JESUS SENDS OUT THE SEVENTY-TWO, Ron Ward
WANTED: HARVEST WORKERS
Passage: Luke 10:1~16  
Key verse: 2
Jesus Sends Out the Seventy-Two(A)(B)(C)
10 After this the Lord(D) appointed seventy-two[a] others(E) and sent them two by two(F) ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go.(G) 2 He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.(H) 3 Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves.(I) 4 Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road.
5 “When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ 6 If someone who promotes peace is there, your peace will rest on them; if not, it will return to you. 7 Stay there, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages.(J) Do not move around from house to house.
8 “When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is offered to you.(K) 9 Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God(L) has come near to you.’ 10 But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, 11 ‘Even the dust of your town we wipe from our feet as a warning to you.(M) Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God has come near.’(N) 12 I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom(O) than for that town.(P)
13 “Woe to you,(Q) Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth(R) and ashes. 14 But it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you. 15 And you, Capernaum,(S) will you be lifted to the heavens? No, you will go down to Hades.[b]
16 “Whoever listens to you listens to me; whoever rejects you rejects me; but whoever rejects me rejects him who sent me.”(T)
Footnotes
- Luke 10:1 Some manuscripts seventy; also in verse 17
- Luke 10:15 That is, the realm of the dead
Cross references
- Luke 10:1 : 10:4-12pp — Lk 9:3-5
- Luke 10:1 : 10:13-15, 21, 22pp — Mt 11:21-23, 25-27
- Luke 10:1 : 10:23, 24pp — Mt 13:16, 17
- Luke 10:1 : S Lk 7:13
- Luke 10:1 : Lk 9:1, 2, 51, 52
- Luke 10:1 : Mk 6:7
- Luke 10:1 : Mt 10:1
- Luke 10:2 : Mt 9:37, 38; Jn 4:35
- Luke 10:3 : Mt 10:16
- Luke 10:7 : S 1Ti 5:18
- Luke 10:8 : 1Co 10:27
- Luke 10:9 : S Mt 3:2
- Luke 10:11 : S Mt 10:14
- Luke 10:11 : ver 9
- Luke 10:12 : S Mt 10:15
- Luke 10:12 : Mt 11:24
- Luke 10:13 : Lk 6:24-26
- Luke 10:13 : S Rev 11:3
- Luke 10:15 : S Mt 4:13
- Luke 10:16 : S Mt 10:40
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source:  BibleGateway
1. A plentiful harvest (1-2)
The Lord appointed 72 of his followers and sent them out two by two ahead of him into the towns he was planning to visit. Jesus was ready to reap a harvest of new believers! In our sinful generation, we might think that the harvest is slim or even nonexistent. We might give up in despair and think that such labor is pointless. However, Jesus says the harvest is plentiful. The fields are ripe for the picking! In every generation, God has been working and bringing people to salvation. He is working today in the lives of those around us. Jesus told the 72 to pray for even more workers. We too must pray for God to send more and more workers into the mission fields until the whole world is evangelized.
2. The Lord's instructions (3-16)
Jesus gave clear directions to the 72. They were to depend on His power and provision as they went out. They were to declare God's peace, heal the sick, and proclaim the kingdom of God. They were to be content with whatever was offered to them and when they faced rejection, they were to declare God's judgment. In this way, they served as official ambassadors of Jesus, our Lord and King.
Prayer: Father, send more workers out into the fields.
One Word: The harvest is plentiful