4th Sunday after Pentecost
Text: Luke 10:1-11, 16-20
Pastor Jean M. Hansen
Recently our prayers in worship have included a prayer for peace in the world. We’ve mostly mentioned the war between Israel and Palestine (Hammas), concerned especially for the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and the conflict between Ukraine and Russia. But Sudan, Myanmar, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Syria and Iran also are places in desperate need of peace.
When I read today’s Gospel lesson, which I have done many times over the years, for the first time the desperate need for peace in our world and in our lives came to mind along with these words, “Go on your way. See, I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves…whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this house!’ And if anyone is there who shares in peace, your peace will rest on that person; but if not, it will return to you.”
Now, I know, and you know I know, that importance of not taking scripture out of context, so I also know that in this familiar passage Jesus is sending out his followers as the advance team for his own arrival. This is no small enterprise; approximately 35 teams are out to 35 villages, or so it’s implied, to proclaim peace, bring healing to people’s lives and proclaim that the Kingdom of God has come near.
They are to take no provisions, no money, no extra clothes, demonstrating their dependence on God who will work through the people, the strangers, the encounter. They are not to become distracted or move around to find a better host or tastier food. Their focus is to be on bringing God’s peace and presence to those who will receive it. Just as is true of harvesting crops, it is time, the harvest is ready, Jesus says, and they are the answer to their own prayers.
These 70 are the laborers sent into a world ready for the Kingdom of God. If they are not welcome, they are to move on. Their mission is of upmost importance; they are to bring healing with their message of peace and God’s presence.
Well, we live in an unhealthy world, a world in need of that peace and of God’s presence, not only in the places I mentioned at the beginning of my sermon, but in our divided country, in places where violence rules, in situations where there’s tension and conflict due to everything from differing opinions, prejudice, unmet needs and psychological stress. Fear prevails and apathy reigns.
So, we pray for peace, sometimes forgetting the opening phrase of today’s text, directed at those Jesus had chosen, is: “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into this harvest.” Just as the 70 were the answer to their own prayer, so are we. Quoting Pastor Kim P. Wells, “The world is desperate to receive peace, to witness universal love and to feel the realm of God come close. The world needs what the church has to offer.” (1)
It’s true, though, that we are like lambs among wolves; the extreme understanding of which is that a lamb in the midst of wolves expects to lose its life. (Remember how Jesus said that those who want to save their life will lose it and those who lose their life for his sake will find it?) A less threatening understanding of being lambs among wolves is that we respond to power and violence with vulnerability, humility and compassion. It’s an upside down way of living and is, in fact, the way of peace.
We have something to learn from the 70 followers who were sent out by Jesus. Here’s how Pastor Wells describes it, “These followers are sent out into the world offering peace. Embodying peace. Demonstrating peace in their behavior – material simplicity, acceptance, sharing, working together.” She goes on to say that when people embody peace, justice, respect, compassion, and generosity, peace is revealed, as is realm of God. (2)
That’s the vision which guides us. Did you notice the result of their mission as it was described in the closing verses of today’s text? They returned with joy! Why? They returned celebrating because they confronted the power of evil and prevailed; they proclaimed peace, brought healing to people’s lives and helped people experience the power and presence of God. And Jesus tells them that will continue to be the case…although…the real reason to rejoice is that they are among God’s beloved ones.
The message to us is that we too can confront the destructive forces around us, all that is undermining peace. We can do so as we are, without a lot of planning or training, but depending on God to be with us.
So, here’s some advice from an article written by the Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts. First, we extend divine peace into the world by living peaceably each day, with everyone – family, friends, those at our workplace, the servers who wait on our tables and the “stupid idiots” who cut us off in the parking lot.
Second, we bring God’s peace to the world by seeking God’s righteousness and justice. I’ll quote the author, “We treat all people with respect and dignity, even and especially those who are most helpless and defenseless. We make sure our practices and policies reflect God’s revealed values, even when we operate in “the world.” We use the power and opportunity given to us to be people of biblical justice. We don’t turn the other way when we see injustice, but invest our energies so that God’s justice and righteousness might take form in and ultimately transform our world.” (3)
Take, for example, a ministry in Hollywood, California called “City Dwellers.” Dr. Roberts writes that members of the City Dwellers team moved into one of the neighborhoods in the city of Hollywood where violence, crime, poverty, injustice were all were common. They sought God’s shalom for that community, committing to living in the community for one year as peacemakers. Their ministry was multi-faceted. “They shared the gospel and their possessions with their neighbors. They shepherded children and encouraged parents. They sought justice for people whose ignorance of American society and the English language made them easy targets for oppressors. They fed the hungry and visited prisoners in jail. They comforted mothers whose children were shot in drive-by shootings. They taught young people academic skills and they taught them about Jesus.” (4)
No doubt often feeling like lambs in the midst of wolves, the City Dwellers modeled and proclaimed the peace of Christ in everything that they did. May it be so for us; with our lives may we proclaim peace, bring healing to the world and demonstrate that the Kingdom of God is among us now. AMEN
(1) “The Harvest” by Rev. Kim P. Wells, Luke 10”1-11, 16-20, July 17, 2016, Lakewood United Church of Christ
(2) Same as #1
(3) “Seeking the Peace of Christ: Christianity and Peacemaking” by the Rev. Dr. Mark Roberts, 2010, www.patheos.com
(4) Same as #3