Summary of my sermon, based on Luke 9:1-9. Preached at Greenhills Christian Fellowship Toronto on September 22, 2024.
When I first started in ministry, one of the key events each year was the Christmas musical at Morningstar Christian Fellowship. I was part of the band and orchestra, which was a joy, but as a pastoral intern, my responsibilities expanded. In the late summer, I’d spend hours preparing sheet music for the orchestra, choir, and cast. Our rehearsals would begin on Sunday afternoons and continue with sectionals during the week. All the practice led up to the dress rehearsal—this was the full run-through before the actual performance, done with costumes and makeup, no stops unless something major went wrong. It was the “show before the show,” and we sometimes even invited friends and family to get a preview.
In a similar way, today’s passage from Luke 9 describes a “dress rehearsal” for the ministry of Jesus’ disciples after His resurrection. This is the first of two practices, with the second one covered later in chapter 10, where Jesus sends out 72 others. In Luke 9:1-2, we read, “And he called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal.” At this point, Jesus has already performed incredible miracles—healing the woman with the issue of blood, raising Jairus’s daughter from the dead, calming the storm, and more. These acts are just a small portion of His works, as John writes in John 21:25, “Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.”
Now, Jesus is delegating that same power and authority to His disciples so they can preach the kingdom and heal the sick. The key here is that this power is delegated. Anyone who has worked in an organization with a hierarchical structure knows how crucial delegation is. You can be given responsibility for a task, but you need authority and resources to complete it. Jesus gives His disciples both the authority (the right to proclaim the kingdom) and the power (the ability to heal and cast out demons). The Greek word for power here is δύναμιν (dynamin), which is where we get the word “dynamite.” It’s a reminder that this power is explosive in its potential.
This same authority and power have been given to us. In Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus declares, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations… teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” And in Acts 1:8, we read, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses…” We are called to carry out this task with both boldness and humility. We are to be emboldened by the power Jesus gives us, yet humble enough to remember that it’s not our power but His.
Unfortunately, we often allow fear or the world’s intolerance to silence us. But we are reminded in 2 Timothy 1:6-7, “For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” Romans 1:16 tells us, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.” Despite the challenges we face in sharing the gospel, we are called to be bold. At the same time, we should never let the power we’ve been given go to our heads. It’s delegated, just like when General Douglas MacArthur was stripped of his command because he forgot the source of his authority.
The disciples understood this well. In Acts 3:6, when Peter heals the lame beggar, he says, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!” Paul, too, approached his ministry with humility, as he writes in 1 Corinthians 2:1-2, “I did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.”
In Luke 9:3-6, Jesus gives specific instructions to His disciples: travel light, live among the people, and if a town rejects them, shake off the dust as a sign of judgment. This is not just practical advice, but a reminder to stay flexible to God’s leading, live among those we minister to, and to not be discouraged by rejection. In Romans 14:12, we are reminded that, “Each of us will give an account of himself to God.” Ultimately, everyone must answer to Jesus, and our task is to faithfully proclaim the gospel.
As Jesus’ disciples spread the word about Him, many were confused about who He was. Herod, for example, heard about Jesus and wondered if He was John the Baptist raised from the dead or perhaps one of the prophets. In Colossians 1:15-20, Paul gives us a clear answer: Jesus is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation, and through Him, all things were created. He is the head of the body, the church, and through His death and resurrection, He reconciles all things to Himself.
We too are called to declare who Jesus is with boldness, remembering the power and authority He’s delegated to us and carrying out the task with humility.
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