June 25, 2023 Fourth Sunday After Pentecost The text is Matthew 10:24-39.
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[Jesus said to the twelve:] 24“A disciple is not above the teacher, nor a slave above the master; 25it is enough for the disciple to be like the teacher, and the slave like the master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household!
26“So have no fear of them; for nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known. 27What I say to you in the dark, tell in the light; and what you hear whispered, proclaim from the housetops. 28Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. 30And even the hairs of your head are all counted.
31So do not be afraid; you are of more value than many sparrows.
32“Everyone therefore who acknowledges me before others, I also will acknowledge before my Father in heaven; 33but whoever denies me before others, I also will deny before my Father in heaven.
34“Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.
35For I have come to set a man against his father,
and a daughter against her mother,
and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
36and one’s foes will be members of one’s own household.
37Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; 38and whoever does not take up the cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39Those who find their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.”
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May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to You, O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer.
Grace, mercy, and peace are yours from God the Father and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
This morning’s passage from Matthew is a continuation of the instructions Jesus is giving to the twelve as he sends them out to proclaim the Good News of the gospel in the surrounding towns and cities of Israel. Last Sunday we heard Jesus’ directions to the apostles regarding the hospitality they should expect, and the ways in which they should respond if such hospitality and welcome isn’t offered. The twelve are to withhold their peace from any house that refuses them hospitality, and they are to shake the dust off their feet from any town that does not welcome the gospel message.
Jesus warns his disciples that they will be as sheep among wolves and in this morning’s verses we read that he is adding additional words of caution as he prepares the twelve for their mission. He tells them of the inevitable divisions that will happen as people hear the gospel message; some will embrace the Good News and others will deny Jesus as the Son of God. There will be a sort of corporate divisiveness, with synagogues collectively on one side or the other. Some groups will join the Jesus movement while others will be intensely hostile toward the apostles and the message they bring.
But Jesus’ warning about conflict and division focuses also on the discord that will arise within families. Some members will be quick to accept Jesus’ offer of admission into God’s family while parents, siblings, and in-laws will inevitably reject the message of the gospel. Faith in Jesus Christ, or disbelief in his nature; these are both intensely held positions. Don’t forget that the twelve have been sent forth to bring the gospel specifically to people living in Jewish towns and cities. And within the Hebrew community there was a vast chasm between those who held fast to traditional Judaism and those who were willing to follow Jesus, this itinerant preacher who turned everything they believed upside-down. Division was certain to occur. Jesus knew that his coming into the world would be met not with signs of peace, but with swords of conflict and division.
And as we ponder all the divisions that Jesus has warned the twelve about, we may be forgiven if we assume that these conflicts were due to the religious, cultural, and familial traditions that were in effect in Israel 2,000 years ago. For there is certainly truth to this assumption. The people to whom the apostles were sent out to evangelize were in most cases, members of the Hebrew faith; they maintained a strict observance of the Torah, the Law of God as brought to them by Moses. And a great deal of what Jesus taught, and what the apostles carried to those they encountered, would have been considered as contrary to the Torah. The cultural traditions of the time would have demanded that gathered communities would engage in a shared belief system, been bound by a set of common rules and principles, and maintained a cooperative view regarding how their society functioned. And the familial norm was fiercely patriarchal; in most cases the husband/father of the household was the one who made the decisions for all the members; including the faith the family embraced.
And in spite of the all the dire warnings about discord and separation that Jesus tells the apostles will happen when they bring his message to the people, he also reassures them that the lives of those they encounter will remain firmly in God’s hands. Not a single sparrow falls without God being aware it; the Father knows the number of hairs on the heads of all God’s people. Despite all the denials, divisions, and family rifts that may come about because of either the acceptance or rejection of the gospel message, Jesus assures that God will remain faithful to God’s people.
We must accept that the ways in which Jesus spells out what being worthy of him entails, well, the requirements seem daunting. God will keep God’s promise of eternal life for those who believe in the message of the gospel, that Jesus is the Savior of the world. But Jesus does make clear that in order for one to claim discipleship to him they must fully embrace what that discipleship requires. Matthew was writing for a community in which families were fragmenting due to the acceptance of Christ by some members and the rejection by others. Jesus is saying that devotion to him must be paramount. If familial loyalties prevent a Christian from being fully engaged in their faith, then true discipleship requires that devotion to Christ takes precedent.
Now, in today’s much more enlightened world, while there can be disputes over differences in faith among family members, the results are generally much less distressing than was the case in strict Jewish families in Jesus’ time. Interfaith marriage today, for instance usually doesn’t result in banishment from the community, as would have been the case in first century Israel. But divisions within the family circle are often more pronounced today, although not necessarily related to issues of faith. The political divide in this country is wider than it has ever been. Opinions regarding just about any topic are debated on social media and these discussions often devolve into vitriol and anger. More than one family has become estranged because of a comment made on line; perhaps the opinion stated was not in agreement with the viewpoint of the rest of the family. Jesus’ warnings about the discord within families that may arise over him and his teachings are happening today over things that are ultimately much less important.
To paraphrase; Facebook posts, political party affiliation, opinions about current social norms, race, gender; these may “set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
and one’s foes will be members of one’s own household.” Not much has changed, except that as a people we are more likely to disagree over trivial matters than whether or not we have pledged ourselves to true Christian discipleship. It seems that there is a greater willingness to argue about unimportant matters, rather than a commitment to “take up the cross” of discipleship that Jesus requires us to do.
And the good news is that when we do act as the hands, feet, and heart of Christ in the world, there is very little chance that we will face family conflict because of this. So, if this most important aspect of our lives isn’t met with conflict or division, we shouldn’t allow the trivial issues that pervade our culture to cause dissension among us. And the best news of all is that God’s promise to the Israelites in the first century is as valid now as it was then. God is still aware of every sparrow that may fall and the number of hairs on our heads is known by our Father.
Jesus told the twelve in this morning’s reading that they have no reason to fear anything that they may encounter, for the kingdom of God has come near; they will be provided with all they need as they continue Christ’s mission among those they are sent out to serve. This too has not changed; God will provide for us as we proclaim the message of the love, grace, and mercy of God as we go forth as disciples of Jesus among those we are called to serve.
Will you pray with me? Good, and gracious, and holy God, help and guide us as we strive to maintain relationships where there may be differences of thought and belief. Remind us that it is your will that your children treat one another with love, dignity, and compassion. May we always remember that, no matter the struggles we face, that you are always with us. And we pray these things in the name of Jesus Christ, the One who calls us to discipleship without fear.
God is Good, all the time. All the time, God is Good. Amen.