Have you ever met a prophet? Would you welcome a prophet into your community and into your home?
If you and I are not the disciples in Matthew 10, then who are we? To understand collective responsibility and how we interact with prophets, let’s imagine ourselves as a villager in this story.
Matthew 10:41 states, “Whoever welcomes a prophet as a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward…”
When we speak of prophets, our mind often skips to the Old Testament: to Moses, Elijah, and Jonah. We turn our thoughts to ancient wise men, long dead, who shared God’s message to Israel and their neighbors, a message of repentance.
But what about the prophets our nation has not welcomed? What of Harriet Tubman, Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Malcolm X, Jemar Tisby, and so many more. Many we as a nation have silenced before we even learned their names.
Prophets amongst us
I struggled to write these thoughts down, in large part due to the grief and conviction in my own heart. I am watching as friends whose voices have been silenced for years are demanding we as a country listen. There is grief and righteous anger because they have not been welcomed.
As I listen I am searching my own heart and my actions. Are there ways I have silenced them? If so how do I now go about changing that?
It’s hard to listen, to really listen. It hurts. But it should hurt. When evil, when sin, is brought to light, change is demanded.
After all, it is a prophet’s job to call us out, to bring us to repentance, and to move us to change
The reward of a prophet is a reward that God gives. It is repentance, forgiveness, healing and hope.
Are there prophets in your life right now that are calling you out? Are you listening? Am I?
Listen to the words of this young woman and put yourself in her shoes for just a moment. Let her experience sit with you.
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Collective responsibility
What really struck me in Matthew 10 was the responsibility held by the community.
This story is a great place to unpack collective responsibility.
When Jesus sent out the disciples he told them when entering a village to go to the most respected house. If that home offered hospitality, they were to stay. If it did not, Jesus said in it would be better for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment then them.
One house and the entire village was blessed or condemned.
Western Christianity has elevated the individual’s salvation and responsibility to such an extent that collective responsibility isn’t even on our radar.
Let’s take a look back at those villages the disciples visited and imagine ourselves as members of that community.
As a member of a cursed village I could say as an individual, “I did not reject them, I never even knew they were here.” But the truth is as a member of that village I was part of the rejection. I would have been part of the systems and the culture that created “the house that was most respected.” What happened in that house is a representation of the values and beliefs of the entire village, including mine.
A leader, a representative of a group, does not gain authority and leadership if no one follows him. Those in the group are held responsible for his actions because their values are what placed him there.
At the same time, as a member of a village blessed, it would be easy to take pride in that. Why? If on one hand, I would claim I did nothing to deserve the curse, how can I also claim to have done what was necessary to receive the blessing?
No matter how “good a person” I am if I can’t see a problem for what it is I can’t be a part of the solution. Instead, we become stuck in a system that is unwelcoming to the prophet, to the righteous, and to the child.
The individual is still at fault for the community’s sin.
Being unaware of the problem only perpetuates the problem, passing it down generation after generation and solidifying it into the very culture and heartbeat of the community.
It’s time for REAL change
For real change to occur, we have to leave the comfort of what is familiar and be willing to listen to and believe the testimonies of others. We have to welcome those of different backgrounds, different beliefs, and different ethnicities than our own into our lives and our circles.
Just as the only Black pastor welcomed me, the only woman, to the table, it only takes one individual to change the dynamic of a whole group. But it isn’t easy. It’s not a comfortable place to sit because you are going against ingrained beliefs and cultural norms as you strive to remove sin from your life and become more Christ-like.
You and I are individually responsible for our actions but we are also responsible for the actions of the groups we are a part of. It is our job to see and call out injustice.
Welcome the prophet, welcome the righteous and you will receive the same reward that God has set aside for them.
But there’s one I just skipped isn’t there. The little one, the child and a glass of cold water. We will explore that tomorrow. For now, drop your thoughts in the comments below about collective responsibility. Let’s chat!
