In Mark Chapter 6, we learn that Jesus came back to His hometown, which was Nazareth. He preached a little and did a little healing ministry but was not particularly well received. Why? Because the hometown folks thought of Jesus as the neighbor’s son next door. He just wasn't special to them. They said, “Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” As it turns out, it wasn't a particularly fruitful visit, in terms of ministry. A few verses later in this account, we come to today's passage. Let's listen to it:

Calling the Twelve to him, he began to send them out two by two and gave them authority over impure spirits. These were his instructions: “Take nothing for the journey except a staff—no bread, no bag, no money in your belts. Wear sandals but not an extra shirt. Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town. And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, leave that place and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.” They went out and preached that people should repent. They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them. (Mark 6:7-13)

The disciples were with Jesus when He went to His hometown so they saw the rejection that He had experienced. In today's passage, Jesus is sending them out to do ministry, doing things they had learned from being with Him. After all, a disciple isn't just someone who memorizes what the Master says; a disciple is someone who is learning to do the things that He did. This time, Jesus sent them out in teams and gave them specific instructions. After giving them authority over demons, He told them to go without provisions of any kind. If someone takes you in, don't go from house to house but stay with the ones who took you in. If people in a village reject you, shake the dust off your feet and move on. Now I find that interesting. Jesus prepared His disciples to expect rejection. When rejection came, they were told not to get mad or frustrated, but to simply move on. We read the results of this short term mission in the final sentence: “They went out and preached that people should repent. They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.” Jesus doesn't expect you and me to talk people into the Kingdom of God, but He does expect that we will tell people about Him. If they reject the gospel, don't stay and argue about it...just move on and tell someone else the Good News of Jesus Christ!