Matthew 10:8

And let no one among the rural and uneducated people doubt, for those who promise the kingdom of heaven are given the power to heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demons, in order to prove the greatness of the promises by the greatness of the signs. And because spiritual gifts (if the reward is of medium value) always become less valuable, condemnation of greed is added. Freely you have received, freely give. I, as the master and Lord, have bestowed this upon you without cost, and you give without cost, so that the grace of the Gospel is not corrupted.

And because spiritual gifts are more lightly esteemed when money is made the means of obtaining them, He adds a condemnation of avarice; Freely ye have received, freely give; I your Master and Lord have imparted these to you without price, do you therefore give them to others in like manner, that the free grace of the Gospel be not corrupted.

(Verse 7, 8.) And as you go, preach, saying: 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give. And let no one among the rural and uneducated people doubt, for those who promise the kingdom of heaven are given the power to heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demons, in order to prove the greatness of the promises by the greatness of the signs. And because spiritual gifts (if the reward is of medium value) always become less valuable, condemnation of greed is added. Freely you have received, freely give. I, as the master and Lord, have bestowed this upon you without cost, and you give without cost, so that the grace of the Gospel is not corrupted.

After this, to make them trustworthy, He saith, "Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give." See how He provides for their conduct, and that no less than for their miracles, implying that the miracles without this are nothing. Thus He both quells their pride by saying, "Freely ye have received, freely give;" and takes order for their being clear of covetousness. Moreover, lest it should be thought their own work, and they be lifted up by the signs that were wrought, He saith, "freely ye have received." "Ye bestow no favor on them that receive you, for not for a price did ye receive these things, nor after toil: for the grace is mine. In like manner therefore give ye to them also, for there is no finding a price worthy of them."

There is a hierarchizing of the soul in the order of descent. Now, these things come about according to the powers of the soul, and Dionysius says they are three: the powers of receiving, preserving, and distributing, so that a soul may receive abundantly, preserve …

Hence also miracles were added to the holy preachers, so that the power displayed might give faith to their words, and that those who preached new things might do new things, as is added in this same reading: "Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons." When the world was flourishing, when the human race was increasing, when the flesh was subsisting long in this life, when the abundance of things was overflowing, who upon hearing would believe that there was another life? Who would prefer invisible things to visible things? But when the sick were returning to health, when the dead were rising to life, when lepers were receiving cleanliness of flesh, when demoniacs were snatched from the power of unclean spirits, with so many visible miracles performed, who would not believe what he heard about invisible things? For visible miracles shine forth for this purpose: that they may draw the hearts of those who see them to faith in invisible things, so that through what is done wondrously on the outside, what is within may be perceived to be far more wondrous. Hence now also, when the number of the faithful has increased, there are many within the holy Church who hold to a life of virtues but do not have the signs of virtues, because a miracle is shown outwardly in vain if what it should work inwardly is lacking. For according to the voice of the Teacher of the Gentiles: "Tongues are for a sign not to believers, but to unbelievers." Hence also that same distinguished preacher, amidst the words of his preaching, raised by praying, in the sight of all the unbelievers, Eutychus who had fallen asleep and fallen from the window and was completely extinguished from life. Coming to Malta, and knowing the island was full of unbelievers, he healed by praying the father of Publius who was afflicted with dysentery and fevers. […]

But having granted the power of preaching, having granted the miracles of virtues, let us hear what our Redeemer adds: Freely you have received, freely give. For he foreknew that some would bend this very gift of the received Spirit to the use of commerce, and turn the signs of miracles to the service of avarice. Hence it is that Simon Magus, seeing miracles performed through the laying on of hands, wished to obtain the gift of the Holy Spirit with money, namely so that he might sell more wickedly what he had acquired wrongly. Hence our Redeemer, having made a whip of cords, drove the crowds from the temple and overturned the seats of those selling doves. Indeed, to sell doves is to give the laying on of hands by which the Holy Spirit is received, not for the merit of life, but for payment. But there are some who indeed do not receive rewards of money from ordination, yet bestow sacred orders for human favor, and from that very generosity seek only the recompense of praise. These certainly do not bestow freely what was freely received, because from the service of holiness they have rendered, they seek the coin of favor. Hence the prophet spoke well when describing the just man, saying: Who shakes his hands free from every gift. For he does not say: Who shakes his hands from a gift, but added from every, because one thing is a gift from service, another a gift from the hand, another a gift from the tongue. A gift from service is deference unduly rendered, a gift from the hand is money, a gift from the tongue is favor. Therefore he who bestows sacred orders shakes his hands free from every gift when in divine matters he seeks not only no money, but also no human favor.

But why do we speak of these things, when we still see many burdened by more atrocious deeds? For I speak to you priests with grief, because we have learned that some of you perform ordinations for payments, selling spiritual grace and accumulating temporal gains from the iniquities of others along with the harm of sin. Why then does the voice of the Lord commanding not return to your memory, saying: Freely you have received, freely give? Why do you not recall before the eyes of your mind that our Redeemer, entering the temple, overturned the seats of those selling doves and poured out the money of the money-changers? For who are those in the temple of God today who sell doves, if not those who in the Church receive payment for the imposition of hands? Through which imposition, namely, the Holy Spirit is given from heaven. Therefore the dove is sold, because the imposition of hands, through which the Holy Spirit is received, is offered for a price. But our Redeemer overturned the seats of those selling doves, because he destroys the priesthood of such merchants. For hence it is that the sacred canons condemn the simonian heresy, and command that those be deprived of the priesthood who seek payment for bestowing ordinations.

