Luke 10

V 1–7: MISSIONARY MIND Jesus sends out His larger band of seventy disciples, two by two, and they are told that the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. He commands them to pray that God will send workers into the harvest field. They are to go, following His instructions as His disciples, and to lodge with those sympathetic to the message. V 8–16: REPENTANCE REQUIRED If a town will not receive the message and repent, they are to move to the next town, shaking the dust off their feet. Jesus teaches that the punishment on the towns of Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum—which now see Him at work, but reject Him—will be greater than that suffered in the past by the towns of Sodom, Tyre and Sidon. Those towns offended God but had not seen Him working in the same way that Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum witnessed. To reject the message and messengers of Jesus is to reject Him. V 17–20: REAL REJOICING The band of seventy return full of joy because they have been able to cast out demons. Jesus tells them to rejoice rather because their names are written in heaven. Success may evade them tomorrow, but their salvation is still secure! V 21–24: SPIRITUAL SENSE Jesus thanks His Father that His blessing is on those who come to Him as children rather than those who are learned in this world’s sense. He stresses the oneness between Father and Son and underlines how blessed people are who have come to trust Him. Many kings and prophets in history longed to have the privilege of knowing God that those enjoy who trust Him now. V 25–28: CONCISE COMMANDS Jesus endorses the lawyer’s summary of the Ten Commandments into two: first, love God; second, love your neighbour as yourself. This is as He deals with a question as to what must be done to inherit eternal life. Clearly none of us has loved God or our neighbours like that. V 29–37: NEIGHBOUR’S NEEDS Jesus tells about the caring Samaritan, who goes to the help of a needy and injured victim of robbers, after two religious Jewish men fail to help him. The Samaritan also provides for the man’s future care. Jesus teaches that anyone in need is our neighbour, and that we should all do ‘likewise’. V 38–42: PRIORITY PRACTISED Jesus commends Mary to overburdened and distracted Martha, and tells her that the most necessary thing is to sit at His feet and listen to what He says. Martha does much that is right but misses the ‘one thing’ that is ‘needed’.