Introduction

Friends, imagine Jesus speaking your name with a smile. Picture calloused hands from a carpenter’s bench reaching for ordinary people with ordinary lives—fishermen with tired shoulders, a tax collector with a checkered reputation, men whose resumes looked unimpressive by any earthly standard. Yet when Jesus steps onto the scene, names become assignments, and simple steps become sacred moments. He gathers the twelve, not because they are famous, but because they are willing. He still does that. He still knows the ache behind your smile and the fear behind your questions. He still calls, still equips, still sends.

E.M. Bounds once said, “God shapes the world by prayer.” That truth lands tenderly on this passage we’re about to read. The God who shapes worlds also shapes willing hearts. The Jesus who calms storms also commissions servants. If the room of your life feels cluttered with anxiety, regret, or reluctance, hear this: the King is kind, the call is clear, and his authority is enough for every assignment he gives.

Some of us walked in today feeling unqualified. You love Jesus, but your calendar is crammed and your courage feels thin. Others of us have grown comfortable—faith is real, yet risks are rare. Matthew 10 greets each of us like a hand on the shoulder. The Lord doesn’t scan for the spectacular; he looks for the surrendered. He names a people, gives his power, and points their feet toward those who are wandering and weary. This is not a call to hustle harder; it’s a call to stay close to Jesus and step where he points.

We will hear how Jesus calls and authorizes his followers, how his kingdom advances through healing and deliverance, and how he sends with focus to the lost sheep of Israel. There’s a cadence to this call: intimacy, then authority; compassion, then commission; clarity, then courage. Do you hear your name in that rhythm? Do you sense the Savior saying, “Walk with me; I’ll supply what you lack; I’ll aim your life where my heart is already moving”?

Let’s read the Word that reads us.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 10:1-6 (KJV) 1 And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease. 2 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; 3 Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; 4 Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him. 5 These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: 6 But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

Opening Prayer Lord Jesus, Caller of names and Giver of power, we quiet our hearts before you. Thank you for the kindness of your voice and the strength of your hand. Open our ears to hear your summons. Open our eyes to see where your compassion is already moving. Place your authority on our frailty so that your healing, your deliverance, and your hope would flow through us. Aim our steps toward those who are wandering and worried, and fill us with courage to obey. Holy Spirit, make this Word bright in our minds and burning in our hearts. Father, be honored in our trust and our obedience. In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Friend, pause and notice how personal this is. The text does not begin with tasks; it begins with names. Jesus calls people, then places power in their hands. He doesn’t send them into a void; he sends them into a field where his heart already leans—toward the lost sheep, the overlooked, the exhausted. This is where compassion wears work boots and where authority wears a servant’s towel.

Can you picture your street, your classroom, your office, your kitchen table? Can you see faces Jesus cares for—neighbors with tight smiles, friends carrying quiet pain, family members who feel forgotten? Christ is not handing you a burden; he is handing you an assignment soaked in his presence. He is saying, “Walk with me. I will supply my strength in your weakness. I will place courage where fear has lived too long.”

Notice also the order of grace. First, he calls; then, he authorizes. First, he names; then, he sends. That means your identity anchors your activity. Your confidence doesn’t rest in your skill set or stage of life; it rests in the Savior who lays his hand on your shoulder and says, “You are mine.” If your heart whispers, “I’m not enough,” let it also whisper, “He is.” If your past argues, “You’ve failed before,” let the cross answer, “Mercy is new.” If your future feels foggy, let his Word light the next faithful step.

And this mission has a shape—compassion for the broken, courage against darkness, clarity for the task at hand. Healing is not a headline; it is hope reaching hurting people. Deliverance is not theatrics; it is the King’s kindness confronting chains. Focus is not narrowness; it is obedience that starts where the Shepherd points.

“God shapes the world by prayer.” So bring him the names on your mind. Whisper the prodigal, the patient in the hospital, the friend who smiles on Sunday and cries on Monday. Ask him to make your life an answered prayer for someone else. He has more power than your fear, more grace than your guilt, and more plans than your planner.

Today, let’s place our hands in his. He calls and authorizes. He advances his kingdom in healing and deliverance. He sends with focus to the lost sheep. And he does it through people like us—people with yesterday’s messes and tomorrow’s meetings—people whose greatest qualification is that Jesus said our names and we said, “Yes.”

Called and authorized by Jesus

The scene begins with a call. Jesus speaks, and people draw near. The text says he called his twelve to himself. That is close, simple, and clear. A call is a summons to come within reach.

When you stand near someone, you can hear tone, not just words. You see eyes, not just gestures. That is how this starts. Nearness first.

The call also sets direction. They were with him before they were sent by him. Presence before tasks. It is a new center of gravity for the heart.

The call carries weight. It changes how we see time, work, and people. The plan is no longer self-made. The plan sits in his hands.

And this call is personal. The text uses names in the next lines. Names are the way love keeps count. Names mean he sees, he knows, he chooses.

Authority comes next. He gives power. It is shared power. It comes from him and leads back to him.

Authority here has a goal. It pushes back dark spirits. It lifts sickness. It touches bodies, minds, and homes. It brings real help to real pain.

This is not license to control people. It is grace for service. The strength is a trust. It must be handled with care.

Notice the scope. “All manner of sickness and all manner of disease.” That is wide. It speaks to stubborn pain and sudden pain. It speaks to long stories and fresh wounds.

This power also meets the unseen world. Unclean spirits break lives. Jesus does not leave people stuck there. He arms his friends to act with his strength and his name.

Then the list of names. Simon called Peter, Andrew, James, John, and the others. You can almost picture faces. You can picture families, friends, and towns.

Names in Scripture do more than fill space. They slow us down. They remind us that grace lands on people with real lives. Each name carries a story.

Matthew is called “the publican.” That word marks a past everyone knew. Yet his name is still said out loud. He is counted in.

Two brothers show up twice. Peter and Andrew. James and John. Siblings can pull each other along in faith. Community matters.

And then there is Judas Iscariot. The note about him is hard to read. The list holds both joy and sorrow. Jesus walked with them anyway.

Next comes the sending. Jesus gives a clear path. “Go not into the way of the Gentiles” and “into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not.” Then, “go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” The first assignment had borders.

This aim fits the story of God. Israel had promises to receive. The Shepherd turns to his flock and calls for return. That is mercy in motion.

Focus brings freedom. You do not need to do everything at once. You can serve well in the field he marks off. Clarity helps courage.

This focus also trains hearts. Obedience grows with steps you can see. They would learn to speak, to heal, to stand firm. Training then builds toward larger fields.

Later the map would widen. For now, the steps are near. The need is in front of them. The word is simple and strong: go to the lost sheep.

Advancing the kingdom through healing and deliverance

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