Daily Devotional For Saturday, October 18, 2025
Good morning Southside! It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood as Mr. Rogers used to say. We are making our way through Matthew’s Gospel. Today, we pick up where we left off yesterday with the second half of Matthew 10:5-15:
“These twelve Jesus sent out after instructing them: “Do not go in the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter any city of the Samaritans; (6) but rather go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. (7) And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ (8) Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you receive, freely give. (9) Do not acquire gold, or silver, or copper for your money belts, (10) or a bag for your journey, or even two coats, or sandals, or a staff; for the worker is worthy of his support. (11) And whatever city or village you enter, inquire who is worthy in it, and stay at his house until you leave that city. (12) As you enter the house, give it your greeting. (13) If the house is worthy, give it your blessing of peace. But if it is not worthy, take back your blessing of peace. (14) Whoever does not receive you, nor heed your words, as you go out of that house or that city, shake the dust off your feet. (15) Truly I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city” (NASB).
Jesus sent His disciples out in pairs to share the Gospel and He empowered them to do some powerful miracles. Jesus told His disciples how to respond to being a guest in a home and even a town. Jesus told His disciples that when they entered a home of a fellow Jew who had invited them, they were to greet him. The actual specific greeting is found in Luke 10:5. Jesus knew that in His day, Jews believed a superstition that blessings could be given as well as taken back. Meaning if that household was receptive to the Gospel, bless it.
If that household was unreceptive, then the blessing of peace was to be taken back. Meaning that judgment would come upon that house. There was a reciprocity of blessing here. We see this in Jesus’ words in Matthew 10:40, “He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me” (NASB). Shaking dust off one’s sandals (vs. 14) was considered as showing extreme contempt towards someone. Just like sin sticks to us, dust stuck to people’s sandals back then.
Jesus knew that His disciples would experience some rejection as He had in the Decapolis (Matthew 8:34). In Jesus’ day to shake the dust off your feet and/or sandals was considered an act of total repudiation. Pious Jews often did this if they had to pass through Gentile and Samaritan areas. Doing this was also a sign that you no longer wanted anything to do with the people of that area. Thus, for the disciples to do this was a sign of judgment on that town or house. Since the people or town had rejected the Gospel shared to them by the disciples, they were now left facing God’s judgment. This had eternal consequences.
Some have erroneously misinterpreted this to mean that when Christians share the Gospel and it is rejected, they should no longer attempt to share again with that person or area. Just leave them in their sin to die and go to hell. Jesus was telling His disciples to treat non-believing Jews like non-believing Gentiles. Remember this is their “trial run or test.” This is the first time they have done this and time is of essence. The point being is that when someone rejects the Gospel they are now responsible for the eternal consequences of their decision.
Then Jesus made a reference to two well known cities in the Old Testament and what happened to them (Sodom and Gomorrah) mentioned in Genesis 19:24-25. In Jesus’ day to a Jew what happened to these two cities was not just a lesson of punishment against great evil and sin, but was also a picture of the finality of divine judgment. Those today who reject the Gospel will be worse off than the people destroyed in Sodom and Gomorrah. As we saw yesterday, our motivation in sharing the Gospel is compassion. Someone once said this, “When it comes to sharing the Gospel, God chooses outcasts to reach other outcasts.”
What we see here are common, uneducated and uncouth men sharing the Gospel. These are not polished “Billy Grahams” of their day. This is the first time they have ever done this. This is the Apostle Paul’s point of us in 1 Corinthians 1:25-29. You don’t need power, position, prestige, money, education, or a popular reputation to share the Gospel. All you need is compassion for the lost. Jerome was an early “Church Father” who died in 420 AD. He once said this about the disciples, “The church was built on the faithful testimony of a bunch of rustics.” You and I do not have to be great to reach the least.
Assignment: God has sent you out into your world also. Wherever you go, you are HIs representative. The question is: will you see the lost as Jesus does – through the eyes of compassion? Spiritually, you were once a spiritual outcast by God until you came to Christ. If you hold no compassion for people who do not know Jesus and their punishment and judgment is to be worse than that of Sodom and Gomorrah, I question your salvation. If you are rusty in sharing, then get in line with all of us who share the Gospel. Who is it that God wants you to do this with soon? Pray about and go in the promise and the power of the Holy Spirit and do it (Acts 1:8). You can dare to care to share to others or you can be scared, not share and let them be heirs to the fires of hell. Which is it going to be?
Scripture To Meditate On: John 13:20, “I tell you the truth, anyone who welcomes My messenger is welcoming Me, and anyone who welcomes Me is welcoming the Father who sent Me” (NLT).
Prayer To Pray: “Lord, please use me this week to compassionately share you with someone who is lost. How they respond is up to them and I will leave them with You. I love You Lord. In Jesus’ name, Amen!”
I love you Southside! – Pastor Kelly