To Be a Prophetic Witness

Introduction

This year has called us to live faithfully amid transition.

At a national level, we have seen radical ideological shifts in public policy.

At a local church level, we have seen the growth of the Interfaith Community Collective, a shift in pastoral leadership, and new structures in our neighborhood…

At a denominational level, we have been invited into a new vision to form disciples of Jesus Christ who, empowered by the Holy Spirit, love boldly, serve joyfully, and lead courageously in local communities and worldwide connections.

We are seeing a troubling trend at a societal level: companies pulling support from Juneteenth and PRIDE celebrations…

…not because these events have lost meaning, but because political influence and government stances demand their silence.

Social commentators often remark that we live in one of the most polarized periods in modern human history.

Our political parties are more polarized than ever, and very little partisanship is happening to govern the laws of our country.

If we’re honest, the one entity in our life that often shouldn’t be polarized is the church.

Perhaps this is the most dangerous polarization that often leads to the unjust exclusion of those whom God has claimed.

Tribalism leads to fragmentation and people being set in their ways or following unjust leaders without asking questions.

This blind faith to stay true to one's tribe is unhelpful and uncharacteristic of how God envisions us living in a community with one another.

People like Maikelys Antonella Espinoza Bernal are victims of such tribalism.

A two-year-old girl from Venezuela.

She arrived at the U.S. border last year with her mother and father, fleeing the violence and uncertainty of her homeland.

They were seeking refuge, not just for safety, but for the dignity of life that every child deserves.

Instead, Maikelys was separated from her parents earlier this spring.

Her mother was deported to Venezuela.

Her father was sent to a prison in El Salvador.

And Maikelys?

She was left behind—placed in foster care,

alone and afraid,

passed between homes,

…while a broken system debated her fate.

There was no clear plan to return her to her parents. No understanding of her tears.

Just silence.

There are times when we fail to recognize the humanity of others. In moments like these, scripture reveals that true love of neighbor rises above cultural conventions, grounded in the teachings of Jesus and the enduring prophetic witness for justice.

The question is: How can we, as Christians, be a prophetic witness for justice?

Love Boldly

To be a prophetic witness is to love boldly.

Imagine a God-fearing person—someone with strong Christian convictions—who is robbed, stripped, beaten, and left for dead on the side of the road.

You might expect those who share their faith and beliefs would stop to help.

But instead, a fundamentalist minister passes by, choosing to walk on the other side.

Perhaps this minister clings to a theology that says people get what they deserve—after all, that was the theological rationale in the 1980s toward those with AIDS,  as punishment for sin, or even a few years ago with those who died from COVID.

Now, imagine another minister—someone who believes in radical inclusivity. They lead the church that is always serving the poor and marginalized with food and toiletries, and you see them marching for causes to promote equality all the time. 

This minister sees the suffering but notices a political slogan on the victim’s shirt that doesn’t jive with their views...

...and feeling uneasy, decides to continue on their way.

Now, picture an Iranian Muslim refugee—someone who came to this country seeking asylum and a new life—stopping to tend the wounds of this injured person.

This stranger bandages his wounds, shows compassion, and takes him to Crouse Health for care.

Today's parable describes an expert in the law who is not intellectually curious when he asks Jesus, “Who is my neighbor?”

This person wants to know the limits...

To draw boundaries—who is in and who is out...

Jesus does not respond with a definition...

Instead, Jesus uses a parable designed to reorient his assumptions and expand his imagination on what it looks like to love more boldly.

It’s not the most pious religious leader...

It’s not the most merciful religious leader...

Two people who share the beaten person's Christian faith and cultural identity...

Instead, it is an outsider, perhaps the very type of person whom the beaten person thinks should be deported because of enforcement-first policies.

The Samaritan, or in our image today, the Iranian Muslim, becomes the model of neighborly love.

They don’t ask if the beaten person left for dead deserves help… They simply help and treat them as someone worth saving.

Jesus makes a powerful point: authentic love does not discriminate...

As United Methodists, we are called to love boldly, break down barriers, and include people of every age, nation, race, gender, and walk of life.

To be a prophetic witness is to love boldly.

Serve Joyfully

Expressing how you love boldly by developing statements of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging can be easy.

