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Lectionary for June 21, 2026
Fourth Sunday after Pentecost
Jeremiah 20:7-13; Psalm 69:7-10, 16-18;
Romans 6:1-11; Matthew 10:24-39
One of my favorite movies is Kingdom of Heaven from 2005 (the director’s cut, naturally). It’s a loosely adapted telling of the loss of Jerusalem in 1187 by the Franks just before the Third Crusade. The film isn’t a history textbook by any means, but it is an entertaining look into a fascinating period of history.
One of the many pieces of dialogue that I enjoy is the conversation between Tiberias, the marshal of Jerusalem, and Guy de Lusignan, brother-in-law of the king of Jerusalem. Simply put: Guy wants war with the Muslim Fatimids while Tiberias wants peace. At one point, Tiberias exclaims to Guy, “That I would rather live with men than kill them is certainly why you are alive.” Guy flippantly responds, “That sort of [nonmurderous] Christianity has its uses, I suppose.” The contest of different versions of Christianity, such as we see between Pope Leo and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, isn’t particularly new. Indeed, in this week’s lectionary readings, we read preserved arguments about what God wills and wants.
The Jeremiah passage comes at the tail end in a long series of contests or “prophet-offs.” Jeremiah had been preaching an unpopular message: God, Godself, was going to bring the Kingdom of Judah to an end because of rampant idolatry and injustice. The people had set up golden idols and abused the poor, foreigners, widows and orphans. In response, Jeremiah told an unpopular truth: God will fight against God’s people when they fight against faithfulness and righteousness.
For telling this truth, the priest Pashhur used the cynical power of governmental religion to have Jeremiah beaten and locked in the stocks overnight (20:2). When Jeremiah was released from his humiliating and painful punishment the next day, he told Pashhur that he, his friends and his family would all either be struck down by the Babylonians or taken into exile. Pashhur (whose name means something like “freedom”) would also be renamed Magor Missaviv (“circling terror”). But even as Jeremiah told Pashhur about his future, the priest likely laughed at the young, upstart prophet. After all, Pashhur was still a priest. And Jeremiah would carry the wounds on his body for a long time as a reminder that, come what may, Pashhur, not Jeremiah, had won that day.
It’s in this context that we read Jeremiah’s lament. He called out violence and destruction but was mocked in the process (8). Even Jeremiah’s friends mocked him with the name that God had reserved for Pashhur (10). But Jeremiah displayed confidence that God would be vindicated one day. Those who committed idolatry and injustice, and then mocked those who called them to repentance, would one day see that God is not mocked.
There are those who only see value in Christianity if it helps them find power, wealth and domination over others. That is, of course, the opposite of the self-emptying ministry of Christ himself, and the witness of those who follow him in humble obedience.
Jesus had similar words for his disciples. If people mocked Jesus as the “lord of garbage,” they would do the same to those who actually follow him (Matthew 10:25). Jesus insisted that God knows when each little bird falls from the sky. And the disciples are worth more than many birds (29-30). What Jesus didn’t say here is that everyone who follows Jesus’ true way of loving enemies and praying for persecutors will be OK on earth. No, the expectation is that those who oppose idolatry and injustice will fall to the ground like so many birds. The ones who confess Jesus, however, will be received and welcomed by God the Father (32).
Jesus insists that a life of following him is not going to be one of easy-going agreement with everyone. Instead, one must have priorities. Jesus paraphrased Micah 7:6 to point out that, just like how he had disagreements with his mother and brothers (John 2:4, Matthew 12:47-49), his disciples would have disagreements with family members about the meanings and implications of responding to the gospel.
The assertion at the base of Jesus’ claim on us is this: we don’t own our lives or get to prioritize ourselves over God’s restorative mission. The one who finds her life will lose it, and the one who loses her life for Jesus’ sake will find it (Matthew 10:39). There are those who only see value in Christianity if it helps them find power, wealth and domination over others. That is, of course, the opposite of the self-emptying ministry of Christ himself, and the witness of those who follow him in humble obedience.
