Then Jesus went around teaching from village to village. 7 Calling the Twelve to him, he began to send them out two by two and gave them authority over impure spirits.
8 These were his instructions: “Take nothing for the journey except a staff—no bread, no bag, no money in your belts. 9 Wear sandals but not an extra shirt. 10 Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town. 11 And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, leave that place and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.”
12 They went out and preached that people should repent. 13 They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.
What I find significant in this passage is that it shows that the community of Mark did not see Jesus' way as exclusive to him, but something that those who followed him could perform with the same authority and results. This reminds me of the Gospel of Thomas, the twin, with the theme that we can become a twin of Jesus and partake in his enlightenment.
I also notice that this passage contains a distillation of Jesus 'Way', his teaching and 'way of seeing the world' which he commissions others to spread. I would list this summary of Jesus Way as follows:
- Authority over impure spirts
- Jesus' Way primary involves the authority to welcome/facilitate those who are marginalized, considered "impure" or "unclean", into community, removing the barriers and performance factors the culture requires. To drive out "impure spirits" is to remove conditions that keeps people from fellowship with God and community.
- Healing the sick
- The Way of Jesus brings people into wholeness. Metaphorically Jesus teaching is seen dualistically as health rather than sickness. Again this is an example of enabling everyone to be part of the community since the sick were also marginalized and excluded from Temple worship.
- Lack of concern of material needs
- Anti materialism is central to Jesus' teaching. The world view of Jesus is one of abundance where needs will be provided and the Universe is profoundly generous. One needs not dwell on one's survival or fear scarcity, but can focus on what is more important.
- The inherent generosity of humanity
- Along with seeing the universe as generous and carrying, Jesus sees much of humanity as in the same light. He has no fear that the twelve will find those who will welcome them, take them in, and supply for all their needs.
- Those who are not welcoming and generous to the disciples are seen as who are truly "impure". The disciples are told to "shake the dust off" their feet, a practice by Pious 1st-century Jews traveling home from Gentile lands. They would shake off the dust of those foreign nations to avoid bringing foreign, "unclean" dirt into the holy land.
- A message of repentance as a return to the social contract as given by the Prophets.
- Jesus in the last passage identifies himself as a Prophet and the Prophet's were spokespeople for God telling the people to return, not to worship, not to greater adherence to purity laws and rituals, but to social justice in terms of caring for each other, providing for the poor and widowed, justice, mercy, and humility.
- Repentance is defined by John the Baptist in the third chapter of Luke as fulfilling social justice, “Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same.”
