06/15/2026
Sunday Sermon - Scott Muffett, S.A.M
June 14, 2026 | Pentecost, 3, a
Exodus 19: 2-8a; Psalm 100; Romans 5: 1-8; Matthew 9: 35 — 10: 8 [9-23]
We live in a wild world today, don’t we?
There are a lot of people around us, living in a constant state of fear. There is the war with Iran, the seemingly never-ending war in Ukraine, an Ebola outbreak in Congo, unrest and violence in our own American cities as people are being arrested and deported. Economic uncertainty and rising costs for gas and food. The construction of Data centers, the loss of privacy and personal freedoms as our government becomes more overbearing, and the lingering fear left in many of us from the remnants of the pandemic.
There are so many things that can cause us to be uneasy and afraid of how things might turn out. There’s a lot going on in the world right now that’s driving our fears. Are you worried about anything? How about that next Dentist or Doctor’s appointment? Now we’re talking!
Worry and fear are in and around our lives, whether it’s something on the news, a story that we hear, or something that deeply affects us.
I like to tease Loretta sometimes about her being anxious or worried. I have been known to occasionally refer to her as “Fretretta”. I even bought a coaster for her – it says: 90% of the things I worry about never happen. Worrying works! Loretta is the strongest, most valiant woman I know – but she, as well as I, have our fears and worries about the normal day-to-day concerns we face. We just worry about different things.
I started off saying that we live in a wild world today – but is it really all that wild as compared to the times in our readings?
In all three of our readings today I can envision myself being placed inside the context of the reading and being fearful of the situation.
We have the story from Exodus with Moses leading his people in the wilderness. The people commit themselves completely to God’s will and commit themselves to following Moses and doing as God commanded – but we know it had to be scary. Three days after they agree to “do everything that the Lord has spoken”, God comes down to Mount Sinai with Thunder, lightning, a trumpet blast that was so loud it made everyone tremble – and the mountain was wrapped in smoke as the Lord descended upon it in fire. I think all the Scotts and Lorettas down at the base of Mt. Sinai were afraid, especially after Moses had to warn the people not to break through to see the Lord, or otherwise many of them would perish. There’s a term for how scared I would be – it goes something like - I’d be scared – blank less! Talk about putting the Fear of God into you! But there goes Moses, heading up that mountain to go talk to God – and then bringing Aaron up. Moses wasn’t afraid, but I wonder about how Aaron was doing.
Paul tells us in today’s reading from the book of Romans that we should “boast” of our afflictions – and explains how enduring them produces character and then hope. Like taking on afflictions is just a walk in the park, right? If Paul was telling me – well, I guess Paul is telling me – that I’m going to be taking on afflictions brought on by professing faith in the risen Lord, in being a follower of Christ, I would be a little afraid of that. Affliction – what are we talking here? How bad can it be? Stoning, crucifixion, um, I’m out. Can I just have some easier afflictions, please? Maybe some bunions, or a mild affliction, perhaps the Flu? Paul went through some stuff, some real afflictions – Prison, beatings, torture, shipwrecks, and finally, beheading by the Romans. How was it that Paul wasn’t scared? Just a random thought here - If that stuff didn’t scare him, what kind of stuff did Paul worry about?
Our Gospel reading from Matthew gets downright scary about what the disciples are going to encounter. Jesus is sending them out like sheep in the midst of wolves. As one of these lucky guys, I get to be flogged, and I will be hated by all, Yikes! And as one of the disciples I’m supposed to be good with this, to be unafraid. I’m thinking I may have had just a tad bit of fear or anxiety as I set out on this trip. And I’m sure the disciples did too – we know they showed fear in other circumstances – quite understandable, right?
Even the story of Jesus and the cross is filled with fear.
After Jesus’ arrest, the disciples feared for their lives; afraid that they might be the next to be arrested or even executed. Three times someone accused Peter of knowing Jesus, and three times he denied knowing his Lord. When we’re afraid, our faith might not feel as strong as it usually is.
Then Jesus was crucified, and He died. But fear didn’t stop with Jesus’ death.
