Trinity 3 Sermon

                          Faithful Yesterday, Courageous Tomorrow

                                          Matthew 10:24–39

May I speak in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

A number of years ago, a traveller visiting the island of Mallorca came across an old lighthouse standing on a rugged coastline. The lighthouse had guided ships safely for generations. Its stone walls had endured storms, strong winds, and changing seasons. As the traveller admired it, he asked the keeper, "What is the secret of this lighthouse's long life?"

The keeper replied, "The secret is that it was never built simply to stand here. It was built to shine."

The walls mattered. The structure mattered. The history mattered. But the lighthouse existed for one purpose: to send light into the darkness and help people find their way home.

It seems to me that churches can sometimes face a similar challenge. When we celebrate an anniversary, it is right to give thanks for the walls, the memories, the people, and the history. But the deepest question is not how long we have stood. The deepest question is whether we are still shining.

As we prepare to celebrate sixty years of this chaplaincy in Mallorca, today's Gospel asks us exactly that question.

Not simply, "Have we survived?"

Not simply, "Have we preserved what we inherited?"

But, "Are we still courageously following Christ and sharing his light with those around us?"

The passage we have heard today comes from a moment when Jesus is sending out his disciples.

He is preparing them for mission.

And what is striking is that Jesus does not give them a strategy document. He does not promise them success. He does not tell them that everyone will welcome them.

Instead, he tells them the truth.

There will be challenges.

There will be opposition.

There will be moments of uncertainty.

And yet, three times in this passage, Jesus says in one form or another:

"Do not be afraid."

Those words are as important for us today as they were for the first disciples.

Because every church that seeks to follow Christ faithfully eventually comes to a crossroads.

A moment when it must decide whether it will cling to what is familiar or step forward in faith into what God is calling it to become.

This year, as a chaplaincy, we are not only looking back over sixty years of ministry.

We are also looking forward.

We have discerned a vision:

"A faithful and welcoming English-speaking church sharing Christ's love with all."

Those are beautiful words.

But they are more than words.

They are a calling.

And every calling requires courage.

The first thing Jesus reminds us today is that disciples are called to be faithful.

The disciples are not above their master.

Their task is not to invent a different mission.

Their task is to follow Jesus.

That has been the calling of this chaplaincy for sixty years.

Generation after generation has gathered around Word and Sacrament.

People have worshipped here.

Prayed here.

Been baptised here.

Married here.

Mourned here.

Found comfort here.

Found faith here.

For sixty years, Christ has been at work among his people.

And today we give thanks for that faithfulness.

We honour those who came before us.

Those who sacrificed.

Those who prayed.

Those who served on committees.

Those who cared for buildings.

Those who welcomed newcomers.

Those who quietly kept the ministry going.

We stand on foundations laid by faithful disciples.

And we thank God for them.

But there is another truth in today's Gospel.

Faithfulness does not mean standing still.

The disciples were not called merely to remain where they were.

They were sent.

Jesus tells them:

"What I say to you in the dark, tell in the light."

In other words, what you have received, you must share.

Faith always moves outward.

The Church exists not only for those already gathered inside it.

The Church exists for the sake of God's mission in the world.

And that is where courage becomes necessary.

Our new vision speaks of being a welcoming church sharing Christ's love with all.

That sounds simple.

But it requires courage.

It means asking difficult questions.

How do we serve not only those who are already here, but also those whom God is sending to us?

How do we welcome residents, holidaymakers, workers, families, retirees, and those who may never have entered a church before?

How do we become not only a church that gathers, but a church that reaches out?

How do we share Christ's love in ways that speak to Mallorca today?

Those questions cannot be answered by looking only backwards.

They require us to trust that the Holy Spirit is leading us forward.

Jesus knows that such moments can create anxiety.

That is why he says:

"Do not be afraid."

The disciples had every reason to fear.

And so do churches.

We can fear change.

We can fear decline.

We can fear failure.

We can fear losing what we treasure.

Yet Jesus reminds us that our future does not rest ultimately in our own hands.

It rests in the hands of a loving God.

The God who knows every sparrow.

The God who numbers the hairs of our heads.

The God who has sustained this chaplaincy for sixty years.

The God who is already present in the future he is calling us toward.

One of the most challenging parts of today's Gospel comes near the end.

Jesus says:

"Whoever does not take up the cross and follow me is not worthy of me."

The cross is never comfortable.

It speaks of sacrifice.

It speaks of surrender.

It speaks of placing Christ's mission above our own preferences.

And perhaps every generation of Christians must ask:

"What does taking up the cross look like for us?"

For some, it may mean serving in new ways.

For others, it may mean welcoming people who are different from us.

For others, it may mean letting go of familiar habits so that new opportunities for mission can emerge.

For all of us, it means placing Christ at the centre.

Not our traditions.

Not our preferences.

Not our fears.

Christ.

As we approach our sixtieth anniversary, we have every reason to celebrate.

But anniversaries in the Church are never simply about looking back.

They are moments of recommitment.

Moments when we ask:

"Lord, what are you calling us to become?"

The greatest gift we can offer future generations is not merely a memory of what this church once was.

It is a living witness to what Christ is doing now.

The founders of this chaplaincy showed courage in their day.

They stepped out in faith.

They built something that would serve Christ in Mallorca.

Now it is our turn.

Not to repeat their work exactly.

But to embody the same faith.

The same trust.

The same willingness to follow wherever Christ leads.

So perhaps the message of today's Gospel can be summed up in two simple phrases.

Faithful Yesterday.

Giving thanks for all that God has done.

Honouring those who have gone before us.

Remembering God's goodness through sixty years.

And also:

Courageous Tomorrow.

Trusting Christ for the future.

Embracing the vision he has given us.

Becoming ever more a faithful and welcoming English-speaking church sharing Christ's love with all.

Like that lighthouse, we honour our history best not by merely preserving it, but by fulfilling its purpose.

Not simply standing.

But shining.

Shining with the light of Christ.

For Mallorca.

For all whom God sends to us.

And for generations yet to come.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Amen.