(Hom. in Ev. iv. 1.) Miracles also were granted to the holy preachers, that the power they should show might be a pledge of the truth of their words, and they who preached new things should also do new things; wherefore it follows, Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out dæmons. (Hom. in Ev. xxix. 4.) These signs were necessary in the beginning of the Church; the faith of the believers must be fed with miracles, that it might grow. (Hom. in Ev. xxix. 4.) The Holy Church daily doth spiritually, what it then did materially by the Apostles; yea, things far greater, inasmuch as she raises and cures souls and not bodies. (Hom. in Ev. iv. 4.) For He knew before that there would be some that would turn the gift of the Spirit which they had received into merchandize, and pervert the power of miracles into an instrument of their covetousness.

(non occ.) This He says, that Judas who had the bag might not use the above power for getting money; a plain condemnation of the abomination of the simoniacal heresy.

But they could say: How shall we confirm what we say? Certainly by miracles as he did. So he says, Heal the sick... But if someone asks why the Church does not work miracles now, the answer is given that miracles were performed to prove …

"Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons: freely ye have received, freely give." Nothing so befits a teacher as humility and non-possessiveness. He indicates these two virtues here by saying, "freely ye have received." Do not think highly of yourselves …

The use of grace ought to be generous toward one's neighbor. Whence in Matthew: "Freely you have received, freely give." O sun, why do you not sell your light? And you, O Seine, why do you not sell your drops of water? Surely, because it …

Those that had power to heal all diseases, had an opportunity to enrich themselves; who would not purchase such easy certain cures at any rate? Therefore they are cautioned not to make a gain of the power they had to work miracles: they must cure gratis, further to exemplify the nature and complexion of the gospel kingdom, which is made up, not only of grace, but of free grace.

If this be possible, then he who affirms it was so, in any particular case, cannot be justly charged with falsehood, merely for affirming the reality of a possible thing. Yet in this manner are the evangelists treated by those unhappy men, who above all things dread the truth of the Gospel, because, if it is true, they are of all men the most miserable.

Heal the sick,....

Note, They that entertain the gospel, must neither grudge the expense of it, nor promise themselves to get by it in this world. They must enquire, not who is rich, but who is worthy; not who is the best gentleman, but who is the best man.

Concerning the sufferings they were to undergo. They are told what they should suffer, and from whom; counsels are given them what course to take when persecuted, and encouragements to bear up cheerfully under their sufferings,

Raise the dead - This is wanting in the MSS. marked EKLMS of Griesbach, and in those marked BHV of Mathai, and in upwards of one hundred others. It is also wanting in the Syriac, (Vienna edition), latter Persic, Sahidic, Armenian, Sclavonic, and in one copy of the Itala; also in Athanasius, Basil, and Chrysostom. There is no evidence that the disciples raised any dead person previously to the resurrection of Christ. The words should certainly be omitted, unless we could suppose that the authority now given respected not only their present mission, but comprehended also their future conduct.

This chapter is one of peculiar solemnity. Here is the record of the first ordination which ever took place in the Church of Christ. The Lord Jesus chooses and sends forth the twelve apostles. Here is an account of the first charge ever delivered to newly ordained Christian ministers. The Lord Jesus himself delivers it. Never was there so important an ordination! Never was there so solemn a charge! There are three lessons which stand out prominently on the face of the first fifteen verses of this chapter. Let us take them in order.

Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils--(The italicized clause--"raise the dead"--is wanting in many manuscripts). Here we have the first communication of supernatural power by Christ Himself to His followers--thus anticipating the gifts of Pentecost.

This chapter is one of peculiar solemnity. Here is the record of the first ordination which ever took place in the Church of Christ. The Lord Jesus chooses and sends forth the twelve apostles. Here is an account of the first charge ever delivered to newly ordained Christian ministers. The Lord Jesus himself delivers it. Never was there so important an ordination! Never was there so solemn a charge! There are three lessons which stand out prominently on the face of the first fifteen verses of this chapter. Let us take them in order. We are taught in the first place, that all ministers are not necessarily good men. We see our Lord choosing a Judas Iscariot to be one of his apostles. We cannot doubt that he who knew all hearts knew well the characters of the men whom he chose; and he includes in the list of his apostles one who was a traitor! We shall do well to bear in mind this fact. Orders do not confer the saving grace of the Holy Ghost: ordained men are not necessarily converted. We are not to regard them as infallible, either in doctrine or in practice; we are not to make popes or idols of them, and insensibly to put them in Christ’s place. We are to regard them as men of like passions with ourselves, to the same infirmities, and daily requiring the same grace. We are not to think it impossible for them to do very bad things; or to expect them to be above the reach of harm from flattery, covetousness, and the world. We are to prove their teaching by the Word of God, and to follow them so far as they follow Christ, but no further. Above all, we ought to pray for them that they may be successors, not of Judas Iscariot, but of James and John. It is a serious responsibility to be a minister of the Gospel! Ministers need many prayers. We are taught in the next place, that the great work of a minister of Christ is to do good.

Freely ye have received, freely give - That is, they were not to sell their favors of healing, preaching, etc. They were not to make a money-making business of it, to bargain specifically to heal for so much, and to cast out devils for so much. This, however, neither then nor afterward precluded them from receiving a competent support. See Luk 10:7; 1Co 9:8-14; 1Ti 5:18.

The mandate on every believer is to do as Jesus did; we have been given a commission to heal the sick, raise the dead and cast out demons.