In Jesus’ time in Palestine, people had five articles of clothing: the long inner tunic, the outer cloak, the cincture or belt, the sandals and the oriental headdress. In the gospel today we must remember that Mark has been emphasizing the signs of the coming of the Messiah and therefore also the end time. In the context of the Messiah’s coming and His Kingdom, there is a sense of urgency that Jesus wants his disciples to understand. With the coming of the Messiah and His kingdom they will have no need for anything. In His kingdom they will not need anything. So they should not worry about what they should bring. The most important thing is to tell the people to change their ways, to repent, to devote themselves to entering the kingdom and not to concern themselves with things in the world that will soon end. Jesus even tells them not to discuss but simply preach the good news and if people do not believe them they should shake of the dust off their sandals. This does not sound like Jesus who came to call sinners to save them, the Jesus who did not want sinners to die. Remember however Mark is describing the end time where the last chance is to be given to everyone.
We may not be missionaries but as Christians we are living in the end time. Monks renounced everything from the world, we live an obedient life and we live in simplicity. We support each other in life materially and spiritually. This means we are people waiting for the coming of the Kingdom of God. If we have really have this spirit of urgency then the result would be a happy life for us. But if we worry too much about ourselves, about how important our opinions should be, about our self importance, about our families and friends and so many other things that can occupy our minds, then it is a sign we are not waiting for the coming of the kingdom. We wish to build a kingdom here on earth according to human designs. We still are worrying about our kingdom here on earth. We rely on the leadership of one person, on this or that party, the strength of our armed forces etc. We have an idea who belongs to our society and those who are not. We are short sighted when it comes to things that matter and are lastingl
There is also a reason for not having unnecessary things. It is to free us from worrying about these things and if we are free from worries then we should lead happy lives. Worries makes people sad. Christian life should be lived in the light of the coming of the Kingdom. However, this does not mean that Christians deny the reality of everyday life. What the disciples are saying is to change our thinking which will change our way of life. In short repentance. To participate in peace making, to render justice in our life, to forgive, to make others feel wanted, not to exclude anyone from entering the kingdom. After all to think that we could exclude anyone from the Kingdom is only in our mind. God does the judging. If we heed the message of evangelist then demons will driven out of our lives and society, and many sick will be cured. One wonders why many Christians are not happy, what they are worrying about. Is there something really worthwhile to worry about besides the Kingdom of God? One wonders what they are waiting for?