21st June 2026 –
12th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A) Matthew 10:26-33
The gospels tell us that Jesus refused to ignore sinners. Indeed, he was often seen in company with them: prostitutes, who sold their bodies; or tax collectors who stole from the people. He knew what they were up to; he didn’t agree with their behaviour, but he didn’t reject them. Nor was he scandalised by victims, those whom the world might call losers. These were all the literal and metaphorical lepers who were shunned by society, sometimes even for reasons that appeared religious. Jesus associated with such victims.
Jesus wasn’t offended or disgusted by any of these people. So, as a result, some people were outraged and affronted by him. These were the authorities, who might be termed the ‘good people’. They resented very much his refusal to be offended. For their world depended on some people being dismissed as useless, so that others could enjoy advantages. By acting in this way, besides doing harm to others, they did harm to themselves: they cut themselves off from the grace of God.
Jesus was not affronted by sinners and victims. More than that, Jesus was not even upset with the cruel or unjust people. He knew what they were doing. He publicly criticised it, but he was not shocked or surprised. He recognised that, like their victims, these victimisers lacked freedom. Their power, their position, their pride may have kept them ignorant, but they were enslaved by their own injustice. We know that the religious authorities of Jesus time were so outraged by Him that they launched a conspiracy that brought Jesus to his death – and to resurrection.
What about Jesus’ disciples – those first followers of his and what about us? Jesus invites us not to be offended or put off by anyone. But he warns us that by living in this way, we will offend other people. So Jesus is asking a lot of us. We are not to be either victim or victimiser. The lives of victims and victimisers involve fear. They certainly fear their enemies but for different reasons. Jesus tells us not have enemies. If others see us as their enemy, that is in fact their problem, but we are not to treat them as enemies, or as effective threats. We are not to play a part in this world’s ways. We must not let others define who we are. Christians must accept the identity that comes to us from God. We are his children, and we are of infinite value. And whether or not they know it, this identity is available to everyone else as well.
To accept Christ’s way we have to die to the old way, governed as it is by immoral behaviour and fear and death. We are to live, through baptism, in a way that is turned towards God, who sees us as his children, who gives us the Holy Spirit, the Lord and giver of life. To some, this way of life, with its humility and demands for forgiveness, sounds impossible. Others imagine it as unbearably weak. But humility means being honest and truthful – before God, each other and with ourselves. Forgiveness means we refuse to be imprisoned in the scandals of this world. Christians must refuse to be remade by the evil done to us. We accept instead our identity from God, showing and demonstrating the divine image and likeness by our freedom not to be scandalised. It is, therefore, our privilege to receive the gift of Divine grace – which makes us strong. This is what makes us a people who are not afraid.
