Jesus first sent out his twelve disciples on a mission to proclaim the kingdom and heal with the King’s own power and authority (9:1-6). Next Jesus sent out an unspecified number of messengers to prepare the way for his Jerusalem journey. But there was a third “sending.” Only Luke’s gospel records this third “sending” mission, the subject of our sermon today.

As with the first two “sendings,” these emissaries are sent out before Jesus as he makes his way towards Jerusalem. But this group is doing more than finding venues or villages that would host Jesus as he was on his way. This third group of messengers, like the original Twelve, have a mission of their own to fulfill.

There is disagreement among the earliest existing manuscripts over the number of emissaries Jesus actually sent out t…