July 04, 2010 14th Ordinary Sunday Is. 66:10-14; Gal. 6:14-18; Lk. 10:1-12 _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________   Readings:  http://www.usccb.org/nab/070410.shtml    ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________   The world has an immense need of labourers who will bring to life the kingdom of God. Jesus sent out a group during his own lifetime, and he sends us out to continue their work. Today we are the ones with the message, “Peace to this household.”   We are the ones who, through the power of Jesus, can make “even the demons subject to us.” And there are many demons roaming around in our world. There are addictions of every kind, greed under many guises, grudges held for years on end. We must be willing to be crucified to the standards of our world that stand in opposition to the reign of God.   Jesus warned us that the message of peace, and the means that we employ to establish that peace, may be rejected. Our efforts at change may not always be appreciated. But God restored the people in the past, and through us, God can continue to restore the people today.   No purse, no bag, no sandals: The command is to go empty-handed. The seventy are armed with only a message: the kingdom of God has come near. They are to speak these words to those who offer them hospitality and to those who do not. They are to be ambassadors for Christ; they are to live into God's vision for the world. They are to practice peace, do justice, perform the faith. After seeing what they had seen, after witnessing so much pain and so many miraculous moments, these followers were sent out to be doers of the word, to be kingdom carriers.   Have you felt the presence of the kingdom in your own life? Have you had those experiences when the thin veneer of ordinary human existence is broken and the glory of God shines through? There is something about the Christian faith that must be lived in order to be understood. Jesus knew this, and so he sent his disciples out into the world with only the message of the kingdom to guide them. It was all they needed.   Jesus is sending us out into a complex and hostile world, like sheep in the midst of wolves. The bad news is that all we carry is a message. The good news is that the message is this: the kingdom of God has come near!     <<   Previous: 13th Ordinary Sunday  | Next: 15th Ordinary Sunday >>   Go Back to SERMONS (Year C)