In this series, we want to look at what Matthew teaches us about the church. The book of Matthew is a story about authority, the unveiling of this king that comes to God’s people that declare that He comes to rule and reign.
Matthew is about the invasion of the heavenly kingdom onto earthly kingdoms.
In this section of Matthew, we read about the twelve disciples or apostles. The word disciple means “follower” and an apostle is one who is commissioned and sent out. Thus, the ones who come as disciples to follow Jesus are sent out as apostles. There are twelve of them, and the Gospels name them for us. The number “twelve” is significant because it represents the totality and fullness of God’s people in the form of the twelve tribes of Israel.
When Jesus comes and gives the twelve authority, Jesus is performing a reset. They are so critical because it is upon these apostles and their witness that the church is built.
(A) The foundations for a new Israel (Matt 10:1-4)
Jesus Christ’s work is to proclaim the good news of the kingdom (Matt 9:35) but He does not intend to do this alone (Matt 9:38). Jesus moves from city to city and goes to teach in their synagogues (Matt 9:35a). He proclaims the gospel of the kingdom, bringing the good news that God’s kingdom has already arrived on earth (Mark 9:35b). Jesus also healed (Matt 9:35c) but notice the role of these healings relative to His goal. The healings, in the Gospels, are there as a form of validation, to testify to His authority that He is the one that can restore fullness.
The main purpose of Jesus’ ministry is to bring the gospel of the kingdom and the healings support this.
Jesus also concludes that the problem is that the harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few and He desires more to go out (Matt 9:37-38). Therefore, He calls twelve disciples to accomplish His work (Matt 10:1).
This approach might not be the most efficient and we might have questions about His strategy. We may think we are qualified to make inputs but frankly, we are not. This is humbling because it makes us pause and consider how He is the king who makes sovereign decisions.
We read of how Jesus calls Simon (Peter), Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew, James, Thaddeus, Simon the Cananaean (or Zealot) and Judas Iscariot (Matt 10:2-4).
What do we know about them? They were Jewish men and some were brothers. Some needed to be named relative to their fathers to distinguish them from others — indicating how they were known in the community. We learn that Matthew is a tax collector, and as a tax collector, he would have been despised by the community for working with the Romans. They had different political leanings too (Simon and Matthew). In the group too, one would betray Jesus.
Among the twelve, some were known and some were completely unknown. Church history tells us a bit more about where they went after Jesus’ ascension but as we read these names, remember that in the Kingdom, some may be more well-known than others, but the Lord knows all. Take heart.
The most important thing is that there were twelve of them. This is a significant number. (cf. Rev 21:12-13) By the time John wrote Revelation, it was understood that Jesus’ twelve would form the foundation of the church. This is just as significant as the twelve tribes of Israel was to a Jew. Jesus came to make Israel new, through these twelve apostles.
(B) The foundations for the kingdom of heaven (Matt 10:5-15)
Jesus then sends out the twelve and instructed them to go nowhere among the Gentiles and not to enter the town of the Samaritans (Matt 10:5). They were told to go to the “lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matt 10:6). Matthew is signalling to readers that Jesus prioritised the preaching of Israel, with the authority of David being sent out to gather lost sheep.
They are to go out and proclaim that the kingdom of heaven is at hand — the main action — which is supported by four accompanying actions — heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers and cast out demons (Matt 10:7-8). These all need to be done with authority, and the miraculous healings are not ends in themselves. The power for salvation and restoration is in the gospel.
They were told not to receive without paying and give without pay, i.e. not to charge for their ministry (Matt 10:8). They are not to think that they are service providers. Jesus also tells them not to acquire gold, silver not copper and not to carry a bag nor two tunics, sandals and staff (Matt 10:9). They were to show that they had no intention of profiting from their ministry. This is the extent that Jesus went to demonstrate that they could not buy the gospel. The disciples were not to taint the work of the gospel with any transactions.
Yet they should also be provided for in the work (Matt 10:10b), trusting in God to provide for them what they need. God will provide for the worker as they do the work.
In each place, they had to find out “who is worthy in it” and stay there until they depart (Matt 10:11). This is a worthiness in the form of hospitality, i.e. they were to find one who is hospitable. To those that reject the words, they were told to shake off the dust from their feet (Matt 10:14), and they will face their own judgement in future (Matt 10:15). Matthew also refers to Sodom and Gomorrah in Matthew 10:19, cities who were inhospitable and committed in their pursuit of sexual sins.
The apostles were to proclaim the arrival of the kingdom, and where they go, the kingdom of heaven is revealed.
(C) The foundations hold up the dwelling place of God (c.f., Eph 2:11-22)
We move now to look at Paul’s epistle in Ephesians 2:11-22. Paul addressed the Gentiles and spoke of how they were once separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise (Eph 2:12). The Jews, however, had the law and had the sign of circumcision.
But Jesus has brought peace, breaking down in His flesh the dividing wall of hostility, and made them one in Him, abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances (Eph 2:13-16). He did it in His flesh. When He died, He satisfied all the righteous requirement of the law, so that the law can no longer be used to divide Jew from Gentile. And because of the fullness of the work of Jesus, both Jew and Gentile can stand in the righteousness of Jesus and be a part of this one new man (Eph 2:19).
What does it mean to have this righteousness in Christ and the ability to stand before God not by our works, but fully by the work of Christ alone? Practically, this means that none of us have a right to deny salvation by faith alone to any one. By God’s grace, everyone can have access to God the Father.
And this gospel of grace forms the church. All may enter and none can be excluded, and all who enter are united to Jesus Christ on the basis of grace. Jesus is the cornerstone, and the church is built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets (Eph 2:20).
In John 17:17-23, we read of how Jesus prays for His disciples and all who follow after, who believe in Jesus through the words of the disciples.
Therefore, from Ephesians 2, we learn that the church, built on the foundation of the apostles, should refer to the New Testament as these were Scripture written by these men of God. In John 14:25, Jesus also assures the disciples that He will give them the Spirit to bring to mind these things that He has taught them.
Friends, the church goes astray when the Bible is closed and when we chase after new ecstatic experiences and pursue new revelation apart from Scripture. The church is on solid ground when we return to the word. God has designed for us to know Him in this way — through His word. Let us then go back to Scripture and seek to be as close to what the Scripture says on every topic and subject.