Matthew 10:40-42
Jesus said, “Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. Whoever welcomes a prophet in the name of a prophet will receive a prophet's reward; and whoever welcomes a righteous person in the name of a righteous person will receive the reward of the righteous; and whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple -- truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward.”
… Homily…
The Gospel for this Sunday is all about welcome. Jesus charges his followers to be on the lookout for such a welcome and the hospitality that lies within it. And the disciples knew well exactly what this welcome entails. A few weeks ago we heard of the hospitality of Abraham, the great patriarch of Israel, who welcomed three travelers, and encountered God. You may recall that I said then that Abraham was simply doing what he was raised to do. And the Old Testament is filled with similar stories of persons who showed such hospitality, who welcomed the stranger and befriended them with a cool drink and a refreshing meal. And there are a few instances in the Old Testament where when such hospitality was not practiced, there was a severe judgment that awaited those who did not welcome and who showed no hospitality. Chief among them is the judgment against Sodom and Gommorah. It may seem odd to us for everything we have heard as the basis of that judgment from the hand of God to include these cities and their people in this category. Many others will tell you that there was another cause of God's anger against the inhabitants of these cities. Forget for a moment that you've ever heard such explanations. And then ask, "But what does Scripture have to say about this?" Here is what Scripture says; what the Old Testament prophet Ezekiel says [Ezekiel 16:49]:
Behold, this was the guilt of your
sister Sodom: she and her daughters
had pride, excess of food, and
prosperous ease, but did not aid the
poor and needy.
So you see Sodom and Gommorah fell into judgment because they had not welcomed others and had not shown hospitality.
But Jesus is speaking here of the welcome his followers will receive, and the hospitality that will be shown them. So how then does this reminder of the Old Testament message of giving welcome and showing hospitality apply here to what Jesus says to his followers? Note that there is a change in tone in the words of Jesus. By the end of today's Gospel, Jesus is no longer speaking specifically to the disciples on what they should be looking to receive. His words become more general and his focus turns from receiving to giving. Jesus speaks of the cup of cold water that will be given "to these little ones."
He does not say who it is that will give this refreashing drink, and thus show hospitality and provide a gracious welcome. But that phrase, "to these little ones," says volumes. Jesus is speaking here of the very ones in whose midst he is constantly found in the Gospel. These are the ones forgotten and forsaken, even rejected by others, for various reasons. Make no mistake about the fact that the reason why these little ones flocked to Jesus was because in him they found someone who gladly gave them a cup of cold water.
But when did Jesus ever drop the bucket into a well and draw water? If we are thinking of a literal cup of water, we will be hard pressed to find such an instance. You see this image of a cup of cold water points to something larger. Jesus is the very well from which flow the waters of eternal life. When Jesus touched the sick and healed them, when he fed the hungry and raised the dead, when he loved the unloved and accepted the rejected, his acts of mercy and of love are nothing less than a cup of the cool, refreshing, but chiefly eternal waters that refreshes the thirsty to such a degree that in and through Christ they never thirst again.
Oh how beautiful is that imagery! The disciples saw this beauty day by day by sight. We see this beauty by faith!
Whether by sight or by faith, however, there is a challenge in this imagery for us whose identity is so wrapped in that of Jesus that when others see us, the fact that we are Christians ought to be more prevalent than is our own individual identity.
Friends, we have all received the cup of cool eternal waters from Christ himself. And what does he say to us who have been so refreshed? He calls us to lift up our eyes to the least and the lowliest in our midst and to take the cup of God's mercy and love to them, confident that there will always be enough for them and for us. This well will not run dry! Those who drink from Christ will never be thirsty!
Will we be so bold as to offer up that cup of cold water to those in our midst who are thirsty, not merely for water, but for hope and love, mercy and forgiveness, and so much more? I cannot help but think as we are a few days away from Independence Day of the words of Lady Liberty:
"Give me your huddled masses,
yearning to breathe free, the
wretched refuse of your teeming
shore, send these, the homeless,
tempest tost to me, I lift my lamp
beside the golden door."
I will leave it to someone else to speak of how we have heeded these words of wisdom as Americans, for I am no politician. But as I am a priest, I feel compelled to ask us as Christians "how is this welcome being given by us who are the Church?" Remember that for us the golden door is not the place of entrance where we all once passed when our ancestors came to this land. For us that Golden Door is none other than Jesus, who not only said that he is the Good Shepherd. He also tells us that he is the door to eternal life, to the cool and refreshing waters of life that never fail through drought.
Mindful of this, let us ever be so bold as to give the cup of water again and again, and thus bring others to Christ the Door, that they might enter with us into the Kingdom of God.
Father Timothy Alleman, Rector
The Church of the Holy Cross
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