Fourth Sunday after Pentecost

On being a good houseguest of the S​pirit
Rev. Jennifer Masada - St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church - Kapa’au, Hawai'i
July 6, 2025 - Fourth  Sunday after Pentecost, Year C
2 Kings 5:1-14, Psalm 30, Galatians 6:1-16, Luke 10:1-11, 16-20

​Opening Prayer: O Holy One, we are guests in a complicated world, where we are both the lamb and the wolf. Calm our inner conflict. Flow through us like living water. Cleanse our hearts and quiet our minds with your peace. 

Last week, we reflected on the courage it takes to let go—of fear, and of the things outside our control. We named the invitation to release whatever blocks love, and to trust that in letting go, we make space for the Spirit to move. Letting go is how love begins to flow.

This week, we stay with the flow. We are guests in a complicated, ever-changing world, and my mother’s advice echoes in my head: when you’re in someone else’s home, be a good houseguest. In today’s scriptures, we meet two Spirit-led communities learning to be peaceful guests in a world of lambs and wolves.

Jesus sends out seventy disciples with simple, sacred instructions: “Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’” He sends them not as conquerors or judges, but as gracious guests. Receive what is given. Eat what is offered. Don’t bounce from house to house, looking for better treatment. Jesus teaches spiritual humility. He calls us to be grounded, to be content, to meet people where they are. We’re invited to remain open even when we’re not received. To travel light, even when burdens come. To carry peace—wherever we go.

If we are not welcomed, that’s okay. Some hearts are not ready for peace. Jesus says don’t retaliate, don’t argue. Just shake the dust off your feet and move on. But we struggle to shake the dust. We hold tightly to how we think things are supposed to go—at home, at work, in our relationships. When plans fall apart or when people push back, we feel rejected. We feel rejected even when we make mistakes. We focus on the hurt. We stomp off toward something better, hoping others will finally play by our rules.

What would our lives look like if we stopped clinging to self-righteous rejection? What if we released resentment like dust falling from our soles? What if we trusted that the Spirit keeps flowing, even when we are treated like lambs in a wolves’ world? And even when we act as wolves?

When we flow with the Spirit, life can take us to unexpected places with unknown events that teach us more about the peace we seek than we could ever imagine. 

In times like these, when division threatens peace, Paul’s letter to the Galatians meets us with a message of healing. He writes to a community struggling with division over law and identity, saying: “If anyone is caught in a transgression, you who have received the Spirit should restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness.”

A spirit of gentleness – surprising words from Paul, whose writing often cuts to the quick. Here, his words land softly as he encourages us to forgive and have compassion for others and for ourselves. 

Like the Galatians, we become entangled in debates about law, losing sight of Divine unity—the Oneness of all creation. In Christ, everything is connected, and we are in this together. We are invited to participate in unity through active intention. We are invited to move in rhythm with the Spirit, letting gentleness lead, refusing to return harshness with harshness. Paul’s message galvanizes us to work for justice and peace with compassion. He continues: “Bear one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” The law of Christ is love. It is relational. It moves through compassion and mercy.

Both of these stories remind us that our role as guests in this world is not to dominate, demand, or control, but to carry peace, to listen deeply, and to let grace flow through us. 

So how do we stay open-hearted in a closed-hearted world? Scripture's wisdom guides us to tend our own hearts — to clear out fear, resentment, ego, and judgment. Let the Spirit flow through the inner rooms of our being. Let our hearts be places of peace so that when we show up in someone else’s life, we bring peace with us.

There’s a temptation in our world today—to react, to harden, to defend. We see it in politics, in the news, among friends, even in our families. But our discipleship isn’t about controlling outcomes. It’s about allowing the Spirit to move through us—cleansing, refreshing, healing. Preparing us to be guests of grace and peace in a troubled world.

I remember instructing our boys before they went to a sleepover: “Be a good guest. Be respectful. Say please and thank you. Clean up after yourself. Ask if you can help with anything.” Solid advice, passed from my parents to my children.

It's a good reminder for me, as I navigate life today. We are guests in this place. As I look at the kāhili that graces our sanctuary, I am mindful that this church is a guest in the homeland of kanaka maoli.

We are not only guests in others’ homes—we are guests in the home of the Spirit. These God-gifted temples we call our bodies and minds are sacred dwellings where the Spirit lives, and we are invited to dwell with reverence. How often do we act like careless houseguests—tracking in the dust of distraction, cluttering the space with worry or judgment, forgetting that we’ve been welcomed into something holy?

We wouldn’t walk into someone’s home, complain about the clutter, and then add to the mess ourselves. But spiritually, we do this all the time. We rush into prayer with jumbled thoughts. We clumsily toss scraps of care. We think about love without feeling it, without moving with it. And all the while, we forget to pause, to notice, to honor the space we’ve entered—the inner sanctuary where the Spirit is already flowing.

To be good houseguests of the Spirit, we need regular cleansing. Spiritual cleansing doesn't mean perfection; it is a daily process that facilitates flow. Allow Spirit to move through, clearing what clogs us up, so we can flow with grace, wisdom, and love.

There's something deeply moving about the current of Christ energy we are made of and the powerful "muscle memory" of surrender that comes with letting go into that flow! So let us flow as the Spirit flows. Not rigid. Not reactive. Not clinging to the past or obsessed with results. Be present. Gentle. Open. Let the Spirit keep your heart soft. Let love keep you moving. 

And when you are not received or accepted as you are, when others are not received or accepted as they are, when peace is not welcomed—shake off the dust, but not your love. Keep flowing.
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Because love never ends. And the Spirit never stops moving.

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