In last week’s Gospel, Jesus told his disciples not to fear, that they are precious in the eyes of the Lord, that even the hairs of their head are counted. Today, he says, “Whoever receives you receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me.” Jesus gives these words of encouragement within the context of his commissioning of the Twelve disciples. He sends them forth with the instructions to proclaim the kingdom of heaven, to cure the sick, to raise the dead, to cleanse lepers,…
On Sunday, we heard from the prophet Jeremiah, who was called by God to warn of the impending doom of the Babylonian Exile to a people who did not want to listen. And during this week, we have been hearing the Exile unfold as it is recounted in the Second Book of Kings. Jeremiah, who came to be known by the message he proclaimed, namely, “terror on every side,” was preaching a message no one wanted to hear. It was as if the people were in denial and complacent, more interested in business as…
“Whoever denies me before others, I will deny before my heavenly Father.” These words of Jesus from today’s Gospel should give us all pause. It seems that much of our nation today is suffering from denial, and to see the effects of this denial, we need look no further than any of the major news outlets. On one channel it’s COVID-19 numbers are rising; on another it’s chaos in Seattle; on another it’s the tearing down of monuments. Now, the denial we suffer is not that these things are happening,…
“Not by bread alone does one live, but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of the Lord.” These words of Moses, from the Book of Deuteronomy, focus our attention not on signs or miracles, but rather, on the Word of God. We should not become fixated on what happens as a result of some miracle, but rather, on what that miracle reveals to us about God. In the sixth chapter of John’s Gospel, Jesus addresses this very issue when he says, “Amen, amen, I say to you, you are looking for me not…
