Luke Chapter 10

There are so many people who need to hear the truth of the gospel message today. This was also true in Jesus’ day. Using a farming analogy, Jesus said that the harvest is plenteous, but the laborers are few. The time of His crucifixion was drawing near and there were still so many people who had not heard the gospel in little towns and villages. These were towns that Jesus planned to go to, but they had not yet had the privilege of seeing the miracles Jesus had performed. He knew that seeing the power of God demonstrated would open their eyes to the truths of His message. And so Jesus appointed seventy-two disciples to go ahead of Him and gave them power to heal.

Let's Reflect

1. The Bible doesn’t say why Jesus picked 72 disciples. There is no reason to speculate why He picked that specific number. What we do see is that He did not send them alone. Why did He divide them up in twos?

2. Jesus did tell them that some would not receive them well. What were they to do when rejected by some?

3. The cities of Tyre and Sidon were known for being sinful places, but the cities of Chorazin and Bethsaida had been places where Jesus’ ministry had already been seen, miracles had been performed. Jesus is stating that these cities have more responsibility to accept the truth because they had seen the power of God demonstrated before their eyes. What did Jesus indicate about their judgement – those who reject the Messiah?

4. When the 72 disciples returned, they were filled with joy. And rightly so. But sometimes people can get so emotionally attached to the success of their ministry that they lose sight of who is the author of their success. How did Jesus express to them a warning of being careful about ministry success? What could happen to them?

5. Note that Jesus was not saying they shouldn’t rejoice, because what did Jesus do in verses 21-24 regarding the ministry carried out by His disciples?

6. A lawyer approached Jesus asking what he had to do to obtain eternal life. So Jesus turned the question back on him. What question did Jesus ask him?

7. The lawyer thought that he could love God properly, but he needed the term neighbor to be defined for him. How did Jesus define the term neighbor for him?

8. Can you imagine Martha’s excitement as she welcomed Jesus into her home? She wanted everything to be just perfect for Him, I’m sure. Jesus said she was anxious and troubled when it wasn’t necessary to be so. What He wanted her to see was the importance of just spending quality time with Him. Who understood that principle in this chapter?