Readings: Jeremiah 20: 10-13; Psalm 68; Romans 5:12-15; Matthew 10:26-33
Grace and peace to you, dear brothers and sisters in Christ. Today we celebrate the 12th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus repeatedly instructs His disciples not to be afraid. Three times He says, “Do not be afraid.” To appreciate the force of these words, we must understand the context. Jesus was sending His disciples out on mission. He warned them that they would face opposition, rejection, persecution, and suffering. Yet He told them not to be afraid of people and not to be ashamed of witnessing to Him. Instead, they were to trust in God’s providence, knowing that nothing could happen to them without the knowledge of their Heavenly Father. Jesus assures them that even the hairs on their heads have all been counted.
Like the disciples, we all experience fear. We are afraid of many things. Some are afraid of failure. Others are afraid of the future, the uncertainty of what lies ahead, possible changes in health, employment, finances, relationships, family life, or the wellbeing of their children. Many are afraid of people, what they might say, do, or think. We fear criticism, rejection, opposition, threats, and harm. Some are afraid of sickness, suffering, and ultimately death itself.
In the midst of all these fears, Jesus tells us that every hair on our heads has been counted. This means that God takes a personal interest in each one of us. He knows us intimately and completely. He knows our strengths and weaknesses, our hopes and disappointments, our wounds and struggles. He knows our health concerns, our family situations, our financial burdens, our immigration challenges, and our difficulties at work, our hidden tears, and the fears we carry in our hearts. Indeed, He knows us better than we know ourselves.
This is why prayer is not about informing God of our needs. As Psalm 139 reminds us, He already knows. Rather, prayer is an act of trust, surrender, and dependence upon Him.
God knows everything about us, yet He loves us completely. Only God can know all about us and still love us absolutely.
He cares about every detail of our lives. Nothing escapes His attention. If He knows the number of hairs on our heads, then certainly He knows every burden we carry. Nothing can happen to us without His knowledge and permission.
Therefore, like Jeremiah in today’s First Reading, we must commit our cause to the Lord. Enemies and opposition surrounded Jeremiah, yet he placed his trust in God. We too must trust that God remains in control, that He loves us deeply, and that He is working even when we cannot understand His ways. We must refuse to allow fear to dominate our lives.
If there is anything we should fear, it should be the things that truly matter.
First, we should fear sin that is, offending a God who loves us so much. The Second Reading reminds us of the devastating consequences of sin. Through sin came spiritual death and separation from God.
Second, we should fear dying without being in friendship with God. There can be no greater tragedy than leaving this world unprepared to meet Him.
Third, we should fear eternal separation from God. We should fear being disowned by Him because of our refusal to accept His grace and mercy.
Thankfully, through the saving work of Jesus Christ, we do not have to live in fear. Through His Sacred and Merciful Heart, opened for us on the Cross, the gates of heaven have been opened. His mercy is greater than our sins, His grace is stronger than our weakness, and His love is more powerful than our fears.
Let us therefore place our trust completely in Him. Let us not allow fear to rule our hearts or ruin our lives. Rather, let us live with confidence in God’s love and providence, striving always to remain in friendship with Him so that nothing may separate us from Him in time or in eternity.
Sermon preached by Fr Emmanuel Baraka-Gukena Okami on Sunday, June 21, 2026