Commentary - Luke 9:1-6

Bird's-eye view

In this brief but potent passage, Jesus commissions the twelve for their first missionary journey. This is not a suggestion, but a deployment. He grants them both power and authority, two distinct but related concepts, to carry out a threefold task: casting out demons, healing the sick, and preaching the kingdom of God. This is the kingdom in miniature, a preview of the Church's work down through the centuries. The instructions that follow are designed to instill a radical dependence on God and to serve as a clear sign, both for the disciples and for those they minister to. They are to travel light, stripped of all earthly securities, making them a walking illustration of faith in God's provision. Their reception by the towns they enter will serve as a litmus test for those towns. A welcoming house becomes a temporary base of operations, while a rejecting town receives a solemn, dusty testimony against them. The disciples obey, and the result is the gospel being proclaimed and healing breaking out everywhere. This is the kingdom advancing, not with the tramp of legions, but with the footsteps of faithful men.

Outline

Clause-by-Clause Commentary

v. 1 And calling the twelve together, He gave them power and authority over all the demons and to heal diseases.

Jesus doesn't just gather the twelve for a pep talk. The verb "calling together" indicates a formal assembly. This is an official act. He is the king, and these are His emissaries. What He gives them is crucial. He gives them "power" (dunamis) and "authority" (exousia). Power is the raw ability to get something done, the spiritual horsepower. Authority is the right to use that power. A policeman may have the physical power to restrain someone, but he only has the authority to do so with a warrant. Christ gives His disciples both. They have the might and the right. And notice the scope: "over all the demons." Not some, not the junior varsity demons, but all of them. This is a total rout. The authority extends to healing diseases as well. This is a frontal assault on the two great miseries brought into the world by sin: demonic oppression and physical decay.

v. 2 And He sent them out to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.

Having equipped them, He now deploys them. The word "sent" is apostello, from which we get "apostle." They are the sent ones. Their mission has two prongs, which are really two sides of the same coin: word and deed. They are to "preach the kingdom of God." This is the central message of Jesus' own ministry. The kingdom is the rule and reign of God breaking into human history through the person and work of Christ. It's not just a future reality; it is "at hand." They are to announce that the king has arrived and His government is being established. But this isn't just a verbal announcement. It is accompanied by tangible demonstrations of that kingdom's power: "to heal the sick." The miracles are not the main event; they are the dinner bell calling people to the feast of the gospel. They are signs that point to the reality of the kingdom. When a lame man walks, it's a picture of how the gospel makes a dead sinner walk. The healing authenticates the preaching, and the preaching explains the healing.

v. 3 And He said to them, “Take nothing for your journey, neither a staff, nor a bag, nor bread, nor money; nor have two tunics apiece.

Here we get to the marching orders, and they are startling. The disciples are commanded to embrace a radical vulnerability. "Take nothing." This is strategic poverty. No staff for support or defense. No bag for provisions. No bread for the next meal. No money in their purse. Not even a change of clothes. Why? This accomplishes several things. First, it forces them into a state of absolute dependence on God. They have no Plan B. If God doesn't provide, they don't eat. This is basic training in faith. Second, it makes them travel fast and light. They are not encumbered by stuff. Their focus is entirely on the mission. Third, it communicates something powerful to the people they visit. These men are clearly not in it for the money. Their lack of provision is a testimony to their sincerity and the urgency of their message. They are living out the truth that man does not live by bread alone.

v. 4 And whatever house you enter, stay there until you leave that city.

This instruction is about focus and contentment. When they find a household that receives them, they are to make it their base of operations for that town. They are not to go "house-shopping," looking for better accommodations, a softer bed, or a better cook. That would be a distraction and would communicate a self-serving spirit. By staying in one place, they honor their hosts and demonstrate that their priority is the ministry of the gospel, not personal comfort. It prevents them from becoming ministry celebrities, moving up the social ladder from one host to another. They are to identify with the first family that opens its doors to the kingdom, whether that family is prominent or not.

v. 5 And as for those who do not receive you, as you go out from that city, shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.

The gospel is a proclamation that demands a response. It is never neutral. It brings either life or judgment. This verse deals with the negative response. Rejection of the messengers is a rejection of the King who sent them. The act of shaking the dust off their feet is a solemn, symbolic gesture. For a Jew, the dust of a Gentile land was considered unclean. To shake the dust of a Jewish town from one's feet was to declare that this town had acted like a pagan town. It had rejected the covenant God of Israel and His Messiah. It was a formal declaration that the disciples were done with them; they had discharged their responsibility. The opportunity had been offered and refused, and now judgment was coming. This is a "testimony against them." The dust itself will bear witness on the day of judgment that the kingdom of God came near and was spurned.

v. 6 And departing, they were going throughout the villages, proclaiming the gospel and healing everywhere.

