Jesus journeyed from one town and village to another,
preaching and proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom of God.
At first the Kingdom was proclaimed only where Jesus was present. But from early on he was accompanied by the Twelve who watched him and learned from him how to share the good news. A support network of women also accompanied him, helping in ways that were perhaps largely hidden and behind the scenes.
They must all have come to understand early on that they shouldn't suppose "religion to be a means of gain" in terms of worldly riches, as other religious figures in his day may be supposed to have done. They learned this first of all from the example of Jesus, who was not himself wealthy. The Twelve learned it more deeply as they were sent out two by two without anything except a staff and sandals. The women proved they understood it by providing for Jesus out of their resources.
Many of them were drawn to follow Jesus because he had healed them of evil spirits and infirmities. But they must have quickly understood that following Jesus was not going to lead them to every worldly blessing they could imagine. Instead, it would challenge them, demanding that they be able to hold the things of this world lightly enough that they could let them go when the Kingdom needed to take precedence. What Jesus provided was not necessarily every desire of theirs as those desires existed before they knew him. Rather, he provided for a reshaping of their hearts, and a healing of their desires, that made contentment and peace possible.
For we brought nothing into the world,
just as we shall not be able to take anything out of it.
If we have food and clothing, we shall be content with that.
Jesus absolutely did do marvelous things in their lives, things which gave them the motivation to follow him many arduous and difficult journeys. But these were not the fulfillment desires that were merely superficial. They were the restoration of the divine image within them, making them able to become like Jesus, and making them want to do so.
We might never consciously admit it but we may still secretly expect that following Jesus will bless and perfect our circumstances in this world. But expecting this is setting our expectations too low and leads us to frustration. It makes us run the risk of rebellion whenever we encounter privation in our circumstances. Jesus has something better to offer than the desires of ours which are often "foolish and harmful" and end only in "ruin and destruction".
Whoever teaches something different
and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ
and the religious teaching
is conceited, understanding nothing
In lieu of perfecting the world, when we realize that is impossible, we sometimes feel like we might as well at least argue about it. But we should try to let the teaching of Jesus control, not only our hearts and minds, but also our words and speech. Let us learn to speak according to the eternal truths of his word rather than our own limited timebound perspectives. Let us focus on "righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience, and gentleness" so that we don't succumb to "envy, rivalry, insults, evil suspicions, and mutual friction among people with corrupted minds".
Just as Jesus journeyed with his disciples so ought we to think of ours lives as journeys following him where he himself leads us. Let us learn from him the secret of contentment and peace, which are possible because he himself first heals us and puts faith into our hearts. As we see the way he himself confidently confessed God's word and proclaimed the Kingdom may we too learn to trust and proclaim the promises of God.
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