A Deeper Look at Matthew:  An End-Times Bible Study
Copyright 2012
 
 
Matthew 10
 
            Here, Jesus calls the twelve disciples and gives them power to cast out unclean spirits and to heal all kinds of sickness and disease.  As Christians, we need to fast and pray in order to keep unclean spirits out of our lives.  Ephesians 6:12 says, "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."  As Christians, we have power over Satan and his demons by using the mighty Name of Jesus.
            I can tell you that when you are stuck in sin, you are a servant of sin, as Jesus says in John 8:34.  Who or what do you think causes you to sin?  Where do you get the thoughts that constantly stream through your head?  Well, there are only two ultimate sources - God or Satan.  Satan is constantly telling his demons and spirits to send evil thoughts into our heads to try to stir up our flesh and get us to sin.  The Bible says in Galatians 5:24, "And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts."
            If you are one of God's people, Satan is going to try especially hard with you, to send you all kinds of thoughts and images, to entice you to sin.  You see, people that do not know Christ as Savior already belong to Satan.  Satan, in a sense, takes them for granted.  It is the people of God that Satan is after.  I can tell you that I am constantly being tempted to sin.  And Satan uses these evil spirits to do a number of things, which I will mention.  He uses these unclean spirits to cause disease in your body and, when you are a slave to sin, he uses them to continue goading you to commit sin.  When you sin, you serve sin.  However, when you repent and stay sin free, you keep the evil spirits at bay.  When you sin, you are allowing the evil spirits into your life.  That is why you constantly need to pray and regularly fast.  Constant praying and regular fasting will keep your communion with God steady and keep the unclean spirits away.
            You must not sin, because, if you do, you are giving permission for the unclean spirits to come into your life.  However, by repentance, and constant prayer and regular fasting, you keep the unclean spirits out of your life.
            The twelve apostles are mentioned by their respective names in Matthew 10:2-4.
            Jesus commands these twelve to go forth but not into any Gentile (non-Jewish) city or Samaritan (partly Jewish) cities.  Instead, He tells them to go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.  What does He mean by this.  Well, Jesus is telling them to go to those Jews who have strayed from the sheepfold.  In other words, he wants the apostles to go to those Jews who have lost their way and are in a dry, spiritual desert.  They will be rejuvenated and refreshed by the hope these apostles share with them - hope through the simple Gospel of Jesus Christ.
            Jesus tells them to simply preach that "The kingdom of heaven is at hand."  He tells them to heal people, including lepers, raise the dead, and cast out devils (demons).  He tells them to give freely, as they have received freely.
            He also tells them in 10:9-10 to take no money with them when they go.  I find this very interesting.  Money is a very interesting thing.  Having money in your pocket affects your psyche.  Have you ever walked around with a lot of money in your pocket, like perhaps a thousand dollars or so?  When you walk around with money in your pocket, it may give you a little pride in thinking that you are independent from the world and that you do not need other people.  Money is a curious thing and if you pay too much attention to it, it can hurt your soul.  Remember what 1 Timothy 6:10 says:  "For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows."
            This is a very important verse and Jesus knows very well the effects money has on human psyche.  Walking around with money in your pocket is not like walking around with no money in your pocket.  Jesus did not want the disciples putting even a little faith in the money they would have carried around with them.  If they were to embrace money even a little bit, it would cause them to have all types of problems, like perhaps high-mindedness (1 Timothy 6:17), or a false sense of security.  God wants us to put all our faith, hope, and trust in Him - not in money - and Jesus knows the dangers that money can create when He commands them to not take any money with them in sending them forth.
            The love of money destroys marriages.  Husbands and wives don't love their spouses any more.  They love money.  People don't like to do labor-intensive jobs like hand splitting wood or even making dinner.  People today are extremely lazy.  They aren't willing to work - they talk on the phone all day and call that work.  That's not work - that's laziness.  When folks have a problem - they don't work on it for themselves - they just throw some money at it.  Never before have people been so in love with money and never have they been so evil at the same time.  Money will destroy your life if you let it.  Again, 1 Timothy 6:10!
            So Jesus tells the apostles to go out and tells them to take nothing but the clothes on their backs.  He then says that the workman is worthy of his food.
            Jesus tells the apostles, in sending them forth, in 10:11, to "enquire who in it (the city or town they enter) is worthy."  This is very interesting.  What type of people is Jesus referring to here?  Well, He is telling the apostles to find people who will welcome them with open arms and not tell them to "get lost and take a hike."  That's right - Jesus is telling the apostles to find people who will HEAR THE GOSPEL - that is, the elect, saved people.  The children of the devil are not "worthy" and if the apostles preach the kingdom of God to them, they may get assaulted and kicked out of town.  So, Jesus tells them to try to find people in these cities who are "worthy," (aka saved people) like themselves.