The final verse is a summary of their obedience and the scope of their work. "And departing..." They did what Jesus told them to do. Simple obedience is the engine of the kingdom. They went "throughout the villages." This was a grassroots movement. The kingdom doesn't start in the capital city with the elites; it starts in the small towns, with the common people. And what did they do? Exactly what they were commissioned to do: "proclaiming the gospel" (the good news of the kingdom) and "healing everywhere." The word and the deed went together, just as Christ commanded. The power and authority He gave them were not left on a shelf. They were put to work, and the result was a widespread display of the kingdom's arrival. This was the first wave of the gospel that would eventually, as Jesus promised, fill the whole earth.

Key Issues

The Kingdom of God

When the disciples were sent out to preach "the kingdom of God," they were not announcing a political program or a new social ethic. They were announcing the invasive, transformative rule of Jesus Christ Himself. The kingdom of God is the central theme of Jesus' teaching, and it refers to God's reign breaking into the fallen world to redeem and restore it. It is both a present reality and a future hope. It is present wherever Jesus is acknowledged as King and His will is done. The healings and exorcisms were tangible proofs that the kingdom had arrived, demonstrating its power over sin, sickness, and Satan. The disciples were heralds of this new government, calling men to repent of their rebellion and swear fealty to the true King. This kingdom starts small, like a mustard seed, but it is destined to grow and fill the entire earth. Their preaching was the initial sowing of that seed.

Radical Dependence

The command to "take nothing" is a foundational lesson in kingdom economics. In the world's economy, you prepare for every contingency. You have savings, insurance, and a full pantry. In the kingdom's economy, your provision is the King Himself. This command was designed to strip the disciples of all self-reliance. They had to trust God for their very next meal. This is not a universal command for all missionaries for all time; Paul, for example, worked to support himself at times. But it was a crucial training exercise for these first apostles. It taught them that the work of the kingdom is sustained by the resources of the kingdom, not the resources of the world. It also served as a powerful sign to others. A man who travels with no money and no extra food, yet who lacks nothing, is a man whose God is real and whose message must be taken seriously. He is a living demonstration that "it is more blessed to give than to receive."

Shaking the Dust

The gesture of shaking the dust off one's feet is not an act of petty vindictiveness. It is a sober, judicial act. It is a declaration that a line has been crossed. The messengers of the King have delivered the terms of peace, and those terms have been rejected. Consequently, the town has forfeited its claim to the blessings of the covenant and has placed itself under the judgment of God. It is a way of saying, "We are clean of your blood. We did our duty, and you made your choice." This act makes the rejection formal and public. It is a testimony, a piece of evidence that will be brought forth in the final judgment. It underscores the profound seriousness of hearing the gospel. The gospel is not an offer you can take or leave without consequence. To reject the Son is to invite the wrath of the Father. This solemn act was a precursor to the judgment that would fall upon that generation of Israel for its ultimate rejection of the Messiah.

Application

This passage is a potent reminder for the Church in every age. First, we are reminded that our authority comes from Christ alone. We do not go out in our own strength or with our own clever ideas. We go with the power and authority He has delegated to us through His Word and Spirit. Our task is the same as that of the first disciples: to proclaim the kingdom and to demonstrate its reality through acts of love and healing. The particulars may look different, we may not all be casting out demons in the same way, but the principle is the same. Our words about the gospel must be accompanied by a life that reflects the gospel's power to transform.

Second, we are called to a life of faith and dependence on God. While we are not all commanded to travel without a wallet, we are all commanded to live without anxiety, seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, trusting that all these other things will be added to us. We must constantly fight the temptation to trust in our financial portfolios, our strategic plans, or our personal abilities rather than in the living God. Our security is not in what we have, but in who He is.

Finally, we must take the message of the gospel with the utmost seriousness. It is a matter of life and death. We must proclaim it with urgency and clarity, and we must also recognize that not all will receive it. When the gospel is rejected, we are not to despair, but to move on, faithfully continuing our work, leaving the results to God. We are responsible for the sowing, not the harvest. And we do so knowing that every act of faithful proclamation, whether received or rejected, is a testimony that will stand for all eternity to the glory of God's justice and mercy.