The Rev. Dr. Brandon Perrine
Proper 7A
Matthew 10:24-39
June 21, 2026
“A disciple is not above the teacher nor a slave above the master; it is enough for the disciple to be like the teacher and the slave like the master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household! So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered and nothing secret that will not become known. What I say to you in the dark, tell in the light, and what you hear whispered, proclaim from the housetops. Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, fear the one who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your God. And even the hairs of your head are all counted. So do not be afraid; you are of more value than many sparrows. Everyone, therefore, who acknowledges me before others, I also will acknowledge before my God in heaven, but whoever denies me before others, I also will deny before my God in heaven. Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law, and one’s foes will be members of one’s own household. Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever does not take up the cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Those who find their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.”
~o~
We’ve all gotten bad advice before, am I right? Sometimes, we see through it. Sometimes, we don’t. If I’m completely honest with you, this passage from Matthew’s gospel seems full of it. Shout the secrets you hear from the rooftops. Don’t be afraid of those that kill. Rely on God to keep you safe like the birds—because flying into windows or meeting a cat never worked out badly for them. And on Fathers’ Day, expect battle between family members—sons against fathers, daughters against mothers. Mother-in-law, don’t think you’re safe either. She’s coming for you too. But don’t let worry get you down. This is your cross to bear—and if it kills you, at least you won’t have to worry about it anymore.
This is not really what we’ve come to expect from Jesus. Sure, we know that his message will ruffle some feathers. We might even assume that at some point or other, we’ll suffer for sharing it. But we’re not looking for trouble either! We’re not going to run around telling other people’s secrets, looking to throw down with the dodgiest and deadliest, and intentionally burning our bridges with family so that home isn’t even safe for us. A little caution isn’t a bad thing, right?
These are perplexing words. One preacher reasoned that this simply couldn’t be “Jesus doing the talking.” Someone else must be “speaking for Jesus, putting their words and agenda into his mouth.”1 But I’m not so sure. That seems like the easy way out. And sometimes we’re called upon to take the hard way. To wrestle with a text. Even if the text itself is a cross to bear.
In this case, I’m inclined to think that rather than encouraging or justifying violence in his name, Jesus understood that his radical message was bound to cause social friction. He understood that getting from the Pax Romana, with its peace-through-subjugation approach, to the Kingdom of God, with its peace-through-justice approach, wasn’t going to be easy. The peace of Rome depended upon people knowing their place and staying in it. The peace of God depended upon people being treated with dignity and fairness. One preserves the status quo. The other challenges it. And whenever the status quo is challenged, conflict tends to follow. He understood that even talking about it wasn’t going to be easy. He understood that even families would divide over it. He understood that these would necessarily raise fear and anxiety among his followers. So he told them about the birds. He told them not to worry. He told them exactly what would, and did, happen because sometimes simply naming a thing takes away its power to scare us.
It wouldn’t be so different from me telling you that some people will say we’re going to hell for marching in the Pride parade last weekend. Or that others will call us heathens for believing that LGBTQ+ people should be fully welcomed and affirmed in the life of the church. Or that some will call us heretics for believing that science is compatible with faith. Or that others will call us communists for believing that our society has a responsibility to ensure that basic needs are met for those without the means to meet them for themselves. The things we stand for have consequences. Always have. Always will. Jesus was just being honest about it.
But Jesus wasn’t just saying it for shock value. The context matters. He was sending out his followers into the world to share his message about the Kingdom of God. He knew what they would be facing and he wanted them to be prepared. There’s a lot of wisdom in that.
Likewise, our faith, our message, our understanding of the gospel, may have a similar effect on the people we share it with. We may be called communists for believing the gospel calls us to care for one another. We may be called heathens for believing the gospel calls us to welcome LGBTQ+ people. We may be called heretics for believing that science is compatible with faith. We may be called woke for believing that science is compatible with faith. We may be called woke for believing that women and people of color have been marginalized by the church and by our society. We may be told that we’re following a false prophet. We may be told that we’re going to hell. But Jesus says, take up your cross and share your faith, your message, your understanding of the gospel—our understanding of the gospel—share it anyway because it matters. Because our communities can be more welcoming, and our neighbors can be more caring, and we can be more loving, and our world can be more kind. Our message matters. Jesus’ message matters. So we share it any way.
Good advice? Bad advice? I’m guessing it depends on your point of view. But I plan to follow it and I hope you will too. The gospel has always been a risky thing to share. But if it can help create a more just, loving, and compassionate world, then it is a risk worth taking.
Amen.
1 Richard Bryant. “I’m Not Bringing a Sword,” Um-insight.net, June 19, 2023: https://um-insight.net/perspectives/i%E2%80%99m-not-bringing-a-sword-thoughts-on-matthew-10-24-39/.
