To Serve the Little Ones Proper 8A

 

To Serve the Little Ones

Jesus concludes his instructions to those who would be his disciples, “Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me.”  [Matthew 10:4042] This may also be translated, “Whoever receives you receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me.” Which instructions began back in 10:14, “If anyone will not welcome/receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet as you leave that house or town. Truly I tell you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.”

 

From the outset, Jesus warns us that to be a disciple of his, one who carries his message from town to town, household to household, you will face rejection just as he did at the hands of Rome. This broadens the scope of these instructions in that they are not just about the disciples, but also have something to say about those who welcome or reject those of us who are sent by Jesus to be co-workers of God’s dominion – over against the dominion of the Empire, the dominion of Caesar. We need to remember that Matthew has chosen to include these instructions in an atmosphere of sheer terror. To quell opposition to the Roman occupation of the land, the Roman Legions set siege to the central city of Jerusalem, resulting in the destruction of the Temple, the center of Jewish life, and the death of up to a million sons and daughters of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It was a literal holocaust.

 

To remember this makes it reasonable to assume that some folks may be leery to open their doors to anyone not familiar, let alone those who represent an alternative to life in the Empire which has shown the full depth of its wrath. The comparison to Sodom and Gomorrah for those who do not welcome the Good News. God’s wrath rained down on them for the sin of not welcoming nor  offering hospitality to strangers, nomads. Whereas, Jesus’s practiced extraordinary Holy Hospitality by welcoming everyone, especially those routinely ignored by the establishment: those who are poor, disabled, strangers, prisoners of the Empire, the unhoused, and those who hunger and thirst. The very people with whom Jesus self-identifies in Matthew chapter 25.

 

These final instructions raise two questions for all of us: Are we willing to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ, door-to-door, proclaiming the dominion of God’s love, mercy, compassion, justice, and forgiveness despite possible opposition? And, are we willing to open our doors to welcome the very same people Jesus self-identifies with in Matthew 25?

 

There is a Jewish principal of shaliach: the appointed representative of someone is to be understood as the legal embodiment of the one who sends him or her to you. In this case, Jesus makes a profound statement: those of us who are sent by Jesus, who is in turn sent by God, are act and be received as if we are Jesus, and thereby, as God as well. As difficult as it may be to think of ourselves in such terms, it is Genesis that tells us we are imago Dei, created in the image of God. This is who we are meant to be – the very embodiment of God’s love, justice, compassion and forgiveness to all to whom we are sent. This is what compels Paul to write: “So we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us; we entreat you on behalf of Christ: be reconciled to God.” [2 Corinthians 5:20] And therefore, by the principal of shaliach, all we say and do on behalf of Christ, we also say on behalf of God’s very self! The contrast is impossible to overlook. The Empire speaks only on behalf of the Emperor. Those who are sent by Christ speak on behalf of Jesus, and thereby on behalf of God who cares for all people, all creatures, and all of creation. Especially the “little ones.”

 

Not to get too deep into the weeds of the original Greek text of Matthew, but it is worthwhile to consider several key-words. The Greek for “welcoming one” is a present participle, which describes an on-going orientation, not a one-time act. The word for “reward” is actually a labor term meaning wages owed to a worker, which was a concretely economic promise in a world shaped by debt and the constant threat of being cheated out of what you’d earned. And the word for “little ones” points to those at the bottom of every social hierarchy Matthew’s community knew, and are still with us to this day, as Jesus himself says to the disciples in Matthew 26:11: “For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me.”

 

This seems to be the central point of these two verses that conclude Jesus’s instructions to his disciples, which for Matthew always means for us, those who read and hear the word. I’ve noticed during this enigmatic season for Baltimore Orioles baseball that every time Pete Alanso is interviewed after a game for having made a key hit or homer to win the game, when asked what was his approach; what was he looking for as he stood in the batter’s box; he always praises those who got on base before him, the pitching staff, and everyone else but himself.

 

Matthew’s Jesus does the very same thing here: through the principal of shaliach, and his careful choice of words, we are directed not just to the disciples, and in turn to us; not to those who may welcome or reject those who carry on Jesus’s mission on behalf of God his Father; we are directed to those who are to be the primary focus of living in a world of God’s dominion, not the dominion of emperors from Caesar to the present day.: the little ones. Those at the bottom of every social hierarchy throughout all time, which includes women and children as well. As he says in Matthew 25:

34 Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world, 35 for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food or thirsty and gave you something to drink? 38 And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you or naked and gave you clothing? 39 And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ 40 And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it to me.’ 41 Then he will say to those at his left hand, ‘You who are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels, 42 for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ 44 Then they also will answer, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison and did not take care of you?’ 45 Then he will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ 46 And these will go away into eternal punishment but the righteous into eternal life.”

 

May God’s Word enter our hearts, and our minds, and show forth in all we do and say on behalf of the one who sends us to be his messengers of God’s dominion, now and forever. Amen.