But to be a prophetic witness is to serve joyfully.

The prophet Amos holds up a plumb line, a measuring device—a string with a weight.

Builders would use it to determine if a wall was straight and structurally sound.

Amos uses the powerful symbol known to the community at the time to represent divine judgment and moral alignment.

For Amos, the community needs to walk the talk.

The Lord says… “See, I am setting a plumb line in the midst of my people Israel; I will spare them no longer; the high places of Isaac shall be made desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste, and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.”

Now you may be asking yourself… what is this judgment about? It’s not an easy word to hear…

Theologian John White would suggest that it is “exactly this loving nature of God that allows such an exacting measure of judgment.”

Friends, this judgment highlights God's ongoing call for us to reflect the holiness of God and justice in all our interactions with others…

… particularly in caring for the marginalized and oppressed.

If you are going to love boldly, you need to be serving joyfully.

To serve joyfully with a Christ-like heart is to journey alongside the most vulnerable, offering care and compassion with joy.

Pride and Juneteenth celebrations are about reclaiming identity and community in the face of systems that have tried to erase or diminish them.

Celebrating them affirms that every person is made in the image of God and worthy of justice, joy, and freedom.

Yet… in this season, when our siblings need allies more now than in recent times…

…corporations are rolling back support for these celebrations...

We are seeing those who serve joyfully fall to the pressures of government...

Lead Courageously

This brings us to our third and final point…

To be a prophetic witness is to lead courageously.

Here comes Amos..… a good ole’ farm boy...

Minding his own business, tending to the sycamore trees, and herding his sheep.

God calls him to lead courageously and be a voice against a society that conforms to the political powers of the day...

Not just to the king but to his closest advisor...

It sounds familiar...

When the king’s advisor tells Amos to go on, they don’t want to hear it...

Amos offers prophetic resistance and perseveres in his proclamation.

In his unwavering commitment to God’s message despite opposition, he draws upon the strength from God’s call rather than succumb to societal approval.

Amos doesn’t withdraw support from the marginalized… Amos advocates and advocates strong.

For Amos, he wants to convict their hearts because the political forces and the culture of the day have given in to the pressure of

media pundits,

social influencers,

and advisors to the political machine

...that has systematically crushed people experiencing poverty and ignored people in need.

Amos proclaims in stark warning that they will die by the sword and be exiled from the land.

When told to shut up and get out… Amos stands strong in his calling.

Friends, it can be easy to be intimidated.

It can be easy to cross the other side of the street...

It can be easy to manipulate the law...

To look beyond the oppressive forces that weigh us down, we must lead courageously by creating a community that saves.

Indeed, the great Christian mystic, Howard Thurman, argues that “it is necessary for the privileged and the underprivileged to work on the common environment to provide normal experiences of fellowship.” 

In other words, isolation, segregation, othering, and polarization do not produce the abundant living that our Creator seeks for creation.

This is what Amos is warning against!

No more false worship!

No more pretending to love God when you don’t espouse what it means to have an abundant life...

This is what Jesus was teaching!

Don’t manipulate the law to exclude others.

Don’t pretend to have Christian values when you’re simply going to pass by an opportunity to LIVE THEM!

God calls us to lead courageously by following Jesus’ example, resisting and dismantling all systems of evil, injustice, and oppression, striving for peace, justice, and reconciliation.

We must trust when God calls us into community,

to name the injustices around us

and to advocate for those who have no voice

…so they too can experience God's love and divine grace.

To be a prophetic witness is to lead courageously.

Kerygmatic Fulfillment

Remember Maikelys, just one of thousands of children separated from her family...

Remember those who looked like us and passed by in our greatest need, while an unexpected foreigner helped us...

Do we see the face of Christ in the refugee child?

Are refugees and immigrants not divinely made, worthy of care and protection?

Indeed… there are times when we fail to recognize the humanity of others.

In moments like these, scripture reveals

that true love of neighbor rises above cultural conventions,

grounded in the teachings of Jesus

and the enduring prophetic witness for justice.

To be a prophetic witness for justice is to love boldly, serve joyfully, and lead courageously.

In the name of our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer… Amen.