July 2, 2023 Fifth Sunday After Pentecost The text is Matthew 10:40-42.
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[Jesus said to the twelve:] 40“Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. 41Whoever welcomes a prophet in the name of a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward; and whoever welcomes a righteous person in the name of a righteous person will receive the reward of the righteous; 42and whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple—truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward.”
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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’s gospel is the third and final portion of Jesus’ “Missionary Discourse”, as he prepares the twelve to be sent forth to proclaim the gospel message. Two weeks ago, we listened as Jesus advised the disciples to “shake the dust off their feet” from any town or city that did not welcome them; that did not show them hospitality; that wasn’t receptive to the Good News of the gospel. Last Sunday Jesus told the apostles that there would be great divisions, even within families, over whether there was acceptance or rejection of the message the twelve proclaimed. And interspersed among the warnings he gave; Jesus also included the great rewards that would come about through the embrace of the gospel among the people.
The entirely of this Missionary Discourse has centered around Jesus granting authority to the disciples, warning them of the difficulties they would face, and at its core is the concept of hospitality. He instructs them regarding what they should do if they are, or are not welcomed among those they encounter. And, as this preparation continues, this morning it has evolved into a Spirit-filled peptalk.
Jesus has empowered the apostles to cure illness while accepting no payment for their healing; to bestow their peace on a welcoming house and to withhold it if it is not returned to them; that even as they are persecuted, God stands with them, knowing the number of hairs on their heads. They will encounter myriad problems, but in the end all will be well; this is God’s will. And to further reassure the disciples this morning Jesus finalizes his preparatory inspirational speech by reminding them that they represent Jesus and Jesus represents the Father.
Before we delve deeper into Jesus’ instructions to the twelve and the importance he places on welcoming, receiving, and reward, perhaps now is a good time to differentiate a bit between some of the terms we use when describing this initial dozen of Jesus’ followers. Once he has called them and they have pledged to follow him and recognize his teaching, they become “disciples”. The Greek word means “student” or “learner”. Now that Jesus has instructed them and started them on their way to proclaim the gospel, they have become “apostles”. The Greek here is “one who is sent out”. We’ll come back to this distinction a bit later, but for now, we find ourselves still with these twelve who have been taught and are now being sent out, listening to Jesus’ final words to them as they depart.
The theme of hospitality that Jesus has been focusing on, and which has been the central topic of my sermons the last two weeks, is brought to its conclusion by Jesus this morning; and as you may have guessed by now, this rather dictates that I speak to his words on this subject for one more Sunday. Jesus is quite clear that if the apostles find welcome in an area, then the hospitality afforded to them is being extended to Jesus as well. You will recall that Jesus spoke at great length that when one provides for “the least of these”, then the care they receive is as if Jesus himself was being fed, clothed, or sheltered. And this ultimate demonstration of welcome is then directed toward God the Father. Welcome the apostles, Jesus is welcomed; when Jesus is welcomed, the Father is also.
And the term used for “the least of these” has at its root, the word for “little ones”. While often simply meaning “children”, when used by Jesus it more often refers to any who are vulnerable or undervalued by society.
Thus, the twelve who are being sent out are to be welcomed as ones who are in need of the support of whom they are called to serve. And even so small a gesture as the offering of a cup of cold water to a thirsty apostle is viewed as a worthy deed by Jesus, and by God. And those who offer support, welcome, generosity, hospitality to these “little ones” and are found to be worthy will receive the reward that Jesus promises. And what does this reward look like? It is to be nothing less than the inheritance of the kingdom of heaven, adoption into God’s family, and the promise of a righteous relationship with the Father. Jesus reminds the apostles and us that the reward of the kingdom is promised to those who practice humility and show tenderness to the weak, the “little ones”, “the least of these”.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we were able in some way to share this message of hospitality, reception, and reward to others? Well, here is where the contrast between “disciples” and “apostles” comes into play. From the very beginning, right from the day that Jesus sends out the twelve, he declares that his is to be a “sent” church. Jesus himself didn’t set up shop in a local synagogue and wait for his neighbors to pop in and see what his teaching was all about. He began his ministry and mission by calling people to follow him; and once he had taught these, he sent them out to continue what he had begun. My friends, we are the continuation of this “sent” church; we are now the ones called to go forth to proclaim the gospel through word and deed. There really is no other way to be “church”.
We all need to be reminded that all the baptized are sent into the world to embody the Good News of Jesus. All are sent to proclaim Christ before others, with vulnerability, humility, and hospitality. We must be ready to risk rejection, social discord, and be willing to shake the dust off our feet if we are not welcomed by others. Notwithstanding all the norms, excuses, and well-pondered reasons why we don’t act as the apostles we are called to be, nonetheless we are the ones being “sent”. “Evangelical” is in our very name!
What would happen if we acknowledged that evangelism, that is the call to proclaim the Good News of Christ is the defining purpose of everything the church does? It seems that Jesus certainly felt that this was his purpose, and it is most clearly now ours. What if we stopped expecting people to come to our doors, seeking us out to share the gospel with them, and instead we took to heart Jesus’ command to be his “sent” church”? What would happen if we truly believed that we bear the presence of Christ to everyone we encounter outside the walls of the church? What would happen if we acted on every opportunity to speak words of mercy to the neighbor who is in need of our hospitality? What if we showed grace to those seeking the kingdom, but who aren’t sure where to look for it? What would happen if we did as we have been commanded; if we become the missional, apostolic, “sent” church that Jesus started by preparing his first twelve followers to go forth into the world? What would happen if we acted as the apostles we have been prepared to be?
Will you pray with me? Good, and gracious, and holy God, help us to recognize our neighbors who are in need of the hospitality we are called to provide. Guide us as we accept that the church your Son started found its foundation not in a building, but in the proclamation of the Good News of the gospel. And we pray these things in the name of Jesus Christ, the One who first called us to be his disciples, and now sends us out as his apostles.
God is Good, all the time. All the time, God is Good. Amen.