Scripture: Matthew 9:35-10:15

I. Compassion is Jesus’s basic response to human need.

A. Jesus was very busy (vs. 35). But He had compassion on all the people (vs. 36).  By acting as a compassionate shepherd, Jesus fulfills the prophecy of Ezekiel 34:23-24: “And I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd. And I, the Lord, will be their God, and my servant David shall be prince among them.”

II. The compassion of Jesus calls us to pray.

A. What does Jesus do after He feels compassion for the crowds? He tells His disciples to pray in vs. 37-38. They were to pray for more laborers for the harvest. Does this mean that the only thing we should do is pray so that people might be saved and brought into God’s kingdom? No. But it does mean that we should do nothing without praying. And if you pray for God to send out laborers into His harvest, don’t be surprised if God makes you the answer to your own prayer.

III. The compassion of Jesus moves us to mission.

A. The disciples become laborers in the harvest. They are the answer to their own prayer. Jesus sends out his 12 disciples in Matthew 10:1 into the harvest and tells them to cast out unclean spirits and heal diseases. The message of the disciples’ mission is found in vs. 7: “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.” And if you read Matthew 4:17, you see that this message is the same message that Jesus preached as He began His mission, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

B. Jesus gave the disciples authority in vs. 8 to “heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons.” We have authority to do wonders in Jesus’ name, but we need to recognize that teaching on God’s power in the Bible must be balanced with teaching on Christian suffering. Acts 14:22: “Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.” We are not in heaven yet. On this earth, we Christians experience both weakness and power.

C. The mission of Jesus will result in a divided response. Not everyone will be won over by Jesus (vs. 13). When the disciples were rejected, they were to do something highly symbolic in vs. 14: “shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town.” Because these Jews in Galilee had rejected Jesus, they were saying with their rejection, “We are pagan, we are ignorant of God, and we are threatened with the judgment of God” (vs. 15).

Application:
Ask God for His compassion, and pray for more laborers to spread the compassion of Jesus.
Sources:
The Bible
Commentaries by D.A. Carson, J.C. Ryle, and Charles Quarles.

Sermon Discussion Questions

1) How did Jesus’ response to human need differ from our typical response? In what way, did Jesus act like a shepherd to people in need?
2) Why is prayer so important in our mission to bring Christ’s kingdom to the world? How can we better remember to pray to God before we work for God?
3) What is the message that we are to bring to the world? What should we expect as we bring that message?