Sunday, June 18, 2023 - How will you continue to proclaim God's kingdom?

To read the texts click on the texts: Exod 19:2-6; Rom 5:6-11; Mt 9:35-10:8

The themes which stand out in the readings of today are obedience, love and wholeness.

In the reading from the Book of Exodus we are made privy to a theophany. God speaks with Moses and promises that he is a God of justice and mercy. He will continue to bestow his love on the people. The experience of this love must move the people to respond. The manner in which they show that they have received God's love and mercy is if they love others and are merciful to them. This will mean professing their faith in action and not only in words.

Paul speaks of this faith which he says is what justifies us. We are not justified by any merit on our part simply because Jesus has obtained all the graces that we need through his death on the cross. This death was not because we were righteous or worthy in any way. It was because of the gratuity of God in Jesus who died for us even when we were sinners. This is proof (if proof were required) of God’s immeasurable and unconditional love made visible and tangible in Jesus.

The love that we receive from Jesus is a love that must be shared with all those we meet. This is why the Gospel text begins with a summary of the activities of Jesus. This includes word and action, saying and doing. The Mission of Jesus to make people whole is not a restricted, but a universal mission. It is to all and for all. In this mission, every person is made well, every disease is cured and every infirmity is healed.

The trust that Jesus places in his disciples is evident when he gives his disciples the same mission given to him by God. The disciples will speak and act like Jesus did. They will make people well, cure diseases and heal infirmities like Jesus did. Jesus holds nothing back. He gives his disciples the same authority that God gave him. It is with his authority that his disciples will have authority over unclean spirits and over every disease and infirmity. In a word, they will have authority over all the negatives that do not allow people to be whole.

The mission on which Jesus sends his disciples is directed primarily to the poor and downtrodden. It is the marginalized and forgotten that the missionaries are to reach first. They are to give with no expectation of return. Since they have received everything as grace they must impart to others whatever they do with the same grace. Just as the immediate response of Jesus on seeing the crowds was compassion, so must the missionaries be compassionate to everyone they meet.

It must be noted that when Jesus summons the twelve, they are termed disciples. This is from the Greek μαθηταί, and means someone who sits at the feet of the master and learns from him. The reason for the use of this term here is to indicate that the Mission belongs to Jesus and it is with his authority that the disciples are sent out. It is only after they have learned from him that they can become ἀπόστολοι (apostles) or those who are sent out. it is Jesus’ message (“gospel of the kingdom”) that the disciples proclaim, his miracles that they continue, and his presence that defines them.

The list of the names of the twelve is instructive. The first four were fishermen, Matthew was a tax-collector, not much is known about the others, but in the group, there is also a betrayer. We also know that of these chosen twelve, there was not one who remained in Gethsemane when Jesus was arrested. In other words, Jesus did not choose heroes. He chose weak, vulnerable and sinful men and hoped that through them he would continue the Mission given to him by God.

His hope was not belied.  Even if immediately after the death and burial of Jesus, the disciples were a frightened lot, there is no doubt that with the coming of the Spirit which Jesus promised, they became fearless and courageous men. They became men who would keep spreading the message of love no matter what the consequences. They continued the mission of Jesus as he wanted them to continue it, remembering at all times, that the mission was the mission of the Lord.

What message do the readings offer us? The love of God manifested in Jesus is a love that is unconditional. In his letter to the Romans, Paul explains how this is so when he states that Jesus died for us even when we were ungodly and sinners. He did not wait for humanity to become godly and obedient to God. He accepted the whole of humanity as it was with all its weaknesses and sinfulness with no expectation in return. His death to save was an act done gratuitously and without reserve. It was done because of unconditional love.

If we have experienced this love, the only proper response is that we love in return. As the disciples learned from Jesus, we too must sit at his feet and learn from him. It is with his authority that we too like the apostles will them go out to everyone we meet proclaiming God’s kingdom of justice, peace and love. It is then that like the disciples we too will make people whole.

There may be times when our efforts will not bear the fruit that we want. At times like these we keep reminding ourselves that the Mission is not ours but the Lord’s and that in his time and in his way, he will make the whole of humanity whole. If God could make the Universe out of nothing, we know and will remember that nothing is impossible for God.