Daily Bible Reading 30th July 2026 // Luke 9:1-9
1 And he called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, 2 and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal. 3 And he said to them, “Take nothing for your journey, no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money; and do not have two tunics. 4 And whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart. 5 And wherever they do not receive you, when you leave that town shake off the dust from your feet as a testimony against them.” 6 And they departed and went through the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.
7 Now Herod the tetrarch heard about all that was happening, and he was perplexed, because it was said by some that John had been raised from the dead, 8 by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the prophets of old had risen. 9 Herod said, “John I beheaded, but who is this about whom I hear such things?” And he sought to see him.
The second keynote in these verses is the undoubted note of urgency. This is implicit also in the metaphor of the athlete. There is a great sense of urgency about him; he is always racing against time. And this is one of the things that enables him to put first things first. It is not a question of anything hysterical, but rather a steady, pulsing consciousness that destiny is involved - eternal destiny. It is not all the same whether or not the message is obscured by the half-heartedness of lives cluttered up with worldliness, lives with too many other irons in the fire - business, cultural, recreational irons - for them ever really to tell for Christ.
The third keynote in the passage - and this is made explicit in Matthew's version (10:8) - is that of utter self-giving: 'Freely ye have received, freely give'. One thinks of Paul's words in 2 Corinthians 12:15, 'I will very gladly spend and be spent for you...' Paul literally gave himself away. He lived out John 3:16 in his experience, laying himself on the altar (cf Philippians 2:17), becoming broken bread and poured out wine for the life of the world. As one famous missionary once put it, 'Blood of our own must attest our faith in the precious blood of Christ if we would share and show forth the victory of the Cross'. Does this spirit characterise our life and testimony?
One wonders what is the significance of the reference to Herod in 7-9. It may be to underline what has just been said about the sense of urgency and destiny that fills the passage. For here was a man for whom the sands of time finally ran out, and he became a lost soul.