June 21, 2026

 

Matthew 10:24-39

 

+ I say it so much, you’re all sick ofit, no doubt.

 

I say it so much you no doubt justroll your eyes.

 

And maybe, considering all that hashappened over the these last few years in our country, you might not evenbelieve me.

 

And no, I’m not talking about chickensroosting.

 

I’m talking instead about the mostrepeated command we find in scripture.

 

Remember what that is?

 

Do not be afraid.

 

Fear not.

 

But, I will say this about that.

 

I say it mention it so much because Itruly, truly believe it.

 

I do.

 

I believe it because, I believe it istrue.

 

It is true.

 

And we hear it again today, in our Gospel.

 

Jesus doesn’t offer comfort in a waywe usually find him offering comfort.  

 

He doesn’t promise that following himwill make life easier.

 

He doesn't say doing so will be peaceful.

 

He sure doesn’t say that we will getsome kind of security from following him.  

 

Instead, he tells his disciples anotherkind of truth.

 

If people don’t get him, theyprobablya ren’t going to get us.

 

If anyone misunderstands his messageof of inclusive love, his understanding that we are all beloved children of aloving God, then guess what?

 

We’re going to be misunderstood too.

 

In other words, don’t expect people toalways “get it.”

 

That may sound discouraging.

 

But I think Jesus is actually offeringus a strange kind of freedom.

 

So much of our lives is spent tryingto manage what other people think of us.

 

We want to be liked.

 

We want approval.

 

We want to avoid conflict.

 

Yet Jesus reminds us that our primarycalling is not to be admired but to be faithful.

 

“Do not be afraid,” he says threetimes.

 

Do not be afraid of what others sayabout you.

 

Do not be afraid of those who canwound the body.

 

Do not be afraid of losing status orreputation.

 

The God who knows every sparrow thatfalls and every hair upon your head knows you completely and loves youcompletely.

 

The heart of discipleship is trust.

 

And then Jesus gives us thosedifficult words about taking up the cross.

 

We hear them so often that they losetheir force.

 

The cross was not a decoration or areligious symbol.

 

It was an instrument of death.

 

To take up the cross meantsurrendering one’s own agenda and placing one’s life into God’s hands.

 

That does not mean seeking suffering.

 

It means loving truth more thancomfort, loving Christ more than approval, loving the Kingdom more than our ownsecurity.

 

In every generation, Christians mustdecide what comes first.

 

Family loyalties, political loyalties,personal ambitions, cherished opinions—all of these have their place.

 

But none of them can occupy the placethat belongs to God alone.

 

There’s a wonderful in our Gospeltoday

 

“Those who find their life will loseit, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.”

 

The more we make everything about thealmighty me, the smaller our lives really become.

 

 The more we center our lives on God, the morefully alive we become.

 

The fact is that we don’t have toany of this alone.  

 

The One who calls us to take up thecross is also the same One who carries it on the path we’re following.

 

The One who tells us not to be afraidis the Word of our God, the same God who holds us in the hand palm.

 

We have nothing to fear.

 

Be courageous.

 

Hold to the truth.

 

Doing so, how can we be anything but courageous?

 

Amen.