A Friend of God’s Friends

Hello there, welcome to today's encouragement from Our Daily Bread. The reading today titled A Friend of God's Friends was written by Mart De Haan. Something so cordial can happen in first introductions when two persons discover that they have a friend in common.

In what may be its most memorable form, a big-hearted host welcomes a guest with something like, So nice to meet you, any friend of Sam's or Samantha's is a friend of mine. Jesus said something similar. He'd been attracting crowds by healing many, but he'd also been making enemies of local religious leaders by disagreeing with the way they were commercializing the temple and misusing their influence. In the middle of a growing conflict, he made a move to multiply the joy, cost, and wonder of his presence. He gave his disciples the ability to heal others, and sent them out to announce that the kingdom of God was at hand. He assured the disciples in Matthew chapter 10, Anyone who welcomes you, welcomes me, and in turn, welcomes his Father, who sent him as well.

It's hard to imagine a more life-changing offer of friendship. For anyone who would open their house or even give a cup of cold water to one of his disciples, Jesus assured a place in the heart of God. While that moment happened a long time ago, his words remind us that in big and little acts of kindness and hospitality, there are still ways of welcoming and being welcomed as a friend of the friends of God. Today's Our Daily Bread devotional scripture reading is taken from the Gospel of Matthew chapter 10 verses 1-11 and verses 40-42. Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. These are the names of the twelve apostles.

First, Simon, who is called Peter, and his brother Andrew, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, Philip and Bartholomew, Thomas and Matthew the tax collector, James son of Alphaeus and Thaddeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot who betrayed him. These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions, Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. As you go, proclaim this message, The kingdom of heaven has come near.

Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give. Do not get any gold or silver or copper to take with you in your belts. No bag for the journey or extra shirt or sandals or a staff, for the worker is worth his keep.

Whatever town or village you enter, search there for some worthy person and stay at their house until you leave. And now picking up in verse forty, Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. Whoever welcomes a prophet as a prophet will receive a prophet's reward, and whoever welcomes a righteous person as a righteous person will receive a righteous person's reward. And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones who is my disciple, truly I tell you that person will certainly not lose their reward. Now let's pray. Father, thank you for giving us a chance to be a part of the good news that has its source in you. And it's in Jesus' name that we pray. Amen. Thanks for listening today, my friend. My name is Wes Ward, and today's encouragement was provided by Our Daily Bread Ministries.