Recently, during our weekly bible study, we went through the book of Matthew, chapter 10, and I noticed something that caught my attention. It was a change of wording that I had definitely missed the first few times I went through this chapter. And what’s funny is that this missed element was in the first few verses.
Matthew 10: 1-4 - Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.
These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.
Can you see it?
In the first verse, Jesus calls his DISCIPLES. However, in the second verse, after they are commissioned to do their work, they are now referred to as APOSTLES.
I had to pause and really take in what I had just read. There, hidden between two verses was an important message about the journey of each believer of Jesus Christ. That is, the journey of transitioning from a disciple to an apostle.
Let’s take a look at each of these titles…
WHO IS A DISCIPLE?
Naturally, I was inclined to dig deep into the meaning of each of these titles. Mostly because I believe that there are no mistakes in the bible but also because I believe that this is a message that is integral to the season that God is transitioning most of us into.
A disciple is a person who is a pupil or an adherent of the doctrines of another. Also known as a follower. Source – the dictionary.
Put simply, in biblical terms, a disciple is a follower of Jesus.
This is evident in how Jesus called His first disciples. To both the fishermen and the tax collector, Jesus had one command – FOLLOW ME.
Here’s what the scripture says:
Matthew 4:18 – 22 - As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” At once they left their nets and followed him.
Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
Matthew 9: 9 titled ‘the calling of Matthew’ says,
Matthew 9:9 - As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.
Two things are clear from these verses. The first is that when Jesus calls His disciples to Himself, he expects them to follow Him. The second, is that, when Jesus calls the disciples, He gives them a promise that He is going to eventually going to send them.
In other words, as indicated by the second half of the words Jesus said to the first disciples, “Come, follow me … and I will send you out to fish for people…” the implication is that at some point the disciples are going to be apostles.
Which leads to the next question…
WHO IS AN APOSTLE?
An apostle is one who is sent on a mission. Source – the Merriam-Webster dictionary.
Matthew 10: 1-2 “Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. These are the names of the twelve apostles…”
You see, the change of wording from Matthew 10:1 to Matthew 10:2 implies a change of expectation.
The disciples of Jesus are no longer just followers; they have become LEADERS. They are no longer just students; they have become TEACHERS.
Naturally, one may wonder what exactly the mission of a disciple turned apostle is. The reality is that there is no way to truly answer this without questioning what the mission of Jesus Christ is. Why? Simply because, Jesus is the one who sent out the disciples on a mission.
SO… WHAT IS THE MISSION OF JESUS CHRIST?
The mission of Jesus is revealed in MATTHEW 4: 23, which says,
Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people.
John the Baptist also testified about Jesus in John 1:29-30, saying,
John 1: 29-30The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’
Early on, during the beginning of his mission, Jesus also revealed His mission by reading from the scrolls of the prophet Isaiah.
In Luke 4:16-21, it says,
16 He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read, 17 and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
Because he has anointed me
To proclaim good news to the poor
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
And recovery of sight for the blind,
To set the oppressed free,
To proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor
20 Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. 21 He began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
In saying these, Jesus revealed that not only was the scripture prophesying about Him but that He also came to proclaim good news to the poor, set the captives free, heal the blind, free the oppressed and most importantly to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.
Although these revelations came with mixed reactions, the truth still stands as Jesus Himself said- He came to save the world from oppression.
Only one person can save the world- that is, God Himself, the creator of the world.
In fact, the first chapter reveals that Jesus is the son of God who is equally God and who came to save the world. John 1 reads:
John 1:1-5 - In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
Speaking of this light, John then adds in chapter 9, saying:
9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.
AND then He reveals the light and the word as Jesus Christ, adding that…
17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
The good news is that Jesus wants to make himself known to the world. And Jesus, both then and now, wants His disciples to join Him in His mission.
But what does knowing the deity of Jesus have to do with his mission?
Well, the truth is that it is impossible to do the work of Jesus without revealing that it is Jesus who sent you and that it is through Him that you are able to do His works. In other words, it is impossible to bring healing without simultaneously revealing that it is through Jesus that you are able to do the healing.
So, wherever an apostle is sent, through His works as part of the commission, He reveals the truth about Jesus Christ. He makes Jesus known to His people.
But this reality, also begs another question…
HOW DOES JESUS PREPARE HIS DISCIPLES FOR HIS MISSION?
The simple answer is that Jesus prepares His disciples for their work in apostleship by teaching and equipping them with authority.
Throughout the gospels, and in this case by looking at the journey that Jesus and His disciples took from the fourth chapter to the ninth chapter of the book of Matthew, we can see that Jesus not only led His disciples/ followers but that he also took the time to teach them.
In this journey of teaching, the students were exposed to the power of Jesus. They walked personally with him, learnt to trust him, grew closer to Him and were refined by Him. This refining is done through sanctification which simply means that the closer the disciples got to Jesus the more they were aware of their own fallacies and the more they stood in awe of the work that Jesus was doing- including cleansing them and cleansing the world around them. Not only was there cleansing but there was also healing.
One can even say that this healing and cleansing was not unfamiliar to the disciples, because they got to witness Jesus doing this on a regular basis. For this reason, it is clearly with intention that Jesus then commissions His disciples to do the same thing.
Matthew 10:1 - Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to DRIVE OUT IMPURE SPIRITS AND TO HEAL EVERY DISEASE AND SICKNESS.
The message here is that, just like in Matthew 4:23 where Jesus “…went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people…” Jesus asked His disciples to join him in the work He had begun.
As a matter of fact, Jesus never expected the disciples to do anything that He had not taught or encouraged them to do. On the contrary, Jesus equipped the disciples with the one thing they needed more than anything in their mission- that is, AUTHORITY.
MATTHEW 10:1 - Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and GAVE THEM AUTHORITY to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.
It is with this same authority that those of us who are sent out into the world are able to go out with confidence. We, as Christians, who are both disciples and apostles of God, have the authority to do the works that Jesus has commissioned us to do.
Herein, lies a secret, that is, if the disciples ever questioned what they were sent out to do by Jesus- all they had to do was look back at their journey, reflect on His teachings and find His instructions.
The question now is this, “What has Jesus called YOU to do?”