1
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.