Freely have you received, freely give. Do not carry any gold or silver or money in your purses.
Do not take a traveling bag, or an extra shirt, or sandals, or a walking stick: workers deserve
to be compensated.
When you come to a town or a village, look for a worthy person, and stay there
until you leave.
When you enter the house, wish it peace. If the people are worthy people, your peace will rest
on them; if they are not worthy people, your blessing will come back to you.
And if you are not welcomed, and your words are not listened to, leave that house or that
town, and shake the dust off your feet. I assure you, it will go easier for the people of
Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment, than it will for the people of that town.
Reflect
How do we know when the kingdom of God is near? Every time we pray the Lord’s Prayer,
we ask that God’s kingdom come on earth, but what would that look like? Today’s Gospel
gives us a glimpse.
The kingdom of God is marked by healing, generosity, hospitality, trust, and peace. We rely
on God to meet our needs, as we reach out in turn to our brothers and sisters. We give
freely to others because God has given so generously to us. If we are to bring healing and
hope, both signs of the kingdom of God, we must go out to places that lack those things, to
the vulnerable people who live on the margins.
Our words and actions will not always be welcome and our efforts will not always be successful.
But we have to keep trying. As Saint Teresa of Calcutta taught, “God does not ask us to be
successful; he asks us to be faithful.”
© Copyright Bible Diary 2023