“He Sent Them Out to Preach the Kingdom of God and to Heal”

There is something powerful about the moment Jesus sends the Twelve out into the world.

Until now, they have been following Him, listening to Him, watching Him teach, witnessing Him heal the sick and confront the power of evil. But now, Jesus sends them.

The disciples must take what they have received from Christ and carry it to others. The time has come for what they have witnessed in the presence of Jesus to become a mission lived beyond that immediate circle around Him.

And before they leave, Jesus gives them an unusual instruction.

Take Nothing for the Journey

Jesus tells the Twelve to take nothing for the journey. No staff, no bag, no bread, no money, not even an extra tunic.

Jesus is teaching them something they will need for the mission ahead:

Trust.

They are not to place their security in what they can carry, what they can save, or what they can control. They must learn to depend upon God.

And that lesson still speaks powerfully to us today.

We often want everything settled before we respond to God. We want certainty before we take the first step. We want to know exactly how things will work out, where the road will lead, and whether we will have enough.

But sometimes Christ simply says:

Go.

Trust Me.

Take the next faithful step.

There are moments in the Christian life when we will not have every answer before God asks us to move. Faith does not always mean seeing the whole road ahead. Sometimes it means trusting the One who sends us enough to take the step immediately before us.

To Preach the Kingdom of God and to Heal

The Twelve were also sent with a very clear mission:

To preach the Kingdom of God and to heal.

Their words and their actions belonged together.

They proclaimed God’s Kingdom and then allowed suffering people to experience something of that Kingdom through healing.

This is important for us.

Our Christian faith cannot remain only something we speak about. The Gospel must become visible in the way we live.

We proclaim Christ when we forgive someone who has wounded us, when we show compassion to someone who is suffering, when we defend the dignity of another person, when we bring peace instead of division, and when our presence leaves another person with greater hope than we found them.

The Gospel becomes convincing when the truth we profess begins to take flesh in the way we treat other people.

Christ did not send the Apostles merely to speak. He sent them to become instruments through whom others could encounter something of the goodness, mercy and healing of God’s Kingdom.

The same principle remains true for us.

When the Message Is Not Received

But Jesus also prepares the disciples for something difficult.

Not everyone will receive them.

Some doors will remain closed. Some people will refuse the message.

Jesus tells the Twelve not to remain trapped by rejection. They are to shake the dust from their feet and continue the mission.

There is wisdom in that for us too.

We are called to be faithful witnesses to Christ, but we cannot force another person to believe.

We can speak the truth with love. We can give a good example. We can pray. We can invite. We can patiently accompany another person.

But ultimately, every human heart must freely respond to God.

Our responsibility is faithfulness. The rest belongs to Him.

This can be particularly important when we have tried to share our faith with someone we love. We may desperately want that person to know Christ, return to the Church, receive the Sacraments or rediscover a faith that has grown distant.

We should continue to love, pray and bear witness. But we must also remember that conversion is ultimately the work of grace. We cannot accomplish in another person’s heart what only God can do.

Our task is to remain faithful.

“And They Departed”

Then comes one of the most beautiful lines in today’s Gospel:

“And they departed.”

They did not merely admire the instructions of Jesus. They acted upon them. They went from village to village, preaching the Gospel and healing everywhere.

Those simple words reveal something essential about discipleship. The Apostles heard Christ and then acted upon what they had heard.

There comes a moment when listening must become action, when prayer must lead us into obedience and when knowing what Christ asks of us must become the courage to actually do it.

The Twelve could have remained with Jesus discussing His instructions. Instead, they departed.

They trusted the One who had sent them.

Christ Has Also Called Us

That is where today’s Gospel reaches us personally. Because Christ has also called us.

Through Baptism, each of us has been given a part in the mission of His Church. We may never preach before a large crowd or travel from village to village as the Twelve did, but every day God places people along our path.

They are found in our families, our workplaces, our schools and our communities. Sometimes they appear through unexpected encounters with complete strangers and that raises an important question:

What will they encounter through us?

• Will our lives make Christ easier to recognize?
• Will someone experience mercy because we were there?
• Will someone find courage because we spoke a word of hope?
• Will someone feel less alone because we stopped long enough to care?

These questions bring the missionary calling of the Gospel into ordinary life.

We do not need to travel across the world before we can begin living as people sent by Christ. Our mission often begins with the person already standing before us.

The Gospel Must Become Visible in Our Lives

We come to Christ, we listen to His Word, we receive His grace, and then we are sent back into the world.

This pattern is especially visible every time we celebrate the Holy Mass. We gather as God’s people. We listen to His Word. We encounter Christ in the Eucharist. We receive Him, and then we are sent forth. We do not leave Mass simply because the celebration has ended.

We are sent.

The Christ we have encountered is meant to accompany us into the rest of our day and into the ordinary places of our lives.

The Gospel should enter our homes with us. It should accompany us to work and shape the way we conduct business, raise our children, treat our spouses, respond to difficult people and speak about those who are absent.

The mercy we have received should make us more merciful, forgiveness we seek from God should make us more willing to forgive and the love we encounter in Christ should become visible in the love we offer others.

In this way, the mission entrusted to the Twelve continues through the life of the Church.

He Called Them and Then He Sent Them

Jesus did not call the Twelve simply so that they could remain close to Him.

He called them, and then He sent them and He continues to do the same with us.

We come to Christ. We listen to His Word. We receive His grace. We are strengthened by the Sacraments and then we are sent back into the world not relying only upon ourselves, but trusting the One who sends us.

That is one of the great lessons of Luke 9:1–6. The disciples did not leave because they possessed everything they might possibly need. They left because Christ had sent them.

Their confidence could not rest in the contents of their bags because Jesus had specifically told them not to take those things with them. Their confidence had to rest in Him.

Perhaps there are moments when God allows us to feel that same poverty. We recognize that we do not have every answer. We do not feel completely prepared. We become aware of our limitations, yet Christ can still work through us.

The question is not whether we possess everything, but whether we trust the One who sends us.

Take the Next Faithful Step

Today’s Gospel therefore invites us to examine where Christ may be sending us now.

• Perhaps there is someone who needs encouragement.
• Perhaps there is a relationship where we can become an instrument of peace.
• Perhaps someone is suffering quietly and needs to know that another person cares.
• Perhaps God is asking us to speak about our faith when remaining silent would be easier.
• Perhaps He is asking us to begin something we have delayed because we are waiting to feel completely ready.

We do not always need to know the entire road. Sometimes Christ asks us simply to trust Him and take the next faithful step.

The Twelve departed with little in their hands, but they did not go empty handed. They went with the authority Christ had given them, they went with His command, they went with His mission and most importantly, they went because He had sent them.

The same Lord who sends us does not abandon us on the road.

Let Us Pray

Lord Jesus,

You called the Twelve, gave them what they needed, and sent them into the world.

Give us the courage to recognize that You are sending us too.

Free us from the fear that tells us we are not ready, not capable, or do not have enough.

Teach us to trust You more than we trust our own security.

Give us courage when we are rejected, humility when we are received, compassion for those who are suffering, and faithfulness wherever You place us.

May the Gospel we profess with our lips become visible through the lives we live.

And wherever You send us, may we carry Your truth, Your mercy, Your healing, and Your love.

Amen.