A CHRISTIAN LOOKS AT MATTHEW’S GOSPEL
The little band of helpers – (ii) their task
Reading: Matthew 10: 1-5a
We noticed at the beginning of our study of Matthew that “disciple” (v1) means “learner,” they were people who followed a teacher expecting to learn from them. Jesus seems to have had a large group of “learners” many of whom were hardly more than “hangers-on.” However, from this group Jesus selected a smaller group of 12 he called “apostles” (v2) from the Greek “apostello” meaning “to send forth with a commission.” If you translate “disciple” as “learner” then you should translate “apostle” as “pioneer missionary” because that is the etymological meaning of the word.
There are other “apostles” in the New Testament but these 12 are special and haven’t been repeated in the church. The point for us, is do we want to move on from just being a “hanger-on learner” to something more committed? That is what Jesus wants.
Meditation: Just how committed am I?
Prayer pointer: Am I ready to move on from being a “hanger-on?”
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