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One day Jesus called together his twelve disciples and gave them power and authority to cast out all demons and to heal all diseases.
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Then he sent them out to tell everyone about the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick.
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“Take nothing for your journey,” he instructed them. “Don’t take a walking stick, a traveler’s bag, food, money, or even a change of clothes.
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Wherever you go, stay in the same house until you leave town.
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And if a town refuses to welcome you, shake its dust from your feet as you leave to show that you have abandoned those people to their fate.”
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So they began their circuit of the villages, preaching the Good News and healing the sick.
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When Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee, heard about everything Jesus was doing, he was puzzled. Some were saying that John the Baptist had been raised from the dead.
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Others thought Jesus was Elijah or one of the other prophets risen from the dead.
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“I beheaded John,” Herod said, “so who is this man about whom I hear such stories?” And he kept trying to see him.
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When the apostles returned, they told Jesus everything they had done. Then he slipped quietly away with them toward the town of Bethsaida.
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But the crowds found out where he was going, and they followed him. He welcomed them and taught them about the Kingdom of God, and he healed those who were sick.