The Fourth Sunday After Pentecost - July 6, 2025

Summary

Mother Suzanne reflects on Jesus sending out 72 disciples to proclaim the nearness of God's kingdom with simplicity and urgency, drawing parallels to her own small but mighty congregation at Grace Church. She connects this Biblical lesson to a recent tragedy in Kerrville, Texas, reminding us that even in our darkest moments, we can glimpse heaven through acts of valor and community, inviting the congregation to light candles in remembrance and hope.

THE GOSPEL                                                                                                                                              Luke 10:1-11, 16-20

The Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go. He said to them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. Go on your way. See, I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves. Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; and greet no one on the road. 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. Remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide, for the laborer deserves to be paid. Do not move about from house to house. Whenever you enter a town and its people welcome you, eat what is set before you; cure the sick who are there, and say to them, `The kingdom of God has come near to you.' But whenever you enter a town and they do not welcome you, go out into its streets and say, `Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off in protest against you. Yet know this: the kingdom of God has come near.'

"Whoever listens to you listens to me, and whoever rejects you rejects me, and whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me."

The seventy returned with joy, saying, "Lord, in your name even the demons submit to us!" He said to them, "I watched Satan fall from heaven like a flash of lightning. See, I have given you authority to tread on snakes and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing will hurt you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice at this, that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven." 

Artwork: He Sent them out Two by Two, by  Jame Tissot (1836–1902)

Transcript

Mother Suzanne:

For thus says the Lord as a mother comforts her child. So I will comfort you in the name of the one God, father, son and Holy Spirit. Amen. Please be seated. Well, at this point in the gospel of Luke, we are told that Luke, Luke tells us, excuse me, that Jesus is headed towards Jerusalem. That is another way of saying that Jesus is headed towards his death. But before he gets there, Jesus gives some very clear instructions about what it means to travel. So he does this thing. He sends 72 out. Remember these folks, these 72 truly are the seeds of our present day church. They're the ones who were sent because nothing, almost nothing was there other than what they had to rely on, which was Jesus. I mean, they depended upon him for everything. So Jesus says the thing, he says, just bring yourself because when you do, you bring me everything else that just gets in the way and becomes baggage. It's heavy, it's unneeded. Forget about all of those things that you think you need. Trust me and I will supply exactly what you need. What sets the tone for these extreme measures and instructions to not bring anything or to talk to anyone is that there is great urgency. Distractions are to be minimized if not completely removed things and engaging in unnecessary banter will only get in the way for what truly does matter and what truly matters is this.

But the workers to help are so few. Clearly those 72 have been sent out for a purpose. So I think the natural question to ask is what is the purpose? Why are these 72 sent out? Well, quite simply, it is to do this, to proclaim the nearness of the kingdom of God. Well, what does that mean? Well, as Jesus sets his eyes on Jerusalem, he sends out this wider group of folks. So before there were just 12, but now he knows that there will be more needed to do the job. He sends the 72 out and he says this, do it simply. Do it efficiently and do it well. Boy, do I like those instructions simply, efficiently and do it well. Don't beat people over the head with religious talk. Don't try to do a whole lot of convincing. Instead, just bring yourself and bring peace, but more than peace, offer shalom to all who will receive it. It is then that you will know that the kingdom of God has come near.

This may sound simple, but I have to remind you that these 72 are proclaiming an entire new way to live, a whole new way to look at life and the world, a whole new way to exist. The kingdom of God isn't something that you partly enter into. You don't just hop in and hop out of the kingdom of God deciding when it's good to be apart and when it just doesn't fit your fancy, you either join in or you don't. And if you join in, you remain because the work of the kingdom, it's for real. It's serious. And if you've been asked to join in, join in again. The kingdom of God isn't like a grocery store where you pick and choose what you want, when you want it.

So for instance, those things you like to take part in versus those things, well, less to your liking, you ignore disregard. Instead, what Jesus asks us to do is to see it all as good. Even the hard, even the challenging parts. Perhaps we will find it's something necessary. May I dare say something good for us. Yes. Even those things that we want to shun, even those things we want to run from and not experience because they're uncomfortable and painful dadgumit, we are to welcome. He says, because as Jesus reminds us, even through those times, goodness and growth can come.