A few days later, on Easter morning, soldiers who were guarding the tomb were frightened by the stone rolled away and the angels who were there. The two Marys found the tomb empty and they were afraid that someone stole Jesus’ body.
And when Jesus finally appeared to His disciples, He had to say to them “peace be with you” just to get them to calm down. In all the chaos, and uncertainty, questions of what the future holds seem to produce a steady stream of fear. Then, and for us now.
In our text from Matthew today, Jesus told his disciples that they’ll carry the Gospel message. They were going to be required to leave their comfort zone and walk into hostile situations. Just like Jesus received a lot of opposition, many would be violently against the disciples too.
As I mentioned, that sounds like a pretty scary situation to me. Jesus was trying to prepare them for what they would face later. But also remind them, that it was going to be ok.
Our words today in the Gospel say that Jesus closes with one little caveat – that the one who endures will be saved.
Endurance – hmm, it seems like another common thread throughout these readings. The Israelites endured 40 years of wandering in the wilderness. Paul endured all his “afflictions’, and he did it with Love and Grace, although he may have gotten a little cranky at times. I think Moses was known to be cranky once or twice as well. Never about their path that God set before them, but for the failings and fearfulness of their human brethren.
The disciples endured all sorts of uncertainty, and the eventual loss of their Lord, but were rescued by their enduring belief – which finally made them unafraid. Unafraid to become speakers of the truth and to adhere to their Faith in Jesus and everlasting life – no matter what sort of “afflictions” they faced.
Be Not Afraid – and endure.
Good words to live by. Perhaps just a tad easier said than done, though.
I don’t think we can ever fully put aside all of our fears, but I do believe we can endure them. I also believe that as we endure more, we grow less fearful – and we can even get to the point of boasting about the afflictions we have endured.
Fear is just another part of our faith journey as we look to get connected to God, and work to find a path away from anxiety, and toward hope. This Hope mentioned in our reading from Romans – because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us. Now we’re talking!
Don’t let fear affect your faith and…don’t underestimate what God can do in your life. Even in our worst moments of fearfulness, remember we have hope, and love.
Some fears are rational because they may happen and affect us directly. Other fears are irrational, because we’re afraid of something, but we may not know why. Fear can impact how we live, as we avoid those things that cause distress. But it can also affect our faith journey too.
Sometimes we might fear those things that affect our walk with God. We could be afraid that God won’t forgive us of the terrible things that we’ve done, or that we didn’t read the Bible enough, pray enough or take care of others enough. We might feel that our misfortune is because we’re being punished by Him. We might feel that God doesn’t pay attention to us and doesn’t love us. Fears like this can really challenge our relationship with God, doubt His freely given Grace for us, and question our faith.
Grace, after all, is a gift that we didn’t earn, don’t deserve and can’t do anything to pay for. We’re all sinners and can never do anything good enough to gain a gift from Him. Yet, God freely gives gifts to us every day; gifts of food, gifts of shelter, so many gifts and blessings: sunrises, sunsets, the laughter of children, the warmth of fellowship with family and friends, and the greatest gift of all, the gift of a savior.
We’re all going to face some sort of storm in life, heck, we are lucky if it is just one storm! But God is always right there next to us. Some of our storms are small showers that we walk through without a whole lot of difficulty. But some are hurricanes that require endurance and perseverance – and HOPE. With Faith, with Love for our savior, and with hope, we can overcome our fears and endure the tough times.
When we’re in those terrible storms, it’s good to remember that Jesus is in the boat right next to us. What looks like a disaster to us, is something that God can heal with only a word. We can overcome our fears and look bravely to the future because God is always with us.
When we look at our lives and the lives of those around us, we can see that worry, and fear are going to continue to be with us. Sin still exists, and so does the fear that often comes with sin.
Next time you are feeling afraid or overwhelmed, remember God is still in control. Like Moses, don’t underestimate what He can do in your life, or anyone else’s life.
Next time you get worried about something, remember that God always loves you. Like Paul, hold your faith close.
Like the disciples, don’t forget to ask for help, and lean on His understanding when things get beyond our control. God is always right next to us in every situation we face.
We can learn a lot from those who feared.
God won’t abandon us.
God won’t forget us.
God will always love us.
Amen.
