Theme: Jesus is worth everything.
Text: Matthew 10:16-20,26-34, “16 “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. 17 Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues, 18 and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and the Gentiles. 19 When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour. 20 For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you… 26 “So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. 27 What I tell you in the dark, say in the light, and what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. 28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.[a] 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?[b] And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. 30 But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. 32 So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, 33 but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven. 34 “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.”
Intro: Many things create “buyers remorse,” but investing in our relationship with Jesus and pouring into the lives of others never will.
- Snakes and Doves (vv. 16-20)
As the disciples went out to minister to various kinds of people it would require that they carry themselves in certain ways. They were to exercise caution and discernment and insightfulness as they shared the gospel and invested in the disciples under their care. At the same time they were to be innocent as doves, meaning they were to minster with a sincerity and genuineness and integrity of heart. The perfect One to balance all of these is the Holy Spirit. And if we depend moment-by-moment on Him and dwell and abide in His word this will be doable. As they served, they and their mission would encounter persecution and even public beatings before rulers and courts. In this day, religious rulings and judicial lawmakers of society were intertwined. God dispels our anxieties of these situations when we rest in the promise that he will give us the words to say. Acts 1:8, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
II. Sparrows and Hairs (vv. 26-31)
Jesus is not secretive. But there are things He shared with His disciples in private and revealed to them in private that they should have no fear about preaching and proclaiming publicly. God will show us wonderful truths from His Word in private that we should talk about and share with others, as we grow in the practice of “talking Bible.” We talk about all kinds of things in our day to day, and as ambassadors for Christ must talk Bible. If it’s a lost person this means we need to start with the gospel, Jesus paid for sins died, buried, and arose and offers salvation to those who repent and believe on Him.
Verse 28 is a direct, clear teaching that annihilationism isn’t Biblical or sound. Hell and judgment are realities and they should influence the message we proclaim both in our urgency and accuracy.
The simple lesson of the sparrows and the hairs of one’s head is simply that the things that we would look at say, “How could that matter to God?” He is deeply acquainted with and cares about. He is in the details. He cares about the little things. The little things to us aren’t so little to Him. This is a great promise to the grandparents and parents out there. Children ran up to Jesus and surrounded him throughout His ministry. He was never too busy for them. Helping a child work through the simple and small things of their developing minds in a Christlike and caring manner shows them from an early age God cares.
From verse 31 we should not fear, but stand strong for God with boldness and courage.
III. Peace and Swords (10:32-34)
No matter how worried we are or timid, these verses encourage us that God will acknowledge us who stand up for Him and share the gospel in the most difficult of scenarios. Our greatest loyalty should be to Jesus. The gospel is the Good News and in our proclamation of this it will divide between those who are repentant and saved by grace and those who are willful and rebellious against His gospel invitation. I am reading through the Old testament currently and read 2 Kings 17 most recently where one king after another is choosing evil and idolatry over God and right worship of Him. There were a few good ones in the mix, but few and far between. Thank God for the grace he offers in Christ to all who repent. Let’s be loyal representatives for Him this week.
Caleb Walker 
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