And as I remind myself often and regularly, there is nothing ever, ever wasted in the kingdom of nothing. So one of the encouraging and inspiring parts of this passage is that the kingdom is propelled forth with a relatively small number of folks, just 72. And this reminds me a great deal of our grace. I bet you there might be 72 in here, if not close, those 72 remind me of the kingdom work we're doing here, 200 West slang in Alvin, Texas. Not with a whole lot of people, but all of us deeply aware that the harvest is plentiful and those doing the work are few. I say this as a reminder that this has been about since the beginning of time. This is exactly what Jesus had to work with. Lots of work but few willing to do it. And yet God's kingdom persisted and his whales ways prevailed as they always will as a priest.

One of the things that clearly rises up to the surface to meet every single week is this God will use, who is willing to be used, those who are willing to offer peace, those who are willing to rely on his strength alone, those who are willing to do what some might think is so foolish. God loves those, especially like small church named Grace with 60 or so members on a Sunday helping to feed an entire city. That's what the world calls foolish. But that's the kind of thing that happens in the kingdom of God when we're not relying on our own string just saying, here I am God, use me. Use us again. The kingdom of God is something you pick up and set down. When it's convenient, it is a way of life. It's choosing to live into our weakness, knowing that when we do, we are strong.

It's saying yes when all that's reasonable and rational screams, no, just run. It's loving and forgiving when others aren't expecting it. Oh gosh, that's a hard one, isn't it? It's offering peace and shalom and not expecting one thing in return. It's being open and not riddled with fear. It's living in full anticipation that God's grace and mercy are enough for you, for me, and for the whole world. Well, this has been a difficult and crippling few days for so many in our beloved state. Many of us in this room have vacationed and spent time. Maybe you've even camped at an RV park in Kerrville. Many of you know that area very well. Some of you all might have stayed in a cabin along the Guadalupe in a little town called Hunt, beautiful little town.

Many of you all might have friends and family who have been directly impacted by what has happened. And I will be honest, words fail me and all that rises up within me is sadness. I went back and forth. God, I don't know what to say, but to not say something I think would be the bigger mistake. So I in this moment struggle to offer words, but I know many of us have come here this morning to this sacred space that we love to find comfort and to be reminded of those things eternal when our words fail.

And the one thing that we can be sure of is that God doesn't fail. And for some, what I'm about to say will be hard to hear, but I have to say it, it's part of holding onto hope. And it is this, despite tragedy and despite loss, and I know many of us have experienced that some in recent days, whether we recognize it or not, even in this tragedy, dare I say, we've caught a glimpse of heaven. That thin, thin space where the veil between this world and the next is parted just a bit. How do I know this has happened? I'm going to tell you because I have been witness and I have heard and I have seen the valor. Boy, that's an old fashioned word, isn't it? A word you don't hear very often, the valor of ordinary people stepping in to do extraordinary and heroic things such as a man, a US coast guard man, his name is Scott, his first rescue mission. He was sent to Kerrville, Texas. And this man alone rescued 165 people. His first mission, he shunned the media. He didn't want to talk about it.

I think of my friend and fellow priest, Bert, who's the rector of the beautiful Episcopal church in downtown Kerrville. If you've ever been to Kerrville, you know which one I'm talking about? Beautiful space. And Bert, his wife Sarah and their daughter Evelyn and son Oliver, Evelyn, attended and has attended Camp Mystic since she was a little girl. And he too is at a loss for words. But you know what he's asking for? I shouldn't even say asking. He is imploring for prayer and intercession to the wider world because they can't bear it alone. The weight and pain is too great.

He is asking us to enter in. And so in our small way this morning here at Grace, we are going to enter into this wider offering of love, prayer, and remembrance. I can't help but think of myself as an 8-year-old camper and how excited I was to go to camp. Little Girls, we have set before you candles in our label, and I've made an exception today that is our goal that we usually use on a feast day called All Saints Day. I can't help but that in some ways we are experiencing the same this holy day All Saints Day today, in July, as we remember the many lives that have been lost. And just as on All Saints Day, we remember and we offer lives back to our creator. I want to invite every single one of you to light a candle in remembrance. And when we do, we trust that in and through all things God. Our loving creator is present, loving, comforting, offering shalom in the midst of immeasurable tragedy and sadness. And all we can say is, Lord, in your mercy, will you please hear our prayer. So at the time of Eucharist, I would invite and ask that we all light a candle in remembrance and hope, holding onto and reminding and remembering the dear people of Kerrville and Camp Mystic, especially, that they will forever be held in your loving arms. Amen.