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Is Matthew 10 a prototype for modern missions?

Posted: Fri May 19, 2017 12:17 pm
by lesterb
In Matthew 10:5 ff. Jesus sent out his apostles to evangelize Israel. The whole passage (10:5 - 39) would be an interesting study, but the first section of it in particular seems to lay the groundwork for a style of mission work that we completely ignore in our modern era.

Any thoughts on this?
[bible]matthew 10,5-15[/bible]

Re: Is Matthew 10 a prototype for modern missions?

Posted: Fri May 19, 2017 2:19 pm
by Wayne in Maine
Like the Two-by-Two's?

Re: Is Matthew 10 a prototype for modern missions?

Posted: Fri May 19, 2017 2:24 pm
by Josh
Wayne in Maine wrote:Like the Two-by-Two's?
Have they been raising people from the dead?

Re: Is Matthew 10 a prototype for modern missions?

Posted: Fri May 19, 2017 2:26 pm
by RZehr
I certainly don't consider this account as a blueprint for us. But nor would I criticize the method.

Re: Is Matthew 10 a prototype for modern missions?

Posted: Fri May 19, 2017 3:05 pm
by Josh
The biggest thing I see in Matthew 10 is they evangelised people who were (a) their own culture, and (b) also their own religion. So they were telling this to people who were ready to receive it, and ready to understand it.

What happened in Acts is really different. The miracle of tongues was needed just to bridge the gap in cultural and linguistic understanding.

Re: Is Matthew 10 a prototype for modern missions?

Posted: Fri May 19, 2017 3:49 pm
by Neto
I suspect this it is like trying to pin down Jesus' "Four Spiritual Laws" - he didn't seem to ever approach two people in exactly the same way (at least in recorded Scriptural accounts). I think that street witnessing and evangelistic sermons have a place, but I would never think of using a method like those with, say, an isolated animist people group. (They will tend to just go along with it on the surface, but that kind of 'salvation' is generally not worth anything, and I think it is often even actually harmful, like an immunization against the Gospel.)

Re: Is Matthew 10 a prototype for modern missions?

Posted: Fri May 19, 2017 8:14 pm
by Sudsy
The message was to the Jews only who were mainly concerned about an earthly kingdom being established and the apostles mission was to divert them from this thinking to realize what the Kingdom was all about. They were given authority and supernatural power to work miracles in proclaiming the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.

Gentiles, then and again today, are not looking for a Kingdom. Nor do we have the same supernatural powers to proclaim the Kingdom as they did.

I believe there is a 'Gentile' way for us to preach the Kingdom and it begins with becoming a Kingdom citizen. There is much that Jesus said about how that Kingdom will manifest itself here and now. The focus in evangelism after Pentecost was firstly becoming a citizen (repent and be baptised and receive the Holy Spirit) and then be led by the Spirit to live out a Kingdom way of life with the gifts the Holy Spirit provides.

Re: Is Matthew 10 a prototype for modern missions?

Posted: Wed May 24, 2017 1:01 pm
by Signtist
I doubt it is a prototype for us to follow. Others disagree. But it seems like hospitals and funeral homes should be going out of fashion shortly if these type of people practiced what they preached.
“People often come to me and ask me to pray for them, that they would discover God’s will for their life. I already know God’s will for their life – heal the sick, raise the dead, cast out devils, cleanse lepers. They say, ‘Yes, but I need to know if I should be a schoolteacher or a missionary.’ I say, ‘Well, just pick one, and then heal the sick, raise the dead, cast out devils, cleanse lepers.’ Or they will say, ‘I just don’t know whether I should be married or should be single.’ I reply, ‘What do you want to be?’ ‘I really want to be married.’ ‘Then get married... and heal the sick, raise the dead, cast out devils, cleanse lepers.”
― Bill Johnson, Manifesto for a Normal Christian Life

Re: Is Matthew 10 a prototype for modern missions?

Posted: Wed May 24, 2017 10:58 pm
by Sudsy
Signtist wrote:I doubt it is a prototype for us to follow. Others disagree. But it seems like hospitals and funeral homes should be going out of fashion shortly if these type of people practiced what they preached.
“People often come to me and ask me to pray for them, that they would discover God’s will for their life. I already know God’s will for their life – heal the sick, raise the dead, cast out devils, cleanse lepers. They say, ‘Yes, but I need to know if I should be a schoolteacher or a missionary.’ I say, ‘Well, just pick one, and then heal the sick, raise the dead, cast out devils, cleanse lepers.’ Or they will say, ‘I just don’t know whether I should be married or should be single.’ I reply, ‘What do you want to be?’ ‘I really want to be married.’ ‘Then get married... and heal the sick, raise the dead, cast out devils, cleanse lepers.”
― Bill Johnson, Manifesto for a Normal Christian Life
I agree about practise what you preach. Here is one of those texts that when taken literally to apply to all believers for all time would mean that there are no or very few believers today that are obeying what Jesus said and having the power to work miracles. The reality of what does occur today should make us look closer at the text and the immediate audience, to whom they were sent to preach to (Jews only) and just who was being sent (the 12).