            He goes on to tell them when they come to a house, to salute it.  And a salute from the twelve apostles of Jesus is a VERY BIG DEAL!  Imagine one of the twelve apostles of Jesus Christ coming to YOUR house to preach the Gospel and heal any and all diseases your family may have.  This is MAJOR.  So, Jesus tells them to salute the house and if the house is worthy, their peace will come upon it but if it is not worthy their peace will return to them.  A heaven-bound household will embrace the apostles send while a hell-bound household will not.  He goes on to tell the apostles that, if they are not received, when they leave they must shake off the dust off their feet.  Any city or house that rejects the apostles will be judged in a more severe manner than even Sodom and Gomorrha (10:15).
            The apostles are sent forth as sheep in the midst of wolves and Jesus tells them to be wise as serpents but harmless as doves.  Then Jesus goes off on what seems a diatribe about what saints can expect when they do what Jesus is sending the apostles off to do.  Jesus says that  the people of God will be delivered up to councils and scourged in their synagogues.  He says they will be brought before leaders for the sake of Jesus, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles.
            He goes on to say that, when this happens, do not concern yourself with what you will say, for it will be given you at the appropriate time, what you will say.  For, it is not you who are speaking, but the Spirit of our heavenly Father who is speaking through us.  Jesus goes on to say that family members will turn against each other, delivering them to death.  All kinds of people will hate you for the cause of Christ but he who endures to the end will be saved (10:22.)
            What does Jesus mean when He says that you need to "endure to the end" to be saved?  What happens if you don't endure to the end?  Is there anybody in the Bible that did not endure to the end?
            Take a look at the first king of Israel, King Saul.  He is anointed by the seer Samuel, in 1 Samuel 15:1.  Saul prophesies among the prophets in 1 Samuel 10:11 and the people ask themselves if Saul is among the prophets.  We learn from 1 Samuel 11:6 that the Spirit of God influences Saul's life.  However, later, in 1 Samuel 15, the Bible says that Saul transgresses the commandment of the LORD, for he "feared the people, and obeyed their voice (1 Sam 15:24)."  So the seer (prophet) Samuel says to Saul in 1 Samuel 15:26, "For thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD hath rejected thee from being king over Israel."
            The main point I am trying to make is found in 1 Samuel 16:14.  Note what is said:  "But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD troubled him."  This is very important.  So Saul goes from a man who has the Spirit of God to a man who is troubled by an evil spirit.  What does it mean when God takes His Spirit away from you?  It means nothing less than you have lost your salvation and you have not endured till the end.  Jesus says that you need to endure to the end to be saved.  Saul simply did not endure to the end.  Saul falls into sin and tries to kill an innocent man, David.  Saul burns in hell to this day.  I pray Zechariah 9:11 over Saul.
            When you get saved, you need to stay pure and holy.  You must not sin, because, if you do, God can take His Spirit away from you.  When this happens, evil spirits come in to take Its place.  What happens when your life is run by evil spirits instead of the Spirit of God, like what happened to Saul?  You are a child of the devil.
            Back to Matthew 10.  Jesus tells the apostles in verse 23 to flee from a city when persecuted and that they will not have gone over the cities of Israel till Jesus is come.
            Jesus says in 10:24-25 that the disciple is not above his master nor the servant above his lord.  It is "enough" if the disciple be as his master, and the servant as his lord.  We, as children of God, are in training daily to be like our Master Jesus.  With every word we say or every action we take, we are either becoming more like Jesus, or we are not.  We need to be holy, as He is holy.  Jesus says in 10:25 that we will be as He is.  He later says in that verse, that, if your master is Beelzebub (Satan), you will be a devil in training, a "Satan" just like your master.
            Jesus tells the people to not fear the evildoers in 10:26.  But, how many people actually heed these words?  Most people do not fear God today, rather, they fear the devil.  But the devil only has the power God created him with.  I watched part of Superbowl 46 this year and the commercials for certain upcoming movies were literally straight out of hell.  I just turned my head when they were on.  My dad commented to me that he was scared of the commercials.  Today, the people watch movies and TV shows that scare them to death.  People do not fear the power of Almighty God but, rather, they fear the power of the devil.  I don't know if you have noticed this, but every person I see that speaks to Barack Obama, as in a question or interview, fears the man.  Does this tell you anything?
