Matthew 9:35-38; 10:1-8

To truly understand the depth of the meaning of the reading in Matthew this morning, I’d like you to pay a careful attention to these two words: ‘Compassion’ and ‘Shepherd’. While we often think of ‘Compassion’ as simply ‘feeling with’ someone, the roots of the word suggest something much deeper.

The English word ‘compassion’ comes from the Latin cum (with) and passi (to suffer). At its core, when you feel compassion toward someone, it literally means ‘you are suffering with them’. It isn’t just a passive emotion or a gentle feeling in the heart; it is a profound identification with the pain of someone else.

This is perfectly captured in today’s Matthew’s Gospel 9:36 by the Greek word used for ‘compassion’, “splanchnizomai”. This word refers to one’s inward parts—the viscera, the internal organs in your body. It describes a reaction so intense that it is felt in the gut. This word does not merely describe a mental decision to be kind or a third-party observation of someone’s pain. When Jesus saw the crowds, His compassion was much like an internal physical ache.

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Genesis 12:1-9

Today, we are looking at one of the most critical moments in human history—the day God called a man named Abram. Up until this point in Genesis, humanity had wandered far from God, culminating in the proud of Babel Tower. But in Genesis 12, God changes His strategy. Instead of addressing the whole world at once, He handpicks one man, and as the result, that one man’s life would never be the same.

If there is one thing the Bible teaches us, it is this: God rarely does His greatest work within our comfort zones. Because He is still deeply committed to working through us, He quite often begins by disrupting our comfort zones.

“If God is an all-powerful, all-knowing god, why couldn’t He accomplish His purposes in our lives anywhere—whether we are in a place of comfort or a place of challenge?” we might ask.

I believe God shakes up our comfort zones to pull us away from relying on familiar routines and move us toward total trust in His guidance and provision. Of course, we don’t like it—and frankly, neither did Abram. If we stay too long within our comfort zones, leaning entirely on our own resources, habits, and sense of security, we start to believe we are the ones calling the shots. We might think that we don’t need anyone’s help, and sadly, that often includes God.

Today’s story begins with a staggering command by God: “Abram! Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.”

Think about what God was asking. Your country, your close relatives, your parents and siblings are your safety net, your financial security and identity. When God asked Abram to leave, he didn’t give him a destination! He just said, “Just go and I will show you later.”

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Matthew 28:16-20 Genesis 1:26-28; 2:1-4.

Some people do not really enjoy doctrinal teachings. They think they are boring and do not understand or relate to them. As a matter of fact, theology is nothing more than what you think about God. If someone shouts that he doesn’t believe in God, then, that is his theology. He is expressing his thought about God, that he doesn’t think exist in his world. Whether they believe or don’t believe, they all point to one thing. Is God real or not?

We, as a Uniting Church, honour the lectionary readings and the seasons of the church year because those lectionary readings and the church calendar have been carefully and practically organised based on the three-year basis and they all point to one thing: ‘God lives in your life’.

Today is Trinity Sunday. Matthew gospel reading today is often called ‘the final commission’, which means there would be no more commission other than this that Jesus has given us. It reads, “Go to all peoples everywhere and make them my followers. Baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teach them to keep and practice everything I have commanded you.”

Trinity is about God in three persons–Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Do we fully understand this wonderful doctrine? Someone once asked Mrs. Albert Einstein if she understood her husband’s theory of relativity. “No”, she said, “but I know my husband.”

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John 17:1-11, 1 Peter 4:12-14

Every year, a local community garden invited the neighbourhood to plant a plot. Early in the spring, the registration line was always out the door. People arrived with bright visions of the harvest— tomatoes, lettuce, and strawberries. They happily signed up, dreaming of the abundance they would soon take home to their dinner tables.

For the first few weeks, the garden was full of laughter and excitement. But as the season deepened, the reality of the garden shifted. The scorching summer sun arrived. Weeds began to choke the soil, requiring backbreaking work on hands and knees for hours.

Slowly, the garden grew quiet. Many who had joyfully signed up for the harvest stopped showing up when the dirt got under their fingernails and the heat became uncomfortable. They loved the concept of the harvest, but they were entirely unprepared for the cost of cultivation.

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John 14:15-21

Over the last few weeks, we have been exploring several Gospel passages together. As a quick reminder, Jesus had just told His disciples that He would soon be leaving them, and this made them feel overwhelmed by fear and anxiety. That same sense of unease still lingers in the air in today’s reading from the Gospel of John, chapter 14.

Today, we are exploring a crucial moment in the lives of the disciples, who had spent 3 years with their Master. Just Imagine how wonderful it would have been to walk beside Jesus—to see His face and hear His voice in person.

I often hear people say that they would believe without hesitation if Jesus would only show Himself to them just once. They say, “All my doubts and unclarities would vanish once and for all.”

For three years, those disciples had a “physical companion.” When they were hungry, Jesus provided food. When they were afraid of a storm, He calmed the sea. Their faith was tied to a God they could see and touch everyday.

From the very moment Jesus called them by the shores of Galilee, they never left His side. Many believers at that time also shared the same desperate need to keep Him close. They would think, ‘As long as Christ is physically with me, I am safe, but without Him, I’d have been completely lost.’

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