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b) The Risks of Preaching (Matthew 10:16-25)
MATTHEW 10:24-25
24 A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his lord. 25 It is enough for the disciple that he be like his teacher, and the servant like his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more those of his household! (Matthew 12:24; Luke 6:40; John 13:16; 15:20)
To follow Christ means to imitate Him in His love, joy and humility and to serve in His power. It also means to cling to Him in sufferings, death and resurrection. He leads us after Him and never leaves us till we enter His glory. Christ would not put upon us a yoke or a heavy burden that He did not try before. Men hated Him, and His kindred denied Him. They asked Him to fall into the enemies’ trap. He appeared before the religious court and was beaten and scourged. They spat in His face and King Herod mocked him. Thereafter sentenced by the Roman ruler to another scourging, then to crucifixion. The Roman ruler crucified Him, though He proved three times to be innocent. His enemies tempted Him cunningly at the point of death. It appeared to Him after all that God hid His face from Him. Yet He remained faithful in His belief, strong in His love, steady in His hope. He bore in the sufferings of His body God’s judgment for sin instead of us, and the evil one did not have any power nor right in Him.
We shall not face what Jesus faced, since we do not bear the sin of the world, and God’s anger will not be poured upon us, but the enemy of the good lurks to torment us and try to take us away from our merciful Savior. We are weak, but Jesus takes our hands and supports us. We do not build our future upon our own power but upon Jesus’ faithfulness and upon the power of His precious blood.
One of the fundamental priorities of preaching is to die to your excessive sensitivity and selfishness, for the sons of disobedience will say all kinds of evil against you and blaspheme God because of you. The Jews called Jesus the ruler of hell. They denied His power, though His miracles were pure and void of covetousness. They accused Him of ruling an army of demons that are as numerous as the flies, for the name “Beelzebul” signifies in Aramaic “the god of flies.” However, Jesus did not reject His enemies, but defended the dignity of His Father and of the Holy Spirit, for He made Himself and His glory of no reputation to the end.
PRAYER: O Lord Jesus, thank You for You have borne many insults, reproaches, charges and lies. They poured upon You every evil word. But You continued in love and kindness and spoke in truth and wisdom. You did not attempt to go along with them, but you continued Your journey to fulfill Your purpose, towards the death of the cross. Thank You for giving us a chance to follow You. We ask you to grant us the power to bear every evil word and to continue in love. Help us to wisely declare the truth, even if this will lead us to death. Stand beside us so that we may bless You, for we are unable to persevere and continue without Your help. Amen.
QUESTION:
- What does He mean with His saying, “A disciple is not above his teacher?”