Years ago, when I was on staff for Campus Crusade for Christ (CCC), I asked to return to my hometown to start a campus ministry there. This was not accepted because the principle of “two by two” in ministry. I did not understand this principle very much. Then our leaders explained that this is Jesus’ pattern; that I was not allowed to do ministry alone.
Because of limited finances, I mostly, travel to the provinces alone. I understood more and more why Jesus sent his disciples two by two. I faced the temptations and the danger. I learned the reason why Jesus sent out his disciples in pairs, rather that individually.
One of the reason lies in the Jewish tradition of “two witnesses” (Deut 19:15). The Old Testament law stipulated that at least two witnesses were needed in order to convict someone of a crime. In the culture of Jesus, this legal requirement also underscored the commonsense idea that two witnesses are more reliable than one. So, when two of Jesus’ disciples proclaimed the presence of the Kingdom, they would be more likely to be listened to.