Giving All That You Are to Receive All That He Is

Matthew’s gospel is arranged around five sermons. At the end of each one you will find the phrase, “…when Jesus had finished these sayings…” which all five share (7:28, 11:1, 13:53, 19:1, 26:1). Together, these five sermons cover the full range of Life with God on earth through faith in Jesus Christ.

The second sermon is found in Matthew 10:1 – 42. The theme of this chapter is the missionary nature of God’s Kingdom, we gather to scatter. This pleases the Father because He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, on the same mission to earth. When you follow Christ, He sends, just as He was sent, because He knows that when you go, it pleases the Father.

In this chapter there are several clear instructions for missionaries, the first of which is sometimes overlooked, “And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them…” 10:1. Sometimes, all that comes after the phrase gave them is focused upon; the authority, the instructions, the warnings, the promises.

But the main point is sometimes missed. Ambassadors of God’s Kingdom only go out after they have been with Jesus and received from Him all that He gives.  Because, of all that the Lord gives, He first gives Himself, so that everything that follows has Him in it, so that of all that is shared, He is shared first, even if it is a cup of cold water to one of the little ones, 10:42.

The warnings, 10:16 – 39, are the major part of this sermon, the hard part. But one of the major points in the warning section is best part of the sermon, which is that regardless of the response or the reaction, God works it together for His purpose of revealing Himself through His Son, Jesus Christ. This leads to knowing Christ more and more (the rewards), which leads to greater and greater glory for the Father and greater and greater joy for you (more rewards)!

Another verse that is often quoted in the context of our mission on earth is Romans 8:28, “And we know that God is working all things together for good for those who love Him, for those who are called according to his purpose.” The key phrase in understanding this verse, as well as of the warnings in Matthew 10, is a single word in Greek, the word soon-ergo, which literally means, “works together with and through.”

The idea is of something going through something else and producing something with something. The first “something” is a Person, the Holy Spirit. The second “something” is a person, you. The third “something” is a Person, Jesus Christ. The fourth something are the events of your life with Christ.

The Holy Spirit is forming Christ in you, with you, through you, seen and known as you, before the Father and the watching world around you, with everything that happens to you. And He will not do this without you!

Every event that happens to you, He forms Christ in you, whether it is something good or something bad, something easy, or something hard. But only as you give it all to Him, knowing what He will do, which is to form Christ in you. This is the method God has chosen to spread His Kingdom on earth. This is what it means for His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven, to worship the Father in spirit and truth.

Today, give all that you are, to receive all that He is, so that as you go, you go with Him, by Him, for Him, knowing that you are becoming more like Him through every event of the day. He gets the glory and you get the joy! Hallelujah!!!