July 22, 2026
| Grace and peace, Last week's gospel talked about the wheat and the weeds. When the slaves asked if they should remove the weeds, Jesus directed them to leave them alone. Rather than potentially uprooting the wheat, they should grow together. The separation will occur at the harvest. We might wonder, when is God's harvest? Jesus also offers that answer. The harvest comes in the end times. When will that be? Well, in another place in scripture Jesus advises that no one knows when that will be, not even the Son of Man. So what are we to do with all these unknowns? Live! Live walking in the ways of Jesus. I recently saw this wisdom exemplified. While scrolling FB, I saw that someone posted on the Flemington community page that ICE was in Flemington. Fortunately for all of you I couldn't retrieve the post. I say this because many of the replies from people in the community were vile and disgusting. They judged and devalued our neighbors. I found this heartbreaking. I actually found hope in the replies. Our own Christina Leah wrote back. She downplayed their lack of compassion and care and she lifted up our immigrant siblings as beloved members of the kingdom. She rejected their mean spirited replies and she stood tall with grace and compassion. Thank you Christina for being wheat among the weeds. Pastor JJ |
