Before the sending is the gathering. Before the gathering is the compassion. Before the compassion is the seeing. And it all starts with a gracious God.
Vision, Compassion, Gathering, Sending, that is the movement in the Gospel reading for this Sunday. It is also the movement of Jesus’ response to those who are harassed and helpless, of God’s interaction with His fractured and fallen creation, and of the sanctified Christian life as it lives by the Spirit of Jesus. It may also be the movement for your sermon this Sunday.
Vision
As He went throughout the cities and villages, Jesus saw. This is not a minor detail. Many people go through life wondering if anyone sees, if anyone notices. The crowds Jesus saw were “helpless and harassed” (v. 36; these verbs could be translated more literally “whipped/flayed” and “thrown down”). He noted they were like sheep without a shepherd, which meant they had neither protector nor provider.
Jesus does not name the source of their harassment, but it is not hard to imagine. Simply look around today. Some are tossed about by injustice, grief, and abuse of authority. Others are flayed by disease, economic strain, and isolation. Everyone is harassed by a sinful inclination to respond with (un)righteous anger[1], fear, and self-righteousness.
The problem, in part, is many people do not see. Perhaps they cannot, having never put themselves in the position to see. Perhaps they will not, refusing to look outside their own lives and their own bubbles. Contrast them (us) with Jesus. Jesus sees. He sees the crowds in the text. He sees their helplessness. He sees those who are harassing them, and He does not look away. This is not surprising, for He is the Son of the One who sees all things—good, bad, and ugly (cf. Proverbs 15:3; Psalm 139:1-3; Jeremiah 23:24).
Compassion
Truly seeing others and their plight is a necessary beginning. But if being seen is not accompanied by being helped, it does not do much. This is the second movement in the text. Having seen the crowds, Jesus has compassion. That is, He suffers with them (from the Latin, com·passio). In this sense, the suffering of Jesus is not limited to the events of Holy Week. It encompasses His entire ministry (even His entire incarnation). Jesus came among us to suffer with us before He suffered on Golgotha for us.
+Jesus came among us to suffer with us before He suffered on Golgotha for us.
We are not as good at suffering with others. Luther’s explanations to the fifth and eighth commandments come to mind. We are to fear and love God by helping and supporting our neighbors in every bodily need. We are to defend them, speak well of them, and put the best construction on everything they do. We fall short, which must not be easily excused even though it is true. But Jesus does not. He protects and provides for His people as the Good Shepherd they have been missing.
Gathering
The compassion of Jesus, which arises from seeing the suffering of the crowds, leads Him to gather. He begins by gathering the twelve (they are first listed in Matthew’s Gospel here at the beginning of chapter ten). But He does not stop there. As Robert Kolb likes to say, we worship a God of conversation and community. That is, God continually speaks and continually gathers.
It is still a little odd to speak of gathering these days. Some congregations remain unable to gather in groups larger than nine. Others have resumed gathering, but not within six feet and not without facemasks. This points to an important aspect of the gathering Jesus does in this text. He does not gather the disciples for their own edification; not primarily, at least. He gathers them so He might send them.
Sending
Matthew 10:2 is the only time in Matthew’s Gospel where the twelve are called “apostles” (τῶν δώδεκα ἀποστόλων). In this instance, Jesus sends them to cast out demons and heal diseases (this is a related, but different mission than His sending in John 20 where the resurrected Lord sends them and His Church to forgive sins). Homiletically, you might recall the movement of the text. It is not a stretch to say Jesus sent the Apostles to do what he had come to do: To see, to have compassion, to gather, and to send.
+It is not a stretch to say Jesus sent the Apostles to do what he had come to do: To see, to have compassion, to gather, and to send.
That is the continuing movement. Jesus continues to send His people to see others (especially the widow, the orphan, and all who suffer injustice) as human beings and fellow creatures of a loving God. He continues to send His people to have compassion on those who are helpless and harassed; to suffer with them and help them bear their burdens. He continues to send His people to speak words of life and forgiveness that not only create saving faith in the hearts of individuals, but also gather them together for life as His body. And He continues to send His people to continue sending others until all have heard and believed and come together in His name. Romans 10:14-17 comes to mind here.
Last week the Gospel reading came from Matthew 28. We call it the Great Commission or Sending. In a sense, this week’s reading gives us the background. Before the sending is the gathering. Before the gathering is the compassion. Before the compassion is the seeing. And it all starts with a gracious God.
Vision, Compassion, Gathering, Sending, that is what God does through Jesus. He does it for you, for your hearers, and for all creation.
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Additional Resources:
Concordia Theology-Various helps from Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, MO to assist you in preaching Matthew 9:35-10:8 (9-20).
Text Week-A treasury of resources from various traditions to help you preach Matthew 9:35-10:8 (9-20).
Lectionary Podcast-Dr. Jeffrey Pulse of Concordia Theological Seminary in Ft. Wayne, IN walks us through Matthew 9:35-10:8 (9-20).
