"And it came to pass, when Jesus had made an end of commanding his twelve disciples, he departed thence to teach and to preach in their cities. Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another? Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see: The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me."
The very first verse in this lesson tells us that Jesus had taught His disciples everything they needed to know before they set out to teach the news of His coming, "when Jesus had made an end of commanding his twelve disciples".
That statement meant that Jesus had covered all the important issues in preparation for sending out His Apostles. The instructions contained within Matthew chapter ten covered: What, How When, Why, and to whom, the Apostles were to preach the news of the coming of Jesus Christ.
It is very important, for those of us who take upon ourselves the responsibility to teach New Testament truth, to make make sure we learn, and apply, each element of these instructions. Of course, the restriction that only allowed the Apostles to teach the Jews, no longer applies since the Church today includes both Jews and Gentiles and the rules of the *Law of Moses have been fulfilled by Jesus.
Herein also, John learned that Jesus, the Messiah, had truly come. John's work was almost complete, he had done what he was divinely destined to do. He had prepared the way of the Lord and preached the coming of the kingdom of Christ, and had lived to learn of its beginning.
By sending the men back to tell John about the miracles He had performed, and those that were being done by His disciples, Jesus assured John that He was indeed the promised Messiah, the one who would "baptize" those who would believe in Him with the Holy Ghost.
*The ten commandments that so many of today's "Christians" want posted all over the place, thought they give good direction for a Christian should live, were a part of the law of Moses and were, as was the rest of that law, fulfilled by the Jesus Christ. "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: (Matt. 5:17-18), "I am not come to destroy, but to FUFIL. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be FULFILLED." Through the perfect sacrifice that was made by Jesus Christ, the Law of Moses was fulfilled, and the rules that apply to those of us whom have accepted His saving grace, have forever changed.
There will be much more coverage of this issue as these lessons progress.~
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