25 June 2023 - Proper 7, Year A

Theme

This week’s readings remind us that we may experience ridicule and shame for following Jesus, but God will care for us throughout our suffering. In Genesis, Abraham banishes Hagar and Ishmael to the wilderness but God hears their cries and responds in love. In Matthew, Jesus says that his followers will face ridicule and persecution, but they must be willing to take up their cross. Jeremiah complains about being mocked, but commits to honouring God regardless. The Psalmists endure insults and ask God for protection.

Scripture Readings

  • Genesis 21:8-21 - Abraham is about to bless Isaac when Ishmael, his son with Hagar, mocks him. Sarah asks Abraham to send Ishmael and Hagar away because she doesn’t want Ishmael to share Abraham’s inheritance. After conversing with God, Abraham sends them away, but God promises to make a nation out of Ishmael’s descendants as well.

    Hagar and Ishmael wandered in the desert. At the point of starvation, Hagar left Ishmael in a nearby bush as she didn’t want to watch him die. God promised her that he would have many descendants. When she opened her eyes, she saw water and gave the boy a drink. Ishmael grew up as a skillful archer in the wilderness and married a woman from Egypt.

  • Psalm 86:1-10 - A prayer of petition to God for care and protection.

  • Romans 6:1b-11 - God’s grace should not lead to more sin. Our old, sinful lives were crucified with Christ and we are no longer slaves to sin. Sin has lost its power over us.

  • Matthew 10:24-39 - We are called to be like Jesus. Jesus has been called the prince of demons and his followers will be called worse. Don’t be afraid of those who threaten you, one day everything will be revealed. God knows everything and values human life. Whoever acknowledges Jesus on earth will be acknowledged before God in heaven. Anyone who denies Jesus on earth will be denied before God in heaven. Jesus didn’t come to bring peace to earth, but a sword. Family members will be against one another. Those who refuse to take up their cross are not worthy of being Christ’s. Those who cling to their life will lose it, but those who give it up for Christ, will find it.

  • Jeremiah 20:7-13 - Jeremiah complains to God about his situation. He is mocked for speaking against the powers and authorities. Jeremiah claims that he still cannot be quiet because God’s voice burns within him. Even though he is being hunted, Jeremiah continues to praise God.

  • Psalm 69:7-10, (11-15), 16-18 - The Psalmise endures insults for God’s sake, even from his/her family.

The Context

For the remainder of the Season after Pentecost, we will be reading through Matthew’s Gospel chronologically. Today’s reading is from the second of five discourses (teaching dialogues) of Jesus found in Matthew’s Gospel. This second discourse is sometimes referred to as the missionary discourse as Jesus spends time instructing his disciples to preach and teach and heal throughout the region. Jesus’ words this week remind us of the disciple’s vulnerability: that they get sent as missionaries without money, food and extra clothing, relying on the hospitality, and often hostility, of others.

Personal Application

Seriously following Jesus isn’t for the faint of heart. It means giving things up, even precious things; things we hold dear. Following Jesus means making God’s mission of love and justice the first priority in our lives, even above family and livelihood. Count the cost before you respond.

Building another world — a world where all are seen and honored — requires thoroughgoing commitment, and a willingness to stay engaged when things get dicey. Jesus doesn’t mince words on this point: You are embarking on a struggle; you will meet with trouble, and setbacks, and a long journey ahead.

The good news of the Gospel may be for everyone — but discipleship isn’t. According to Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, Jesus encountered thousands of people during his ministry — but only called something like fourteen (that we know of) to be disciples. Jesus and his entourage moved through the countryside feeding, healing, and teaching the crowds, but not signing them up as disciples. For the overwhelming majority of the people he met, his signature sign-off wasn’t “Follow me,” but rather: “Your faith has made you well,” or “Return home and declare how much God has done for you,” or “Go on your way, and sin no more,” or “Go in peace.” It seems as though Jesus comes to save many (indeed the whole world!), but as for disciples, he calls only a few.

Although it is a difficult invite to respond to, Jesus’ call to “all in” discipleship remains open and vibrant for everyone. On any given day, even words as challenging as these in Matthew may become a summons personally addressed to you, or to me, or to a particular congregation.

What are some of the costs you have had to face after choosing to follow Jesus? Are there perhaps any other things you may be required to give up or place a lower priority on in order to follow Jesus more seriously in your life at the moment or in the future?

Communal Application

At Sarah’s request, Abraham dismisses Hagar and Ishmael (the very young son of Abraham and Hagar), sending them out alone into the wilderness. Both Sarah and Abraham show extreme prejudice against Hagar in this episode, likely including racial-ethnic prejudice, since Hagar is an Egyptian; Sarah calls her “this slave woman.”

Hagar and Ishmael’s meager provisions soon run out, and Hagar, distraught and convinced that her son soon will die, withdraws from him: “Do not let me look on the death of a child.” But at exactly this moment of harrowing despair, God hears the boy’s cries and sends an angel to ask, “What troubles you, Hagar?.” God rescues them both, and Hagar and Ishmael, like Sarah and Isaac, become the ancestors of “a great nation.”

Abraham and Sarah’s actions in this story are deeply disturbing. This story is a reminder that even some of our faith community’s greatest heroes not only had deep flaws, but lived in a completely different context to us with ancient, tribal beliefs, traditions and values. In Abraham’s time, owning slaves, and even impregnating them for heirs, was completely normal and acceptable. Disowning them and getting rid of them when it served you was allowed. And yet, the incredible part of this story is that even though Abraham and Sarah discarded Hagar and Ishmael, God did not. God cared for, and provided for, a slave girl and her offspring, two people who were worth less than nothing in the context they found themselves.

This story makes me wonder who is excluded from our faith communities for whatever reason we might deem fit? Who has been sent away or banished from our church communities, either intentionally or because we have failed to support and encourage them? What about homeless folk? Convicts? Disabled folk? Foreigners? Transgender youth? Gay couples? The beautiful encouragement from this story is that even if the Church fails to accommodate and include the outcasts, God hears their cries and meets their needs.

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