Sunday 28 May 2023

Psalm 104

Background

In Jerusalem, it was the evening of Easter Day. In a room that may have hosted the Last Supper three days before, the disciples now cower in fear of their lives. Into this tense scene walks Jesus, declaring Shalom ('peace') and showing his frightened friends that it is indeed he and that here is the terrible physical evidence to prove it.

Jesus wished them peace once again (verse 21) and then lays out in one sentence just what it is that his return means for their future purpose in life: "As the Father has sent me, so I send you". The implications of this define the mission to which the risen Christ calls his disciples.

This mission is firstly to be central to their being. As Jesus is the sent one defined by the mission of God, so disciples are sent by Jesus and defined by their mission to the world. Jesus conformed to the likeness of the one who sent him, and so the degree to which disciples are committed to his mission is a measure of how much they conform to the likeness of Jesus who sends them.

Secondly this mission is a continuation of the work of Jesus. It is the great movement of the missionary heart of God, expressed through God sending Jesus who then sends his disciples. Just as Jesus is sent to do the will of God (John 8:28), so disciples are to continue in that same faithfulness.

Thirdly this mission is a costly commitment. Jesus' obedience to God the Father who sent him cost him everything (Philippians 2:7). So if disciples are being sent by Jesus in the same way to fulfil the same mission, they are to expect the same need for sacrificial commitment.

In equipping for this mission Jesus offers in verse 22 what John Wesley (in Notes on the New Testament) describes as "an earnest of Pentecost",a sign or promise of the fullness of the Holy Spirit joyously available to all disciples to fulfil their missional calling subsequent to the events of Acts 2.

To Ponder:

• What glimpses can you see in your life and the life of your church that demonstrate continuity with the ministry of Jesus?
• How might we be more open to receiving the Holy Spirit to equip us for Jesus' mission?

Previously published in 2017.