Luke 9:1-6

In today’s gospel we se Jesus sending out the twelve to preach the Word of God and to heal. In the ancient days there was in effect only one way of spreading a message abroad and that was by word of mouth. Newspapers did not exist; books had to be hand-written. Radio and television had been dreamed of. That is why Jesus sent out the twelve on this mission. He was under the limitation of time and space; his helpers had to be mouths to speak for him.

As he sends his apostles out, there is one thing which stands out about the ministry which Jesus laid upon the twelve – over and over again in this short passage it joins preaching and healing. It joins concerns fro men’s bodies and men’s souls. It was something which was not to deal only in words, however comforting; but also in deeds. It was a message which was not confined to news of eternity; it also proposed to change conditions on earth. It was the reverse of a religion of “pie in the sky.” It insisted that health to men’s bodies was as integral a part of God’s purpose as health to their souls.

Nothing has done the Church more harm than the repeated statement that the things of this world do not matter. General Booth was once blamed for offering food and meals to poor people instead of the simple gospel. The old warrior flashed back, “It is impossible to comfort men’s hearts with the love of God when their feet are perishing with cold.” In today’s language we would say, “you cannot preach to a hungry stomach.” Of course, it is possible to overstress material things. But it is equally possible to neglect them.

My dear friends, as disciples and followers of Christ, by virtue of baptism, each of us is sent to proclaim the good news of God. And we don’t have to go very far to proclaim the good news of God. We can start in our own homes, in the place where we work, in whatever circumstances we are in. As father or mother in a family, you can preach the good news of God by setting good examples to your children, by living a life of righteousness, goodwill, being faithful to your wife or husband. As an employee you can preach the word of God in the workplace by living a life of justice, honesty and fairness; by setting good examples to your co-workers; by living the values of Christ in whatever circumstances you are in.

Indeed, all of us are called for this mission. Are we ready to respond to Christ’s invitation?