Sermon on Luke 10:1-11, 16-20

Pastor Jennifer Garcia

There’s a quote attributed to Martin Luther that says, “To sing is to pray twice.”

We just sang “As We Gather at Your Table,” which is a lovely hymn, but if we’re paying attention, we might be alarmed by what we are “praying twice.”

Gathering at God’s table sounds great, and we do that each week. But we sometimes reserved Lutherans might be a little more hesitant to ask God to “turn our worship into witness,” “send us forth,” and “help us summon other guests to share that feast.”

But that’s exactly what Jesus was asking his disciples to do in our Gospel reading this week.

Jesus was getting more attention, and his group of followers was growing. It was time to get the word out faster and empower Jesus’ disciples to carry his message of God’s love themselves.

So, he sent 72 of his disciples out in pairs to go ahead of him into places he intended to visit. He warned them that they would be like lambs in the midst of wolves. They were not to bring anything with them. He gave them instructions for what to when (not if) a town didn’t welcome them. Yikes! Not exactly an assignment I would be eager to sign up for.

But when you look closer, what Jesus was asking them to do was pretty beautiful.After all, he was, as he said in Luke 4, here to “proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” He had come to tell the world about God’s Beloved Community. In our story today, he was giving his disciples hands-on experience in working with God to spread the Beloved Community wherever they went. His instructions show us some things about that Beloved Community:

Jesus sent them in pairs—they weren’t alone.Spreading God’s love involves working together with other people.

They weren’t supposed to bring anything with them. Their possessions would make them more independent—they could buy their own food and pay for lodging. Instead, they would be required to depend on others’ hospitality.There’s nothing like sharing food to make people feel closer to each other.

But the relationship wasn’t completely one-sided: the disciples were to cure anyone who was sick. I’m sure they also shared their stories of Jesus and how their lives had changed because of what he taught them and the miracles they had witnessed.

And whether the town accepted them or not, their visit was to be book-ended by a word of peace and a declaration that the Beloved Community had come near.

The Greek word for “peace” here, as well as “shalom” in Hebrew, doesn’t just mean an absence of conflict or war, just as health isn’t just an absence of illness and success isn’t just an absence of failure. Peace here is a holistic sense of wellbeing and restoration of community.

This holistic sense of peace is a defining characteristic of Beloved Community. Martin Luther King Jr., who made the term Beloved Community widespread, said that “peace is not merely the absence of some negative force—war, tensions, confusion but it is the presence of some positive force—justice, goodwill, the power of the kingdom of God.”

Jesus wasn’t sending his disciples out just to not get in fights, but to bring that expansive, holistic, positive peace wherever they went.

That sounds pretty good.

But it also sounds unattainable in today’s society.

Our country and much of the world are experiencing polarization and division.

Disagreements about issues get turned into name calling and even dehumanization of the other side.

There are terrible wars and conflicts around the world. My heart aches for all the people affected by violence near and far. And even where there isn’t outright war, there is often barely the “absence of a negative force,” let alone peace in a positive or holistic sense.

Even in our own families and neighborhoods, political discussions can quickly turn heated and aggressive. “Agreeing to disagree” often just turns to a tense silence.

I keep returning to the thought that it shouldn’t be like this. There shouldn’t be starvation and bombing and people afraid to leave their homes and governments who won’t listen to their people.

The hospitality and shalom sense of peace in our Gospel reading seem far away and maybe even impossible.

But even though God may not be calling us to set down our wallets, take off our shoes and wander from town to town (we might have a lot of dust to shake off our feet if we tried that), God is calling us to spread the Beloved Community wherever we go. That’s what being a follower of Jesus is about.

And we’re not alone in the effort. Just as Jesus sent his disciples out in pairs, we have the Holy Spirit within us, guiding and encouraging us, and we have each other. We are already part of a community of faith. We gather at God’s table each week to remember Who we belong to and to fortify us for the journey ahead—to be filled with God’s peace as we go about our daily lives. And though we’re not having communion this week because I’m sick, trust that God is present and building Beloved Community within and between us anyway. Enjoy some coffee and conversationafter the service and feel the Spirit moving.

As we go about our week, let’s be more open to the hospitality around us. It’s easier to hand someone something and go on our way instead of really having a conversation. Sometimes the real work of ministry feels the least productive.

In college, there was a group of students that served a hot meal in a park once a week for anyone who needed it. It really only required three or four people to serve the meal, but many more came and just sat down and talked with people. Getting to know people—learning people’s names, what they were passionate about, cracking jokes, and maybe if you built up enough trust, they would share their heartbreak with you, and you would share yours with them. The food was important, but it wasn’t the whole point.

Similarly, at my internship congregation, there was a grief support group of about 8-12 people. They met for an hour once a week, and then they went out to lunch afterwards. The formal setting of the support group was important, but I think at least as much healing happened over the meals afterwards. Friendships formed, the mood lightened, and people felt less alone.

The mutuality of these examples points to Jesus’ instructions in our Gospel reading. The Beloved Community isn’t about charity in the “we are giving to you” sense, but about hospitality and relationship. It’s the declaration of dependence that Pastor Jaz talked about last week. We’re dependent on the crucified and risen Christ and on each other.

If we’re only giving, we’re missing out on the relationships built by both giving and receiving. And if we’re only receiving, we’re losing out on agency and the joys of generosity. Ideally there’s both: Jesus’ disciples received hospitality and brought peace and healing—the reverse was true of those who housed them.

So as you go about your week, watch for opportunities for the mutuality of the Beloved Community—opportunities to share and be shared with, not just resources but also stories and conversation. Bring the peace, the shalom, of God with you wherever you go. If an acquaintance doesn’t welcome you, don’t wish fire down upon their heads but just dust yourself off and move on. Maybe that’s a connection for someone else to foster.

And always remember that you are not alone. You have the Holy Spirit with you always and the kinship of this community. Don’t be shy about sharing the love you’ve received with those around you. God knows, our world needs it. Peace be with you.