Scripture: Matthew 10:40-42 The Message (MSG)

INTRODUCTION

Today’s Scripture Reading is from the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 10, verses 40 through 42. These verses are the concluding comments that Jesus makes to his disciples when he is teaching them about the work he has called them to do. I will be reading from a paraphrase of the Bible called “The Message,” written by Rev. Dr. Eugene Peterson, who writes in the language of contemporary culture

40-42 “We are intimately linked in this harvest work. Anyone who accepts what you do, accepts me, the One who sent you. Anyone who accepts what I do accepts my Father, who sent me. Accepting a messenger of God is as good as being God’s messenger. Accepting someone’s help is as good as giving someone help. This is a large work I’ve called you into, but don’t be overwhelmed by it. It’s best to start small. Give a cool cup of water to someone who is thirsty, for instance. The smallest act of giving or receiving makes you a true apprentice. You won’t lose out on a thing.”

Sermon: “A cup of cool water”

Do you ever watch, read, or listen to the daily news and feel overwhelmed? That pretty much happens to me every day, and I’m fairly certain I’m not alone in that feeling. I feel overwhelmed by the news because it is so clear that so much in our society is broken and needs to change in significant ways. Our healthcare system, our education system, our criminal justice system, our economic system all have deep flaws that can cause great damage to the most vulnerable among us, yet, even when we are aware of these flaws, it is still so very difficult to change them. How many of us have felt distressed, discouraged, thinking, “What can I, one little person, possibly do to change any of these systems, to make a positive difference in the world?”

The disciples of Jesus’ day may have felt something similar. In chapter 10 of Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus gives the disciples instructions on what he wants them to do in the world. A few weeks ago we read from the beginning of this chapter where Jesus sends the disciples out and instructs them to “…proclaim the good news, ‘the kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demons,” (Matthew 10:7-8) an overwhelming job description, that’s for sure. Even if we take it metaphorically, understanding that Jesus is calling the disciples of his day--and ours-- to join him in the work of healing and liberation, that doesn’t mean the work is easy. Far from it.

In fact, as chapter 10 of Matthew’s Gospel goes on, Jesus describes just how hard it is. He tells them that they will be hated, persecuted, that family members will reject them, and that some of them will be arrested and dragged into court. Jesus also implies that some of them will literally die. All for trying to follow Jesus and make the world a better place, doing God’s work of love, healing and liberation.

I wonder if the disciples of the first century--hearing this--and then later experiencing the persecutions that Jesus describes, ever felt like giving up. Ever felt like, “This is just not working--the kingdom of heaven doesn’t feel near at all. What can I, one little person, possibly do to bring about healing or liberation, to make a positive difference in the world that is so deeply flawed? All of my effort adds up to a drop in the bucket, at best.”

I’m fairly certain the disciples must have felt like that at times--I’ve felt like that, haven’t you? (No pressure, but feel free to write “yes,” in the chat if you’ve ever felt discouraged, like your work for Jesus is barely a drop in the bucket.) I was feeling discouraged like that this week after listening to the news. I was praying and wondering how to find energy to keep joining Jesus in the work of healing and liberation, but I had a sermon to write, so I did some research and found a very encouraging quote. Dr. David Lose--pastor of a Lutheran Church in Minneapolis-- said this when commenting on today’s reading:

Discipleship doesn’t have to be heroic. Like all the small acts of devotion, tenderness, and forgiveness that go largely unnoticed but tend the relationships that are most important to us, so also the life of faith is composed of a thousand small gestures. Except that, according to Jesus, there is no small gesture. Anything done in faith and love has cosmic significance for the ones involved and, indeed, for the world God loves so much. [REPEAT] https://www.workingpreacher.org/craft.aspx?post=3265 (june 24, 2014)

And then Dr. Lose references Loren Eiseley’s story of “the star thrower.” You’ve probably heard it. Someone is walking down a beach at low tide, and sees thousands of starfish washed up on the sand, dying. And then the person sees a man, picking up starfish one by one and throwing them back in the ocean, saving their lives. But the thing is, even if the man worked all day, there is just one of him, and so he will only be able to save a small fraction of a percentage of the dying sea creatures. Which is what the person says to him, cynically asking “Why are you bothering to do this? You can’t hope to make any significant difference.” To which the star thrower replies in the famous closing line of the story, “To the ones I throw back, it makes all the difference in the world.”

Back to Dr. Lose’s statement: “According to Jesus, there is no small gesture. Anything done in faith and love has cosmic significance for the ones involved and, indeed, for the world God loves so much.”

The Bible is very clear: we are called to join Jesus in the work of healing and liberation, which includes--in the words of the sign out front, “Standing up, speaking up, showing up for justice”-- and working to change the systems that hurt the most vulnerable among us, who are God’s precious children. We are also called to engage in what Dr. Lose refers to as “the small acts of devotion, tenderness, and forgiveness that go largely unnoticed but tend the relationships that are most important to us.” In fact, when we engage in those small acts, we have no idea the difference we might make in someone’s life.

I’ve been your interim pastor for less than a month. (Well, two days short of a month), but I’ve already witnessed dozens of small gestures of love, care, devotion, tenderness and forgiveness that you have shown each other--and me. Our scripture reading puts it this way: Jesus says, “This is a large work I’ve called you into, but don’t be overwhelmed by it. It’s best to start small. Give a cool cup of water to someone who is thirsty…”

Now, I realize that we are in the midst of a pandemic, so literally giving a cup of cool water to someone who is thirsty may not be something we feel comfortable doing right now. (And that’s understandable.) So, we have to get creative in how we reach out in faith--and you are!

Here are a few examples:

- I know many of you work hard--through phone calls and notes and emails--to stay in touch with each other during this time when in-person church is not happening.

- Some connect groups are continuing to meet-- via zoom or email or in small, in person gatherings at a safe distance outside.

- Your committees are still meeting via zoom and doing the work of the church.

- We continue to gather on Sundays for livestream worship and prayer, and dozens of you are involved in the email “prayer links,” lifting each other--and our neighbors--up before God in prayer.

- Your council has formed a task team who has just sent out a questionnaire asking people what they need from the church. Please fill it out--it will help us minister to you--and help us all minister to our neighbors who may be looking for a loving, caring faith community to be part of.

As we engage in these small acts of love and care, we continue, in the words of the rainbow banner that is now hanging outside of our building, to “be the church.” (if you haven’t yet seen the banner, please drive by and take a look at it. Or look for a picture of it that will be posted on the website later this week. It lists many positive ways we can do God’s work in the world.) And, unlike the star thrower, who was working by himself, we have each other, and when we work together, Jesus’ love is present among us in ways we cannot explain, and that Love can indeed change the world for the better. Thanks be to God!

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

June 28, 2020