Maybe you sensed the urgency in the query Jesus raised to his disciples. He needed these companions to understand who he is. They must know him, first to learn, then, to inherit, his mission. That is: to Bring Good News to the poor and vulnerable of the land now called Palestine.
He needed followers who would surrender their present lives to this mission; believers who would ” Be not conformed but transformed”.
Scripture scholar Don Senior believed this passage of Matthew was the first explicit prediction of Jesus’ passion. He was ‘seeking the pulse’ of his followers’ understanding at that moment. Jesus knew he did not have much time, and needed to trust those he was instructing.
Then Peter spoke up for the disciples, proclaiming Jesus as the Messiah, sent by God.
Jesus had to assure his cohort that this revelation did not come of Peter’s own wisdom, but through a gift of understanding that he himself had conferred.
He went on to declare that Peter would hold the keys as the authority: regarding rabbinic law, and in the discipline of his followers.
Two verses later, Peter argues with Jesus, who’d announced that he, Jesus, would die, at the hands of the Jewish authorities. That earned him a strong rebuke, on Day one!
It took me a long time to get it, about Peter. Of course this bumbler, who wanted to be first, who would deny Jesus when it all came to a head, would have to represent each of us, wavering believers!
But Jesus had seen the WHOLE of this fellow: a bit slow on the uptake, a bit impertinent — but he also saw that Peter’s heart was true. And there is none of us who doesn’t need the grace of forgiveness.
So Jesus chose him. Peter would carry Jesus’ teachings, doggedly, to the ending of his own life, on a cross.
Today we also heard from Peter’s later counterpart, Paul. (Romans 12:1-8)
I think it always bears remembering that Paul wrote in the very thick of life and death.
He wrote from jail, he also wrote letters – while housed in one fledgling house church – to encourage those he had just left. In times dangerous for believers he was planting and nurturing the seeds and the promise of faith. .
I am grateful for Paul’s genius in lifting up the varied gifts that weave the fabric of community. That reminder encourages patience when tensions arise, even among groups dedicated to the same effort. Especially in this time, the varied skills and experience of all willing neighbors are necessary: to the survival of our communities and the fabric of our nation.
When the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was killed, I was in 8th grade and had read his Letter from the Birmingham Jail. Revelation! He was doing the same thing as St. Paul for the communities of resistance he had trained: advising, encouraging, and holding hope.
As our empire keeps growing in power and cunning we, like Paul, must diligently read and name our context if we are to resist. If we do not, we will fail to understand where and how God is working in our midst. We won’t know how we might partner with God in the very long tradition of that work. Our discernment is critical to how we respond in the chaos of this time on behalf of the vulnerable. I think it’s obvious that this discernment needs to be communal: God chooses community as the vehicle of grace.
In every age, Jesus remains the singular model for civil disobedience among Christians. So it is also true worship to show up, bodily, in nonconformity and resistance to injustice, and harm to our neighbors. As Paul wrote, our bodies are ‘living sacrifice, alive in the Spirit of God.’ .
We are called to live, with conviction, that the new day is already dawning,
And to welcome it in acts of love and courage.
How do we get ready to welcome this new day for which we are eager?
For the past 50+ years, many of us hound that communal dimension in this chapel: in shared study, prayer, and in the ministries that spring from it.
Often we do not fully realize some of their gifts before we have shared them in the community, where they will bear fruit.
Whether or not you already engage with the various ministries here, I encourage you to attend today’s meeting for a new partnership with Palestinian villages in Gaza’s West Bank.
12 Communities under siege need support. Cssandra Dixon and Kathy Kelly lived with families and accompanied school children in war zones for years.
As the genocide continues to ramp up, broader advocacy must increase for those struggling remnant communities, .
While we plan to send money for basic survival, whatever we are able to send is equally an act of solidarity, of hope, and of prayer.
The Gospels tell of Jesus as One who sought out the strangers and embraced them, who broke boundaries of every kind; and taught the multitudes that sharing our bread can feed everyone.
Paul’s letters give us insights into the extraordinary courage, enthusiasm, and struggles of his earliest followers.
With those in mind and heart, we will soon gather around this table. God feeds us here. May the bread we share strengthen us for the mission we are given
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