Warm up question in pairs: The mission Jesus was sending his disciples on was a bit scary. What adventure have you undertaken in life that was also a bit scary and took a leap of faith?
Matthew 10:16-20
- In these verses, Jesus is continuing his instructions to his disciples before he sends them out. If you had been one of those men, how do you think you would have felt if you heard Jesus say he was sending you out like sheep among the wolves?
- Why did Jesus use the word “therefore” the second half of the verse? The statement he was about to make was based on what he said in the first part of the verse.
- Why do you think Jesus used two examples from the animal kingdom? People were familiar with them.
- How would being shrewd and innocent be helpful in their mission? From gotquestions.org: As we take the gospel to a hostile world, we must be wise (avoiding the snares set for us), and we must be innocent (serving the Lord blamelessly). Jesus was not suggesting that we stoop to deception but that we should model some of the serpent’s famous shrewdness in a positive way. Wisdom does not equal dishonesty, and innocence does not equal gullibility.
- Why did Jesus warm them to beware? He was preparing them for what they may encounter. Sometimes Christians can be nieve in dealing with people who are hostile to the gospel. Everyone is not going to sit by the campfire in a circle with us and sing cum-bayah. There are not looking out for our best interests. That’s reality.
- Jesus said they would even be flogged in the synagogues. You would think a church would be the one place they could be safe. How could that be? It was the Jews that were going to persecute them, i.e. the leaders who hated Jesus and wanted to kill him. They were going to be persecuted because of their association with Jesus.
- When the disciples would be handed over to local courts, governors and kings, how would they know what to say? The Holy Spirit would speak through them. Have you ever been talking to someone about the Lord or teaching the Bible and all of a sudden you realized you were saying things far beyond your ability. Was that the Spirit taking over?
Matthew 10:26-31
- Why did Jesus tell them not to be afraid of those wolves? Jesus uses a Hebrew parallelism for his answer. A look at the previous verse 10:25 sheds some light as to the meaning of what Jesus said. The motives for the enemies of Jesus and his disciples may be “covered and hidden,” but one day that all will be revealed. Cornerstone Commentary says this: Additional motivation is found in the realization that the future will reverse the present. Secrets, evidently the hidden sins of the persecutors, will be revealed on judgment day.
- Can you summarize the meaning of 10:27 in a few words? One possible answer is to speak with boldness.
- Who were Jesus’s disciples not to fear? Those future persecutors who could only kill the body but not the soul. Who were they to fear? The Lord who could destroy both soul and body in hell. Does the word “destroy” in the latter part refer to annihilation? No, it refers to the punishment in hell.
- What was the purpose of Jesus using the two illustrations of sparrows and the hairs of our head? To put their minds at ease in face of possible persecution. If the Lord knew about the death of a sparrow and even the number of hairs on our head, then he certainly would take care of them.
Matthew 10:32-34
- How do acknowledge Jesus before others? One way is making a public profession of faith and being baptized. Speak openly of him in everyday conversations, including those we know and even those we don’t know. What other ways can you think of?
- How do we deny Jesus before others? Not making our profession of faith public and not being baptized. Failing to speak with others about him. Silence can be denial.
- Why would Jesus’ disciples assume he came to bring peace to the earth? After being with him for almost three years, that would have been
- What did Jesus mean when he said he didn’t come to bring peace, but a sword? A sword represents division among people according to the various responses they would have to Jesus. One of our missionary speakers last Sunday reminded us how Muslims that are coming to Jesus are usually ostracized from their families. That is a perfect example.