here is about faith and the lack of receptivity not simply to the message of the Kingdom, but even to the presence of the Kingdom itself, the energies and spiritual reality that accompanies it.  This is not a question of signing a loyalty oath or swearing allegiance as to a king of emperor or head of state.  It is a question of how we respond to these energies of peace, the power of Christ's charity and presence within the kingdom of God that is carried within faithful people such as these Seventy who are sent out to bear that message and that Kingdom into the world, as "lambs among wolves."  Their peaceful and humble demeanor are in some way a part of the working of that Kingdom, and perhaps they are even essential to the power of its energies, even to judgment by Christ.  This is something we should consider always in our own conduct, for each one of us, if we carry our faith within us, is ostensibly a part of this Kingdom, and a part of its ministry, its evangelizing, its good news.  As we can read in the instructions given to the Seventy by Jesus, there is a way we are to conduct ourselves as carriers of this Kingdom and its message; there is a way that God's power works in us and among us, there is a way we are expected to conduct ourselves as those with whom, like the disciples, He may share His power and authority through grace.  We should observe these careful instructions, and especially their iterations of peaceful and humble behavior, conduct that is gracious, and the aspects of charity they convey.  We should understand that this is part and parcel of the Kingdom and its message, what is required of us to be effective carriers of God's blessings, and even God's grace and power in the world.  For how could judgment possibly be true unless we are effectively true to Christ?  Moreover, we should take seriously what it is to be given the grace of Christ and also effective judgment of rejection.  All of these things take gentleness, the sensibility of discernment, and humility to embody in the world.  It is an experiential Kingdom, not simply one of ideas or concepts, for grace does not work merely through intellectual choice, but within a greater spiritual reality that encompasses the various aspects of our lives and the fullness of being.  It is here in Luke's Gospel that Jesus declares to the Pharisees, "The kingdom of God does not come with observation; nor will they say, 'See here!' or 'See there!' For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you" (Luke 17:20-21).   Let us consider the Seventy sent out into the world, who would continue their apostolic journey through all the parts of the world they could reach, for we have the records of their lives in each of these disparate places.  They shaped Christianity and in so doing become models for us today, for each of our lives has the challenge to bear that grace, the presence of the Kingdom, the reality of faith to others, and we are to learn as they did how to do so with humility and peace.  Jesus says to them, "He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me."  We must always consider how we bear Christ's image into the world, how we bear God's kingdom near, so that this remains true for our own generation of laborers to serve the harvest.