            The apostle Paul says in Romans 3:16-18: "Destruction and misery are in their ways: and the way of peace have they not known: there is no fear of God before their eyes."  Evil people do not know God, don't care about God, and therefore don't fear God.  But, having so many characteristics of their father the devil, they fear him instead.  Evil people can relate to the devil, they can speak to the devil as their friend.  And, because Satan has more power than they themselves do, they fear the devil.
            When you are walking through a scary valley where there is the shadow of death, you must not fear evil (Psalm 23:4).  Why does the Psalmist not fear the evil all around him in the 23rd Psalm?  It says in this very verse BECAUSE GOD IS WITH HIM!  When God's precious Spirit is inside of you, you HAVE NO REASON TO FEAR.  God is greater than any evil that may be surrounding you!  He is in total control and there is no need to fear.
            Jesus goes on to say in the second half of Matthew 10:26 that there is nothing covered that shall not be revealed.  In other words, the secret things shall come out and will no longer be secrets.  God sees all the things that are done in secret and He will expose the secrets.  Evil operates in the dark and in secret, hoping not to be exposed, lest the people find out and throw the evildoers in prison.  These same evildoers, when they do a "good" work, like making a monetary gift, always publicize and broadcast it far and wide for all to see.
            Jesus tells the people, what they hear from Him in darkness, to speak in the light, and to preach what they hear in their ear on the housetops.  Why?  Jesus has good things to say (ie, the truth), and good words from the Savior need to be broadcast far and wide.
            Jesus, in 10:28, tells the people to not fear one who is able to kill the body but not the soul.  Rather, He says, fear Him who is able to destroy both the soul and body in hell.  You need to understand, the devil can easily kill your body simply by stirring up his people to do so (assuming God allows this).  But, more than this, the devil wants to destroy your soul.  He does this, by constantly enticing you and tempting you to sin.  Remember what was said earlier about King Saul.  King Saul sins and loses the precious Spirit of God because he fell into sin.  Matthew 10:22 says "he that endureth to the end shall be saved."  When you are filled with the Spirit of God, the devil will everything possible to get you to sin, so that the Spirit of God departs from you and you lose your salvation.  Hebrews 6:4-6 says,  "For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift (the Spirit of God), and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, if they shall fall away (fall back into sin), to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame."  Simply, once your name is in the Book of Life, it needs to stay in there until you die and not be blotted out (Revelation 3:5).
            Jesus shows how much our Father loves us in 10:29-31.  Even though a sparrow can be bought for half a farthing, one of them does not fall to the ground without God noticing.  He goes on to say that even the very hairs of our head are all numbered and that we are of more value than many sparrows.  How much does God love us!  He knows every detail of our lives, much, much more than we even know about ourselves.  He really is so awesome!
            Jesus says in 10:32-33 that, if we confess His name before men, He will also confess our name before God the Father.  But if we deny His name before men, He will also deny us before God the Father.  You aren't ashamed of the name of Jesus, are you?
            Jesus goes on to say in 10:34-36 that He is not come to send peace on earth but a sword.  He is come to set us at variance with those of our very household.  He says our enemies will be those of our very household.  I can tell you this is true with me.  When I stand up for the truth in my household, I am reviled and rejected.  I am hated because Jesus is a part of my life.  This prophecy in Matthew 10:35 has proven true in my life.  If you stand up for Jesus, the unsaved members of your family will hate and reject you.
            Jesus says in 10:37 that if you do not love Him more than your family members, you are not worthy of Him.  Jesus needs to be the number one love of your life, or else you are not worthy of Him.  He goes on to say in 10:38 that if you do not take up your cross and follow after Him, you are not worthy of Him.  What does He mean by this?  Well, Jesus knows that when you follow Him, you will be hated, rejected, despised, and persecuted.  This is the cross that you bear for following Him.  But it is well worth it and you will see this is true when you see your rewards in heaven!
            Jesus says something peculiar in 10:39 - "He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it."  What does He mean by this?  Well, simply you will lose [eternal] life if you find [live your life for yourself and not for Him] your life.  A life not dedicated to Him will eventually find itself in hell (Acts 4:12).
            Jesus says something to His people in 10:40 - those that receive them are receiving Jesus and those that receive Jesus are receiving Him (God the Father) that sent Jesus.  He goes on to say. in 10:40-41, that if you receive a prophet in the name of a prophet, you will receive a prophet's reward and those that receive a righteous man in the name of a righteous man will receive a righteous man's reward.  Finally, those that give a cup of cold water to one of the little ones (followers of Jesus, but more specifically the apostles of Jesus), in the name of a disciple, will not lose their reward.