Mk 6:10 “…stay there until you leave “
Summary Notes
What did Jesus say?
“Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave town.”
Why would He say this?
After Jesus departed Nazareth, He instructed His twelve closest disciples and sent them out in pairs. They went on ahead ahead of Him to prepare the people to receive His message favorably by performing unmistakable and unprecedented miracles of healing. When Jesus finally arrived in a town that was first visited by the disciples, they would have been eager to hear what He had to say. By staying with one family the disciples would have no distracting concern regarding their food and board. Also, by staying with one family, they minimized the social complications that would have occurred because of their instant popularity. The disciples’ mission would have been diminished had there been competition or even jealousy among hosts.
Click here to go directly to my personal application or continue with my full notes.
COMMAND 195: “…stay there until you leave…”
REFERENCE:
Mk 6:10; See also Mt 10:11; Lk 9:4
RECIPIENTS:
The twelve disciples
CONTEXT:
After Jesus departed Nazareth, He equipped His twelve closest disciples to perform unmistakable and unprecedented miracles of healing. He then sent them out ahead in pairs. Presumably they were to prepare the people for Jesus’ arrival and to receive His message favorably.
Mark
Mk 6:7-10 And He summoned the twelve and began to send them out in pairs, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits; 8and He instructed them that they should take nothing for their journey, except a mere staff–no bread, no bag, no money in their belt– 9but to wear sandals, and He added, “Do not put on two tunics.“ 10And He said to them…
Matthew
Mt 10:1; 5-10 Jesus summoned His twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every kind of disease and every kind of sickness.
5These twelve Jesus sent out after instructing them: “Do not go in the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter any city of the Samaritans; 6but rather go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 7“And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ 8“Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give.” 9“Do not acquire gold, or silver, or copper for your money belts, 10or a bag for your journey, or even two coats, or sandals, or a staff; for the worker is worthy of his support.”
Luke
Lk 9:1-4a And He called the twelve together, and gave them power and authority over all the demons and to heal diseases. 2And He sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to perform healing. 3And He said to them, “Take nothing for your journey, neither a staff, nor a bag, nor bread, nor money; and do not even have two tunics apiece. 4Whatever house you enter…”
COMMAND FULL TEXT:
Mk 6:10b “Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave town.“
Mt 10:11 “And whatever city or village you enter, inquire who is worthy in it, and stay at his house until you leave that city.“
Lk 9:4b “… stay there until you leave that city.“
RESULT:
Mk 6:12-14 They went out and preached that men should repent. 13And they were casting out many demons and were anointing with oil many sick people and healing them. 14And King Herod heard of it, for His name had become well known; and people were saying, “John the Baptist has risen from the dead, and that is why these miraculous powers are at work in Him.
Mt 10:5 These twelve Jesus sent out after instructing them.
Mt 11:1 When Jesus had finished giving instructions to His twelve disciples, He departed from there to teach and preach in their cities.
Lk 9:6 Departing, they began going throughout the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere
MY COMMENTS AND NOTES:
While meeting practical needs of the people, the pairs of disciples delivered their message in order to prepare for Jesus’ arrival. By preparing the people in this way, they would have been eager to listen to what He had to say. Staying with one family in each location would have been a practical advantage to the disciples in that they would have no distracting concern regarding their of food and lodging. Presumably, the disciples would have healed any sicknesses in the host’s house.
It would have also been an honor for the host to have such popular guests in the house. Had the disciples moved from house to house the hosts might feel they had done something wrong or other hosts might begin competing for the privilege. Competing hosts might foster jealousy among them and would have hindered the disciples’ mission.
Examples of Guests in the Bible
The Bible has a few examples of houseguests. These examples have a consistent theme. In each of the examples, the guest gave something of value to the host.
In 1Ki 17:8-24 Samuel, an old testament priest, was a guest at a widows house. She and her son would have starved to death had Samuel not have provided food for her by supernatural means.
In Jn 2:1-11 Jesus was one of the invited guests at a wedding that was held in the Galilean town of Cana. The host had not procured enough wine for the party and had therefore run out of it. Jesus turned ordinary water into excellent wine so that the host would not be embarrassed.
In Mt 8:14-15 Jesus was in Peter’s home at Capernaum. Peter’s mother-in-law was sick and Jesus healed her:
In Ac 28:7-9 The apostle Paul, was shipwrecked on the island of Malta. He was a guest in Publius’ house. Publius’ father was ill and Paul healed him with a touch.
DEFINITIONS: Key Greek Words – Removes ambiguity of the Bible text
inquire: G1833 ἐξετάζω ex-et-ad’-zo – to examine or to test thoroughly by questions
worthy: G 514 ἄξιος ax’-ee-os – for comparison to have the weight of another thing of like value
house: G3614 οἰκία oy-kee’-ah – a dwelling or the people who live there
stay: G3306 μένω men’-o – a primary verb; to stay in a given place, state, relation or expectancy
MY PERSONAL APPLICATIONS: Please share your own application in the comments
When I travel a long distance to visit with family or friends and they offer to have me stay at their house, I will stay there until I leave town. That is, of course, if they are willing to host me that long. Leaving one home to stay at another’s home has the potential for my host to misunderstand as to the reason why I left.
Also, if my host will allow it, I will make myself useful while I’m there. At a minimum, I’ll happily pick up after myself. Maybe, like Jesus, I’ll bring the wine. Better yet, I’ll help out with some project or chores while I’m there, Perhaps they will invite me to come again!
© 2021 Christopher Carlson