Matthew 10:40-42
In today’s reading, the NRSV translation you heard today, chose to use the word “welcome” in verse 40. “Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. [1]After doing some digging into the Greek and looking at several other English translations, I just don’t think this translation does justice to what Jesus is conveying.
I think most of us might understand what Jesus is saying with these words, but I really believe that instead of welcome, we may want to consider “receive” or “accepts”. Welcome in English just seems to lack to full substance of how deep this welcome, receiving and better yet, accepting means.
When I hear receive in this verse, I hear something to the effect of, whoever receives you; they receive you into their hearts and therefore receive me also into their hearts. The same goes for accepting and I believe even more so. To accept is exactly what Jesus did and what God does in Christ Jesus, for each and everyone of us. Acceptance not based upon condition but unconditional acceptance.
Let’s examine this idea of acceptance just a little further. It seems over the last several years, there has been a wider and wider gap being formed between people with different ideas. We have so may people taking such extreme stances on so many subjects. It seems like so often we have an “our way or the highway” attitude. Where is hospitality, acceptance, welcoming of others, unconditionally without the “but” clause added to every idea and statement. Can you just imagine where we would be if this is how God extended God’s grace to us? With the clause of you are welcomed, but….
Here is another interesting item in this verse. In the Greek, the text could also be translated, “Whoever accepts you, I accept, and whoever I accept accepts the one who sent me.” This translation has Jesus, our Lord accepting us upon our accepting of the disciple. God is doing the work, not us doing the work, of accepting God. This then makes it clearer that it is not works in the acceptance of God. Luther even said, that we cannot even have enough faith of our own to accept God but if it were not for the Spirit giving us faith. All that being said, we have freedom to choose to accept the disciple that is referred to in verse 40.
When Jesus is speaking about whoever accepts you, the “you” is any disciple as a disciple is one who follows Jesus. Therefore this applies to us in our daily lives. If we continue to examine this single verse, we can also see what Jesus says about those who reject the disciple. It is not written, but conversely expressed here. Whoever rejects you, I reject and whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me. Acceptance is life-giving, rejection is not.
This sounds harsh to think that we are being rejected. However, recall what was said in the Gospel of Matthew Last week in verse 32 and 33. Jesus is speaking and says; 32 “Everyone therefore who acknowledges me before others, I also will acknowledge before my Father in heaven; 33 but whoever denies me before others, I also will deny before my Father in heaven. [2]
Acceptance and rejection, of Jesus’s disciples is a very fine line I think sometimes! I cannot tell what is written upon another’s heart. I do not know the relationship that others have with God. If I reject, if I take a stance and draw a line in the sand, do I take a chance of rejecting one of Jesus disciples and in doing so, by my own free will, suffer the consequences of my actions?
Controversies are here now and more are coming in the future, where people will use the Bible to justify a stance, one way or another. On the other hand the Bible can also be used for acceptance, without the clause of “but”. Here is what I believe. The Bible is a love story of God and God’s unconditional love for God’s creation. God sees who we are, accepts unconditionally who we are. This does not mean God does not want more for us but accepts us where we are today.
The Spirit is continually seeking us out. Seeking us out to be accepting of God, Self and others. Even in our rejections of others, our God, and ourselves, God continues to shower us in God’s unconditional grace. That applies to not only to the disciples, who as humans have failures but also to those that are not yet disciples who have rejected God. God wants more for them and us.
Acceptance of others, acceptance of our Triune God, is a choice that we all are faced with each and every day. Jesus faced the greatest choice of all to accept the will of the Father, for the sake, not of Himself, but for others, others who may reject him or accept him. Jesus’ acceptance of God’s will for Himself and others is life-giving.
Amen
[1] The Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1989), Mt 10:40.
[2] The Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1989), Mt 10:32–33.