GOSPEL READING:
Matthew 10:7-157 And preach as you go, saying, `The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' 8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying, give without pay. 9 Take no gold, nor silver, nor copper in your belts, 10 no bag for your journey, nor two tunics, nor sandals, nor a staff; for the laborer deserves his food. 11 And whatever town or village you enter, find out who is worthy in it, and stay with him until you depart. 12 As you enter the house, salute it. 13 And if the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it; but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. 14 And if any one will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet as you leave that house or town. 15 Truly, I say to you, it shall be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah than for that town.
Meditation: Do you believe that the Gospel has power to
change your life and the lives of others? Jesus gave his
disciples a two-fold commission to speak in his name and to act
with his power. The core of the Gospel message is quite simple: the
kingdom (or reign) of God is imminent! What is the kingdom
of God? It is that society of men and women who freely submit to
God and who honor him as their Lord and King. In the Lord's prayer
we pray for God to reign in our lives and in our world: May
your kingdom come and your will be done on earth as it is in
heaven.
Doing the works which Jesus did
Jesus also commissioned his disciples to carry on the works which
he did - bringing the healing power and mercy of God to the weary
and oppressed. The Gospel has power to set people free from sin,
sickness, fear, and oppression. The Lord Jesus will free us from
anything that keeps us from loving him and our neighbor with joy
and confidence.
Sharing generously what God has given to each one of us
Jesus said to his disciples: Freely you have received, freely
give. What they have received from Jesus they must now pass
on to others without expecting a favor in return, whether it be in
the form of a gift or payment. They must show by their attitude
that their first interest is in serving God, not receiving
material gain. They must serve without guile, full of charity and
peace, and simplicity. They must give their full attention to the
proclamation of God's kingdom and not be diverted by other lesser
things. They must travel light - only take what was
essential and leave behind whatever would distract them - in order
to concentrate on the task of speaking the word of God. They must
do their work, not for what they can get out of it, but for what
they can give freely to others, without expecting special
privileges or reward. "Poverty of spirit" frees us from greed and
preoccupation with possessions and makes ample room for God's
provision. The Lord wants his disciples to be dependent on him and
not on themselves.
Support the work of the Gospel with your resources
Secondly, Jesus said: the worker deserves his sustenance.
Here we see a double-truth: the worker of God must not be
overly-concerned with material things, but the people of God must
never fail in their duty to give the worker of God what he or she
needs to sustain themselves in the Lord's service. Do you pray for
the work of the Gospel and do you support it with your material
and financial resources?
Jesus ends his instructions with a warning: If people reject
God's invitation and refuse his word, then they bring judgment and
condemnation on themselves. When God gives us his word there comes
with it the great responsibility to respond. Indifference will not
do. We are either for or against God in how we respond to his
word. God gives us his word that we may have life - abundant life
in him. He wills to work in and through each of us for his glory.
God shares his word with us and he commissions us to speak it
boldly and simply to others. Do you witness the truth and joy of
the Gospel by word and example to those around you?
Lord Jesus, may the joy and truth of the Gospel transform my life that I may witness it to those around me. Grant that I may spread your truth and your light wherever I go.
Psalm 80:1-3, 15-17
1 Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock! You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth
2 before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh! Stir up your might, and come to save us!
3 Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved!
15 the stock which your right hand planted.
16 They have burned it with fire, they have cut it down; may they perish at the rebuke of your countenance!
17 But let your hand be upon the man of your right hand, the son of man whom you have made strong for yourself!
Daily Quote from the Early Church Fathers: The gift of power to reign with the Lord, by Hilary of Poitiers (315-367 AD)
"All the power possessed by the Lord is bestowed upon the
apostles! Those who were prefigured in the image and likeness of
God in Adam have now received the perfect image and likeness of
Christ. They have been given powers in no way different from those
of the Lord. Those once earthbound now become heaven-centered.
They will proclaim that the kingdom of heaven is at hand, that the
image and likeness of God are now appropriated in the company of
truth, so that all the holy ones who have been made heirs of
heaven may reign with the Lord. Let them cure the sick, raise the
dead, cleanse the lepers and cast out devils. Whatever impairment
Adam's body had incurred from being goaded on by Satan, let the
apostles wipe away through their sharing in the Lord's power. And
that they may fully obtain the likeness of God according to the
prophecy in Genesis, they are ordered to give freely what they
freely have received (Matthew 10:8). Thus a gift freely bestowed
should be freely dispensed." (excerpt from
commentary ON MATTHEW 10.4)
