Sermon - 2020 - 06 - 28

 

Today within our gospel, Jesus raises the question of who are we welcoming and how are we welcoming them into our lives. Jesus goes even further and declares that another who welcomes you as a disciple of Jesus Christ, will also welcome Jesus, then they shall also be welcoming the Father in Heaven.  Jesus lays this out in how it is we are treating others but also too how others are treating us.  

For many of us, we have heard the Golden Rule, do unto others as you would want to be treated.  So putting these two concepts and ideas together, we have an even greater understanding of what God is trying to teach us through this tangled webs of relationships.  

Let’s start simple, You and Jesus.  This is a one to one relationship that Jesus was noting because he was standing right before the people whom he was talking, which includes YOU.  Within the Christian faith, we often talk about having a relationship with Jesus, in order to understand and know-how and where we are being called to serve and grow.  Yet much like a plant, we do not have everything inside of us in order to grow to our full potential.  We interact with others, sometimes they challenge us, sometimes they support us, but more often than not we pass by one another and never truly engage one another to experience that growth or be able to serve.  

Jesus wanted you to begin thinking of the interactions that you have with family, friends, and strangers.  For many of us, these are circles of relationships that we have in the closeness of how well they know us and also we let our guard down.  Yet when you are surrounded by strangers, you feel alone and isolated.  Jesus changes that idea to let people know that he is now the connection between you and others. Those strangers who you have not met, the stranger who could become your next best friend.  Jesus changes the relationship dynamics so that you are already connected but now you just need to find those connections. 

When we first meet someone, we have often been raised to treat people with kindness, respect, and honor.  Yet that can sometimes wane over time that we know someone, we become comfortable and think that kindness, respect, and honor are not necessary.  Time and time again, I bear witness to someone in the family knowing how to push someone’s buttons just so that they feel a little more power but all it does is tear each other down.  

Jesus knew that people were hurting and struggling in the world.  Longing for a place to belong, a place where they could be accepted and receive the honor and respect that they had been longing for.  Yet still, human sin separated us from God’s intended place and when we hear what it is we are being called to do, we struggle to put it to practice.  

So Jesus not only gets people to realize that relationships with strangers are different but also your relationships with those close to you are also needing attention and care.  

I want to leave you with this, each and every one of us are facing a daily battle with something, some of us may know and others do not.  So please when you encounter someone, share that kindness, respect, and honor or to put more clearly: Disciple, go and share the love, grace and mercy that Jesus has shared with you. Amen.