Year A
Season after Pentecost
Proper 8 (13)
Matthew 10:40-42

Contextual Background:

Jesus declares that whoever welcomes his disciples welcomes him — and that even a cup of cold water given in his name will not be forgotten.

Within the Jewish Tradition:

Hospitality was a sacred duty, rooted in Israel’s own experience of being strangers in Egypt. Prophets reminded Israel that care for the outsider reflects God’s character.

The Challenge Then:

The disciples were to depend on others’ welcome, trusting God to provide through hospitality.

The Challenge Now:

In a culture of suspicion and division, Jesus calls us to radical hospitality. Even small acts become signs of the Kindom.

This is also about leadership in its many forms. We often think of leaders as the people on the stage. Jesus rejects this. Those who set up chairs, make coffee, create a graphic, clean up, manage the calendar, and the many other small tasks of community building and leadership are engaging in leadership.

Implications for Leaders & Communities:

• Leaders: practice and teach hospitality as discipleship.
• Communities: measure faithfulness not by size or prestige but by acts of welcome.

What I Am Learning:

Hospitality is both vulnerable (receiving) and powerful (offering).

The Question I’m Sitting With:

How do I make my life and community places of welcome? How can I honor the many forms of leadership that make change toward the Kindom of God possible?