This post is Day 14 in a series of studies about “Joy”. I strongly suggest you begin with the introduction to this study, please click here to read it.

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Joy – Day 14

We know the names of the twelve disciples but who were these seventy two? We can only suppose that they were people who had followed Jesus closely. Maybe He could see into their eager hearts and knew they believed in Him and would be obedient and trust what He said.

Luke 10:17

The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.”

The Thought

Who were these seventy two? In the previous chapter we read of the twelve disciples being sent out with the power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases (Luke 9:1).

We know the names of those disciples (Matthew 10:2), but who were these seventy two? We can only suppose that they were people who had followed Jesus closely. He could see into their hearts and knew they believed Him and would be obedient and trust what He said. Maybe He saw that their hearts were eager for more of what God had to give.

Imagine that moment when Jesus stood before the crowd and called out names, or pointed to certain ones and said “Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Do not take a purse or bag or sandals, and do not greet anyone on the road …”.

That must have been a scary but exciting moment for those early followers, but what joy they experienced as they put into practice what Jesus had said.

That same joy is available to us today if we are obedient to His commands. His orders remain the same. Heal the sick who are there and tell them “The Kingdom of God has come near to you” (Luke 10:9).

Action

Read the first 23 verses of Luke 10 today and feel the different emotions there. The excitement, the joy, the frustration, the sadness.

Pray for the church to be obedient to the commands of Jesus. Remember that we are not all called to be priest or pastors, but we are all called to pray and to share our faith with those around us.

Pray today for those who, while preparing to celebrate Christmas this month, have missed completely its original meaning.

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