Gospel: Matthew 10:1-7
Jesus called his Twelve disciples to him, and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to drive them out, and to heal every disease and sickness.
These are the names of the Twelve apostles: first Simon, called Peter, and his brother Andrew; James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew, the tax collector; James, the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon, the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, the man who would betray him.
Jesus sent these Twelve on mission, with the instructions: “Do not visit pagan territory and do not enter a Samaritan town. Go, instead, to the lost sheep of the people of Israel.
Go, and proclaim this message: The kingdom of heaven is near.

Reflections
“The kingdom of God is near.”
Being called and being sent go together in Christian discipleship, but there is another element to it, namely the very reason for being called and sent. These are the threefold element of Christian discipleship. The “call” has an accompanying thing to accomplish.
The disciples were specifically sent for a definite purpose: to proclaim the kingdom of God. This is very clear to Jesus; He is sending them for this purpose. It is also clear to the twelve that this is the object of their calling. Jesus teaching, healing, and reconciling ministries inaugurated the reign of God. These ministries made historically concrete God’s love for all creation. The kingdom of God is God’s love reigning concretely on Earth through Jesus. Humanity had a foretaste of the fullness of creation through the healing and reconciling activities of Jesus. The kingdom of God that He began was made historically present, but not complete, that is why He called and sent the disciples. And these calling and sending extend to us, with the same purpose — the kingdom of God.

© Copyright Bible Diary 2019