ALL are Welcome

4th Sunday after Pentecost

Today's Readings: Jeremiah 28; Matthew 10:40-42

Grace and peace to you in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

In our first reading today we find ourselves witnessing an encounter between the prophets Jeremiah and Hananiah in the temple. Jeremiah, a prophet of the Lord, has been walking around in a self-made and self-inflicted yoke to demonstrate the yoke the Babylonian empire has placed on the Jews. This took place during that brief moment in history when the United Monarchy of the 12 Tribes of Israel were divided into the Kingdom of Judah and the Kingdom of Israel. Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar already had Zedekiah (Judah’s last king) in the palm of his hand and a large chunk of Israelites had already been exiled and enslaved by Babylon, making the end of the Israelites’ reign feel as imminent as ever.

Hananiah was prophesying a rebellion, standing up to the great power of Babylon, defeating the empire and reviving the reign of the Israelite kingdoms. Now is the time, Hananiah claimed, because the Lord has broken the yoke of Babylon and within the next two years all those taken away would return and the kingdom would be restored. Jeremiah, on the other hand, was prophesying that to wage such war would be the end of Israelite power altogether. Jeremiah says, ‘yes, I hope that is true! I hope the Lord does those things, Hananiah.. but hold your horses on taking up arms. Only in retrospect will we know who has prophesied accurately.’ A few more verses later we hear Jeremiah say, ‘You have broken wooden bars only to forge iron bars in place of them!’

Of course history has proven Jeremiah’s words to be true. The Babylonian Empire engulfs the Israelite nation and their kingdom is no more, never to be returned to its full glory. What a time of great pain and crisis.. to finally be a people with their own kingdom and independence, their own governance.. and watch the Babylonian Empire invade like a weed, taking away some of their neighbors and loved ones.. and threatening to swallow them whole. [When is the right time to dig up those weeds? When would they be prepared with enough resources to do so? How do you know when to take action and what is the most effective action to take?] …I think we are still facing similar questions today in our own way.

And we too are struggling between conflicting viewpoints. Jeremiah and Hananiah both have very different opinions and predictions of their current situation. How could anyone know the truth; which was the true prophet of the Lord? How could the Israelites decide who to believe and why? In our lives today we are navigating conflicting viewpoints on many subjects. [Do we need to be quarantining or should we open the economy? Do we wear a mask, or not wear a mask? Should we say black lives matter or all lives matter? To protest or not to protest? Let immigrants in or keep them in cages and send them home?]... Just as the Israelites were called in their circumstances to discern the truth and seek God’s will, we too are called to this holy work.

Everyone wanted to believe Hananiah. They were DONE with Babylon! They wanted to believe that God would empower their small nation to overcome this evil superpower in a miraculous defeat! They were God’s chosen people, the elect; God dwells with them. God can and will lead them to victory; all they need to do is trust in God’s might and love for them.. Of course this message was popular. It was a word of comfort and empowerment; a balm to the ears of the Israelites hurt by Babylonian oppression. No one wanted to hear Jeremiah’s message. No one likes the bearer of bad news, they want the ‘feel-good’ prophesy! As Rev. Dr. Rachel Sophia Baard puts it, Jeremiah however helps “us to understand that the quick and easy answer, the popular position, the position held by the charming prophet, is not necessarily the true one.. beware of easy answers and simple solutions; and beware of resting on God’s grace as if we own it.”

So how do we know who to believe in our modern media warfare; Hananiah or Jeremiah? At the end of the day, who’s voice are we listening to? As disciples of Christ, it is God’s voice that speaks the loudest in our lives.. And what is the radical truth, the prophecy we should adhere to and act upon? Our gospel lesson is a stark reminder: welcome and hospitality. ‘Whoever welcomes me welcomes God,’ (v.40). When we are making our choices in the situations we find ourselves in everyday, we must seek to hear the voice of God above all else and welcome each person we encounter as if they were Jesus Christ himself. If we do this, if we ask ourselves daily, ‘Have I treated every person I encountered today as if they were Christ himself,’ then perhaps that will guide us to answers on some of the hard, contradicting messages we are being fed 24/7.

It is not always fun to be a Christian. We are often called to act in countercultural ways, vulnerable to scorn and persecution. Jesus has been warning us about the perils of discipleship for weeks in our gospel readings! Our challenged today is to not give into the Hananiah’s of our day; not giving into the easy answers, the comfort offered by the charming prophet that tells us what we want to hear.. but yoking ourselves to the cross and following Christ.

It may not be want we want to hear, but Christ calls us to radical welcome, radical hospitality. In the time of global pandemic, what actions do I need to take to welcome my neighbor? In what ways have I/do I welcome my neighbor who does not look like me.. or act like me.. or love like me.. or share my values or religion.. or country of origin?.. If we answer these holy questions with any hesitancy, restriction and stipulations then we have not heard the words of the world’s greatest prophet, God in the flesh, Jesus Christ.

To engage in radical welcome and hospitality is to share in the unconditional love and grace of the

God who died for every single soul we encounter. We will never encounter a human being God did not create in the divine image. We will never encounter a human being whom Christ did not die for. In this way, in every encounter we have, we come face to face with God. Will we extend our Lord a hearty welcome.. or will we lock the door based on how he looks (PSA Jesus was not a white man.. no one in the Bible is actually white)… or send him packing once we learn his gender identity.. sexual preference.. criminal history.. immigrant status.. political party.. or his yearly salary?.. If it seems absurd to think of asking our Lord these questions or demanding anything at all of our Lord on these subjects.. how much more absurd is it that we do this to one another?

Rev. Dr. Emilie M. Townes reminds us, “One response from this heightened awareness is to realize that we must practice not only hospitality but also repentance. Turning from familiar behavior patterns that do not welcome others, we turn toward acts that signal our willingness to embrace and live the new ways of being found in God. In repentance, our positions of privilege are debunked, and these old ways of being ‘at home’ are acknowledged as being morally bankrupt.”

Dear Church, we are not the gatekeepers of God’s community nor the judge and jury for who receives a life of abundance or not. We have been set free. We must relinquish this job, lest we cast off our wooden yoke in exchange for iron bars. There is already a gatekeeper, let us embrace our role as the welcome crew; extending radical hospitality to all, for they themselves bear the image of God.

Amen.

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From the ELCA"s Evangelical Lutheran book of Worship (ELW) - Hymn: All Are Welcome

Let us build a house where love can dwell and all can safely live, a place where saints and children tell how hearts learn to forgive. Built of hopes and dreams and visions, rock of faith and vault of grace; here the love of Christ shall end divisions: All are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place.

Let us build a house where prophets speak, and words are strong and true, where all God’s children dare to seek to dream God’s reign a-new. Here the cross shall stand as witness and as symbol of God’s grace; here as one we claim the faith of Jesus: All are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place.

Let us build a house where love is found in water, wine, and wheat; a banquet hall on holy ground where peace and justice meet. Here the love of God, through Jesus, is revealed in time and space; as we share in Christ the feast that frees us: All are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place.

Let us a build a house where hands will reach beyond the wood and stone to heal and strengthen, serve and teach, and live the Word they’re known. Here the outcast and the stranger bear the image of God’s face; let us bring an end to fear and danger: All are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place.

Let us build a house where all are named, their songs and visions heard and loved and treasured, taught and claimed as words within the Word. Built of tears and cries and laughter, prayers of faith and songs of grace, let this house proclaim from floor to rafter: All are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place.