Placing the passage in context:
Jesus has given his twelve disciples authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every sickness and disease. As he sends them out into their first experience as evangelists, he gives them very specific instructions:
1. They are to proclaim “the kingdom of heaven is near.
2. They are to drive out evil spirits
3. They are to heal all sicknesses and disease
4. They are not to get wealthy from proclaiming the gospel.
5. They are to be prepared for opposition
6. They are to trust God to protect them.
It is one thing to know that God is empowering you to do great things in the kingdom such as drive out evil spirits and to heal the sick. It is quite another thing to actually go out and do it. As Jesus said, the student is not more deserving than the teacher, and if the teacher was persecuted, so will his disciples. So, it is understandable that Jesus would remind the students that if God cares for the sparrows he will care for them as well. But, let’s be clear about what happens when the message of the gospel is proclaimed throughout a community.
1. People will be freed from evil and freed from sickness.
2. Christians will face opposition
3. Families and other societal groups will be thrown into discord
Practical applications:
1. Receiving orders to defraud a customer or the government
2. Receiving pressure to cover up wrongdoing
3. Pressure to conform to family or cultural norms to the exclusion of discovering who God called you to be or what He called you to do.
Proposition: God cares deeply for you and the life to which he has called you, therefore you can be confident that you are in God’s will regardless of the situation being faithful has caused you to be in.
Interrogative: What comfort do I get from knowing that God is aware of what I am experiencing as a follower of Christ?
I. The Worst anyone can ever do to you is kill your body
a. The moment you believed on Jesus Christ and decided that you were going to follow his teaching as a basis for your way of life, your soul awakened to God and your destiny was birthed into the kingdom of heaven. Your soul will outlive your body. Keep in mind that you are going to die someday of something. The real question for you is not if you are going to die, or even when. The real question you must answer is whether you lived for Christ while you were alive.
b. I think it is a worthwhile practice to spend time every day thinking about heaven, hell, and the time remaining in life. I find it a comforting way to survive a mid-life crisis. As the reality that I am going to die someday settles in, I find that I am asking deeper questions about my life than I had before. I made a choice many years ago that I was going to live to bring people into the kingdom of heaven. That choice came with consequences, not the least of which is that I don’t have the luxury of working hard for thirty or so years and then retiring comfortably. I made a choice that requires me to remain active in my calling for a lifetime. That means that I have set myself up for persecution and heartache for a lifetime. But, if I am looking toward heaven every day, then I am reminded that the worst anyone can ever do to me is send me to a heavenly reward. In effect, there isn’t really anything anyone can do to harm me.
c. May I draw your attention to Biblical examples? As Stephen was being stoned to death, he saw heaven open up to him. As Paul sat in prison facing possible execution, he was singing psalms, thus proving that his soul already had quite a bit of heaven in him already.
d. What about consequences less than death?
i. Fired from your job
ii. Ostracized from your family
iii. Shunned by your community
Transition: You should keep in mind who does value you.
II. God values those who trust Him with their lives.
a. “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?” This is Jesus’ way of pointing out that sparrows are not valued very highly because there are so many of them. In fact, they have been coming in large flocks to my bird feeder since winter started in the middle of the autumn. By the dozens, sparrows and juncos have turned my backyard into a virtual aviary all day. From a distance, they are a swirling mass of brown and white birds. So, one afternoon I picked up my camera and decided to turn my attention on just one sparrow. I shot several frames of the sparrow and found myself chuckling at his antics. Over the time the sparrow spent at the feeder, I started to feel a sense of attachment to the little bird. Of course, as you know there are many species of sparrow. There are tree sparrows, chipping sparrows, fox sparrows, house sparrows, song sparrows, white crowned sparrows and white throated sparrows. But I was looking at this one sparrow. I think it would be sad for to learn of something tragic happening to this sparrow. I like this one sparrow. But, how many billions of people are on this planet. God loves all of them. Jesus died for all of them. Yet, some of them have come to God out of love for Him. In a world that has rejected righteousness; don’t you think that those who live by His Word stand out? What is one life worth among six billion people? Yet, God pays attention and loves the one.
b. “Not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father.” Your time on earth will come to an end only when God says it will come to an end. It is different for you than for those who live for this world. People who only live for the pleasures and comforts of this life will die when their bodies give out. You will die when God says you have earned your rest. (This is how I know I will live a very long life on this earth; it takes me awhile to earn the rest!)
c. Biblical examples? Elijah was just taken. I suspect in part because he didn’t want to rest and he was known to raise people from the dead. Jesus gave up his spirit. Paul defied martyrdom several times until finally he was allowed to die.
d. My favorite example is that of Linda, one of my parishioners who had come to faith in Christ only a short time before being diagnosed with a brain tumor. The doctors gave her best case scenario of six months of life remaining. She asked me to pray with her that God would allow her to continue to take in exchange students, something she had done for several years. Only this time, she would take in two students this year. In that time, she declared she would bring them to church and to live before them the example of faithfulness before them. One student was from a western European nation where secularism dominates the culture. The other was a Muslim from Eastern Europe. In that time, without any pressure to convert, both of them came to faith in Christ. In order for this to happen, she had to live another six months with a rapidly growing brain tumor. Just a couple of days following the students’ return to their home countries, Linda passed away. The students flew back immediately to pay respects to a woman who glorified Christ both in the way she lived and in the way she died.
Transition: God values you and notices that you value His ways. He not only values you, he pays close attention to you.
III. God knows your situation
a. “And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.” God is detail oriented in his awareness of your condition and situation. The good news for you is that no matter what situation you are in, God knows exactly what you are going through and why. The bad news for you, at least when your situation is unpleasant, is that your situation might not become pleasant and you might not know why you are going through it and God might not tell you. However, sometimes your situation is pleasant. I assure you, that in any case your situation has nothing to do with your comfort. Instead, your situation is your opportunity to glorify God. Unpleasant situations cause you to glorify God with your faithfulness and tenacity. Pleasant situations cause you to glorify God with your faithfulness and intentional selflessness and sacrifice.
b. Biblical examples: The centurion at the cross concluded that Jesus was the son of God by the way He died. Tabitha glorified God by her generosity of service, Paul glorified God through his tenacity and plain spoken preaching, John saw the beginning and the end of days while sitting exiled on an island.
c. My point is this: whatever situation you are in, your mission is to make good and faithful decisions based on your convictions of what Jesus taught. It doesn’t matter where you are at, that is your mission. Do not get caught up in questions of whether anyone will notice how heroic you are. God notices every detail of your life.
Transition: God knows where you are in life and knows the why’s of your life’s mission.
Conclusion
Jesus said, “So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.” I said at the beginning that it is one thing to have the authority from God to do great things in the name of the Lord. It is quite another thing to go out and do them. The gospel impacts the culture. The good news transforms the way people behave. That transformation isn’t always well received. Change always brings conflict. However, your responsibility is to preach the good news to those who are captive. Your instructions are to heal the sick and drive away evil spirits. That is an exciting mission, but understand that it requires courage as well as enthusiasm.
