The Wednesday after Sexagesima Sunday
Posted on February 11, 2026 by under
Scripture: St. Matthew 10:2-16 (NKJV)
10:2 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; 3 Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; 4 Simon the Cananite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him.
5 These twelve Jesus sent out and commanded them, saying: “Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans. 6 But go rather 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, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give. 9 Provide neither gold nor silver nor copper in your money belts, 10 nor bag for your journey, nor two tunics, nor sandals, nor staffs; for a worker is worthy of his food.
11 “Now whatever city or town you enter, inquire who in it is worthy, and stay there till you go out. 12 And when you go into a household, greet it. 13 If the household is worthy, let your peace come upon it. But if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. 14 And whoever will not receive you nor hear your words, when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet. 15 Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!
16 “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves.”
Devotion
The twelve enlisted as Apostles in verses two through four were sent out on a mission as our Lord’s ministers to the masses. They were instructed to avoid the Gentiles, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, proclaiming as they go that the kingdom of heaven is at hand. They were to heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, and cast out demons. They were not to charge for these services, for they received freely what they gave. They were not to provision themselves with gold, silver, or copper for their belts; no bag or clothes for their journey, for the laborer deserves his compensation.
In whatever town or village they entered, they were to find out who is faithfully worthy and stay there until it was time to depart. As they entered the house, they were to greet them in the Lord, and if the house was worthy, the peace of the Lord would come upon it. If anyone would not receive or listen to their words, they were to shake off the dust from their feet when they left that house or town. “It will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment” than for that town which rejects the one sent by Christ. This all summarizes the duties and activities of the Office of the Keys.
Collect: O Lord God, Who seest that we put not our trust in anything that we do: Mercifully grant that by Thy power we may be defended against all adversity; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
