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Scripture Readings

In last week’s gospel reading, Jesus answered a question from someone in the crowd around him. He cautioned against all kinds of greed, asserting that a person’s life does not consist in an abundance of possessions. He made a distinction between those who store up treasure for themselves and those who are rich towards God.

This week, Jesus is still answering the question, but in the meantime he has turned from the crowd to his disciples. He has been telling them not to be anxious or obsessed about food or drink or clothing, because their heavenly Father knows that they need these things. They should rather have the kingdom of God as their primary concern.

In the gospel reading from two weeks ago, the disciples had witnessed Jesus at prayer. Perhaps something of his intimacy with his heavenly Father prompted them to ask him to teach them to pray. He responded with the prayer formula that has become established in the Church as the Our Father, and then went on to assure them that that same Father knows how to give good gifts to his children – in particular, the gift of the Holy Spirit, who enables us to live the life of the kingdom of God.

This week, we hear Jesus telling his disciples not to be afraid, something he insists on over and over again in the gospels. And then he says something more, something quite wonderful. He says that their heavenly Father is delighted to give them the gift of the kingdom of God, the kingdom of love and truth, the kingdom of justice and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. This eagerness on God’s part to share the kingdom, to invite all people to enter it, is the basis of relationship with God.

Sermon for the Ninth Sunday after PentecostRead More »