At the beginning of his public ministry, Jesus gives a provocative promise to the Apostles: “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men” (Mk. 1:17). It was an invitation to accept an extraordinary way of living with its challenges. The twelve Apostles who accepted this offer received their formation in becoming “fishers of men”. They spend their life with Jesus by listening to him and watching his miraculous actions. As part of their education after this theoretical formation, Jesus sends them to preach the gospel. It is to equip them in preparation for their real mission of preaching the Good News to the ends of the earth.
The first vocation of any disciple is “to be with the Lord” (3:14) and the second, which flows from it, is to preach the gospel. This means that a disciple should spend time with the Lord in prayer before preaching the loving message of Christ. Here, their call also includes a radical renunciation of material attachments. Jesus demands from his disciples an unconditional faith in the providence of God rather than in one’s own abilities (2 Cor. 9:8-10; Phil. 4:11-13). Their material detachment gives them credibility to preach. The gospel is free, and it should be given freely.
There are several reasons Jesus sends his disciples two by two. In Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus says: “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” (18:20). The company of two disciples is the smallest form of a Christian community. These small communities are instrumental in forming large communities. Secondly, in the Jewish tradition, for any case to be credible, there should be two witnesses (Deut. 17:6; 19:15). So, there would be a greater chance for the people to believe the gospel after hearing the joint witness of two disciples. Thirdly, it indicates that the disciples must work together in the future for their ministry to be effective.
Jesus asks them to take nothing except a walking stick. It helps them to walk, sometimes gives protection from animals, and is also a sign of their authority. We have seen the bishops continuing this tradition as an expression of their teaching role in the Church. The instruction not to carry a bag is also an indication that they should not get preoccupied with what they get. The real reward for the disciples comes from the Lord. God will take care of those who are engaged in his work. The preachers of the gospel should lead a prophetic life in challenging the world. What they preach should be revealed through their daily lives. Their witnessing life must be the primary means of preaching the message.
Jesus asks the disciples to shake the dust off their feet if they are rejected by anyone. This comes from the Jewish tradition of shaking the dust off the feet when one enters the Holy Land after walking in the territory of the Gentiles. It symbolically means that a believer must reject whatever is not holy in the eyes of God. A disciple must be willing to abandon all kinds of worldly evils.
We need a radical form of Christian witness to save our Christian communities in today’s world. Many are searching for an easy way of being a Christian. If we are not willing to take this mission seriously, we will cease to be Christians. Once we have tasted the beauty of our Christian life, we may not need anything else to find fulfillment in our lives. Our Christian community has received the vocation to continue the mission of Jesus Christ. Let us ask God to bless us to have the strength to follow Jesus courageously to preach the love of Christ to everyone around us.
Rev. Dr. Mathew Charthakuzhiyil