Jesus Sent Them Out With No Money and No Spare Shoes

Sermon outline

Every Christian is a leader sent out by Jesus, and we can only lead others to the Lord when we are submitted and obedient to Him, letting Him fly the plane.

1. Every believer's duty is to go

   It is every believer's duty to lead: to go out, tell people about Jesus and lay hands on them, and the signs follow as you go, not before. Don't wait to be anointed; you are anointed. Don't take unworthiness with you, whether lazy companions or friends who pull you back to where you came from. When someone hears but will not listen, shake off the dust and move on, because there has to be reciprocation.

   Illustration: Goldilocks Christians try one bowl of porridge after another, too hot, too cold, and hop from church to church looking for the one that is just right. We never let our children change schools because they dislike a teacher's style; we tell them to do the work.

   “Just because somebody hears you doesn't mean they listen.”

   • Matthew 10:5-15
   • Matthew 7:6

2. Sheep among wolves: raise the standard

   Not everybody is going to like you, so be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. Never lose your testimony for the sake of the wolves; when others drop their standard, raise yours. You do not have to be eloquent, because the Spirit of your Father will give you what to say in that hour, at work, at family gatherings and at university as much as when leading someone to the Lord.

   “Just because somebody drops their standard doesn't mean we got to drop our standard.”

   • Matthew 10:16-20

3. Not above the teacher, and not afraid

   A disciple is not above his teacher. If they called the master of the house Beelzebub, they will do the same to His household, and there is no anointing, victory or healing without Jesus. Do not fear people: what is hidden will be revealed in time, and you will be found righteous. What He tells you in the secret place, speak in the light. You are worth more than many sparrows.

   “There is freedom in the fear of the Lord.”

   • Matthew 10:21-33

4. Not peace but a sword: choose God over family

   The peace Jesus brings is different from the world's, and whoever loves father, mother, son or daughter more than Him is not worthy of Him. When it comes to your family, His Word and righteousness in your home, you choose God. While children live under your roof you bring order and structure; once they leave, you move into an advisory role, like a pastor, with only the Word.

   Illustration: As soon as he could work, his father told him that if he would not pay his tithe he would have to leave the house, because that curse would not live in his home. His bags were put out a couple of times, because righteousness mattered more to his father than his love for him.

   “I cannot adequately teach my children if I'm not prepared to lose them because they are being unrighteous.”

   • Matthew 10:34-39
   • Proverbs 22:6

5. The first two keys: availability and worship

   He recaps the four keys. Key one is availability: overcoming excuses puts you in the right place for God's moment. Key two is worship: when the disciples saw Him they worshipped, though some doubted, because God looks for a worshipful heart, not perfection. Every decision not to sin, every walk away from losing your testimony, every early morning in prayer and every confession of the Word over what you see is an act of worship.

   “Your greatest ability is your availability.”

   • Matthew 28:17

6. Key three: submission

   Before He gave the command, Jesus established that all authority is His. Biblical submission is not weakness or the loss of your voice; it is aligning with God's higher authority so that it produces results. Everyone is submitted to something, whether emotions, fear, culture or God's Word, and you cannot get godly results while living carnally. Submission is hardest when we love our own way, but freedom and anointing are on the other side; that is the journey from Gilgal, the place of circumcision.

   Illustration: A doctor does not create the laws of biology but submits to them, and a pilot does not invent aerodynamics but submits to physics and gravity. You cannot smoke two packs a day and then fight the biology when the diagnosis comes.

   “Biblical submission is not weakness, it is an alignment with God's higher authority that produces the results in your life.”

   • Matthew 28:18
   • Philippians 2:13

7. Key four: obedience

   Because Jesus has all authority, He sends us: go and make disciples. A disciple follows with the intent of becoming. The rich ruler wanted salvation without surrender, a Saviour without the Lord, but Jesus takes us whole. When we live our own way we no longer look like God's original design, and people do not recognise the authority we carry. Everyone is being led by something, so ask who is flying your plane.

   Illustration: A church waited hours at the airport for a visiting pastor who had sent a photograph thirty years younger than he was; they were looking for the wrong man. On a violently turbulent flight everyone screamed for Jesus except a little girl who kept colouring, because, she said, her daddy was the pilot.

   “It's very easy to lead people to the Lord when you are being led by the Lord. It's very hard to lead people if you are the lord of your life.”

   • Matthew 28:19-20
   • Luke 18:22-23
   • Jeremiah 1:5
   • Jeremiah 29:11

In this message