Matthew 10:24-31 (NIV) “A student is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for the student to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If the head of the house has been called Beelzebub, how much more the members of his household!
“So do not be afraid of them. There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.”
If Jesus was condemned by the powers that be, His disciples were very likely to be as well. If the religious leaders called Jesus, their Master, Beelzebub, they would definitely attack His followers with accusations of being in cahoots with evil as well.
It was vital that the apostles be aware of this reality before they struck out on their own. Jesus didn’t want them to be blind-sided by this when it happened (as it definitely did!). But at the same time, He did not want them to shy away from their mission out of fear of the consequences. He was sending them out with the good news of the arrival of God’s kingdom, and with authority to provide evidence of its reality through miracles, healings, and casting out demons. What Jesus had sent them to tell was never to be whispered out of fear of men, but was to be shouted from the rooftops – it was news that was just too good to be kept quiet. Mere men were to hold no power of terror over the messengers of the kingdom of God.
Jesus, of course, was their model. Many feared running afoul of the influential Pharisees and of the powerful Sadducees. But not Jesus. Even though they carried the power of life and death, of blessing or condemnation, He never held back or shied away from countering their error with His truth. Jesus knew that their authority was only civil; it ended with the physical body, while His was spiritual and went all the way to the soul.
In the same way, Jesus’ followers were never to shrink back from those who were reputed to be powerful, backing away from the truth, or staying silent out of fear. Those powerful people could kill their bodies, but after that were powerless to do anything more to them. But they served a Lord, a Master, a God, who could not only kill their bodies, but could also condemn their souls to hell. If they were going to fear anyone, it should be God!
Jesus’ assurance that God was watching over them (far more than He does over sparrows) was in the context of doing the job that they had been sent to do. As they went, like sheep among wolves, God would keep His eye on them, and protect them just like He protected Jesus, until their time came. Then He would receive them to Himself, were no evil would ever be able to touch them again.
The apostles learned this lesson well, and applied it faithfully, not just during this mission, but in all their dealings with the Sanhedrin after Jesus ascended to heaven. The key illustration is in Acts 4:18-20 (NIV): Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John replied, “Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s sight to obey you rather than God. For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.”
Father, sometimes we really do get intimidated by “mere men,” and are tempted to keep our heads down and our mouths shut to avoid bringing trouble on ourselves. We convince ourselves that You understand, and that You wouldn’t want us to put ourselves in harm’s way for the sake of the gospel. But these verses tell a different story. How many miracles have we missed out on because we worry more about our reputation and safety than we do about being obedient to Your command to go and share the good news! Help me, Lord, to be steadfast, and if I fear anyone at all, to fear only You. Amen.